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Series · fantasy
The Books of the Raksura
The Books of the Raksura series by Martha Wells has 5 known books (5 published). It is best read in publication order, starting with The Cloud Roads (2011). The Harbors of the Sun is the latest book with a fully recorded publication date.
- Books
- 5 known books (5 novels)
- Published
- 5
- First published
- 2011
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Fantasy
Start here: The Cloud Roads (2011)
— then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Cloud Roads
The Cloud Roads (2011) opens Martha Wells' series, introducing Moon, a shapeshifter who's spent his life hiding his dragon-like true form, as he's finally found by others of his own kind -- the Raksura, a matriarchal, caste-structured flying people he never knew existed. It runs 392 pages and precedes The Serpent Sea. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Cloud Roads - Book 2:
The Serpent Sea
The Serpent Sea followed The Cloud Roads by a year, continuing The Books of the Raksura as its second entry at 384 pages, following Moon's court, the Indigo Cloud, as they work to rebuild a damaged home tree. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Serpent Sea - Book 3:
The Siren Depths
At 432 pages, The Siren Depths is the longest book in The Books of the Raksura to date, published in December 2012 as Moon and the Indigo Cloud court confront rival courts and the ancient enemies called the Fell. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Siren Depths - Book 4:
The Edge of Worlds
Published in April 2016, The Edge of Worlds is the fourth installment of The Books of the Raksura, running 388 pages as Moon's court is drawn into wider threats facing the Three Worlds their people inhabit. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Edge of Worlds - Book 5:
The Harbors of the Sun
The Harbors of the Sun is the fifth and final book in The Books of the Raksura, published in 2017 at 410 pages, closing out Moon's escalating conflicts and his slow, hard-won sense of home among the Indigo Cloud court. Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Harbors of the Sun
Key facts about The Books of the Raksura series
The Books of the Raksura series has 5 books on our list. Since all 5 are out now, you can read the whole list today.
Start with The Cloud Roads, since it opens the publication order in 2011. The Serpent Sea is book 2, from 2012. The Siren Depths is book 3, from 2012.
The Edge of Worlds is book 4, from 2016. The Harbors of the Sun is book 5, from 2017.
Each title links to its own page, while the list keeps them in date order. Each book page shows its dates and editions.
The Harbors of the Sun is the latest book with a full release date, out on 18 July 2017. Since the catalogue marks the series as complete, we list no next book.
The books came out between 2011 and 2017, while their length runs from 384 to 432 pages. That is a run of 6 years.
Martha Wells has 26 books on our list. Additionally, they write The Books of Ile-Rien, The Murderbot Diaries and The Rising World. We shelve the books under fantasy.
About The Books of the Raksura
Moon has spent his entire life hiding what he is, drifting between short-lived communities of other species because revealing his shapeshifting, dragon-like true form has always meant being driven out or killed. The Cloud Roads (2011) begins when he's finally found by others of his own kind, the Raksura -- a matriarchal, caste-structured flying people he never knew existed -- and has to decide whether he can belong to a society built on rules he's never learned. Martha Wells builds an unusually detailed non-human social structure around the Raksura's court system, with queens, consorts, warriors, and soldiers each carrying distinct roles and instincts, and uses Moon's outsider position to explore belonging without ever losing the series' core adventure-fantasy momentum.
The Serpent Sea, The Siren Depths, The Edge of Worlds, and The Harbors of the Sun follow Moon's court, the Indigo Cloud, as they rebuild a damaged home tree, confront rival courts and ancient enemies called the Fell, and are drawn into wider threats to the Three Worlds their people inhabit. Wells layers worldbuilding thick throughout -- ancient ruins, alien technology, and a genuinely non-Western social structure -- while keeping the emotional core fixed on Moon's slow, hard-won sense of home.
Frequently asked questions
How many novels are in The Books of the Raksura?
Five: The Cloud Roads (2011), The Serpent Sea (2012), The Siren Depths (2012), The Edge of Worlds (2016), and The Harbors of the Sun (2017), plus two companion short-fiction collections not tracked here.
What order should I read The Books of the Raksura in?
Publication order: The Cloud Roads, The Serpent Sea, The Siren Depths, The Edge of Worlds, The Harbors of the Sun.
Is The Books of the Raksura connected to the Murderbot Diaries?
No -- they're entirely separate settings; Murderbot is science fiction, while the Raksura books are secondary-world fantasy with no shared characters or continuity.
Who are the Raksura?
A matriarchal, shapeshifting winged species with a caste-based court system (queens, consorts, warriors, soldiers, and more), central to the series' worldbuilding and to protagonist Moon's search for belonging.
Does the series have a complete ending?
Yes -- The Harbors of the Sun (2017) concludes the main five-book arc; Wells has continued to write shorter Raksura fiction since.
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