The Banned and the Banished vs The History of Middle-earth
Two high fantasy series side by side, straight from the catalog data: The History of Middle-earth is the longer series (13 books vs 5 books); The Banned and the Banished is the more recent one, starting in 1998. There's no wrong answer — pick the shape that fits your reading appetite, and Shelfmark will keep your place in either (no account needed).
| Statistic | The Banned and the Banished | The History of Middle-earth |
|---|---|---|
| Author | James Rollins | J. R. R. Tolkien |
| Books | 5 | 13 |
| Published | 1998–2002 | 1983–1996 |
| Books per year | 1.3 | 1.0 |
| Start with | Wit'ch Fire (1998) | The Book of Lost Tales (1983) |
| Reading order | Full The Banned and the Banished order → | Full The History of Middle-earth order → |
Numbers come from the Shelfmark catalog (Wikidata + Open Library). "Books per year" is catalogued books divided by the publication span — a rough cadence, not a quality score.