Symphony of Ages
#2774.06 in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 9 books Status Complete 1999–2016 Reading commitment High Elizabeth Haydon Last reviewed 2026-08-05
Overview
Elizabeth Haydon's Symphony of Ages follows the fire-and-water-touched Rhapsody across a nine-book main saga (1999-2016), with a separate YA prequel quartet, The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme, set in an earlier era of the same world's history. Rhapsody and two companions are thrown into a new world and gradually revealed as figures of an old prophecy, tasked with confronting a catastrophic threat rising from beneath the earth while contending with the long aftermath of the Cymrian War and the destruction, twice over, of the island of Serendair. Magic in the setting is bound up with names and music, reflecting the author's own background in vocal performance, and the story combines epic-scale conflict with a central love triangle and close, long-running friendships across its many volumes. The series is noted for its constructed languages and its Tolkien-influenced but distinctive array of peoples.
Epic fantasy, Romantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (9 works) counts toward ranking
The Symphony of Ages Elizabeth Haydon
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Rhapsody: Child of Blood | 1999 | 1 | core | 3.98 (20,310 ratings) |
 | Prophecy: Child of Earth | 2000 | 2 | core | 4.14 (13,212 ratings) |
 | Destiny: Child of the Sky | 2001 | 3 | core | 4.15 (11,544 ratings) |
 | Requiem for the Sun | 2002 | 4 | core | 4.02 (7,108 ratings) |
 | Elegy for a Lost Star | 2004 | 5 | core | 4.06 (6,040 ratings) |
 | The Assassin King | 2006 | 6 | core | 4.10 (5,147 ratings) |
 | The Merchant Emperor | 2014 | 7 | core | 3.98 (1,081 ratings) |
 | The Hollow Queen | 2015 | 8 | core | 4.01 (829 ratings) |
 | The Weaver's Lament | 2016 | 9 | core | 3.96 (670 ratings) |
Publication order = internal chronology throughout, confirmed by the author directly (Fantasy-Faction 'Cauldron Interview', 2018): a first trilogy, two bridge novels, a second trilogy, and a capper. Corrects several commonly-repeated years: Destiny is 2001 (not 2000), The Merchant Emperor is 2014 (not 2010), The Hollow Queen is 2015 (not 2013).
Library / Expanded (4 works)
The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme Elizabeth Haydon
| Work | Year | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Floating Island | 2006 | N/A | |
 | The Thief Queen's Daughter | 2007 | N/A | |
 | The Dragon's Lair | 2008 | N/A | |
 | The Tree of Water | 2014 | N/A |
Middle-grade/YA prequel quartet set in the same world's 'Second Age', per the author's own framing, NOT titled 'The Lost History' (a misconception corrected during research). A 5th volume, 'The Star of the Sea', was announced but remains unconfirmed as published. No publisher-issued combined reading order merges this with the main saga.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Symphony of Ages? Symphony of Ages's Core Canon is 9 books, plus 4 more in the wider Library/Expanded material.
- What is the reading order for Symphony of Ages? Publication order, starting with Rhapsody: Child of Blood. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Symphony of Ages finished? Complete (1999–2016).
- How much reading does Symphony of Ages take? High reading commitment (estimated from 9 Core Canon books · ~4,732 pages).
- How is Symphony of Ages ranked? #277 in this site's official ranking, based on 65,941 reader ratings across 9 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #277?
Ranked #277 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 4.06 across 9 core books.
- A smaller readership (65,941 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- 0.01 behind #276, The Firebrand.
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Well rated · 9 books · Complete · 66k ratings · Ranks #277 overall
Good choice if you want a long-running epic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (9 Core Canon books)
- Rhapsody: Child of Blood (1999)
- Prophecy: Child of Earth (2000)
- Destiny: Child of the Sky (2001)
- Requiem for the Sun (2002)
- Elegy for a Lost Star (2004)
- The Assassin King (2006)
- The Merchant Emperor (2014)
- The Hollow Queen (2015)
- The Weaver's Lament (2016)
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)
- William L. Crawford Fantasy Award (IAFA), 2000: finalist: Rhapsody: Child of Blood; Runner-up per sfadb.com; not independently corroborated by a second source.
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Suggestions computed from what Symphony of Ages and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
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- Forgotten Realms Epic fantasy · Ongoing · High commitment · 4.20
- Riftwar Cycle Epic fantasy · Complete · High commitment · 4.16
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.06 across 65,941 ratings on 9 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Symphony of Ages admitted; Core Canon accepted 2026-08-05
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-08-10
Rule: New universe.