Grishaverse reading order

The Grishaverse is one setting with three main published runs. Publication order across the universe is the path that keeps later books from stepping on earlier endings. The Crows books were designed so you can enter there. King of Scars was not.

Ravka trilogy

Six of Crows duology

Nikolai / King of Scars duology

Contested order, labeled:

• Trilogy first, then Crows, then King of Scars. Publication order. This house’s first recommendation if you want the whole shelf.
• Crows first. Allowed. You will meet Ravka from the outside. Then read the original trilogy before King of Scars.
• Netflix order. The show mixes plots. It is not a book order and it is a reason people open Six of Crows thinking it is Shadow and Bone book 4.

The Language of Thorns and The Lives of Saints are extras. Optional after you like the setting. Ninth House is a different Bardugo series.

Common mistakes

• Starting with King of Scars because Nikolai is the one you liked on screen.
• Treating Six of Crows as Shadow and Bone book 4.
• Using the show as a table of contents.
• Skipping Crooked Kingdom.

What to read next

1. Folk of the Air (Holly Black) — If you want another finished YA faerie/crime temperature.
2. The Locked Tomb (Tamsyn Muir) — If the heist-and-loyalty was the hook, in a much stranger register.
3. Throne of Glass (Sarah J. Maas) — If you want another long YA-to-adult fantasy run with a correct first book.
4. Gentleman Bastards (Scott Lynch) — If the Crows were the point and you want an older, unfinished heist series.
5. Ninth House (Leigh Bardugo) — If you want her other door, which is not Grishaverse.

FAQ

Crows or Shadow and Bone first?
Either door. King of Scars last among these six.

Do I need the extras?
No.

Is the Grishaverse finished?
The three runs above are published complete. Later stories may exist; they are not a new book one.

Sources

• Leigh Bardugo, Grishaverse — author hub. Opened 2026-09-13.
• Macmillan, The Grishaverse — publisher series page. Opened 2026-09-13.