Read every series in the right order
The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order – Complete Reading Guide
Table of Contents
Quick Answer (TL;DR)
- Correct order: Legendborn → Bloodmarked → Oathbound.
- Publication and in-universe chronology match, so you can simply read straight down the spine.
- Reading The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order preserves Bree’s power revelations, the Order’s secrets, and the shifting dynamics among Bree, Nick, and Selwyn—plus the political stakes that keep widening each book.
Introduction
Some fantasy series make you reach back into the past to understand the present. The Legendborn Cycle does that—and then it goes further, asking who gets written into the past in the first place. Set at UNC–Chapel Hill, Tracy Deonn’s contemporary Arthurian remix braids secret societies, demons, and Merlins with Southern Black history and intergenerational memory. The result is a propulsive, emotionally rich YA fantasy where the truth is both magic and archive.
As you move through The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order, you’ll follow Bree Matthews—a sixteen-year-old genius grieving her mother—into an underground world of oaths and lineages, then out beyond the Order’s walls to confront whose power gets sanctioned and whose does not. It’s a story of inheritance: the one you’re told and the one you claim.
Quick Facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Series | The Legendborn Cycle (3 books) |
| Author | Tracy Deonn |
| Primary Setting | Modern-day North Carolina (UNC–Chapel Hill) & the American South |
| Books | Legendborn (Book 1); Bloodmarked (Book 2); Oathbound (Book 3) |
| Page Count (approx.) | 500–600 pages each (varies by edition) |
| Estimated Read Time | ~10–12 hrs/book (print); audiobooks ~15–20 hrs/book |
| Reading Difficulty | Moderate (fast pacing, layered worldbuilding, glossary/Orders) |
| Genres | YA Contemporary Fantasy · Arthurian Retelling · Dark Academia · Urban Fantasy |
| Core Themes | Grief & memory · Lineage & gatekeeping · Racism & institutional power · Found family · Consent & oaths |
| Content Warnings | Bereavement; racism & microaggressions; violence/demonic attacks; coercive authority; injuries; high-stakes peril |
| Ideal Age Range | 14+ (mature teen & crossover adult appeal) |
| Awards/Distinctions | NYT Bestseller; Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe New Talent Award (for Legendborn) |
| Media Status | TV adaptation in development (rights acquired; details below) |
About the Book Series
At first blush, Legendborn offers catnip for dark-academia lovers: a prestigious campus with traditions, a secret society that hunts demons, and ancient oaths that taste like honey and ash. But Deonn’s project is bigger. The series interrogates who wields myth—how stories are used to authorize power, exclude rivals, and erase the very people whose labor and lives built the world where those stories endure.
Bree’s arc reframes “chosen one” narratives: chosen by whom and for what? You’ll find thrilling set-pieces and tender relationships, but also structural critique, cultural memory, and an insistence that magic without accountability is just another mask for force.
Books at a Glance (with Amazon Buy Links — no summaries)
| Title | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|
| Legendborn (The Legendborn Cycle #1) | Buy on Amazon |
| Bloodmarked (The Legendborn Cycle #2) | Buy on Amazon |
| Oathbound (The Legendborn Cycle #3) | Buy on Amazon |
The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order
1) Legendborn
Where it starts: Sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews, reeling from her mother’s death, enrolls in an early college program at UNC–Chapel Hill. On Night One, the veil lifts: a demonic attack, a failed memory wipe by a teenage Merlin, and a glimpse of a clandestine student knighthood—the Legendborn Order, descendants of King Arthur’s Round Table.
What to expect (spoiler-light):
- Initiation drama: Pledging, trials, and the classist/bureaucratic rituals that gatekeep power.
- Two threads of magic: The Order’s aether-driven system and Bree’s ancestral rootcraft—earthier, older, and explicitly tied to Black Southern history.
- Alliances & sparks: Bree teams up with Nick, a disillusioned scion with secrets of his own. The Order’s rules—and Bree’s grief—complicate everything.
- Revelations: The truth about Bree’s mother, the Order’s origins, and why Bree’s magic doesn’t fit their neat borders.
Why this first: The book lays the cosmology: Round Table lineage, Merlins (Kingsmages), scions, regents, and the shadow war against shades and their greater masters. It’s also the core of Bree’s identity shift from observer to actor.
