Bone Universe
#6223.60 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 3 books Status Complete 2015–2017 Reading commitment Low Fran Wilde Last reviewed 2026-08-18
Overview
In a sky-city of towers grown from the bones of an ancient living creature, citizens fly between them on artificial wings. When a young woman's mother vanishes for breaking a law she never knew existed, she is drawn into a conspiracy that threatens the city's fragile order. A complete trilogy across Updraft, Cloudbound, and Horizon. Fran Wilde's first universe in this canon.
Epic fantasy · For YA
Core Canon: Reading Order (3 works) counts toward ranking
The Bone Universe Fran Wilde
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Updraft | 2015 | 1 | core | 3.58 (3,351 ratings) |
 | Cloudbound | 2016 | 2 | core | 3.63 (655 ratings) |
 | Horizon | 2017 | 3 | core | 3.74 (343 ratings) |
A complete trilogy set in a sky-city of towers grown from living bone, where citizens fly on artificial wings; a coming-of-age story that widens into political and ecological upheaval across the 3 books. Fran Wilde's separate 'Gem Universe' (The Jewel and Her Lapidary and its sequels) is a distinct, unrelated setting by the same author and is not covered by this admission.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Bone Universe? Bone Universe's Core Canon is 3 books.
- What is the reading order for Bone Universe? Publication order, starting with Updraft. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Bone Universe finished? Complete (2015–2017).
- How much reading does Bone Universe take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 3 Core Canon books · ~1,164 pages).
- How is Bone Universe ranked? #622 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 4,349 reader ratings across 3 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #622?
Ranked #622 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 3.60 across 3 core books.
- A smaller readership (4,349 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #621, Cities of the Weft (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Modestly rated · 3 books · Complete · 4k ratings · Ranks #622 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment epic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (3 Core Canon books)
- Updraft (2015)
- Cloudbound (2016)
- Horizon (2017)
Documented internal/story chronology is recorded for every Core Canon book here, and matches publication order exactly, with no divergence to show separately.
Awards (verified)
- Andre Norton Award (Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy), 2015: won: Updraft; SFWA's own site labels this the 2015 award year (eligibility year); Updraft was also a Nebula Award for Best Novel nominee in the same award year.
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Suggestions computed from what Bone Universe and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- The Chronicles of Damar Epic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 4.20
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- Annals of the Western Shore Epic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.91
- Throne of Glass Romantasy / Epic fantasy · Complete · High commitment · 4.43
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.60 across 4,349 ratings on 3 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Bone Universe (Updraft trilogy) admitted accepted 2026-08-18
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-08-18
Rule: Core = all 3 novels (Updraft, Cloudbound, Horizon); the author's separate Gem Universe setting is not part of this record.