The Hundred Thousand KingdomsThe Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
Score Modern
What it's about
Yeine Darr is a young chieftain from a small northern land. When her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she's summoned to Sky, the floating palace of the Arameri, the family that rules the world, and to her shock is named one of three heirs to the throne. The Arameri rule using enslaved gods, and one of them, the dangerous Nightlord, has plans for her.
Why it's worth reading
It was a finalist for the Hugo and the Nebula and won the Locus Award. It's N. K. Jemisin's first novel, an inventive fantasy about gods and power.
You'll love it if you liked
The Fifth Season
The Goblin Emperor
A Master of DjinnGood to know
It's the first of a trilogy. There's sexual content and violence.
By the numbers
- Readers24 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics57 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller32 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz1 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #277 of the 459 fantasy books we rank
- #1002 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #1853 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Adventurous
More by N. K. Jemisin
The Fifth Season
The City We Became
The Killing MoonIf you like this, read next
A Game of Thrones
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Gideon the Ninth
Red Rising
Outlander
All Systems RedExplore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms worth reading?
Yes. It was a finalist for the Hugo and the Nebula and won the Locus Award. It ranks #1,853 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 65.2 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms about?
Yeine Darr is a young chieftain from a small northern land. When her mother dies under mysterious circumstances, she's summoned to Sky, the floating palace of the Arameri, the family that rules the world, and to her shock is named one of three heirs to the throne. The Arameri rule using enslaved gods, and one of them, the dangerous Nightlord, has plans for her.
How long does it take to read The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms?
About 11 hours (432 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms?
If you liked it, try The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin, The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison or A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark.