Windrose Chronicles
#4113.95 of 689 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 4 books Status Complete 1986–1994 Reading commitment Medium Barbara Hambly Last reviewed 2026-09-11
Overview
The Windrose Chronicles is a complete four-book portal-fantasy sequence by Barbara Hambly (1986-1994), published by Del Rey/Ballantine, following programmer Joanna Sheraton and wizard Antryg Windrose between our world and the magic-vs-technology Empire of Ferryth. It is a third, unrelated Hambly universe alongside her already-admitted Darwath and Sun Wolf/Winterlands series.
Portal fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (4 works) counts toward ranking
Windrose Chronicles Barbara Hambly
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Silent Tower | 1986 | 1 | core | 3.94 (3,603 ratings) |
 | The Silicon Mage | 1988 | 2 | core | 3.98 (2,407 ratings) |
 | Dog Wizard | 1992 | 3 | core | 3.98 (1,763 ratings) |
 | Stranger at the Wedding | 1994 | 4 | core | 3.90 (1,440 ratings) |
Complete Del Rey/Ballantine portal-fantasy quartet (1986-1994) following computer programmer Joanna Sheraton and wizard Antryg Windrose between our world and the magic-vs-technology setting of the Empire of Ferryth (Stranger at the Wedding is a same-universe standalone following a peripheral character). Confirmed a separate, unrelated universe from this author's already-admitted Darwath and Sun Wolf/Winterlands series.
Quick answers
- How many books are in Windrose Chronicles? Windrose Chronicles's Core Canon is 4 books.
- What is the reading order for Windrose Chronicles? Publication order, starting with The Silent Tower. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is Windrose Chronicles finished? Complete (1986–1994).
- How much reading does Windrose Chronicles take? Medium reading commitment (estimated from 4 Core Canon books).
- How is Windrose Chronicles ranked? #411 of 689 ranked universes on this site, based on 9,213 reader ratings across 4 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #411?
Ranked #411 of 689 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 3.95 across 4 core books.
- A smaller readership (9,213 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Remarkably consistent across the whole series: all 4 rated core books rate within 0.08 of each other.
- Less than 0.01 behind #410, Sands of Arawiya (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Well rated · 4 books · Complete · 9k ratings · Ranks #411 overall
Good choice if you want a moderate-length portal fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
Publication order (4 Core Canon books)
- The Silent Tower (1986)
- The Silicon Mage (1988)
- Dog Wizard (1992)
- Stranger at the Wedding (1994)
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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- The Library Trilogy Portal fantasy / Epic fantasy · Complete · Medium commitment · 3.93
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.95 across 9,213 ratings on 4 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 Windrose Chronicles (Barbara Hambly) accepted 2026-09-11
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
Last reviewed: 2026-09-11
Rule: Core Canon is the complete four-book sequence: The Silent Tower (1986), The Silicon Mage (1988), Dog Wizard (1992), and Stranger at the Wedding (1994), all published by Del Rey/Ballantine.