The History of Middle-earth vs The Sharing Knife
Two high fantasy series side by side, straight from the catalog data: The History of Middle-earth is the longer series (13 books vs 4 books); The Sharing Knife is the more recent one, starting in 2006. 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 History of Middle-earth | The Sharing Knife |
|---|---|---|
| Author | J. R. R. Tolkien | Lois McMaster Bujold |
| Books | 13 | 4 |
| Published | 1983–1996 | 2006–2009 |
| Books per year | 1.0 | 1.3 |
| Start with | The Book of Lost Tales (1983) | Beguilement (2006) |
| Reading order | Full The History of Middle-earth order → | Full The Sharing Knife 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.