The Book of All Hours
#6523.45 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 2 books Status Complete 2005–2007 Reading commitment Low Hal Duncan Last reviewed 2026-08-11
Overview
A genre-boundary-pushing, mythology-spanning duology weaving together angels, gods, and a queer ensemble cast across countless parallel unbound realities (the 'vellum') in a story of war between Heaven's book-keepers and those who would rewrite it.
New Weird · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (2 works) counts toward ranking
The Book of All Hours Hal Duncan
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Vellum | 2005 | 1 | core | 3.32 (2,138 ratings) |
 | Ink | 2007 | 2 | core | 3.83 (752 ratings) |
Completed duology (2005-2007).
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Book of All Hours? The Book of All Hours's Core Canon is 2 books.
- What is the reading order for The Book of All Hours? Publication order, starting with Vellum. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is The Book of All Hours finished? Complete (2005–2007).
- How much reading does The Book of All Hours take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 2 Core Canon books · ~1,010 pages).
- How is The Book of All Hours ranked? #652 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 2,890 reader ratings across 2 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #652?
Ranked #652 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 3.45 across 2 core books.
- A smaller readership (2,890 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Uneven reception: its books range from 3.32 to 3.83.
- 0.01 behind #651, Harmattan Season.
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Modestly rated · 2 books · Complete · 3k ratings · Ranks #652 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment New Weird universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (2 Core Canon books)
- Vellum (2005)
- Ink (2007)
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)
- World Fantasy Award (Best Novel), 2006: nominated: Vellum
- Locus Award (Best First Novel), 2006: nominated: Vellum
- Gaylactic Spectrum Award (Best Novel), 2006: won: Vellum; Single-sourced (Wikipedia only), see CONF note.
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Suggestions computed from what The Book of All Hours and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- The Endsong New Weird / Dark fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 3.65
- Osama Dark fantasy / New Weird · Complete · Low commitment · 3.47
- 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
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.45 across 2,890 ratings on 2 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Admit The Book of All Hours (Vellum / Ink, Hal Duncan) as a new single-author universe accepted 2026-08-11
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Wikipedia: Hal Duncan Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-08-11
Rule: Core = the completed 2-novel duology (Vellum 2005; Ink 2007).