Robin McKinley Books in Order
Robin McKinley has written 21 books, published between 1978 and 2013. The first book is Beauty (1978) and the newest is Shadows (2013). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 21
- Published
- 1978–2013
- Confirmed
- 21 of 21 titles
- Pages on record
- 4,148 in 14 of 21 books
- Reading time
- 69–104 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 4,148 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 14 of 21 titles with a page count on record.
Robin McKinley, born November 16, 1952, is an American author of fantasy novels and fairy tale retellings. The Hero and the Crown (1984) won the Newbery Medal, and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association named McKinley the 39th Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master in 2022. The catalogue lists 21 books from Beauty (1978) to Shadows (2013), including The Blue Sword (1982), The Outlaws of Sherwood (1988) and Deerskin (1993). Series include Damar, Folktales and Tales Of Elemental Spirits.
How many Robin McKinley books are there?
Robin McKinley has 21 books, released between 1978 and 2013. They include 3 separate series.
Robin McKinley Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 21 Robin McKinley 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.
- 119782473/4
- 21981–3/4
- 319822723/4
- 419842463/4
- 519852563/4
- 61986–3/4
- 71988–3/4
- 81992–3/4
- 91992–3/4
- 1019933093/4
- 1119942083/4
- 1219972923/4
- 131998523/4
- 1420004323/4
- 1520022663/4
- 1620034163/4
- 1720073683/4
- 182008–3/4
- 192009–3/4
- 2020104003/4
- 2120133843/4
Robin McKinley 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.
Robin McKinley Standalone Novels
9 books9 titles published under this heading without a numbered place in a series.
Damar in order
6 booksFolktales in order
3 books- 1. Beauty
- 2. Rose Daughter
- 3. Spindle's End
Tales Of Elemental Spirits in order
2 booksPegasus in order
1 book- 1. Pegasus
Do you have to read Robin McKinley books in order?
You only need to read Robin McKinley books in order within each series: the books listed here span 3 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Robin McKinley
Start with Beauty (1978), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Robin McKinley book?
Shadows (2013) is the newest Robin McKinley book released so far.
Is there a new Robin McKinley book coming?
No next Robin McKinley 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 Robin McKinley has won
Wikidata records 4 awards and 18 nominations for Robin McKinley. The most recent 12 are listed here. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award2023Won
- Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature2004Wonfor Sunshine
- World Fantasy Award for Best Collection1986Wonfor Imaginary Lands
- Newbery Medal1985Wonfor The Hero and the Crown
- Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature2014Shortlistedfor Shadows
- Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book2009Shortlistedfor Chalice
- Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2004Shortlistedfor Sunshine
- World Fantasy Award for Best Collection2003Shortlistedfor Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits
- Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2001Shortlistedfor Spindle's End
- Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel1998Shortlistedfor Rose Daughter
- Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature1998Shortlistedfor Rose Daughter
- Locus Award for Best Collection1995Shortlistedfor A Knot in the Grain and Other Stories
Robin McKinley at a glance
- No recent titles
- The newest Robin McKinley title on record dates from 2013, 13 years ago. No later title is catalogued.
- Release pace
- Robin McKinley books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 4,148 pages across the 14 of 21 books with a recorded length, a median of 282 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Robin McKinley books, 6 of 21, were published in the 2000s.
What the Robin McKinley books are about
20 of the 21 Robin McKinley 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 10 of 20. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Fantasy 10 of 20 books
- Children's fiction 8 of 20 books
- Fairy tales 4 of 20 books
- Princesses 4 of 20 books
- Folklore 3 of 20 books
- Short stories 3 of 20 books
- Dogs 2 of 20 books
- Dragons 2 of 20 books
- Fairies 2 of 20 books