Ryanverse reading order

A plan for the whole series

28 volumes, 20,352 pages, about 375 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 16 months.

• The thickest volume runs 1,245 pages. One volume is one stage: a break after it, not the next volume.
• From volume 2 on, the number of ratings falls most before volume 11, “The Bear and the Dragon” (by 55%).
• Readers scored volume 2, “Patriot Games”, below its predecessor (7.6 after 8.0). If you slow down there, that is on the book, not on you.

Stages

26 stages, with 25 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around July 25, 2028, about 5 months later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 119 habout 4 weeksby November 23, 2026

   • 4. The Hunt for Red October1984 · 479 pages · 9 h
   • 2. Patriot Games1987 · 548 pages · 10 h
2. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by November 27, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 211 h15 daysby December 12, 2026

   • 5. The Cardinal of the Kremlin1988 · 626 pages · 11 h
4. Short breakThe Emperor's Soul · Brandon Sanderson · 96 pp. · score 8.82 h, by December 16, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 313 h17 daysby January 2, 2027

   • 6. Clear and Present Danger1989 · 688 pages · 13 h
6. BreakMaus · Art Spiegelman · 295 pp. · score 9.05 h, by January 11, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 417 habout 3 weeksby February 2, 2027

   • 7. The Sum of All Fears1991 · 914 pages · 17 h
8. BreakBorn a Crime · Trevor Noah · 304 pp. · score 8.96 h, by February 11, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
9. 5
   Stage 514 h19 daysby March 2, 2027

   • 1. Without Remorse1993 · 768 pages · 14 h
10. Short breakOn Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century · Timothy Snyder · 128 pp. · score 8.42 h, by March 6, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
11. 6
    Stage 615 h20 daysby March 27, 2027

    • 8. Debt of Honor1994 · 828 pages · 15 h
12. BreakI'm Glad My Mom Died · Jennette McCurdy · 320 pp. · score 8.96 h, by April 5, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
13. 7
    Stage 723 habout 4 weeksby May 6, 2027

    • 9. Executive Orders1996 · 1,245 pages · 23 h
14. BreakFlowers for Algernon · Daniel Keyes · 274 pp. · score 8.85 h, by May 15, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
15. 8
    Stage 816 habout 3 weeksby June 6, 2027

    • 10. Rainbow Six1998 · 897 pages · 16 h
16. BreakJames · Percival Everett · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by June 15, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
17. 9
    Stage 919 habout 4 weeksby July 10, 2027

    • 11. The Bear and the Dragon2000 · 1,028 pages · 19 h
18. BreakHomegoing · Yaa Gyasi · 320 pp. · score 8.76 h, by July 20, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
19. 10
    Stage 1013 h18 daysby August 7, 2027

    • 3. Red Rabbit2002 · 720 pages · 13 h
20. Short breakAnimal Farm · George Orwell · 128 pp. · score 8.32 h, by August 11, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
21. 11
    Stage 1120 habout 4 weeksby September 7, 2027

    • 12. The Teeth of the Tiger2003 · 431 pages · 8 h
    • 13. Dead or Alive2010 · 679 pages · 12 h
22. Short breakTo Be Taught, If Fortunate · Becky Chambers · 153 pp. · score 8.33 h, by September 12, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
23. 12
    Stage 1216 h21 daysby October 3, 2027

    • 14. Locked On2011 · 853 pages · 16 h
24. Short breakThe Importance of Being Earnest · Oscar Wilde · 102 pp. · score 8.22 h, by October 6, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
25. 13
    Stage 1313 h18 daysby October 24, 2027

    • 15. Threat Vector2012 · 720 pages · 13 h
26. Short breakA Room of One's Own · Virginia Woolf · 144 pp. · score 8.23 h, by October 28, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
27. 14
    Stage 1411 h15 daysby November 12, 2027

    • 16. Command Authority2013 · 602 pages · 11 h
28. Short breakThe Prophet · Kahlil Gibran · 116 pp. · score 8.22 h, by November 16, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
29. 15
    Stage 1513 h18 daysby December 4, 2027

    • 18. Full Force and Effect2014 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
30. Short breakThe Screwtape letters · C. S. Lewis · 106 pp. · score 8.22 h, by December 7, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
31. 16
    Stage 169 h12 daysby December 20, 2027

    • 17. Support and Defend2014 · 503 pages · 9 h
32. Short breakA Short Stay in Hell · Steven L. Peck · 80 pp. · score 8.21 h, by December 23, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
33. 17
    Stage 1713 h18 daysby January 10, 2028

    • 20. Commander in Chief2015 · 736 pages · 13 h
34. Short breakThornhedge · Ursula Vernon · 122 pp. · score 8.22 h, by January 13, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
35. 18
    Stage 1813 h18 daysby January 31, 2028

    • 19. Under Fire2015 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
36. Short breakSmall Things Like These · Claire Keegan · 112 pp. · score 8.12 h, by February 4, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
37. 19
    Stage 1913 h18 daysby February 22, 2028

    • 21. Duty and Honor2016 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
38. Short breakNumber the Stars · Lois Lowry · 149 pp. · score 8.13 h, by February 26, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
39. 20
    Stage 2013 h18 daysby March 15, 2028

    • 22. True Faith and Allegiance2016 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
40. Short breakRoadside Picnic · Arkady Strugatsky · 179 pp. · score 8.13 h, by March 21, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
41. 21
    Stage 2113 h18 daysby April 7, 2028

    • 23. Point of Contact2017 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
42. Short breakThe Richest Man in Babylon · George Samuel Clason · 124 pp. · score 8.02 h, by April 11, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
43. 22
    Stage 2213 h18 daysby April 29, 2028

    • 24. Power and Empire2017 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
44. Short breakMuch Ado About Nothing · William Shakespeare · 160 pp. · score 8.03 h, by May 4, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
45. 23
    Stage 2313 h18 daysby May 22, 2028

    • 25. Line of Sight2018 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
46. Short breakHamlet · William Shakespeare · 178 pp. · score 8.03 h, by May 27, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
47. 24
    Stage 2413 h18 daysby June 14, 2028

    • 27. Code of Honor2019 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
48. Short breakSiddhartha · Hermann Hesse · 142 pp. · score 8.03 h, by June 18, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
49. 25
    Stage 2513 h18 daysby July 6, 2028

    • 26. Enemy Contact2019 · ≈ 727 pages · 13 h
50. Short breakRing Shout · P. Djèlí Clark · 176 pp. · score 7.93 h, by July 11, 2028. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
51. 26
    Stage 2610 h13 daysby July 25, 2028

    • 28. Firing Point2020 · 544 pages · 10 h
52. The end of the series

    July 25, 2028

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

≈ next to a page count: a volume with no page count in our data is counted at this series’s average.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: best at the start. Readers scored the first volumes (7.7) above the last ones (7.4).

Best volume: The Hunt for Red October (8.0, 684 ratings). Weakest: Red Rabbit (7.2). From volume 2 on, the biggest drop in the number of ratings is between volume 10 and 11: 55%. The series is complete; you can read it start to finish with no waiting. The last volume (7.7) scores close to the series average or above it.