Keeper of the Lost Cities
fantasy
Series · urban fantasy
InCryptid
The InCryptid series by Seanan McGuire has 15 known books (15 published). It is best read in publication order, starting with Discount Armageddon (2012). Butterfly Effects is the latest book with a fully recorded publication date.
- Books
- 15 known books (15 novels)
- Published
- 15
- First published
- 2012
- Status
- ongoing
- Shelved under
- Fantasy
Start here: Discount Armageddon (2012)
— 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:
Discount Armageddon
Discount Armageddon (2012) opens the numbered InCryptid sequence with Verity Price, a cryptozoologist by family trade and competitive ballroom dancer by passion, trying to keep both careers alive in New York City without the secretive Covenant of St. George or her own family finding out about the other. It runs 250 pages. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Discount Armageddon - Book 2:
Midnight Blue-Light Special
Midnight Blue-Light Special followed in 2013, the second InCryptid novel, continuing the Price family's double life -- cataloguing and protecting North America's cryptid population while dodging the Covenant of St. George that still wants them dead. It runs 300 pages. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Midnight Blue-Light Special - Book 3:
Half-Off Ragnarok
Half-Off Ragnarok, published in 2014, is the third InCryptid novel and, at 368 pages, shifts point of view to another member of the sprawling Price family, part of Seanan McGuire's pattern of rotating narrators book to book. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Half-Off Ragnarok - Book 4:
Pocket Apocalypse
Pocket Apocalypse followed in 2015, running 360 pages, the fourth entry in McGuire's InCryptid series and its continuous mythology of cryptid biology, family history and the slow-boiling Covenant conflict. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Pocket Apocalypse - Book 5:
Chaos Choreography
Chaos Choreography arrived in 2016, the fifth InCryptid novel at 356 pages, continuing the series' meticulous, funny world-building applied to monsters most urban fantasy treats as scenery. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Chaos Choreography - Book 6:
Magic for Nothing
Magic for Nothing was published in 2017 and runs 352 pages, the sixth entry in InCryptid's ongoing story of the Price family's double life as both cryptid protectors and former Covenant targets. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Magic for Nothing - Book 7:
Tricks for Free
Tricks for Free, arriving in 2018, is the seventh InCryptid novel at 420 pages, keeping to McGuire's practice of centering a different Price family member each book while the wider Covenant conflict builds continuously. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tricks for Free - Book 8:
That Ain't Witchcraft
That Ain't Witchcraft, published in 2019, is the longest book in the InCryptid series at 448 pages, the eighth entry in the Price family's long-running fight to protect North America's cryptid population. Alternative text for cover: Cover of That Ain't Witchcraft - Book 9:
Imaginary Numbers
Imaginary Numbers was published in 2020 and runs 448 pages, the ninth InCryptid novel, matching That Ain't Witchcraft as one of the series' longest entries. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Imaginary Numbers - Book 10:
Calculated Risks
Calculated Risks, published in 2021, is the tenth InCryptid novel at 448 pages, continuing the found-family warmth and real stakes that define McGuire's approach to the Price family's cryptid-protection work. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Calculated Risks - Book 11:
Spelunking Through Hell
Spelunking Through Hell followed in 2022, the eleventh entry at 416 pages, part of the continuous mythology McGuire has built across InCryptid's now fifteen-book run. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Spelunking Through Hell - Book 12:
Backpacking Through Bedlam
Backpacking Through Bedlam, published in 2023, is the twelfth InCryptid novel at 352 pages, keeping the series' rotating cast of Price family narrators and their long-running Covenant conflict moving forward. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Backpacking Through Bedlam - Book 13:
Aftermarket Afterlife
Aftermarket Afterlife was published in 2024 and runs 368 pages, the thirteenth entry in McGuire's InCryptid series and its ongoing chronicle of the Price family's monster-protecting double life. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Aftermarket Afterlife - Book 14:
Installment Immortality
Installment Immortality followed in 2025, the fourteenth InCryptid novel at 360 pages, continuing one of Seanan McGuire's longest-running series as it heads toward its fifteenth entry. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Installment Immortality - Book 15:
Butterfly Effects
Butterfly Effects, published March 10, 2026, is the most recent InCryptid novel to date -- the fifteenth in the numbered sequence -- with a further book, Pride and Poltergeists, already announced for 2027. It runs 347 pages. Alternative text for cover: Cover of Butterfly Effects
Key facts about the InCryptid series
Our list has 15 books in the InCryptid series. Since all 15 are out now, you can read the whole list today.
Start with Discount Armageddon, since it opens the publication order in 2012. Midnight Blue-Light Special is book 2, from 2013. Half-Off Ragnarok is book 3, from 2014.
Pocket Apocalypse is book 4, from 2015. Chaos Choreography is book 5, from 2016. Magic for Nothing is book 6, from 2017.
Tricks for Free is book 7, from 2018, while That Ain't Witchcraft is book 8, from 2019. Imaginary Numbers is book 9, from 2020.
Calculated Risks is book 10, from 2021, while Spelunking Through Hell is book 11, from 2022. Backpacking Through Bedlam is book 12, from 2023. Since the list above shows all 15, you can find the rest there.
The list keeps the books in date order, while each title links to its own page. Each book page shows its dates and editions.
Butterfly Effects is the latest book with a full release date, out on 10 March 2026. The catalogue marks it as ongoing, yet no next book has a date so far.
The books came out between 2012 and 2026, while their length runs from 250 to 448 pages. That is a run of 14 years.
Seanan McGuire has 53 books on our list. Additionally, they write October Daye, Ghost Roads and Wayward Children, plus 1 more series. We shelve the books under urban fantasy.
About the InCryptid series
The Price family used to work for the Covenant of St. George, a secret society sworn to wipe out every cryptid -- every non-human, from talking mice to sapient sea monsters -- on Earth. Then they switched sides. Generations later, the Prices live off the grid, running a pest-control-adjacent double life: cataloguing and protecting the cryptid population of North America while dodging the Covenant that still wants them dead. Discount Armageddon opens the numbered sequence with Verity Price, a cryptozoologist by family trade and competitive ballroom dancer by passion, trying to keep both careers alive in New York City without either the Covenant or her family finding out about the other.
Each InCryptid novel centers a different member of the sprawling, chaotic Price family -- siblings, cousins, in-laws, and the odd talking mouse cult that worships them -- while building one continuous mythology of cryptid biology, family history, and the slow-boiling Covenant conflict. Seanan McGuire's trademark is here in full: meticulous, funny, deeply-considered world-building applied to monsters most urban fantasy treats as scenery, plus a genuine, low-drama commitment to found family and queer representation throughout the cast.
At fifteen novels and counting, InCryptid is one of McGuire's longest-running series and a favorite for readers who want urban fantasy that's funnier and warmer than most, without losing real stakes.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in the InCryptid series?
15 numbered novels as of Butterfly Effects (2026), from Discount Armageddon (2012) onward, plus a large body of shorter InCryptid fiction.
What order should I read InCryptid in?
Publication order, starting with Discount Armageddon. The point-of-view character changes between books, but the Covenant conflict and family history build continuously across the series.
Is InCryptid finished?
No, it's ongoing. Butterfly Effects (March 2026) is the most recent entry, and a further book, Pride and Poltergeists, has been announced for 2027.
Do I need to read InCryptid's short stories and novellas?
No. Seanan McGuire has published many extra short works in this world, including stories about earlier Price generations, but none are required to follow the numbered novels.
Is InCryptid connected to Seanan McGuire's October Daye series?
No, they're separate, unrelated series by the same author, though both are urban fantasy.
If you like the InCryptid series
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