The Hierarchy
#34.49 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 2 books Status Ongoing 2023–present Reading commitment Low James Islington Last reviewed 2026-08-25
Overview
In a sprawling, magic-suffused Empire modeled on ancient Rome, a hunted young thief is press-ganged into the Catenan Republic's brutal military academy, where students climb a strict social order by literally taking on the strength, skill, and years of those beneath them; at a cost he must hide his own forbidden magic to survive long enough to understand.
Epic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (2 works) counts toward ranking
The Hierarchy James Islington
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | The Will of the Many | 2023 | 1 | core | 4.57 (278,781 ratings) |
 | The Strength of the Few | 2025 | 2 | core | 4.30 (124,938 ratings) |
Planned trilogy; book 3 (The Justice of One, 2027) not yet published.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Hierarchy? The Hierarchy's Core Canon is 2 books.
- What is the reading order for The Hierarchy? Publication order, starting with The Will of the Many. Full list and years in the Core Canon table above.
- Is The Hierarchy finished? Ongoing (2023–present).
- How much reading does The Hierarchy take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 2 Core Canon books).
- How is The Hierarchy ranked? #3 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 403,719 reader ratings across 2 Core Canon books. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #3?
Ranked #3 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 4.49 across 2 core books.
- Backed by 404k reader ratings.
- 0.03 behind #2, Harry Potter.
- Above the top-10 average of 4.45.
Why explore this universe?
Top-tier rated · 2 books · Ongoing · 404k ratings · Ranks #3 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment epic fantasy universe that's still ongoing, with new books still coming.
Reading order
Publication order (2 Core Canon books)
- The Will of the Many (2023)
- The Strength of the Few (2025)
Documented internal/story chronology is recorded for every Core Canon book here, and matches publication order exactly, with no divergence to show separately.
Awards (verified)
- No awards found for this universe.
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Suggestions computed from what The Hierarchy and each of these worlds have in common on record (subgenre, audience, shape, reading commitment and score), not a documented narrative connection.
- The Kingkiller Chronicle Epic fantasy · Ongoing · Medium commitment · 4.53
- La Horde du Contrevent Epic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 4.42
- The Sword of Kaigen Epic fantasy · Complete · Low commitment · 4.42
- A Song of Ice and Fire Epic fantasy / Grimdark · Ongoing · High commitment · 4.41
Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.49 across 403,719 ratings on 2 Core Canon books. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Admit The Hierarchy (James Islington) accepted 2026-08-25
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- The Will of the Many Wikipedia entry Tier 2
- Hierarchy series bibliography (specialised series-tracking site) Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-08-26
Rule: Core Canon covers the two published novels, The Will of the Many (2023) and The Strength of the Few (2025), of a planned trilogy. The announced third book, The Justice of One (2027), is excluded as unpublished.