The Folk of the Air
#1554.14 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 5 books Status Ongoing 2018–present Reading commitment Medium Holly Black Last reviewed 2026-08-20
Overview
A romantic YA fantasy saga set in the treacherous High Court of Elfhame, beginning with a mortal-born girl's political rise (The Folk of the Air trilogy, 2018-2020) and continuing several years later with her younger brother's own reign (Novels of Elfhame, 2023-2024).
Romantasy, Fairy-tale retelling · For YA
Core Canon: Reading Order (5 works) counts toward ranking
The Folk of the Air Holly Black
| Work | Year | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Cruel Prince | 2018 | core | 4.00 (1,855,860 ratings) |
 | The Wicked King | 2019 | core | 4.27 (1,129,264 ratings) |
 | The Queen of Nothing | 2020 | core | 4.33 (1,035,643 ratings) |
The original trilogy set in the High Court of Elfhame, following the mortal-born Jude Duarte's rise to power.
Novels of Elfhame Holly Black
| Work | Year | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Stolen Heir | 2023 | core | 3.92 (184,692 ratings) |
 | The Prisoner's Throne | 2024 | core | 3.87 (105,615 ratings) |
A direct continuation set in the same Elfhame court a few years later, following Oak (Jude's younger brother) and Suren/Wren; registered Core alongside the original trilogy as one continuous saga in the same world, not a separate universe.
Library / Expanded (1 work)
Folk of the Air companion Holly Black
| Work | Year | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories | 2020 | N/A |
A short illustrated companion story bridging the original trilogy and the Novels of Elfhame; supplementary, not required reading.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Folk of the Air? The Folk of the Air's Core Canon is 5 books, plus 1 more in the wider Library/Expanded material.
- What is the reading order for The Folk of the Air? Publication order, starting with The Cruel Prince. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is The Folk of the Air finished? Ongoing (2018–present).
- How much reading does The Folk of the Air take? Medium reading commitment (estimated from 5 Core Canon books · ~1,756 pages).
- How is The Folk of the Air ranked? #155 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 4,311,074 reader ratings across 5 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #155?
Ranked #155 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 4.14 across 5 core books.
- Backed by 4.3M reader ratings.
- Uneven reception: its books range from 3.87 to 4.33.
- Less than 0.01 behind #154, Newford (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Highly rated · 5 books · Ongoing · 4.3M ratings · Ranks #155 overall
Good choice if you want a moderate-length romantasy universe that's still ongoing, with new books still coming.
Reading order
Publication order (5 Core Canon books)
- The Cruel Prince (2018)
- The Wicked King (2019)
- The Queen of Nothing (2020)
- The Stolen Heir (2023)
- The Prisoner's Throne (2024)
Awards (verified)
- No independently-verified awards on file for this universe yet.
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.14 across 4,311,074 ratings on 5 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 Folk of the Air (Holly Black) accepted 2026-08-20
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-08-20
Rule: Core Canon is the original trilogy (The Cruel Prince, The Wicked King, The Queen of Nothing) together with its direct two-book continuation, Novels of Elfhame (The Stolen Heir, The Prisoner's Throne), treated as one continuous saga in the same court. A short illustrated companion story is Expanded Canon.