The Elder Scrolls Books in Order: Where to Start With Greg Keyes’s Novels

Start with The Infernal City (2009), then read Lord of Souls (2011). Greg Keyes’s two Elder Scrolls novels follow one connected adventure, so publication order is the reading order to use.

If you have been browsing Elder Scrolls books, the confusion is understandable. Alongside the novels, you will find illustrated lore collections and books drawn from the games’ fictional libraries. Those serve a different purpose. For readers who want a sustained story set in Tamriel, Keyes’s novels are the place to begin.

Here is the spoiler-light order, what each book covers, and how to decide whether this is the right way for you to explore the setting.

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The Elder Scrolls novels in reading order

Penguin Random House identifies The Infernal City as the first novel and Lord of Souls as the second. The dates above are from its U.S. listings; editions in other markets may differ.

1. The Infernal City

Begin here. Set roughly forty years after the Oblivion Crisis, The Infernal City introduces a new threat: Umbriel, a floating city whose passage leaves death and rising corpses beneath it.

The story follows several characters caught in that crisis, including Annaïg, Prince Attrebus, a spy, and a mage with a personal agenda. That combination gives the premise two sources of tension: an approaching catastrophe and the very different motives of the people confronting it.

For someone coming from the games, the useful expectation is a story with an author’s chosen cast and direction. You are following characters through danger rather than creating a hero and deciding which quest to pursue.

My suggested approach is to read the opening before researching every unfamiliar name. A setting this large can tempt newcomers into treating preparation as homework. Start with the immediate problem—what Umbriel is doing and who might stop it—and let the wider context accumulate.

Start the story with The Infernal City by Greg Keyes.

2. Lord of Souls

Read Lord of Souls next. It continues the Umbriel crisis and the journeys established in the first novel.

The publisher’s description follows Attrebus pursuing a weapon that could help stop the threat, Colin investigating betrayal within the empire, and Annaïg facing danger inside Umbriel. Even that brief outline makes the reading-order advice clear: this is a continuation with characters already deep in trouble.

Avoid browsing detailed descriptions of the sequel before finishing the first book if you prefer to discover developments as they happen. Read The Infernal City, then move directly into Lord of Souls while the cast and conflicts are fresh.

Continue the adventure with Lord of Souls by Greg Keyes.

Do you need to play the games first?

My recommendation is to treat familiarity with the games as helpful background rather than an entrance requirement.

Players will arrive with a stronger sense of Tamriel and its vocabulary. Readers approaching the novels through fantasy fiction may need more time to settle into the setting. To judge your comfort level, use the sample available on the publisher’s page for The Infernal City.

The main point to know beforehand is that the Oblivion Crisis is a major earlier catastrophe. The novels follow a later threat. You do not need to memorize a franchise timeline before trying the opening chapters.

For an established player, the appeal is also straightforward: these books offer another way to spend time in the world, through a fixed narrative and multiple perspectives.

Are these adaptations of Oblivion or Skyrim?

The publisher presents the novels as an original continuation after The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. They follow the Umbriel storyline rather than retelling a player’s campaign.

That distinction helps set expectations. Choose them for a new adventure in the setting. If your main goal is a reference book you can consult while playing, a lore collection may suit you better.

How are the novels different from The Skyrim Library?

The Skyrim Library collects texts from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim in three illustrated volumes:

• Volume I: The Histories
• Volume II: Man, Mer, and Beast
• Volume III: The Arcane

Titan Books describes these as collected in-world texts. They are separate from Keyes’s two-novel story and are not books three, four, and five in his sequence.

The choice comes down to how you want to read. Choose Keyes for characters moving through a connected plot. Choose the library volumes if your favorite part of the games is stopping to read about their world.

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• Explore the setting’s past with The Skyrim Library, Volume I: The Histories.
• Browse its peoples and creatures in The Skyrim Library, Volume II: Man, Mer, and Beast.
• Explore its magical lore with The Skyrim Library, Volume III: The Arcane.

Frequently asked questions

How many Elder Scrolls novels did Greg Keyes write?

The publisher lists two in his Elder Scrolls sequence: The Infernal City and Lord of Souls. Other Elder Scrolls publications should not be added to that novel order simply because they share the setting.

Can you start with Lord of Souls?

Start with The Infernal City. Lord of Souls continues its central conflict and character journeys.

Is publication order different from reading order?

For these two novels, use the same order: The Infernal City, followed by Lord of Souls. There is no alternate sequence to work out.

Where should a Skyrim fan start?

For a novel, start with The Infernal City. For collected texts from the game, consider The Skyrim Library. Pick the format that matches what you want from the reading experience.

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