Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maya and the Rising Dark | 2020 | Rena Barron | Buy |
| 2 | Maya and the Return of the Godlings | 2021 | Rena Barron | Buy |
| 3 | Maya and the Lord of Shadows | 2022 | Rena Barron | Buy |
Maya and the Rising Dark follows twelve-year-old Maya, who lives on the South Side of Chicago and thinks her biggest problem is the school bullies. That changes when her father disappears and she learns he is actually an orisha, one of the gods from Yoruba tradition. Maya discovers she has powers of her own and that a dark force called the Lord of Shadows is threatening to break through the barrier between the human world and a realm of dangerous supernatural beings.
The trilogy runs through Maya and the Return of the Godlings (2021) and Maya and the Lord of Shadows (2022), building out the mythology and Maya’s growing confidence as she faces threats far beyond anything a normal kid should have to handle. Barron brings the same West African mythological roots she uses in her adult fiction to a younger audience here, creating an adventure series with real cultural depth.