Order of Christopher Ruocchio Books

Christopher Ruocchio is an American author of science fiction and fantasy, best known for his acclaimed Sun Eater series. His work blends epic space opera with deep character exploration, philosophical themes, and richly imagined worlds. A former assistant editor at Baen Books, Ruocchio brings both craft and genre insight to his writing, earning praise for his ambitious storytelling and cinematic scope.

Christopher Ruocchio made his debut as a novelist in 2018 with Empire of Silence, the first book in the Sun Eater series. Below is a list of Christopher Ruocchio’s books in order of when they were originally released:

Publication Order of The Sun Eater Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

If You Like Christopher Ruocchio Books, You’ll Love…

• John Gwynne
• Robin Hobb
• Joe Abercrombie

Christopher Ruocchio Synopses: Empire of Silence is the first book in the Sun Eater series from Christopher Ruocchio. Hadrian Marlowe never intended to become a symbol of galactic destruction or salvation. History remembers him as both the hero who wiped out the alien Cielcin and the monster who destroyed a sun – killing billions, including the Emperor – defying Imperial command. But Hadrian rejects every label. He wasn’t a hero, a villain, or even a soldier.

Running from his father and the brutal future laid out for him, Hadrian becomes stranded on a remote world, far from the life he expected. Forced into the arena as a gladiator and drawn into the political schemes of a strange planetary court, he’s swept into a war he neither started nor believes in, fighting for an Empire he does not trust against an enemy he barely understands.

Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio is the second Sun Eater novel. Hadrian Marlowe has spent fifty years searching the distant reaches of space for Vorgossos, the vanished world that may hold the key to communicating with the Cielcin. As captain of a Norman mercenary company, he’s chased rumor after rumor, refusing to abandon his belief that peace is possible after nearly four centuries of unending war.

His quest pushes him beyond the borders of the Sollan Empire into the lawless expanse inhabited by the Extrasolarians. There, he must confront not only the alien foe he hopes to approach with an offer of peace, but also twisted remnants of humanity, treachery from those he trusts, and a reckoning with one of mankind’s most ancient adversaries.

Success could end the conflict that has consumed generations. Failure could set the entire galaxy ablaze.

The Lesser Devil by Christopher Ruocchio is book 3 of the Sun Eater series. Crispin Marlowe has spent his life overshadowed by his legendary older brother, but with Hadrian missing and the duchess of Delos – his formidable grandmother – on her deathbed, he can no longer remain in the background. When she summons him to the ducal palace, the journey should be simple. Instead, his shuttle is thrust into danger as rumors of betrayal swirl through the duchess’s fractious court and deadly rivals move to strike before he can arrive.

Cut off from help and armed with little more than determination, Crispin must rely on his sister Sabine and a handful of wounded guards to survive. To protect his family’s legacy, he’ll have to stand against political enemies at court and the fanatical cultists lurking in the mountains above Devil’s Rest. For the first time in his life, the least renowned Marlowe will have to become a hero in his own right.