Order of Book Series
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Mary Gentle Books in Order

Mary Gentle has written 21 books, published between 1983 and 2012. The first book is Golden Witchbreed (1983) and the newest is The Black Opera (2012). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
21
Published
1983–2012
Total pages
8,366 across 21 books
Reading time
139–209 hours

Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 8,366 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute.

See all 21 books in order Printable Mary Gentle checklist

Golden Witchbreed (1983) opened the catalogue of Mary Gentle, a British science fiction and fantasy author born on 29 March 1956. Gentle's 21 books run to The Black Opera (2012). Gentle's series are Orthe, White Crow Sequence, Book of Ash and Ilario, and Rats and Gargoyles (1990) and Grunts (1992) are among the titles. Historical fantasy, war stories, painters and intersex people appear among the subjects.

How many Mary Gentle books are there?

Mary Gentle has 21 books, released between 1983 and 2012. They include 4 series and 8 titles listed outside any series.

Mary Gentle Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 21 Mary Gentle 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.

  1. Cover of Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle, book 1 of the Orthe series (1983)
  2. Cover of Hawk in Silver by Mary Gentle (1985)
  3. Cover of Ancient Light by Mary Gentle, book 2 of the Orthe series (1988)
  4. Cover of Rats and Gargoyles by Mary Gentle, book 1 of the White Crow Sequence (1990)
  5. Cover of The Architecture of Desire by Mary Gentle, book 2 of the White Crow Sequence (1991)
  6. Cover of Grunts by Mary Gentle (1992)
  7. Cover of Left to His Own Devices by Mary Gentle, book 3 of the White Crow Sequence (1994)
  8. Cover of A Secret History by Mary Gentle, book 1 of the Book of Ash series (1999)
  9. Cover of Carthage Ascendant by Mary Gentle, book 2 of the Book of Ash series (2000)
  10. Cover of The Wild Machines by Mary Gentle, book 3 of the Book of Ash series (2000)
  11. Cover of Lost Burgundy by Mary Gentle, book 4 of the Book of Ash series (2000)
  12. Cover of Chronicles of Carrick V by Mary Gentle, book 3 of the Orthe series (2002)
  13. Cover of 1610: A Sundial In A Grave by Mary Gentle (2003)
  14. Cover of Under the Penitence by Mary Gentle, book 1 of the Chap series (2004)
  15. Cover of Cartomancy by Mary Gentle (2004)
  16. Cover of The Stone Golem by Mary Gentle, book 2 of the Ilario series (2007)
  17. Cover of The Black Opera by Mary Gentle (2012)
  1. 1
    Golden WitchbreedOrthe #11983 · 499 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1983499
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Hawk in Silver1985 · 223 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1985223
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    Ancient LightOrthe #21988 · 576 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1988576
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Scholars and Soldiers1989 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1989192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Moon at Midday1989 · 192 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1989192
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    Rats and GargoylesWhite Crow Sequence #11990 · 477 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1990477
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    The Architecture of DesireWhite Crow Sequence #21991 · 208 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1991208
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    Villains!1992 · 337 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1992337
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Grunts1992 · 464 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1992464
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    Left to His Own DevicesWhite Crow Sequence #31994 · 214 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1994214
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    A Secret HistoryBook of Ash #11999 · 424 pages · confirmed 2/4
    1999424
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Carthage AscendantBook of Ash #22000 · 432 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2000432
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    The Wild MachinesBook of Ash #32000 · 391 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2000391
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Lost BurgundyBook of Ash #42000 · 481 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2000481
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Chronicles of Carrick VOrthe #32002 · 992 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2002992
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    1610: A Sundial In A Grave2003 · 672 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2003672
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Under the PenitenceChap #12004 · 100 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2004100
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Cartomancy2004 · 313 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2004313
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    The Lion's EyeIlario #12007 · 303 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2007303
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    The Stone GolemIlario #22007 · 361 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2007361
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    The Black Opera2012 · 515 pages · confirmed 2/4
    2012515
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Mary Gentle 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.

Book of Ash in order

4 books
  1. 1. A Secret History
  2. 2. Carthage Ascendant
  3. 3. The Wild Machines
  4. 4. Lost Burgundy

Orthe in order

3 books
  1. 1. Golden Witchbreed
  2. 2. Ancient Light
  3. 3. Chronicles of Carrick V

White Crow Sequence in order

3 books
  1. 1. Rats and Gargoyles
  2. 2. The Architecture of Desire
  3. 3. Left to His Own Devices

Ilario in order

2 books
  1. 1. The Lion's Eye
  2. 2. The Stone Golem

Chap in order

1 book
  1. 1. Under the Penitence

Standalone books

8 books

8 Mary Gentle titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Mary Gentle books in order?

You only need to read Mary Gentle books in order within each series: the books listed here span 4 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.

Where to start with Mary Gentle

Start with Golden Witchbreed (1983), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Mary Gentle book?

The Black Opera (2012) is the newest Mary Gentle book released so far.

Is there a new Mary Gentle book coming?

No next Mary Gentle book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.

Awards Mary Gentle has won

Wikidata records 4 awards and 15 nominations for Mary Gentle. The most recent 12 are listed here. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.

  • Bob Morane award for best foreign novel2005Wonfor Ash: A Secret History
  • Julia-Verlanger Award2005Wonfor Ash: A Secret History
  • Sidewise Award for Alternate History2000Wonfor Ash: A Secret History
  • BSFA Award for Best Novel2000Wonfor A Secret History
  • Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2007Shortlistedfor Ilario
  • Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire for Best Foreign Novel2006Shortlistedfor A Secret History
  • Locus Award for Best Collection2005Shortlistedfor Cartomancy
  • Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2004Shortlistedfor 1610
  • Locus Award for Best Anthology2003Shortlistedfor Worlds That Weren't
  • Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2001Shortlistedfor A Secret History
  • Arthur C. Clarke Award2001Shortlistedfor A Secret History
  • Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel1992Shortlistedfor The Architecture of Desire

Mary Gentle at a glance

No recent titles
The newest Mary Gentle title on record dates from 2012, 14 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
Release pace
Mary Gentle books have appeared about one a year on average.
Length
8,366 pages across all 21 books with a recorded length, a median of 391 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Mary Gentle books, 9 of 21, were published in the 2000s.

What the Mary Gentle books are about

18 of the 21 Mary Gentle books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: fantasy is tagged on 6 of 18. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.