Want to know the correct Elizabeth Lim reading order? Whether you’re exploring her magical original series or her bestselling Twisted Tales for Disney, this complete guide breaks down all Elizabeth Lim books in order—by series and release date—so you can enjoy every story the way it was meant to be read.
Elizabeth Lim is a New York Times bestselling author renowned for her immersive world-building and unforgettable heroines. Her books are rooted in fairy tale retellings, East Asian mythology, and classic fantasy tropes, making them favorites among fans of YA fantasy and romantic adventure fiction.
The author’s most popular works include the Blood of Stars and Six Crimson Cranes duology. These two series are set in the same world, but in different times and places, so they can be read independently.
These novels follow brave young women on quests filled with ancient magic, political intrigue, cursed destinies, and swoon-worthy romance.
In addition to her original novels, Elizabeth Lim has written several titles for Disney’s Twisted Tales series, which reimagine classic Disney stories with bold “what if” scenarios.
Some of Lim’s books are interconnected, while others stand alone—but reading them in order will give you a better understanding of character arcs, world-building details, and hidden connections!
All Elizabeth Lim Books in Order:
Here is every novel written by Elizabeth Lim. While most of her books and series can be read independently, I suggest you read them in publication order, as mentioned below, because that will help you better understand the story the author has crafted!
Blood of Stars Series:
Six Crimson Cranes Series:
Standalone Novels:
Disney’s Twisted Tales Series:
Elizabeth Lim’s Blood of Stars Series:
1. Spin the Dawn (2019)
On the fringes of the Great Spice Road, Maia Tamarin works as a seamstress in her father’s shop, once a tailor of renown. She dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well.
When a royal messenger summons her ailing father to court, Maia poses as his son and travels to the Summer Palace in his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she’ll take that risk to save her family from ruin and achieve her dream of becoming the imperial tailor. There’s just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.
The competition is cutthroat, and Maia’s job is further complicated by the unwelcome attention of the court enchanter, Edan, who seems to see straight through her disguise. But nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three gowns so dangerously beautiful, it will take a quest to the ends of the earth to complete them!
2. Unravel the Dusk (2020)
Maia Tamarin’s journey to sew the dresses of the sun, the moon, and the stars has taken a grievous toll. She returns to a kingdom on the brink of war. The boy she loves is gone, and she is forced to don the dress of the sun and assume the place of the emperor’s bride-to-be to keep the peace.
But the war raging around Maia is nothing compared to the battle within. Ever since she was touched by the demon Bandur, she has been changing… glancing in the mirror to see her eyes glowing red, losing control of her magic, body, and mind.
It’s only a matter of time before Maia loses herself completely, but she will stop at nothing to find Edan, protect her family, and bring lasting peace to her country.
Elizabeth Lim’s Six Crimson Cranes Series:
1. Six Crimson Cranes (2021)
Shiori’anma, the only princess of Kiata, has a secret. Forbidden magic runs through her veins. Normally, she conceals it well, but on the morning of her betrothal ceremony, Shiori loses control. At first, her mistake seems like a stroke of luck, forestalling the wedding she never wanted. But it also catches the attention of Raikama, her stepmother.
A sorceress in her own right, Raikama banishes the young princess, turning her brothers into cranes. She warns Shiori that she must speak of it to no one, for with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die.
Penniless, voiceless, and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers and uncovers a dark conspiracy to seize the throne. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so, she must place her trust in a paper bird, a mercurial dragon, and the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. And she must embrace the magic she’s been taught all her life to forswear—no matter the cost.
2. The Dragon’s Promise (2022)
Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the dragon’s pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined.
She must journey to the kingdom of dragons, navigate political intrigue among humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl for themselves and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to dissuade those who would see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood.
The pearl itself is no ordinary cargo; it thrums with malevolent power, jumping to Shiori’s aid one minute, and betraying her the next, threatening to shatter her family and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love, Takkan. It will take every ounce of strength Shiori can muster to defend the life and the love she’s fought so hard to win.
