Every Sarah J. Maas Fantasy Book Series, Ranked From Worst To Best

Summary

• Sarah J. Maas has written three iconic ”
  romantasy
  ” series, including
  A Court of Thorns & Roses
  and
  Crescent City
  .
• Although each series shares similarities, they stand out as distinct stories with varying levels of quality, though all have fairly impressive Goodreads ratings.
• Overall,
  Throne of Glass
  remains Maas’s best fantasy series to date, with consistently high ratings and a satisfying conclusion in
  Kingdom of Ash
  .

Sarah J. Maas is one of the best-known authors in the book community, with all of her “romantasy” series spawning massive followings — though some of the author’s works are undeniably stronger than others. Maas established herself as a beloved fantasy author with her Throne of Glass series, but the A Court of Thorns & Roses books are what truly catapulted her to fame. ACOTAR characters like Feyre and Rhysand have become iconic personalities in bookish spaces. And although it’s difficult to follow such a successful series, Maas’ Crescent City novels are arguably just as popular.

It helps that Maas seems to be weaving a connected universe within her three different book series, with the latest additions to Crescent City actively featuring locations and characters from ACOTAR — and hinting that Throne of Glass is in the same universe as well. Perhaps it’s no surprise, then, that these stories overlap, considering their romantic and fantasy themes tend to be very similar. But even with all the similarities between Throne of Glass, ACOTAR, and Crescent City, they stand out as distinct stories that are memorable in their own right. That’s why they rank differently in terms of quality.

3 A Court Of Thorns & Roses (2015-Present)

A Court of Thorns & Roses may be Maas’ most well-known series, but it’s also her weakest in terms of individual installments. While additions like A Court of Mist & Fury and A Court of Silver Flames lift ACOTAR significantly, the other books in the series don’t hold up as well compared to Maas’ outside works. On Goodreads, the first ACOTAR book has an average rating of 4.20. While this is by no means a low review score, it’s one that falls short of all three of Maas’ Crescent City books. It also ranks lower than most of her Throne of Glass novels.

A Court of Wings & Ruin has an average Goodreads rating on par with her more successful books, but the conclusion to the original A Court of Thorns & Roses trilogy is somewhat underwhelming. While ACOWAR isn’t a bad book, it fails to live up to the success of its predecessor. It regresses when it comes to certain character relationships and uses convenience to further its plot. The twist with Feyre’s father is enough to raise any reader’s eyebrows, and the rest of the ending leaves much to be desired.

That’s likely why Maas followed it with the novella A Court of Frost & Starlight, which holds the lowest rating of her fantasy series, sitting at a 3.77 on Goodreads. ACOFAS doesn’t add much to the overall series, and it actively undermines some of the more impressive elements of ACOWAR, including Feyre and Rhysand’s decision to wait to have children. Although A Court of Mist & Fury and A Court of Silver Flames are some of Maas’ best books — both have won Goodreads Choice Awards — the weaker points of this series drag it down, making it her worst overall. Perhaps the next ACOTAR book she’s working on can change that.

2 Crescent City (2018-Present)

Crescent City is Sarah J. Maas’ most-recent fantasy series, and it’s received as much attention as her earlier work. This is hardly a surprise, as her writing has grown over the years — and fans of her earlier series eagerly await her new releases. House of Earth and Blood starts the series off strong with a 4.50 rating on Goodreads, and House of Sky and Breath maintains the series’ quality with a 4.51. House of Flame and Shadow dips a bit, but its 4.27 rating is still an impressive way to close out Bryce and Hunt’s narrative.

Even if parts of House of Flame and Shadow‘s finale aren’t as strong as readers hoped, the second and third Crescent City books do manage to connect all three of Maas’ fantasy series. This alone makes Crescent City her most ambitious series yet, and that bodes well for Crescent City 4 and future ACOTAR books. Bryce’s characterization also fixes a common complaint about Maas’ protagonists, as Bryce is far more relatable than characters like Aelin and Feyre. Crescent City‘s cast, in general, is a strong factor in the books’ popularity.

House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath also won Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Fantasy Book in 2020 and 2022. If House of Flame and Shadow takes home the same award during its own Goodreads Choice Awards run, Crescent City will become Maas’ most-acclaimed series so far. Unfortunately, while it’s certainly a stronger story than ACOTAR, its flaws prevent it from ranking as her best series. A common criticism of Maas’ Crescent City books is that they take several hundred pages to truly take off. That, combined with a weaker conclusion, makes them slightly less compelling than Throne of Glass.

1 Throne Of Glass (2012-2018)

Throne of Glass is Sarah J. Maas’ first and longest fantasy series, and it’s also her best one to date. This may be controversial, as Throne of Glass is probably Maas’ least-hyped series when it comes to online book spaces. However, Throne of Glass’ sprawling fantasy setting, compelling cast of characters, and consistent improvement over the course of its run all work in its favor. Although the first Throne of Glass book has one of Maas’ lower Goodreads ratings at 4.19, the remainder of the series gets better from there, with most of the sequels falling between 4.40 and 4.68 on the platform.

The first Throne of Glass book’s flaws are also more forgivable, as the 2012 novel was Maas’ first published work. Looked at through that lens, the 4.19 rating is fairly impressive. And although Throne of Glass leans too heavily into popular tropes, it’s a fun and fast-paced read on par with other popular books at the time, like Divergent, Red Queen, An Ember in the Ashes, and other YA hits. The first two Throne of Glass books feature the same tone and pacing, but the later novels open the fantasy world up and make the series far more epic.

While Maas’ other fantasy series struggle at the end, Throne of Glass also sticks the landing, with Kingdom of Ash boasting her highest Goodreads rating at 4.68 and taking home the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science-Fiction Book in 2018. Queen of Shadows also won in the category in 2016, giving Throne of Glass as much acclaim as Crescent City. The fact that its quality improves over time rather than dipping in places makes it Sarah J. Maas’ best fantasy series, though — and a return to this world via Crescent City or ACOTAR could cement this further.