Josephine Angelini Books in Order (Updated March 10, 2026)

Josephine Angelini writes across several separate lanes: myth-based YA fantasy, portal-fantasy YA, cozy fantasy, a standalone thriller, and a middle grade novel published as Josie Angelini. Because these books do not all belong to one shared continuity, the right way to read her work is by series, not by one long author-wide sequence.

For most readers, the simplest entry point is Starcrossed if you want her best-known mythology series, or Trial by Fire if you want the alternate-world fantasy line instead. The newer Chronicles of Lucitopia books belong to a different project entirely and should be treated as their own run.

The clean reading order

Starcrossed series

1. Starcrossed (2011): Helen Hamilton discovers that the strange powers and visions haunting her life are tied to a demigod inheritance, launching the central romance-and-destiny conflict that drives the whole saga.
2. Dreamless (2012): Helen’s journey deepens as her powers pull her toward the Underworld, widening the mythology, raising the cost of stopping a divine war, and pushing her relationship with Lucas into rougher territory.
3. Goddess (2013): The original trilogy closes with the gods loose, alliances fractured, and Helen forced into a final high-stakes confrontation that pays off the series’ biggest emotional and mythic threads.
4. Scions (2022): Set earlier in the Starcrossed world, this prequel shifts focus to Daphne and Ajax in 1993 New York, opening a parallel entry point that expands the family history behind the main saga.
5. Timeless (2023): Returning to Helen after the original trilogy, this sequel restarts the forward motion of the series as unfinished debts, time-travel tasks, and strain between Helen and Lucas upset any hope of peace.
6. Outcasts (2023): This book continues the Daphne-and-Ajax side of the mythology, building on Scions while also feeding more history and pressure back into the larger Starcrossed line.
7. Endless (2024): The expanded Starcrossed saga reaches its current conclusion as Helen confronts the Fates themselves and the final shape of the cycle she has been trying to break.

Worldwalker series

1. Trial by Fire (2014): Lily Proctor is pulled into an alternate Salem ruled by magic and forced to confront an all-powerful version of herself, giving the series its core question of identity, power, and survival.
2. Rowan: A Worldwalker Novella (2015): Told from Rowan’s side, this shorter installment adds perspective on Lily’s arrival and the emotional fallout around Lillian, so it works best after Trial by Fire.
3. Firewalker (2015): Picking up directly after book one, Lily’s temporary return home does not last, and the conflict with Lillian grows into a more personal and politically dangerous struggle.
4. Witch’s Pyre (2016): The trilogy concludes by forcing Lily toward harder choices about leadership, sacrifice, and what victory should cost in a world already damaged by power.

The Chronicles of Lucitopia

1. Illustrated Girl (2024): Holly gets pulled into a fairy-tale world and has to repair a story already thrown off course, beginning a lighter, quest-driven fantasy sequence with a recurring antagonist.
2. The Tinker’s Daughter (2024): Jonara’s near-sacrifice to a dragon turns into an alliance against the sorcerer Asphodel, continuing the Lucitopia through-line while shifting to a new lead character.
3. Ensorcelled (2025): The third Lucitopia book continues the linked-but-self-contained structure, again using a fresh hero while keeping Asphodel and the broader threat line in play.
4. The Green Knight (2025): Diana, living as an assassin inside Lucitopia, becomes entangled with James while hunting Asphodel, bringing the series to its fourth currently listed installment.

Standalone

1. What She Found in the Woods (2020): Magda, sent away after a scandal, drifts into a forest mystery that turns into a psychological thriller about perception, manipulation, and what is really happening around her.

Middle grade

Snow Lane (2018): published as Josie Angelini: Annie, the youngest in a troubled family, tries to make sense of secrets and abuse around her, making this a separate middle grade novel rather than part of Angelini’s YA fantasy continuities.

Best reading order for new readers

There are really three sensible starting paths.

If you want the signature Josephine Angelini experience, read the original Starcrossed trilogy first:

1. Starcrossed
2. Dreamless
3. Goddess

Then continue with the expanded material:
4. Scions
5. Timeless
6. Outcasts
7. Endless

That order preserves the way the series first developed for readers, and it lets the prequel material deepen the mythology after you already know the main players.

If you want the timeline-first Starcrossed route, you can do this instead:

1. Scions
2. Outcasts
3. Starcrossed
4. Dreamless
5. Goddess
6. Timeless
7. Endless

That works because the author’s site explicitly notes that Scions can be read first without ruining the story, but it still changes the feel of certain reveals. For most people, publication order remains the better first experience.

If you want a completely separate series, read Worldwalker in this order:

1. Trial by Fire
2. Rowan: A Worldwalker Novella
3. Firewalker
4. Witch’s Pyre

And if you want the newer cozy-fantasy project, read Lucitopia straight through:

1. Illustrated Girl
2. The Tinker’s Daughter
3. Ensorcelled
4. The Green Knight

Do any of these series connect?

Yes, but only inside their own lanes.

The Starcrossed books are one connected continuity, including the original trilogy, the prequel branch, and the later continuation.
The Worldwalker books are a separate continuity.
The Chronicles of Lucitopia are another separate continuity.
What She Found in the Woods stands alone.
Snow Lane stands alone and is published under Josie Angelini rather than Josephine Angelini.

So the real boundary is not “early books versus later books.” It is series versus series.

Should you read Starcrossed or Worldwalker first?

That depends on what you want.

Start with Starcrossed if you want Greek mythology, doomed romance, inherited fate, and the author’s best-known books.

Start with Trial by Fire if you want alternate worlds, witches, political power struggles, and a tighter trilogy shape.

Start with Illustrated Girl if you want the newer cozy-fantasy line rather than YA myth fantasy.

Latest release status

Josephine Angelini’s most recent currently listed book is The Green Knight, the fourth Chronicles of Lucitopia novel. That means the newest part of her bibliography is not Starcrossed or Worldwalker, but the Lucitopia project.

The Starcrossed line currently extends through Endless.
The Worldwalker trilogy is complete.
What She Found in the Woods remains a standalone.
Snow Lane remains a standalone middle grade novel under Josie Angelini.

FAQ

What is the best Josephine Angelini book to start with?

For most readers, Starcrossed is the best starting point because it begins her best-known series and introduces the mythology-driven style most associated with her name.

Can I read Scions before Starcrossed?

Yes. The author’s site states that Scions can be read first without ruining the story. Even so, most readers will still prefer starting with Starcrossed and treating Scions as expansion material afterward.

Is Rowan required for Worldwalker?

It is not the main backbone of the trilogy, but it does add useful character perspective and fits best between Trial by Fire and Firewalker.

Is Snow Lane part of a series?

No. It is a standalone middle grade novel, and it is published as Josie Angelini.

Are The Chronicles of Lucitopia connected to Starcrossed?

No. They are a separate fantasy project with their own internal order.

Final answer

The safest way to read Josephine Angelini is to choose a continuity and stay inside it. For most people, that means Starcrossed, Dreamless, Goddess first, then the later Starcrossed books if you want more. If you prefer witches and alternate worlds, go with Trial by Fire. If you want the newer cozy-fantasy material, begin with Illustrated Girl.