Zen Cho Books in Order
Zen Cho has written 10 books, published between 2011 and 2025. The first book is The Terracotta Bride (2011) and the newest is Behind Frenemy Lines (2025). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 10
- Published
- 2011–2025
- Pages on record
- 1,600 in 5 of 10 books
- Reading time
- 27–40 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 1,600 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 5 of 10 titles with a page count on record.
Zen Cho is a Malaysian fantasy author based in Birmingham in the United Kingdom, known for the Sorcerer to the Crown books. Spirits Abroad (2014), a short story collection, took a joint Crawford Award in 2015. Ten books are catalogued between 2011 and 2025, from The Terracotta Bride (2011) to Behind Frenemy Lines (2025), and the Sorcerer Royal series carries the Cho credit. Historical fantasy, magic, magicians, the Regency and romance run through the subject headings, and The True Queen (2019), Black Water Sister (2021) and The Friend Zone Experiment (2024) sit in the run.
How many Zen Cho books are there?
Zen Cho has 10 books, released between 2011 and 2025. 3 of them belong to the Sorcerer Royal series.
Zen Cho Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 10 Zen Cho 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.
- 1The Terracotta Bride2011 · confirmed 2/42011–2/4
- 22012–2/4
- 3Spirits Abroad2014 · 288 pages · confirmed 2/420142882/4
- 420153842/4
- 5If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again2018 · confirmed 2/42018–2/4
- 620193842/4
- 7The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water2020 · 160 pages · confirmed 2/420201602/4
- 8Black Water Sister2021 · 384 pages · confirmed 2/420213842/4
- 9The Friend Zone Experiment2024 · confirmed 2/42024–2/4
- 10Behind Frenemy Lines2025 · confirmed 2/42025–2/4
Zen Cho 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.
Sorcerer Royal in order
3 booksStandalone books
7 books7 Zen Cho titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Zen Cho books in order?
You only need to read Zen Cho books in order within the Sorcerer Royal series, which holds 3 of the 10 Zen Cho books listed here. The numbered table above gives every book in publication order.
Where to start with Zen Cho
Start with The Terracotta Bride (2011), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Zen Cho book?
Behind Frenemy Lines (2025) is the newest Zen Cho book released so far.
Is there a new Zen Cho book coming?
No next Zen Cho 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 Zen Cho has won
Wikidata records 2 awards and 10 nominations for Zen Cho. Each row states whether the title won or was shortlisted, and the year the award was given.
- Hugo Award for Best Novelette2019Wonfor If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again
- Sydney J. Bounds Award For Best Newcomer2016Wonfor Sorcerer to the Crown
- Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2022Shortlistedfor Black Water Sister
- World Fantasy Award for Best Novel2022Shortlistedfor Black Water Sister
- Locus Award for Best Collection2022Shortlistedfor Spirits Abroad
- Ignyte Award for Best Novel – Adult2022Shortlistedfor Black Water Sister
- Locus Award for Best Novella2021Shortlistedfor The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water
- British Fantasy Award for Best Novella2021Shortlistedfor The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water
- Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel2020Shortlistedfor The True Queen
- Locus Award for Best Novelette2019Shortlistedfor If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again
- Locus Award for Best First Novel2016Shortlistedfor Sorcerer to the Crown
- Robert Holdstock Award for Best Fantasy Novel2016Shortlistedfor Sorcerer to the Crown
Zen Cho at a glance
- Still publishing
- Zen Cho published a book as recently as 2025.
- Release pace
- Zen Cho books have appeared about one every 2 years on average.
- Length
- 1,600 pages across the 5 of 10 books with a recorded length, a median of 384 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Zen Cho books, 6 of 10, were published in the 2010s.
What the Zen Cho books are about
5 of the 10 Zen Cho books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: english literature is tagged on 3 of 5. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- English literature 3 of 5 books
- Historical fantasy fiction 2 of 5 books
- Magic 2 of 5 books
- Magicians 2 of 5 books
- Amnesia 1 of 5 books
- Avatars (Religion) 1 of 5 books
- British fiction 1 of 5 books
- Fantasy 1 of 5 books
- Fantasy, action & adventure 1 of 5 books
- Fantasy, epic 1 of 5 books
- Goddesses 1 of 5 books
- Grandmothers 1 of 5 books