Book Series, Ranked

The best-selling book series in history at over 600 million copies sold, translated into 80+ languages, and holder of the Guinness World Record for best-selling book series of all time.

One of the best-selling novels ever written at over 150 million copies, and it topped major reader polls including the 2003 BBC Big Read and Waterstones' books-of-the-century survey as readers' favorite.

Terry Pratchett's 41-novel satirical fantasy series is one of the best-selling and most beloved in the genre, blending sharp comedy with genuine humanist depth. Enormous, consistent, and influential enough to earn a clear S.

Has sold over 90 million copies and won multiple Locus Awards, and 'A Storm of Swords' took the 2001 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, cementing its status as modern epic fantasy's benchmark.

Guinness World Records lists Holmes as the most-portrayed literary human character in film and TV (over 250 depictions), and the canon is regarded as the foundation of modern detective fiction.

Has sold over 100 million copies in 47 languages, and 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' is consistently ranked among the greatest children's novels of all time.

Stephen King's magnum opus spanning eight books that ties together much of his wider universe. An ambitious genre-blending epic of fantasy, western, horror, and sci-fi with a devoted following. Just short of S because its uneven pacing and divisive ending keep it out of the very top.

Brandon Sanderson's breakout series built on one of the most inventive, rule-based magic systems in modern fantasy. Tight plotting and satisfying payoffs make it a standout of the epic fantasy revival.

Andrzej Sapkowski's morally complex Slavic-flavored fantasy about monster hunter Geralt spawned a hit game franchise and Netflix series. Gritty, character-driven, and globally influential.

Has sold more than 100 million copies worldwide and topped USA Today and New York Times bestseller lists, driving one of the most successful YA franchises of the 2010s.

'The Amber Spyglass' was the first children's book to win the Whitbread Book of the Year, and opening volume 'Northern Lights' was voted the 'Carnegie of Carnegies' in 2007 as the best Carnegie Medal winner of the award's first 70 years.

The five-book series has sold well over 100 million copies and spent years on the New York Times children's bestseller list, sparking a broader mythology-fiction publishing wave.

Patrick Rothfuss's beautifully written, lyrical fantasy with a passionate fanbase. Would rank higher, but the decade-plus wait for the unfinished third book drags it down to B.

Lemony Snicket's darkly witty 13-book children's series charmed a generation with its gothic humor and vocabulary lessons. Consistently clever, though its deliberately bleak repetition limits its ceiling.

A commercial giant at over 90 million copies sold, but its middle volumes are widely criticized by readers and critics for pacing bloat and 'slog' that stalled the plot for several books.

Sold over 160 million copies and dominated bestseller charts, yet drew heavy critical backlash over its prose and romance dynamics, landing it on numerous 'guilty pleasure' and most-divisive lists.

Sold over 40 million copies as a teen-authored phenomenon, but critics widely panned it as derivative of Tolkien and Star Wars, and the 2006 'Eragon' film adaptation was a critical flop with a low-single-digit-percent path to a canceled franchise.

One of the fastest-selling paperback series ever at over 150 million copies, yet a byword for poor writing whose film adaptations were savaged by critics and swept multiple Golden Raspberry (Razzie) Awards.