The Caraval Series in Order can look more complicated than it first appears. Stephanie Garber’s fantasy world includes the original novels, an illustrated holiday story, collector’s editions with bonus material, and a separate series that follows one of Caraval’s most important characters.
Some of these books continue the larger story, while others are optional extras or reissues rather than new entries. The lists below separate each series, explain where the connected books fit, and identify the editions that contain additional material.
Jump to:
- Caraval Series in Order
- Once Upon a Broken Heart Series in Order
- Complete Caraval Universe Reading Order
- What Is the Caraval Series About?
- Caraval Movie Adaptation
- About Stephanie Garber
Caraval Series in Order
There are four published Caraval story titles: three full-length novels and one novella. Read them in the following order.
- Caraval (2017)
- Legendary (2018)
- Finale (2019)
- Spectacular: A Caraval Holiday Novella (2024)
Caraval, Legendary, and Finale tell one continuous story. Caraval focuses on Scarlett Dragna, Legendary shifts the main viewpoint to her sister Donatella, and Finale brings both sisters’ arcs into the conclusion. The change in protagonist does not make Legendary a separate starting point. Beginning there would spoil the first Caraval game and leave major relationships unexplained.
Spectacular is officially labeled Caraval Volume 4, but it is not a fourth full-length novel. It is an illustrated holiday novella set after the trilogy, with artwork by Rosie Fowinkle. I recommend reading it after Finale, not between the three main books. You can skip it without losing the trilogy’s ending, but it adds another story with the Caraval cast.
The standard Caraval Boxed Set contains the three main novels, while the Caraval Holiday Collection contains all four titles above. Neither set adds another story.
The 2020 Caraval Collector’s Edition is still a reissue of the first novel, so it should not be counted as another series entry. It does include exclusive bonus material: a scene from Julian’s point of view, Garber’s original ending, pages from her writing journals, and a preview of the next book set in the Caraval world. I’d choose that edition if those extras matter to you.
Once Upon a Broken Heart Series in Order
Once Upon a Broken Heart is set in the same world and carries Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, into a new story led by Evangeline Fox. It is a connected follow-up series, not Caraval Book 4.
- Once Upon a Broken Heart (2021)
- The Ballad of Never After (2022)
- A Curse for True Love (2023)
- The Mirror of Infinite Endings: A Once Upon a Broken Heart Companion (2026) (Forthcoming Companion)
The first three books form the original Evangeline and Jacks trilogy and should be read in order. The Mirror of Infinite Endings is an illustrated companion scheduled for September 22, 2026. Macmillan identifies it as Once Upon a Broken Heart Volume 4 and as a companion rather than another full-length novel. It continues Evangeline and Jacks’s story after A Curse for True Love, so read it only after the trilogy.
A forthcoming collector’s edition adds one separately titled piece of short fiction:
- The Ballad of the Archer and the Fox (2026) (Short Story, found in Once Upon a Broken Heart Collector’s Edition)
The Once Upon a Broken Heart Collector’s Edition is scheduled for October 27, 2026. It reprints the first novel and adds the fairytale above, so it is not a fifth volume. Some earlier retailer-exclusive editions also include bonus viewpoints or epilogues. Those extras are optional and do not change the main reading order.
Complete Caraval Universe Reading Order
This is my recommended reading order for the complete Caraval universe:
- Caraval (2017)
- Legendary (2018)
- Finale (2019)
- Spectacular: A Caraval Holiday Novella (2024)
- Once Upon a Broken Heart (2021)
- The Ballad of Never After (2022)
- A Curse for True Love (2023)
- The Mirror of Infinite Endings: A Once Upon a Broken Heart Companion (2026) (Forthcoming Companion)
- The Ballad of the Archer and the Fox (2026) (Short Story, found in Once Upon a Broken Heart Collector’s Edition)
Garber designed Once Upon a Broken Heart so readers could begin there without reading Caraval. That order is understandable, but my advice is still to start with Caraval. Jacks first appears in Legendary, his history matters in Finale, and reading the newer series first can reveal outcomes from the earlier trilogy.
I place Spectacular immediately after Finale because it is set after the Caraval trilogy and returns to that cast. A strict publication-order list would put Spectacular after A Curse for True Love because the novella was published in 2024. That order also works, but reading Spectacular after Finale is simpler and keeps the connected Caraval stories together.
Readers who only want the main Caraval plot can stop after Finale. Spectacular is optional, while Once Upon a Broken Heart begins a separate central conflict with a new heroine. The Ballad of the Archer and the Fox is also optional, and I place it last because its collector’s edition is scheduled after The Mirror of Infinite Endings.
What Is the Caraval Series About?
Caraval begins with sisters Scarlett and Donatella Dragna, who have grown up under their controlling father’s rule. Scarlett receives an invitation to Caraval, a magical performance and competition created by the mysterious Legend. When Tella becomes part of the game, Scarlett must separate clues, manipulation, and real danger before the game ends.
Legendary moves Tella to the center and expands the story beyond the first game. Finale deals with the Fates, political power, family secrets, and the consequences of bargains made across the first two books. Romance is prominent throughout the trilogy, but the relationship between the sisters remains central.
Macmillan lists the Caraval books for readers ages 13 to 18. The sexual content remains non-explicit, while the darker material includes parental abuse, violence, death, manipulation, and magical danger. Readers coming from adult romantasy should expect a young adult level of romantic content.
Caraval Movie Adaptation
There is no released Caraval movie or television adaptation, and no release date has been announced. In 2015, Twentieth Century Fox acquired the film rights while Garber’s manuscript was still titled Hearts Made of Black. Variety reported that Divergent producer Pouya Shahbazian was attached to produce.
That rights deal was not a production announcement. As of July 2026, no cast, director, filming schedule, or release date has been publicly announced. There is currently no Caraval adaptation available on Prime Video.
About Stephanie Garber
Stephanie Garber is the author of the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series. Caraval was her debut novel when it was published in 2017, and her books have been translated into more than 30 languages.
The two series share a world, but they follow different heroines and different main conflicts. That is why I recommend treating Once Upon a Broken Heart as a connected follow-up series rather than mixing its books into the three-volume Caraval trilogy.
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