Artefacts of Power
#7583.90 in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 6 books Status Complete 1994–2013 Reading commitment Medium Maggie Furey Last reviewed 2026-11-02
Overview
The Artefacts of Power is an epic fantasy series by British author Maggie Furey, published from 1994 to 1997. Aurian, the daughter of renegade Mages, flees the Mages' Academy in the city of Nexis and searches the Southern Lands for four lost magical Artefacts in order to stop her former teacher, the Archmage Miathan. Four novels follow her quest. Two later prequels, the Chronicles of the Xandim (2008 and 2013), are set in the same lands in the distant past of the Magefolk, when the Artefacts were made, and follow the Xandim, a people enslaved in horse form. The author died in 2016, and both series are finished.
Epic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (6 works) counts toward ranking
Artefacts of Power Maggie Furey
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Aurian | 1994 | 1 | core | 3.93 (3,433 ratings) |
 | Harp of Winds | 1995 | 2 | core | 3.92 (2,518 ratings) |
 | Sword of Flame; Publication years differ between sources (1995 or 1996); Wikipedia's list is followed. | 1996 | 3 | core | 3.89 (2,072 ratings) |
 | Dhiammara | 1997 | 4 | core | 3.84 (1,939 ratings) |
Aurian's quest across the Southern Lands to find four lost Artefacts and stop the Archmage Miathan.
Chronicles of the Xandim Maggie Furey
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Heritage of the Xandim; Prequel to the Artefacts of Power; set long before Aurian. | 2008 | 1 | core | 3.76 (178 ratings) |
 | Exodus of the Xandim; Second and final book of the prequel duology. | 2013 | 2 | core | 4.00 (65 ratings) |
Prequel duology set when the Artefacts of Power were made, following the enslaved Xandim.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Artefacts of Power? Artefacts of Power's Core Canon is 6 books.
- What is the reading order for Artefacts of Power? Publication order, starting with Aurian. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Artefacts of Power finished? Complete (1994–2013).
- How much reading does Artefacts of Power take? Medium reading commitment (estimated from 6 Core Canon books).
- How is Artefacts of Power ranked? #758 in this site's official ranking, based on 10,205 reader ratings across 6 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #758?
Ranked #758 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 3.90 across 6 core books.
- A smaller readership (10,205 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #757, Seraphina (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.46.
Why explore this universe?
Rated · 6 books · Complete · 10k ratings · Ranks #758 overall
Good choice if you want a moderate-length epic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (6 Core Canon books)
- Aurian (1994)
- Harp of Winds (1995)
- Sword of Flame (1996)
- Dhiammara (1997)
- Heritage of the Xandim (2008)
- Exodus of the Xandim (2013)
Documented internal/story order
- Aurian (1994)
- Heritage of the Xandim (2008)
- Harp of Winds (1995)
- Exodus of the Xandim (2013)
- Sword of Flame (1996)
- Dhiammara (1997)
Awards (verified)
- No awards found for this universe.
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.90 across 10,205 ratings on 6 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Canon Extension: 28 universes; Greyhawk gains three novels; 2 candidates ruled out accepted 2026-11-02
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Wikipedia: The Artefacts of Power Tier 2
- Wikipedia: Maggie Furey Tier 2
- Encyclopedia of Science Fiction Tier 2
- Rising Shadow Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-11-02
Rule: Core Canon = the four Artefacts of Power novels (Aurian, 1994, to Dhiammara, 1997) and the two Chronicles of the Xandim prequels (Heritage of the Xandim, 2008, and Exodus of the Xandim, 2013); the Shadowleague novels are excluded.