The Poison Wars
#5163.83 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 2 books Status Complete 2018–2020 Reading commitment Low Sam Hawke Last reviewed 2026-08-25
Overview
Jovan is a poison taster sworn to protect his city's Chancellor (and his closest friend) from assassination, trained since childhood in antidotes and secrecy alongside his sister Kalina. When the Chancellor is poisoned regardless, the two must untangle a conspiracy reaching into the city's own ruling council, in a series built on court intrigue and hard trade-offs rather than large-scale magic.
Epic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (2 works) counts toward ranking
The Poison Wars Sam Hawke
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | City of Lies | 2018 | 1 | core | 3.77 (2,863 ratings) |
 | Hollow Empire | 2020 | 2 | core | 4.08 (701 ratings) |
Complete duology, 2018-2020.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Poison Wars? The Poison Wars's Core Canon is 2 books.
- What is the reading order for The Poison Wars? Publication order, starting with City of Lies. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is The Poison Wars finished? Complete (2018–2020).
- How much reading does The Poison Wars take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 2 Core Canon books).
- How is The Poison Wars ranked? #516 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 3,564 reader ratings across 2 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #516?
Ranked #516 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 3.83 across 2 core books.
- A smaller readership (3,564 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- 0.01 behind #515, The Hexologists.
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Rated · 2 books · Complete · 4k ratings · Ranks #516 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment epic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (2 Core Canon books)
- City of Lies (2018)
- Hollow Empire (2020)
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)
- No awards found for this universe.
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Suggestions computed from what The Poison Wars and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- The Sandsea Trilogy Epic fantasy / Mythic fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 3.97
- Saga of the Unfated Romantasy / Epic fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 3.90
- Godkiller (The Fallen Gods Trilogy) Epic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.89
- Empire of Sand / Realm of Ash Epic fantasy / Romantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.86
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.83 across 3,564 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 Poison Wars (Sam Hawke) accepted 2026-08-25
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- City of Lies Wikipedia entry Tier 2
- Poison War series bibliography (specialised series-tracking site) Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-08-26
Rule: Core Canon covers both novels of this complete duology, City of Lies (2018) and Hollow Empire (2020).