Cities of the Weft
#6213.60 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 3 books Status Complete 2020–2025 Reading commitment Medium Alex Pheby Last reviewed 2026-08-19
Overview
Cities of the Weft is Alex Pheby's dark, New Weird-inflected fantasy trilogy, following the boy Nathan Treeves out of the ruined, magic-poisoned city of Mordew and into the stranger territories beyond it. The trilogy comprises Mordew (2020), Malarkoi (2022), and Waterblack (2025), one continuous story under a single credited author throughout.
New Weird · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (3 works) counts toward ranking
Cities of the Weft Alex Pheby
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Mordew | 2020 | 1 | core | 3.58 (4,782 ratings) |
 | Malarkoi | 2022 | 2 | core | 3.67 (826 ratings) |
 | Waterblack | 2025 | 3 | core | 3.84 (275 ratings) |
A complete New Weird-inflected dark fantasy trilogy following the boy Nathan Treeves through the ruined city of Mordew and beyond. Mordew (2020) was named a Book of the Year by The Guardian, Tor.com, and Locus; the trilogy concluded with Waterblack in 2025.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Cities of the Weft? Cities of the Weft's Core Canon is 3 books.
- What is the reading order for Cities of the Weft? Publication order, starting with Mordew. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Cities of the Weft finished? Complete (2020–2025).
- How much reading does Cities of the Weft take? Medium reading commitment (estimated from 3 Core Canon books · ~1,159 pages).
- How is Cities of the Weft ranked? #621 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 5,883 reader ratings across 3 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #621?
Ranked #621 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 3.60 across 3 core books.
- A smaller readership (5,883 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #620, Household Gramarye (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 · 6k ratings · Ranks #621 overall
Good choice if you want a moderate-length New Weird universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (3 Core Canon books)
- Mordew (2020)
- Malarkoi (2022)
- Waterblack (2025)
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)
- No awards found for this universe.
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Suggestions computed from what Cities of the Weft and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- The Locked Tomb Dark fantasy / New Weird · Ongoing · Medium commitment · 4.23
- The Lord of the Ice Garden Epic fantasy / New Weird · Complete · Medium commitment · 4.20
- The Books of Babel New Weird · Complete · Medium commitment · 4.20
- Bas-Lag / New Crobuzon New Weird · Ongoing · Medium commitment · 4.00
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.60 across 5,883 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: Cities of the Weft (Alex Pheby) admitted; complete 3-book dark-fantasy trilogy accepted 2026-08-19
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Wikipedia: Cities of the Weft Tier 2
- Wikipedia: Mordew Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-08-19
Rule: All three novels are Core Canon: a single continuous narrative by one credited author, with no separate Expanded Canon material to split off.