2) Bloodmarked
Escalation & exile: The wider magical world crashes in. The Regents tighten their grip, Nick is abducted, and Bree’s power evolution makes her both indispensable and unacceptable. The question isn’t just whether Bree will lead—it’s whether the institution will allow leadership it can’t control.
What to expect (spoiler-light):
- On the run: Bree and her crew go rogue to rescue Nick and expose a metastasizing conspiracy.
- Training & cost: Bree’s Bloodcraft and Medium gifts deepen, but every gain has a price.
- Selwyn dynamics: The Kingsmage sworn to protect Nick becomes Bree’s volatile ally; chemistry and conflict both spike.
- Worldbuilding bloom: Beyond campus—old oaths, older enemies, and the true scale of the war.
- Theme engine: Institutional racism, respectability politics, and the ethics of binding others to your cause.
Why second: Bloodmarked widens the map and raises the political stakes, transforming the Order from mysterious club to apparatus of control that Bree must confront, navigate, or overturn.
3) Oathbound
Fracture & aftermath: Severed from the Order and oathbound to a shadowed power, Bree stands at a dangerous crossroads. The Round Table is leaderless, Selwyn is missing, Nick is imprisoned by the Order he once served, and a spate of Merlin murders signals a new phase of the war.
What to expect (spoiler-light):
- The cost of choice: Bree’s pact with the Shadow King gives training—and strings. How do you steer a power that wants to steer you?
- Multiple fronts: Kidnappings, compromised leadership, and a Council that fears public scrutiny more than existential threats.
- Identity resolved through action: Bree learns the difference between saving people from systems and building systems that serve people.
- Payoffs: Seeds planted in Books 1–2 (heritage, trust, chosen family) flower into decisions that can’t be unmade.
Why third: Oathbound is consequence. Reading The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order ensures every relationship twist and political reveal lands with the weight of everything the characters—and the reader—already know.
Series Timeline & Character Development
Bree Matthews — Grief → Agency → Leadership
- Book 1: Bree’s grief is a locked room. Curiosity breaks the door, power floods in. She learns that naming her magic means naming a history others erased.
- Book 2: Agency meets opposition. Bree chooses action even when institutions demand obedience. Her leadership is relational—rooted in consent, community, and care.
- Book 3: Leadership matures into strategy. Bree confronts the ethics of deals, the danger of saviorism, and the necessity of building structures, not just winning fights.
Nick Davis — Legacy → Captivity → Reckoning
- The scion who walked away. Book 1 gives Nick and Bree genuine warmth; Book 2 removes him from the board to expose what he means to the Order; Book 3 asks whether he’ll be a cautionary tale or a partner in reform.
Selwyn Kane — Duty → Desire → Debt
- The Kingsmage bound to duty until duty breaks. Across the trilogy, Selwyn evolves from ironclad protector to person—his loyalties shifting from oaths to values. His dynamic with Bree is friction turned trust, attraction tempered by consequence.
The Order (Regents, Scions, Squires) — Myth → Mechanism → Mask
- Book 1 sells you the romance of tradition; Book 2 shows you the mechanics; Book 3 strips the veneer to reveal how myth can be a mask for maintaining power.
The Magics — Aether & Root
- The Order’s polished aether contrasts with Bree’s ancestral rootcraft—a living archive of Black Southern survival. The cycle insists that both are real, potent, and political.
Novels Sorted by In-Universe Events
- Legendborn — Initiation, identity, and the first cracks in the Order’s story of itself.
- Bloodmarked — Flight, training, and the collision of private grief with public struggle.
- Oathbound — Aftermath, oaths with teeth, and the choice to reform, replace, or refuse the system.
Novels Sorted by Publication
- Legendborn
- Bloodmarked
- Oathbound
(Publication order = story order, so following The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order is wonderfully straightforward.)
Companion Works
- Reading Guides & Discussion Questions: Many libraries/teachers host questions around grief, lineage, and institutional accountability—perfect for class or book club.
- Author Talks/Interviews: Deonn frequently discusses grief as worldbuilding, Arthurian myth through a Black Southern lens, and research into UNC’s local histories.
