Jo Clayton Books in Order
Jo Clayton has written 35 books, published between 1977 and 2002. The first book is Diadem from the Stars (1977) and the newest is Drum Into Silence (2002). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 35
- Published
- 1977–2002
- Pages on record
- 7,340 in 27 of 35 books
- Reading time
- 122–184 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 7,340 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 27 of 35 titles with a page count on record.
Jo Clayton wrote science fiction and fantasy across 35 catalogued books published between 1977 and 2002. Diadem from the Stars (1977) opens the run, with Irsud and Lamarchos in 1978, Maeve (1979), Star Hunters (1980), Moongather (1982) and Moonscatter (1983). Subject tags name magic, wizards, women soldiers and the character Skeen. Series headings include Duel of Sorcery and its Dancer sequence, Drinker of Souls and its Wild Magic sequence, Skeen, Drums of Chaos, and the Diadem lines Shadith's Quest and Shadowsong. Drum Into Silence (2002) closes the listing.
How many Jo Clayton books are there?
Jo Clayton has 35 books, released between 1977 and 2002. They include 9 series and 1 title listed outside any series.
Jo Clayton Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 35 Jo Clayton books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 1197711/4
- 2197811/4
- 3197811/4
- 41979–1/4
- 51980–1/4
- 619812081/4
- 71982–1/4
- 81983–1/4
- 919831891/4
- 10198411/4
- 11A Bait of Dreams1985 · confirmed 1/41985–1/4
- 121985101/4
- 1319863351/4
- 141986–1/4
- 1519863721/4
- 161987–1/4
- 171987–1/4
- 1819883331/4
- 19198811/4
- 2019893681/4
- 2119903961/4
- 2219903421/4
- 2319913681/4
- 2419913621/4
- 2519924001/4
- 2619933651/4
- 2719933661/4
- 2819943361/4
- 2919943681/4
- 3019953521/4
- 3119954001/4
- 3219963821/4
- 3319963641/4
- 3419973201/4
- 3520023991/4
Jo Clayton series in order
The series linked below has its own reading-order page.
- Diadem books in order 10 books
Jo Clayton books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Duel of Sorcery in order
3 books- 1. Moongather
- 2. Moonscatter
- 3. Changer's Moon
Drinker of Souls in order
3 booksSkeen in order
3 booksDiadem: Shadith's Quest in order
3 books- 1. Shadowplay
- 2. Shadowspeer
- 3. Shadowkill
Drinker of Souls: Wild Magic in order
3 books- 1. Wild Magic
- 2. Wildfire
- 3. The Magic Wars
Duel of Sorcery: Dancer in order
3 booksDiadem: Shadowsong in order
3 booksDrums of Chaos in order
3 booksStandalone books
1 book1 Jo Clayton title here is not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Jo Clayton books in order?
You only need to read Jo Clayton books in order within each series: the books listed here span 9 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Jo Clayton
Start with Diadem from the Stars (1977), the first Diadem book. It is also the earliest catalogued title.
What is the newest Jo Clayton book?
Drum Into Silence (2002) is the newest Jo Clayton book released so far.
Is there a new Jo Clayton book coming?
No next Jo Clayton book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Jo Clayton at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Jo Clayton title on record dates from 2002, 24 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Jo Clayton books have appeared more than one a year on average.
- Length
- 7,340 pages across the 27 of 35 books with a recorded length, a median of 352 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Jo Clayton books, 16 of 35, were published in the 1980s.
What the Jo Clayton books are about
28 of the 35 Jo Clayton books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: science fiction is tagged on 21 of 28. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Science fiction 21 of 28 books
- Fantasy 6 of 28 books
- Magic 2 of 28 books
- Wizards 2 of 28 books