City of ember series in order

Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.

A survival story for children.

What is The City of Ember series about?

Coming from American writer Jeanne DuPrau, The City of Ember series aka The Books of Ember is a post-apocalyptic story written for children.

This story takes place in the famous City of Ember. Built to sustain life for at least 200 years, this city may not be able to thrive any more. The young Lina Mayfleet, and her friend, Doon Harrow, may have found the clues that will lead them to the original builders of the City of Ember, and to safety in the outside world.

I. The City of Ember series in publication order

1. The City of Ember – Many hundreds of years ago, the city of Ember was created by the Builders to contain everything needed for human survival. It worked – but now the storerooms are almost out of food, crops are blighted, corruption is spreading through the city and worst of all – the lights are failing. Soon Ember could be engulfed by darkness-But when two children, Lina and Doon, discover fragments of an ancient parchment, they begin to wonder if there could be a way out of Ember. Can they decipher the words from long ago and find a new future for everyone? Will the people of Ember listen to them?
2. The People of Sparks – When the people of the underground city of Ember follow Lina and Doon to the surface, little prepares them for what they will encounter. Leaving behind the darkness that has been their home for generations, they discover a world of colour, warmth and light. The people of the small village of Sparks seem willing to help them . . . at first . . . but life on the surface has it’s dark side too. Before long the villagers of Sparks become more reluctant to share their precious resources with the strange, new underground people. Lina and Doon watch in horror as the differences between the two groups grow into resentment, anger and hate. Somehow they must help overcome the distrust and bring the people of Ember and Sparks together.
3. The Prophet of Yonwood – Set about fifty years before the Disaster and the establishment of Ember. Lina and Doon escaped the dying city of Ember and led their people to the town of Sparks. But they soon discover that winter is harsh aboveground. When Doon finds a book with torn pages that hints at a mysterious device from the Builders, it doesn’t take much for him to convince Lina to join him for one last adventure in the city of Ember. But what—and who—will they find when they return?
4. The Diamond of Darkhold – Nickie will grow up to be one of the first citizens of the city of Ember. But for now, she’s an eleven-year-old girl whose father was sent away on some mysterious government project. So when the opportunity to move presents itself, Nickie seizes it. But her new town of Yonwood, North Carolina, isn’t what she’d anticipated. It’s a place full of suspicion and mistrust, where one person’s visions of fire and destruction have turned the town’s citizens against each other. Nickie explores the oddities around her—her great-grandfather’s peculiar journals, a reclusive neighbor who studies the heavens, a strange boy who is fascinated with snakes—all while keeping an eye out for ways to help the world. Or is it already too late to avoid a devastating war?

II. The City of Ember series in chronological order

1. The Prophet of Yonwood
2. The City of Ember
3. The People of Sparks
4. The Diamond of Darkhold

If you like The City of Ember, you may also want to check out Wool by Hugh Howey (for adult readers), or The Giver Quartet by Lois Lowry. Don’t hesitate to follow us on Twitter or Facebook to discover more book series.