Dragaera
#2004.12 in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 23 books Status Ongoing 1983–present Reading commitment High Steven Brust Last reviewed 2026-08-06
Overview
Steven Brust's Dragaera comprises two sub-series set in the same world at different eras: the Vlad Taltos sequence (seventeen novels, 1983-2024), hardboiled first-person crime-and-assassination fiction following Vlad, a human assassin operating within a society dominated by the long-lived, magically gifted Dragaeran Houses, and The Khaavren Romances (six novels, 1991-2020), a florid Dumas-pastiche narrated by the fictional historian Paarfi, set centuries earlier and following courtly intrigue among the same Houses in an era closer to their own founding. Beginning with Jhereg (1983), the Taltos sequence follows Vlad's rise from small-time criminal to increasingly entangled political player within Dragaeran society, while the Khaavren Romances, beginning with The Phoenix Guards (1991), deliberately mimic the ornate narrative voice of Alexandre Dumas. Long-lived characters appearing in both sequences confirm a single shared continuity across the roughly four centuries the combined twenty-three novels span, an unusually explicit link between two otherwise very differently voiced sub-series.
Sword & sorcery, Comic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (23 works) counts toward ranking
Vlad Taltos Steven Brust
| Work | Year | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Jhereg; Internal chronological order is deliberately NOT recorded for this book: at least three independent fan reconstructions of the Vlad Taltos reading order disagree with each other (notably on the placement of Dragon, Yendi, and Tiassa), and Brust himself has stated no single chronological order is authoritative, adding that he deliberately structured Dragon (1998) to undermine strict chronological reading. Per Article 2, the database does not invent a chronology where none is agreed; publication order is treated as primary, per Brust's own stated preference. | 1983 | core | 4.12 (15,776 ratings) |
 | Yendi | 1984 | core | 4.12 (9,596 ratings) |
 | Teckla | 1987 | core | 3.90 (7,544 ratings) |
 | Taltos | 1988 | core | 4.20 (8,401 ratings) |
 | Phoenix | 1990 | core | 4.16 (6,903 ratings) |
 | Athyra | 1993 | core | 4.03 (6,044 ratings) |
 | Orca | 1996 | core | 4.06 (6,026 ratings) |
 | Dragon | 1998 | core | 4.17 (6,710 ratings) |
 | Issola | 2001 | core | 4.29 (6,656 ratings) |
 | Dzur | 2006 | core | 4.17 (5,926 ratings) |
 | Jhegaala | 2008 | core | 4.01 (4,746 ratings) |
 | Iorich | 2010 | core | 4.16 (4,535 ratings) |
 | Tiassa | 2011 | core | 4.08 (4,184 ratings) |
 | Hawk | 2014 | core | 4.33 (3,421 ratings) |
 | Vallista | 2017 | core | 4.06 (2,301 ratings) |
 | Tsalmoth | 2023 | core | 4.33 (1,332 ratings) |
 | Lyorn | 2024 | core | 4.37 (979 ratings) |
17 novels (1983-2024) of a planned 19-book structure (17 House-named books + Taltos, named for the protagonist, + a final closing volume, The Last Contract, not yet written; Chreotha, the 18th, is also not yet written). Internal chronology is contested among fan sources and explicitly not recorded here, see the notes on Jhereg.
The Khaavren Romances Steven Brust
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Phoenix Guards | 1991 | 1 | core | 4.09 (5,319 ratings) |
 | Five Hundred Years After | 1994 | 2 | core | 4.11 (3,887 ratings) |
 | The Paths of the Dead | 2002 | 3 | core | 4.03 (2,854 ratings) |
 | The Lord of Castle Black | 2003 | 4 | core | 4.07 (2,783 ratings) |
 | Sethra Lavode | 2004 | 5 | core | 4.11 (2,653 ratings) |
 | The Baron of Magister Valley | 2020 | 6 | core | 4.18 (573 ratings) |
6 novels (1991-2020), narrated in-world by the fictional historian 'Paarfi of Roundwood' in a deliberately florid Dumas-pastiche style, set centuries before the Vlad Taltos sequence. Books 3-5 form 'The Viscount of Adrilankha' trilogy within the sequence. Publication order equals internal chronological order throughout (no divergence, unlike the Vlad Taltos sequence).
