Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black Beauty | 1986 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 2 | The Outlaws of Sherwood | 1988 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 3 | My Father is in the Navy | 1992 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 4 | Rowan | 1992 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 5 | Deerskin | 1993 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 6 | Sunshine | 2003 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 7 | Dragonhaven | 2007 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 8 | Chalice | 2008 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
| 9 | Shadows | 2013 | Robin McKinley | Buy |
Robin McKinley’s standalone novels cover a wide range of settings and tones within fantasy. Her retelling of the Robin Hood legend, The Outlaws of Sherwood (1988), reimagines the outlaw band with a focus on community and daily survival rather than swashbuckling adventure. Deerskin (1993) is a retelling of the fairy tale Donkeyskin that addresses trauma and healing with unflinching honesty, making it one of her most powerful but also most difficult books.
Sunshine (2003) became a fan favorite for its fresh take on vampires, set in a world where magic bleeds into everyday life and a baker named Sunshine finds herself entangled with a vampire named Constantine. Dragonhaven (2007) is narrated by a teenager raising an orphaned baby dragon in a national park, told in a rambling, diary-like voice. Chalice (2008) is a quiet, atmospheric fantasy about a beekeeper called to heal her fractured land. Each of these books stands alone, but all of them share McKinley’s attention to the textures of daily life within extraordinary worlds.