- Campus & Carolina History Resources: If you’re reading with teens, pairing the series with public resources on campus legacies and memorial landscapes enriches the conversation.
- Playlists & Fan Art: The series’ mood (stormy, neon, Southern Gothic) has inspired tons of reader-made playlists and art—great for engagement activities.
- Crossover Recs: If readers love the blend of secret societies, critique, and magic, consider adjacent titles with dark academia, urban fantasy, or myth retellings featuring underrepresented lineages.
Editions & Formats (hardcover, collector, audio)
- Hardcover: Sturdy—good for re-reads, annotations, and library collections.
- Paperback: Budget-friendly; easy to hand around friend groups and classrooms.
- Special/Collector runs: Watch publisher announcements and subscription boxes for sprayed edges, foil stamping, or reversible dust jackets that make shelf sets pop.
Digital & Audio
- Kindle/eBook: Searchable for terms (Orders, oath names, sigils). Great for tracking lore.
- Audiobooks: Dynamic full-cast energy isn’t required—the single-narrator performances carry tight combat beats and intimate character work well. If you’re an audio-first reader, the fight scenes snap and the tender scenes breathe.
Why Read The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order?
Because the reveal architecture is by design. Reading The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order ensures:
- Mystery → meaning: Every reveal (Bree’s heritage, Order politics, who’s pulling which strings) lands with earned context.
- Relationship momentum: Bree/Nick/Selwyn dynamics evolve from curiosity to conflict to complicated care—skipping ahead flattens them.
- Thematic escalation: Book 1 asks What if the myth is true? Book 2 asks What does the myth do? Book 3 asks Who gets to write the myth next? That progression is the point.
Author Spotlight: Tracy Deonn
Tracy Deonn is the #1 New York Times bestselling and award-winning author behind The Legendborn Cycle. With a master’s degree in communication and performance studies, she’s worked across live theater, video game production, and K–12 education—a resume that shows in her kinetic action scenes, smart lore systems, and classroom-ready discussion hooks. When she’s not writing, she reads comics and fanfic, dreams up new magic systems, and keeps an eye out for ginger-flavored everything. You can find her online @TracyDeonn.
Deonn’s superpower is taking the stories we think we know—Arthurian knights, chosen ones, old orders—and re-grounding them in the American South with a Black girl at the center, insisting that history is not neutral and magic is never apolitical.
Media Adaptations (films, TV, radio)
- Television: In February 2022, Black Bear Television acquired adaptation rights for Legendborn, with Felicia D. Henderson attached as co-executive producer. Development news evolves, but the adaptation intent is clear: a prestige TV take that can carry the lore and the politics.
- Audiobooks: All installments are available in unabridged audio—a fantastic way to experience the battle beats and intimate character beats in one sweep.
- Future media: Keep an eye on publisher/author channels for casting and production updates as the TV project advances.
FAQs
What is the correct order to read The Legendborn Cycle?
Read The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order: Legendborn → Bloodmarked → Oathbound. Publication order matches in-universe chronology.
Can I start with Bloodmarked or Oathbound?
You’ll miss crucial reveals and character arcs. Start with Legendborn to understand Bree’s magic, the Order’s structure, and the stakes.
What age range is the series for?
Ideal for readers 14+ (mature themes: grief, racism, violence). The tone and craft also attract adult fantasy readers.
Is this a completed series?
The core trilogy currently includes Legendborn, Bloodmarked, and Oathbound. Check author channels for future developments or spin-offs.
How does the magic work?
There are two intersecting systems: the Order’s aether-based knighthood magic (scions, Merlins) and Bree’s ancestral rootcraft tied to Black Southern lineage.
Is there a TV adaptation?
Yes. Black Bear Television acquired rights to adapt Legendborn; Felicia D. Henderson is attached as co-executive producer (announced 2022).
Final Thoughts
The Legendborn Cycle Books in Chronological Order is more than a tidy way to read a trilogy; it’s the best way to experience a narrative that builds its power by layering memory, myth, and choice. Start with Legendborn for the thrill and the questions. Keep going for the politics, the tenderness, and the answer that fantasy can give when it’s honest: inheritance is not destiny—it’s a responsibility.
Ready to dive in? Queue your formats, brew your tea (ginger if you’re thematically committed), and meet Bree where the story begins.
