Kingfisher
#6763.74 adjusted 3.83 for sample size in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Complete 2016 Reading commitment Low Patricia A. McKillip Last reviewed 2026-08-15
Overview
A standalone contemporary Arthurian novel by Patricia A. McKillip, published by Ace in 2016, her final novel. Modern-day knights, a cook named Carrie, and Prince Daimon converge on a quest for a magical cauldron announced by King Arden, blending Grail-quest myth with cars, phones, and a modern-day court. Kingfisher transplants Arthurian romance conventions directly into a contemporary American setting, with knighthood reimagined as a strange but functioning modern institution running alongside ordinary life, and the cauldron quest updating the Grail legend's structure of scattered knights converging on a single sacred object. Published the same year as McKillip's death in 2018 became widely known, the novel is frequently read by critics as a fitting capstone to a career built on lyrical, myth-steeped fantasy, blending her characteristic prose style with a wry, knowing take on Arthurian tradition.
Mythic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
Kingfisher (2016) core · 3.74 (1,503 ratings); Standalone modern-day Arthurian grail-quest novel; McKillip's final published novel. No connection to any other McKillip work.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Kingfisher? Kingfisher's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is Kingfisher finished? Complete (2016).
- How much reading does Kingfisher take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book · ~346 pages).
- How is Kingfisher ranked? #676 in this site's official ranking, based on 1,503 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #676?
Ranked #676 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 3.74 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (1,503 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- 0.08 behind #675, Witch World.
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
- A single standalone novel: ranked on that one book alone.
Why explore this universe?
Modestly rated · 1 book · Complete · 2k ratings · Ranks #676 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment mythic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
A single Core Canon work: no sequencing question to resolve.
Awards (verified)
- Mythopoeic Fantasy Award (Adult Literature), 2017: won: Kingfisher
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 2017: finalist: Kingfisher; 12th place in the Locus poll; registered as finalist per the no-cutoff Locus-poll convention.
Related universes
- Same author Riddle-Master: Both by Patricia A. McKillip, confirmed separate continuities -- no shared characters, setting, or continuity across her admitted standalone/series universes.
- Same author The Forgotten Beasts of Eld: Both by Patricia A. McKillip, confirmed separate continuities -- no shared characters, setting, or continuity across her admitted standalone/series universes.
- Same author Ombria in Shadow: Both by Patricia A. McKillip, confirmed separate continuities -- no shared characters, setting, or continuity across her admitted standalone/series universes.
- Same author Winter Rose: Both by Patricia A. McKillip, confirmed separate continuities -- no shared characters, setting, or continuity across her admitted standalone/series universes.
- Same author Od Magic: Both by Patricia A. McKillip, confirmed separate continuities -- no shared characters, setting, or continuity across her admitted standalone/series universes.
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- Gods of Jade and Shadow Mythic fantasy / Historical fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.87
Official resources
- Wikipedia: Kingfisher (McKillip novel)
- The Mythopoeic Society: Award Winners
- sfadb: Patricia A. McKillip
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.74 across 1,503 ratings on 1 Core Canon book. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Admit Kingfisher (Patricia A. McKillip) accepted 2026-08-15
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Related universes: see the Related universes section above.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-15
Rule: single-work: a fully resolved narrative with no sequel or companion material, by the same precedent as Stardust/The Once and Future King/Ombria in Shadow/Od Magic.