Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tales of Nevèrÿon | 1979 | Samuel R. Delany | Buy |
| 2 | Neveryona or: The Tale of Signs and Cities | 1983 | Samuel R. Delany | N/A |
| 3 | Neveryóna | 1983 | Samuel R. Delany | Buy |
| 4 | Flight from Nevèrÿon | 1985 | Samuel R. Delany | Buy |
| 5 | Return to Nevèrÿon | 1987 | Samuel R. Delany | N/A |
| 6 | The Bridge of Lost Desire / Return to Neveryon | 1987 | Samuel R. Delany | Buy |
The Return to Neveryon series is Samuel R. Delany’s extended work of sword-and-sorcery fiction, written between 1979 and 1987. Set in a pre-historical civilization at the dawn of written language, the series consists of interconnected tales and novels that use fantasy conventions to explore questions about power, semiotics, sexuality, and the origins of civilization.
The first volume, Tales of Neveryon, collects several linked stories set in the fictional world. Neveryona, the second book, is a full novel that follows a young woman’s journey through Neveryon’s cities and markets. Flight from Neveryon and The Bridge of Lost Desire (also published as Return to Neveryon) complete the sequence with increasingly experimental narrative techniques, including stories within stories and appendices that blur the line between fiction and criticism.
Delany’s Neveryon books stand apart from most fantasy of their era. They are less concerned with heroic quests than with how societies create meaning through language, trade, and social hierarchy. The series has been praised by literary critics and remains a touchstone for readers interested in the overlap between genre fiction and literary theory.