The Perilous Gard
#2344.10 adjusted 4.09 for sample size in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Complete 1974 Reading commitment Low Elizabeth Marie Pope Last reviewed 2026-09-25
Overview
Elizabeth Marie Pope's 1974 novel is a Tudor-era retelling of the Scottish ballad of Tam Lin. In 1558 Kate Sutton, a lady-in-waiting exiled by Queen Mary to a remote castle, uncovers the secret its household has long guarded: the Fairy Folk who live beneath the hills and whose ancient customs include human sacrifice. It was named a Newbery Honor book in 1975.
Fairy-tale retelling, Historical fantasy · For YA
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
The Perilous Gard (1974) core · 4.10 (9,198 ratings); In 1558 a lady-in-waiting exiled by Queen Mary Tudor to a remote castle uncovers the secret of the Fairy Folk who live beneath its hills; a retelling of the ballad of Tam Lin.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Perilous Gard? The Perilous Gard's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is The Perilous Gard finished? Complete (1974).
- How much reading does The Perilous Gard take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book · ~280 pages).
- How is The Perilous Gard ranked? #234 in this site's official ranking, based on 9,198 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #234?
Ranked #234 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 4.10 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (9,198 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #233, The Books of the Raksura (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
- A single standalone novel: ranked on that one book alone.
Why explore this universe?
Highly rated · 1 book · Complete · 9k ratings · Ranks #234 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment fairy-tale retelling 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)
- Newbery Medal (Honor Book), 1975: honor: The Perilous Gard
You might also like
Suggestions computed from what The Perilous Gard and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- When the Angels Left the Old Country Mythic fantasy / Historical fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 4.25
- Tamsin Historical fantasy / Dark fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 4.05
- Fire and Hemlock Fairy-tale retelling · Complete · Low commitment · 3.95
- Nampeshiweisit Historical fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 4.08
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.10 across 9,198 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: Canon extension: The Perilous Gard (Elizabeth Marie Pope) accepted 2026-09-25
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- American Library Association Tier 1
Last reviewed: 2026-09-25
Rule: Core Canon = The Perilous Gard (1974) only, standalone.