The Halfblood Chronicles

About The Halfblood Chronicles

Written jointly by Mercedes Lackey and fantasy grandmaster Andre Norton, the Halfblood Chronicles is set in a world where high elves rule as slaveholding aristocrats over the humans of a Rome-like empire, treating both humans and magic itself as resources to be extracted. The Elvenbane introduces Shana, secretly raised as half-elf, half-human — a mixed heritage that should be impossible and that gives her power neither side fully understands — after a rebel dragon rescues her from execution as an infant and raises her among his kind. Elvenblood follows the humans and half-elves she has united into open rebellion against elven rule, while Elvenborn carries the conflict to its resolution as the old elven order finally begins to crack.

The trilogy blends Norton's long-running interest in outsider protagonists and non-human intelligences (here, sentient dragons who are genuinely alien in outlook rather than reskinned humans) with Lackey's focus on found family and characters overcoming institutions built to keep them powerless. It's a slower, more classically epic fantasy than either author's solo work, spanning Shana's life from infancy through a full-scale war of liberation.

How to read this series

Publication order is the only order — this is a single continuous trilogy telling one escalating story of rebellion against elven rule, not a set of standalone entries. Start with The Elvenbane (1991), which covers Shana's early life and the setup of the central conflict; Elvenblood (1995) and Elvenborn (2002) continue directly from where the previous book ends. No familiarity with either author's other work is required.