Order of Book Series
0

Wil McCarthy Books in Order

Wil McCarthy has written 21 books, published between 1991 and 2026. The first book is Dirtyside Down (1991) and the newest is Orbital Bombardment Victory Road (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.

Books
21
Published
1991–2026
Pages on record
2,711 in 7 of 21 books
See all 21 books in order Printable Wil McCarthy checklist

Hard science fiction is Wil McCarthy's field. Born in 1966, McCarthy co-founded the solar technology company RavenBrick, writes a science column for Syfy and lives in Colorado. McCarthy popularized the idea of programmable matter under the name wellstone. Rich Man's Sky won the 2022 Prometheus Award. Dirtyside Down (1991) opens a 21-book list that includes The Collapsium (2000) and continues into 2026, with the Queendom of Sol and Waisters among the series.

How many Wil McCarthy books are there?

Wil McCarthy has 21 books, released between 1991 and 2026. They include 3 series and 10 titles listed outside any series.

Wil McCarthy Books in Publication Order

The table lists all 21 Wil McCarthy 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 The Collapsium by Wil McCarthy, book 1 of the Queendom of Sol series (2000)
  2. Cover of The Wellstone by Wil McCarthy, book 2 of the Queendom of Sol series (2003)
  3. Cover of The Monarchs Of Sol by Wil McCarthy (2003)
  4. Cover of To Crush the Moon by Wil McCarthy, book 4 of the Queendom of Sol series (2005)
  5. Cover of Poor Man's Sky by Wil McCarthy, book 2 of the Rich Man's Sky series (2023)
  1. 1
    Dirtyside Down1991 · confirmed 1/4
    1991–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  2. 2
    Aggressor SixWaisters #11994 · confirmed 1/4
    1994–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  3. 3
    A Midnight Clear1994 · confirmed 1/4
    1994–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  4. 4
    Flies from the AmberWaisters #21995 · confirmed 1/4
    1995–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  5. 5
    Murder in the Solid State1996 · confirmed 1/4
    1996–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  6. 6
    The Fall of SiriusWaisters #31996 · confirmed 1/4
    1996–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  7. 7
    Bloom1998 · confirmed 1/4
    1998–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  8. 8
    The CollapsiumQueendom of Sol #12000 · 325 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2000325
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  9. 9
    Hacking Matter2003 · confirmed 1/4
    2003–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  10. 10
    The WellstoneQueendom of Sol #22003 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  11. 11
    The Monarchs Of Sol2003 · 582 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2003582
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  12. 12
    Lost in TransmissionQueendom of Sol #32004 · 384 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2004384
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  13. 13
    To Crush the MoonQueendom of Sol #42005 · 380 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2005380
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  14. 14
    Talk Girl2019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  15. 15
    Antediluvian2019 · confirmed 1/4
    2019–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  16. 16
    Policeman’s Daughter2020 · confirmed 1/4
    2020–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  17. 17
    Rich Man's SkyRich Man's Sky #12021 · 336 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2021336
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  18. 18
    Poor Man's SkyRich Man's Sky #22023 · 352 pages · confirmed 1/4
    2023352
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  19. 19
    Beggar's SkyRich Man's Sky #32024 · confirmed 1/4
    2024–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  20. 20
    Thieves' SkyRich Man's Sky #42026 · confirmed 1/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK
  21. 21
    Orbital Bombardment Victory Road2026 · confirmed 1/4
    2026–
    Buy at Amazon USAmazon UK

Wil McCarthy 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.

Queendom of Sol in order

4 books
  1. 1. The Collapsium
  2. 2. The Wellstone
  3. 3. Lost in Transmission
  4. 4. To Crush the Moon

Rich Man's Sky in order

4 books
  1. 1. Rich Man's Sky
  2. 2. Poor Man's Sky
  3. 3. Beggar's Sky
  4. 4. Thieves' Sky

Waisters in order

3 books
  1. 1. Aggressor Six
  2. 2. Flies from the Amber
  3. 3. The Fall of Sirius

Standalone books

10 books

10 Wil McCarthy titles here are not listed as part of any series.

Do you have to read Wil McCarthy books in order?

You only need to read Wil McCarthy 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 Wil McCarthy

Start with Dirtyside Down (1991), the earliest published title.

What is the newest Wil McCarthy book?

Orbital Bombardment Victory Road (2026) is the newest Wil McCarthy book released so far.

Is there a new Wil McCarthy book coming?

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

Wil McCarthy at a glance

Still publishing
Wil McCarthy published a book as recently as 2026.
Release pace
Wil McCarthy books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
Length
2,711 pages across the 7 of 21 books with a recorded length, a median of 352 pages each.
Busiest decade
Most Wil McCarthy books, 7 of 21, were published in the 1990s.

What the Wil McCarthy books are about

6 of the 21 Wil McCarthy books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: american literature is tagged on 3 of 6. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.