His Fair Assassin Series in Order by Robin LaFevers
Not your usual Royal Assassin.
What is the His Fair Assassin Series about?
The “His Fair Assassin” series is a young adult fantasy series coming from the American author Robin LaFevers–also known for her children’s books under the name R. L. LaFevers; she’s the author of the Theodosia, Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist series.
His Fair Assassin is about assassin nuns in medieval France. Launched in 2012 with the novel Grave Mercy, the series starts in Brittany during the late 15th century where we are introduced to a 14-year-old peasant named Ismae Rienne who joins the St. Mortain convent where she learns to be an assassin in service of the God of Death, Mortain.
A few years later, she successfully completes her firsts missions and is sent on a new one that will force her to face the impossible choices she must make as a daughter of Death.
How to Read His Fair Assassin Books in Order?
This reading order for the “His Fair Assassin” series is also about the spin-off series Courting Darkness, also written by Robin LaFevers. The two take place in the same universe.
His Fair Assassin Series
- Grave Mercy – Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts-and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.
- Dark Triumph – The convent returns Sybella to a life that nearly drove her mad. Her father’s rage and brutality are terrifying, and her brother’s love is equally monstrous. And while Sybella is a weapon of justice wrought by the god of Death himself, He must give her a reason to live. When she discovers an unexpected ally imprisoned in the dungeons, will a daughter of Death find something other than vengeance to live for?
- Mortal Heart – In fifteenth-century Brittany, the sisters of the convent of St. Mortain are trained assassins, now mobilizing to protect the French duchess from the rumblings of war. Newest among their ranks is Annith, but she’s escaped the convent to seek her own destiny with the god of Death. When Annith meets a mysterious knight at court, she can’t tell if he is friend or foe, and she must make a desperate choice….
The Courting Darkness Series
To read the Courting Darkness books, you do not have to read the first three books of the His Fair Assassin series. This duology features characters from the previous series, but it’s a new story that can be read separately.
- Courting Darkness – When Sybella accompanies the Duchess to France, she expects trouble, but she isn’t expecting a deadly trap. Surrounded by enemies both known and unknown, Sybella searches for the undercover assassins from the convent of St. Mortain who were placed in the French court years ago. Genevieve has been undercover for so many years, she no longer knows who she is or what she’s supposed to be fighting for. When she discovers a hidden prisoner who may be of importance, she takes matters into her own hands.
- Igniting Darkness – When you count Death as a friend, who can stand as your enemy? Sybella, novitiate of the convent of Saint Mortain and Death’s vengeance on earth, is still reeling from her God’s own passing, and along with him a guiding hand in her bloody work. But with her sisters on the run from their evil brother and under the watchful eye of her one true friend (and love) at court, the soldier known as Beast, Sybella stands alone as the Duchess of Brittany’s protector.
If you like our article about reading the His Fair Assassin series in order, don’t forget to bookmark it! You may also be interested in the Throne of Glass Series written by Sarah J. Maas.
