Victoria Goddard Books in Order

On a blue-moon night just before school resumes, Alberta teenager Tyler explores the land beyond his father's ranch. An unusual discovery behind a wind farm interrupts an otherwise ordinary summer weekend and brings mystery into a familiar rural landscape.

William Shakespeare strays beyond the fields he knows and arrives at the Black Bull of Inkebarrow. A wrong turn carries him away from the familiar course of history toward an encounter with magic in this brief fantasy tale.

A fairy prince sets out expecting amusement and the chance to cause trouble. His search for mischief instead brings an unexpected encounter, taking his outing beyond its original purpose in a short tale set in the world of Ysthar.

A nameless young man lives contentedly in an isolated tower, studying wild magic and following orderly routines. Something glimpsed in a bird's nest awakens a curiosity strong enough to challenge the enchantments that have kept him from leaving.

Jemis Greenwing returns from university to a damaged reputation, an uncertain inheritance, and employment in a quiet town's bookshop. Reconnecting with an adventurous old friend draws him into secret societies, criminal gangs, an illegal cult, and an unexpected mermaid.

When a mysterious god takes their youngest sister, the daughters of a desert bandit queen refuse to accept divine privilege as an excuse for injustice. Pali and Arzu venture beyond the routes mortals ordinarily travel, determined to bring her home.

Scarred interstellar courier Portia intends to honor a childhood promise when her old friend, now a powerful generalissimo, chooses a bride. Family interference, social prejudice, a mysterious predator, and even a galactic black hole threaten to obstruct her arrival.

Widowed Sardeet leaves her nomadic family to recover among relatives in a river city, where rumors portray her as a god's beautiful former wife. Her sister Pali knows the truth behind the husband's death, and that consequences will follow.

Jemis Greenwing hopes to enjoy the local harvest fair with nothing more dangerous than a modest wager and perhaps a footrace. Lost heirs, riddling dragons, and elaborate family troubles make even reaching the starting line an unexpectedly difficult undertaking.

After the empire's fall, a former soldier tells his nephew how he acquired a facial scar and an unwanted place in the outlaw poet Fitzroy Angursell's songs. Neither man anticipates what revealing the old story will mean between them.

Scout Jack Greenwing returns from a mission to discover that treachery has ended a siege and his surviving commanders have been taken prisoner. Determined to rescue them, he enters snowy mountains controlled by enemies who can move through stone.

Just as Jemis begins to feel settled in his hometown, he is accused of magically murdering a legendary folk hero. Fleeing into the forest brings encounters with highwaymen, illicit distillers, unexpected relatives, and the secrets beneath the town's respectable dullness.

Cliopher Mdang has devoted his life to serving an emperor revered as a living god, observing every barrier between sovereign and secretary. An impulsive invitation to visit his remote island home begins a friendship with consequences far beyond either man's expectations.

Raphael, guardian of the magic hidden behind the ordinary world, is prepared to sacrifice almost everything to prevent its destruction. The sudden return of his long-lost twin unsettles those plans, exposing a struggle in which saving himself may prove hardest.

Jemis accompanies his best friend on an urgent journey to the imperial capital, hoping to escape hometown gossip for a while. His former lover's rising legal power, unexpected family connections, and new notoriety make an inconspicuous visit impossible.

Five standalone stories follow very different people into encounters with poetry, myth, and magic in a world resembling our own. A storyteller, a fairy prince, ordinary siblings, a Canadian teenager, and Shakespeare each find unexpected passages beyond familiar experience.

A blizzard forces Jemis and his companions to shelter in an eccentric country house while crossing the mountains home. Its other guests harbor secrets, and Mr. Dart's unusual ability to hear inanimate objects complicates a visit that soon includes murder.

A celebrated Canadian writer believes that success has cost him the inspiration he once possessed. An unexpected visit to the dentist forces Arthur MacEachern to reconsider that explanation and discover that his missing Muse may reside somewhere entirely different.

Three years after awakening from a magical coma, the last emperor of a fallen empire struggles to articulate even his own needs. The arrival of a new secretary, Cliopher Mdang, unexpectedly begins to end his long personal apocalypse.

Jemis and Mr. Dart hope for a peaceful Winterturn of family, food, and modest religious observances after their recent adventures. The arrival of a fairy fox introduces wild magic, hidden gifts, and family secrets before the holiday pageant even begins.

Revered as a living god, the last emperor of Astandalas is an unlikely person to find breaking into an imperial tomb. Yet beneath his ceremonial identity lies an experienced adventurer with an old name and a secret life.

Left governing while his emperor searches for a magical heir, Cliopher anticipates retirement and a chance to rediscover his own neglected dreams. An unexpected adventure turns that comfortable prospect into a real journey, testing the stories and loyalties that have guided him.

At twenty-one, Aurelius has already spent six years as emperor and known little beyond war. Before the legendary friendships and achievements of his future reign, he reaches a moment that may change both his life and the empire's course.

Nineteen-year-old costumier Feonie accepts work for the new Lord Chancellor to advance her ambitions and help her family. His reforms inspire a deeper loyalty, making the challenge of preparing his regalia for a new position a matter of personal commitment.

Tovo reassures his island community that his absent great-nephew Kip will return when the time is right, but privately fears he has forgotten his heritage. Traveling across the world to see for himself offers a more direct answer.

Unable to suppress his growing gift for fire, Terec fears he will eventually hurt the people he loves. Rather than travel south into the empire's magical heart, he chooses the uncertain northern wilderness and the adventures he never intended to seek.

Once a legendary swordswoman, Pali now battles injustice as a respected historian, keeping her blade sharp despite academic respectability. A sabbatical reunites her with old companions and draws her toward an adventure involving a plot to abduct the last emperor.

Sent to investigate reports of a saint, Sister Mirabelle arrives in Ragnor Bella to distinguish miracles from magic or fraud. Her inquiries lead to the town's small bookstore and Jemis Greenwing, whose unusual history complicates an apparently straightforward religious assessment.

Thirteen-year-old Kip feels like an outsider, yet believes he can become the community's next keeper of the fire. Before advancing in his apprenticeship, he must convince his teacher that he is ready, then face what that next step actually requires.

In a region where universities carry enormous social importance, young Duke Hal faces what seems a predetermined educational path. One traditional choice has sunk into the sea, leaving another institution and the still-unwritten letter that would make his future official.

A young swordsman dreams of mastery while a sheltered student longs to see lands beyond her familiar empire. Their unlikely friendship begins amid shared hopes for adventure, with an unexpected examination result opening possibilities neither could have predicted.

After surviving the empire's magical collapse, fashionable Conju spends his time avoiding the devastation around him. The Emperor's awakening offers another direction, but finding a useful place at court requires more ingenuity than his expertise in perfume and clothes might suggest.

Foundling Hope has discovered her origins but still faces conditions before inheriting a fortune. Staying with family friends in supposedly dull Ragnor Bella promises a quiet holiday, until she discovers that unexpected situations need not involve Jemis Greenwing to find her.

Beyond the empire's northern reaches lies a vast wall of ice that most travelers merely admire before turning back. For wild mage Terec, whose magic draws him onward through the wastelands, the frozen barrier may conceal an unexpected doorway.

After what may have been his death, a thrice-cursed bard and warrior awakens in Elfland, unexpectedly healed after millennia of suffering. Confused but encouraged, Tamsin sets out in search of a way back to the home he remembers.

On a foggy eighteenth-century winter night in Venice, Scheherezade searches unsuccessfully for somewhere warm to sleep. Instead, the wandering storyteller finds an adventure and a new tale, which may prove worth the discomfort of another sleepless night.

Arzu persuades her sister Pali to visit their youngest sibling, now remarried and living far from their nomadic clan. This time their mission is to secure a promised bride-price, using negotiation or a sword point if necessary.

Hal finishes university with his own prospects intact, while his friend Jemis faces heartbreak and disgrace after an academic dispute turns violent. Standing beside him again means helping a shaken friend regain his footing as their lives move beyond school.

Raised in the magical Woods Noirell, Olive knows that fairy gifts can resemble curses and travelers may never return if they leave the road. Her path toward a dragon unfolds within a forest whose dangers she has long understood.

In a rented house overlooking the sea, Genevieve watches the gray waves at winter's end and longs to see a whale. This standalone fantasy story unfolds in a world closely resembling our own.

Kisanra insists on holding rowing practice after a teammate's rehearsal, leaving the crew late, frustrated, and out of rhythm. Their troubled outing nevertheless puts them in the right place to help two stranded sailors of unexpectedly great renown.

After losing both her jobs before breakfast, customer-service veteran Stacey accepts a suspiciously well-paid task from two sorcerers. They promise only a modest chance of death, but opening a single mysterious door could involve far more than they admit.

Zell has settled in Saskatchewan without any particular plan, remaining because she cannot decide where else to go. Before dawn one September morning, an unusual stranger arrives in town, interrupting the uncertainty of her ordinary life.