Backlist Exploration: Ilona Andrews
So you read This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by wife-and-husband writing duo Ilona Andrews and loved it, but you're not sure where to start exploring their extensive backlist? Never fear! Here are 5 series entry points so you can get your fix while we all wait for the next Maggie book! I pinned a comment with a little blurb about each book so you have an idea of the vibes of each series. And if you end up enjoying Andrews' novels, make sure to check out that backlist link because Ilona and Gordon write a lot of supplemental short fiction which they share for free on their website!
I love to reread all of these series, so feel free to comment here if you ever want someone to buddy read any of these with! I love to experience them alongside new fans :D
created by HeraldMagus
last updated July, 2026
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Magic Bites begins the Kate Daniels Series -- a 00s style urban fantasy where our world is partway through a magical apocalypse. This series has 10 books, plus numerous spinoffs. The original storyline is complete, but Ilona and Gordon still return to this universe through novels, novellas, and free fiction on their website.
On The Edge begins The Edge Quartet -- a series that exists somewhere in the sliver of Venn diagram overlap between urban fantasy and portal fantasy with lots of influence from the bayou culture of the southern United States. This series is complete and might be the one that is most similar vibes-wise to This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me.
Clean Sweep -- begins the Innkeeper Chronicles Series which...honestly I don't totally know how to explain. There are aliens. There is magic. There are space vampires and space werewolves. There's some easter eggs from the Edge Quartet, so I'd recommend reading Innkeeper after the Edge, but this is absolutely more of a personal recommendation, not a rule. Each book in this series was originally released as free serial fiction on Ilona and Gordon's website and then self-published as ebooks after completion. None of the books end on painful cliffhangers, though there are plot lines that span multiple books. I do not know that the next Innkeeper book is actively being planned, but the series is not listed as complete on their website as of July 2026 which means that they will likely return to it at some point.
Burn for Me is the first book in the completed Hidden Legacy Series. This series is effectively two trilogies linked by a couple novellas and some short fiction. It's another one that's hard to explain, but it's sort of like an urban fantasy-magical-x-men setting? Like I said, I don't know how to describe it, but I do really, really love this setting and these characters.
The Inheritance is the first book in their new Breach Wars Series. This is... progression fantasy-inspired? Big Dungeon Crawler Carl vibes. It was the most recent novel that they released as free serial fiction on their website and I would expect a sequel sometime in 2027 based on their past writing schedules. (But this is in NO WAY a guarantee! Ilona and Gordon release their self-published / free serial fiction when their writing schedule for their traditionally published work allows.)
Thank you!! This is amazing! đź¤
I just added to the list description, but also thought I'd mention here, I will always join a buddy read for ANY Ilona Andrews book/series. It's so fun to experience these books with new fans.
Oh that would actually be so fun! I’ve had The Innkeeper Chronicles on my tbr since I finished TKWNKM, because a bunch of people recommended it, but I saw that you mentioned one of the series is most “the same vibe”, so I’m definitely open to that! I have a few books on Libby and such still, but I will definitely let you know and we can plan a buddy read! That would be so fun 🥳
There's no bad place to start! So really just look at the descriptions and choose whatever looks most fun for you! I own every book on this list and I'm such a flexible mood reader that I can fit a reread of one of these into my schedule literally anytime, so just name the book and the date and I'll join you!