Standalone Novels:
1. Her Radiant Curse (2023)
Channi was not born a monster. But when her own father offers her in sacrifice to the Demon Witch, she is forever changed. Cursed with a serpent’s face, Channi is the opposite of her beautiful sister, Vanna—the only person in the village who looks at Channi and doesn’t see a monster. The only person she loves and trusts.
Now seventeen, Vanna is to be married off in a vulgar contest that will enrich the coffers of the village leaders. Only Channi, who’s had to rely on her strength and cunning all these years, can defend her sister against the cruelest of the suitors.
But in doing so, she becomes the target of his wrath, launching a grisly battle royale, a quest over land and sea, a romance between sworn enemies, and a choice that will strain Channi’s heart to its breaking point.
2. A Forgery of Fate (2025)
Truyan Saigas didn’t choose to become a con artist, but after her father is lost at sea, she must support her mother and two younger sisters. A gifted art forger, Tru has the unique ability to paint the future, but even such magic is not enough to put her family back together again, or stave off the gangsters demanding payment in blood for her mother’s gambling debts.
Left with few options, Tru agrees to a marriage contract with a mysterious dragon lord. He offers a fresh start for her mother and sisters and elusive answers about her father’s disappearance, but in exchange, she must join him in his desolate undersea palace.
And she must assist him in a plot to infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King’s inner circle, painting a treasonous future that could upend both the mortal and immortal realms!
Disney’s Twisted Tales Books by Elizabeth Lim:
1. Reflection (2018)
When Captain Shang is mortally wounded by Shan Yu in battle, Mulan must travel to the Underworld, Diyu, to save him from certain death. But King Yama, the ruler of Diyu, is unwilling to give Shang up easily.
With the help of Shang’s great lion guardian ShiShi, Mulan must traverse Diyu to find Shang’s spirit, face harrowing obstacles, and leave by sunrise—or become King Yama’s prisoner forever.
Moreover, Mulan is still disguised as the soldier called Ping, wrestling with the decision to reveal her true identity to her closest friend.
Will Mulan be able to save Shang before it’s too late? Will he ever be able to trust her again? Or will she lose him—and be lost in the Underworld—forever?
2. So This is Love (2020)
Unable to prove that she’s the missing princess, and unable to bear life under Lady Tremaine any longer, Cinderella attempts a fresh start, looking for work at the palace as a seamstress.
But when the Grand Duke appoints her to serve under the king’s visiting sister, Cinderella becomes witness to a grand conspiracy to take the king―and the prince―out of power and a longstanding prejudice against fairies, including Cinderella’s own Fairy Godmother.
Faced with questions of love and loyalty to the kingdom, Cinderella must find a way to stop the villains of the past and present before it’s too late.
3. When You Wish Upon a Star (2023)
“Starlight, star bright, first star I see tonight…” begins the wish that changes everything—for Geppetto, the Blue Fairy, and a little puppet named Pinocchio.
The Blue Fairy isn’t supposed to grant wishes in the small village of Pariva, but something about this one awakens some long-buried flicker within. Perhaps it’s the hope she senses beneath the old man’s loneliness.
Or maybe it’s that long ago, before she was the Blue Fairy, she was a young woman named Chiara from this village, with a simple wish: to help others find happiness. Her sister Ilaria always teased her for this, but the two were close, despite their differences. While Ilaria would give anything to have a fairy grant her wish, Chiara didn’t believe in the lore for which their village was famous.
Forty years later, Chiara, now the Blue Fairy, defies the rules of magic to help an old friend. But she’s discovered by the Scarlet Fairy, formerly Ilaria, who, amid a decades-long grudge, holds the transgression against her sister. They decide to settle things through a good old-fashioned bet, with Pinocchio and Geppetto’s fate hanging in the balance!
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