Kacen Callender Books in Order
Browse Kacen Callender's books in order, from middle grade to adult fiction, with summaries, series background, and simple starting-point guidance.
Last updated: July 14, 2026
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Kacen Callender books in publication order
14 books
Hurricane Child
by Kacen Callender
2018
Born during a hurricane, twelve-year-old Caroline believes she is cursed and longs to find her missing mother. With new classmate Kalinda beside her, she searches through island lore, storms, and growing feelings she does not yet know how to name.
This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story
by Kacen Callender
2018
Movie-loving Nate Bird has sworn off happy endings after losing his father. When his former best friend Ollie returns to town, Nate must decide whether protecting his heart is worth giving up the love story he has been avoiding.
Queen of the Conquered
by Kacen Callender
2019
Sigourney Rose survived the colonizers who murdered her family on the islands of Hans Lollik. When a royal succession contest opens a route to power, she enters the ruling court, only to become entangled in deadly magic and a string of murders.
Felix Ever After
by Kacen Callender
2020
After someone posts old photos and deadnames him, Black trans teen Felix sets out to get revenge by catfishing a classmate. His plan becomes complicated when real feelings appear, pushing Felix toward a deeper understanding of love and himself.
King and the Dragonflies
by Kacen Callender
2020
Twelve-year-old King believes his dead brother has become a dragonfly near their Louisiana bayou. When his friend Sandy runs from an abusive father, the boys seek refuge together and confront grief, fear, and the pressure to hide who they are.
King of the Rising
by Kacen Callender
2020
Revolution has reached Hans Lollik, and former slave Loren Jannik must lead survivors against the returning Fjern colonizers. With supplies dwindling and every battle costly, Loren faces a decision that could either save the islands or destroy the rebellion.
Sunset Springs
by Kacen Callender
2021
Out of work and broke, twenty-seven-year-old Charlie leaves New York and returns to his conservative hometown after transitioning. There he reconnects with Jackson, a former football star newly out as gay, and considers a future he never expected.
Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution
by Kacen Callender
2022
Aspiring writer Lark takes the blame when former best friend Kasim accidentally posts about his secret crush from Lark's account. The attention brings followers and new possibilities, but the lie tests their friendship and forces Lark to face their own messy feelings.
Moonflower
by Kacen Callender
2022
Moon feels cut off from the living world and escapes each night into a spirit realm with Wolf, their only friend. When that realm is threatened, Moon must face monsters and the possibility of finding love and belonging at home.
Stars in Your Eyes
by Kacen Callender
2023
Troubled Hollywood actor Logan and rising star Mattie are cast as romantic leads, then pushed into a fake-dating campaign after a public feud. As the publicity act becomes real, both men must face old wounds and the glare of fame.
Infinity Alchemist
by Kacen Callender
2024
Ash Woods secretly practices alchemy while working at a prestigious college that has denied him formal training. Caught by Ramsay Thorne, he agrees to help find the legendary Book of Source, a quest that brings danger, desire, and immense power.
Chaos King
by Kacen Callender
2025
After saving New Anglia, Ash is haunted by nightmares and signs that danger is not over. Captured by a violent anti-alchemist group, he must choose between trusting the ruling Houses and becoming the leader of an alchemist revolution.
We Are Villains
by Kacen Callender
2025
Milo returns to Yates Academy determined to learn what really happened to his best friend Ari, whose death was ruled an accident. When the school's powerful student king receives blackmail threats, Milo is drawn into a dangerous web of secrets and status.
Sun Chasers
by Kacen Callender
2026
After moving to St. Thomas to live with his abusive father, new student Kole befriends Gabriel, a trans teen targeted by bullies. Their growing connection offers each boy comfort, but both are hiding pain that could pull them apart.
Where to start with Kacen Callender
For island-set middle grade: Hurricane Child → King and the Dragonflies → Moonflower
For contemporary teen romance: This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story → Felix Ever After → Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution
For Caribbean-inspired fantasy: Queen of the Conquered → King of the Rising
For YA magic and adventure: Infinity Alchemist → Chaos King
Kacen Callender sub-series and character series
Infinity Alchemist books in order
Explore this seriesIslands of Blood and Storm books in order
Explore this seriesKacen Callender collections, short stories, and related book types
Standalone Kacen Callender books

Hurricane Child
by Kacen Callender
2018
This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story
by Kacen Callender
2018
Felix Ever After
by Kacen Callender
2020
King and the Dragonflies
by Kacen Callender
2020
Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution
by Kacen Callender
2022
Moonflower
by Kacen Callender
2022
Stars in Your Eyes
by Kacen Callender
2023
We Are Villains
by Kacen Callender
2025
Sun Chasers
by Kacen Callender
2026
Author bio
Kacen Callender was born and raised on St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Their family has roots across the Caribbean, including Barbados and Tortola, and the sights, weather, folklore, and close-knit feeling of island life often find their way into their fiction.
Writing was part of Callender's life early on. They made up stories with their mother, enjoyed creative-writing classes as a kid, and later moved from fanfiction into original work.
At eighteen, Callender moved to New York. They studied Japanese, fine arts, and creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College, then earned an MFA in Writing for Children from The New School. That mix of interests shows up in books that move easily between contemporary life, fantasy, romance, and big questions about who gets to belong.
Before publishing novels, Callender worked in children's books as an editor at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. They had queried two completed manuscripts before entering their MFA program, then found an internship that became a full-time editorial job. It was practical training, but it also meant learning to quiet the internal editor long enough to finish their own stories.
Their first published novel, Hurricane Child, arrived in 2018. Set in the Virgin Islands, it follows twelve-year-old Caroline Murphy as she searches for her missing mother and begins to understand her feelings for a new friend. The book drew on Callender's own experience of growing up on St. Thomas and hearing that a child born near a hurricane is unlucky.
Callender's books for younger readers make room for grief, family pressure, friendship, and identity without talking down to anyone. King and the Dragonflies centers on a boy mourning his brother in a Louisiana town, while Moonflower follows a child struggling with depression who finds a path between a spirit world and everyday life. King and the Dragonflies won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature.
Their teen novels turn toward first love, public mistakes, art, and self-definition. In This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story, a movie-loving teen who distrusts happy endings faces the return of his former best friend. Felix Ever After follows a Black trans teen after an act of cruelty pushes him toward revenge, romance, and a more honest sense of himself. Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution looks at friendship and online attention through a queer teen writer's bad decision.
Callender also writes adult fiction. The Caribbean-inspired fantasy duology beginning with Queen of the Conquered examines colonial rule, class, revenge, and the costs of power. Later books such as Stars in Your Eyes and Sunset Springs bring those same concerns about healing and being seen into contemporary romance.
Callender is Black, queer, and trans, and uses they/them and he/him pronouns. In 2018, after Hurricane Irma, they helped organize a publishing-community fundraiser for hurricane relief in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
They now live in St. Thomas, where they enjoy role-playing video games, making art, and making time for healing and growth. Across age categories and genres, Callender keeps returning to people who are trying to build a life that feels like their own.
Edited by
Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
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