Library / Expanded (2 works)
Brokedown Palace (1986) ; Standalone novel set in Fenario, the human kingdom bordering Dragaera, the only standalone novel set in the wider Dragaeran setting, not part of either numbered sequence.
The Desecrator (2011) ; Minor canonical Vlad Taltos short story (Tor.com Original), featuring supporting characters Daymar and Telnan.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Dragaera? Dragaera's Core Canon is 23 books, plus 2 more in the wider Library/Expanded material.
- What is the reading order for Dragaera? Publication order, starting with Jhereg. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Dragaera finished? Ongoing (1983–present).
- How much reading does Dragaera take? High reading commitment (estimated from 23 Core Canon books · ~6,543 pages).
- How is Dragaera ranked? #200 in this site's official ranking, based on 119,149 reader ratings across 23 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #200?
Ranked #200 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 4.12 across 23 core books.
- Backed by 119k reader ratings.
- Uneven reception: its books range from 3.90 to 4.37.
- Less than 0.01 behind #199, The Folk of the Air / The Modern Faerie Tales (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Highly rated · 23 books · Ongoing · 119k ratings · Ranks #200 overall
Good choice if you want a long-running sword-and-sorcery universe that's still ongoing, with new books still coming.
Reading order
Publication order (23 Core Canon books)
- Jhereg (1983)
- Yendi (1984)
- Teckla (1987)
- Taltos (1988)
- Phoenix (1990)
- The Phoenix Guards (1991)
- Athyra (1993)
- Five Hundred Years After (1994)
- Orca (1996)
- Dragon (1998)
- Issola (2001)
- The Paths of the Dead (2002)
- The Lord of Castle Black (2003)
- Sethra Lavode (2004)
- Dzur (2006)
- Jhegaala (2008)
- Iorich (2010)
- Tiassa (2011)
- Hawk (2014)
- Vallista (2017)
- The Baron of Magister Valley (2020)
- Tsalmoth (2023)
- Lyorn (2024)
Documented internal/story order: 6 of 23 Core Canon books
- The Phoenix Guards (1991)
- Five Hundred Years After (1994)
- The Paths of the Dead (2002)
- The Lord of Castle Black (2003)
- Sethra Lavode (2004)
- The Baron of Magister Valley (2020)
Internal chronology is documented for 6 of 23 Core Canon books: The Khaavren Romances, whose internal order the author has confirmed. The other 17 (the Vlad Taltos main sequence) deliberately have no internal chronology recorded: independent fan reconstructions disagree with each other, and the author has stated no single order is authoritative.
Awards (verified)
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 1995: finalist: Five Hundred Years After; Locus reader-poll placement, ranked 7th.
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 2015: finalist: Hawk; Locus reader-poll placement, ranked 13th (Hawk).
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.12 across 119,149 ratings on 23 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Dragaera admitted; Core Canon across two sub-series; Vlad Taltos internal chronology deliberately unrecorded accepted 2026-08-05
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-08-06
Rule: New universe, Steven Brust's Dragaera, modeled as one universe with two Core Canon sub-series: Vlad Taltos (17 novels, 1983-2024, of a planned 19) and The Khaavren Romances (6 novels, 1991-2020), confirmed as the same continuity via recurring long-lived characters (Sethra Lavode, Aliera, Morrolan) appearing in both. Expanded = Brokedown Palace (1986, standalone, same setting) and 'The Desecrator' (2011 short story). Methodological finding, generalizable beyond this universe: the Vlad Taltos sequence's internal chronological order is genuinely contested; three independent fan reconstructions disagree with each other, and the author has publicly stated no single order is authoritative, having deliberately undermined chronological reading starting with Dragon (1998). Per Article 2 (never invent data), the database records NO internal chronology for these 17 books rather than adopt one contested fan reconstruction as if it were settled fact; publication order is treated as primary, consistent with the author's own stated preference. Zero Hugo/Nebula/World Fantasy/Mythopoeic recognition found for this universe despite its long critical standing; only two Locus reader-poll placements (1995, 2015) were confirmed.