The Scholomance
#2624.05 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 3 books Status Complete 2020–2022 Reading commitment Low Naomi Novik Last reviewed 2026-08-05
Overview
The Scholomance (2020–2022) is a trilogy by Naomi Novik narrated entirely in first person by Galadriel “El” Higgins, a reluctant student at a magical school with no teachers and a mortality rate high enough that graduation itself is a battle for survival. The trilogy is Novik’s third major body of work after Temeraire and the fairy-tale standalones, and was among the most-decorated works admitted this phase, earning a 2023 Hugo Award for Best Series nomination.
Dark fantasy · For YA
Core Canon: Reading Order (3 works) counts toward ranking
The Scholomance Naomi Novik
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | A Deadly Education | 2020 | 1 | core | 3.93 (230,728 ratings) |
 | The Last Graduate | 2021 | 2 | core | 4.22 (137,643 ratings) |
 | The Golden Enclaves | 2022 | 3 | core | 4.11 (108,361 ratings) |
Clean linear trilogy, single first-person narrator (Galadriel 'El' Higgins) throughout. No companion material found (no uncollected short fiction, no guide books, no graphic adaptations).
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Scholomance? The Scholomance's Core Canon is 3 books.
- What is the reading order for The Scholomance? Publication order, starting with A Deadly Education. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is The Scholomance finished? Complete (2020–2022).
- How much reading does The Scholomance take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 3 Core Canon books · ~1,124 pages).
- How is The Scholomance ranked? #262 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 476,732 reader ratings across 3 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #262?
Ranked #262 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 4.05 across 3 core books.
- Backed by 477k reader ratings.
- Less than 0.01 behind #261, The Coldfire Trilogy (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Well rated · 3 books · Complete · 477k ratings · Ranks #262 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment dark fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (3 Core Canon books)
- A Deadly Education (2020)
- The Last Graduate (2021)
- The Golden Enclaves (2022)
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)
- Lodestar Award (Best YA Book), 2021: nominated: A Deadly Education
- Dragon Award (Best Young Adult / Middle Grade Novel), 2021: nominated: A Deadly Education; Finalist; did not win (winner: A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking).
- Readers' Choice Awards (Fantasy), 2020: nominated: A Deadly Education; Reader-vote finalist round; did not win (winner: House of Earth and Blood).
- Lodestar Award (Best YA Book), 2022: won: The Last Graduate
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 2022: finalist: The Last Graduate; Locus reader-poll placement, ranked 7th of 10 (winner: Light From Uncommon Stars, Ryka Aoki).
- Readers' Choice Awards (Fantasy), 2021: nominated: The Last Graduate; Reader-vote finalist round; did not win (winner: A Court of Silver Flames).
- Lodestar Award (Best YA Book), 2023: nominated: The Golden Enclaves
- Dragon Award (Best Young Adult / Middle Grade Novel), 2023: won: The Golden Enclaves
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 2023: finalist: The Golden Enclaves; Locus reader-poll placement, ranked 8th of 10 (winner: Babel, R.F. Kuang). An sfadb.com summary states 7th; two independent Locus-sourced fetches agree on 8th, which is used here as the better-corroborated figure.
- Readers' Choice Awards (Fantasy), 2022: nominated: The Golden Enclaves; Reader-vote finalist round; did not win (winner: House of Sky and Breath).
Related universes
- Same author Temeraire: Both by Naomi Novik. The Scholomance trilogy was flagged as a candidate at Temeraire's admission and confirmed a wholly separate continuity.
- Same author Uprooted: Both by Naomi Novik. Confirmed no shared continuity between Uprooted and The Scholomance.
- Same author Spinning Silver: Both by Naomi Novik. Confirmed no shared continuity between Spinning Silver and The Scholomance.
- Same author The Founders Trilogy: Both by Robert Jackson Bennett. Deliberately distinct universes -- no shared setting, characters, or continuity.
You might also like
Suggestions computed from what The Scholomance and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- Sisters of the Salt Dark fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 3.92
- The Old Kingdom Dark fantasy · Ongoing · Medium commitment · 4.20
- Vespertine Dark fantasy · Ongoing · Low commitment · 4.09
- Cuckoo Song Dark fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 3.96
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.05 across 476,732 ratings on 3 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: The Scholomance admitted; Core = the full trilogy accepted 2026-08-05
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Related universes: see the Related universes section above.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-06
Rule: Core = 3 novels (2020–2022): A Deadly Education, The Last Graduate, The Golden Enclaves. Clean linear trilogy, single narrator throughout, no companion material of any kind found: no Expanded tier. The trilogy’s Hugo Best Series nomination is the second use of the series-level award registration pattern established at Temeraire’s admission.