Holly Black is an American author of fantasy for children, teenagers and adults. She is best known for “The Spiderwick Chronicles”, created with the writer and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi, and for the Folk of the Air series that began with “The Cruel Prince” in 2018. Her books have been translated into 32 languages.
Black was born Holly Riggenbach in West Long Branch, New Jersey, in 1971. She took a degree in English at The College of New Jersey in 1994 and worked as a production editor on medical journals while studying at Rutgers University. In 1999 she married Theo Black, an illustrator and web designer. She lives in New England.
Her first novel, “Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale”, was published in 2002 and is set on the Jersey Shore. Two further books share its world: “Valiant” (2005), which won the first Andre Norton Award, and “Ironside” (2007). The five Spiderwick books appeared in 2003 and 2004 and follow the Grace children, who move into the Spiderwick Estate and discover a hidden world of fairies. They were filmed in 2008, with Black as co-executive producer, and adapted again as a television series for the Roku Channel in 2024.
The Curse Workers trilogy, which opened with “White Cat” in 2010, takes place in an alternate world where magic is illegal and most of those who can work it belong to crime families. “Doll Bones” (2013), a novel for younger readers, was a Newbery Honor book and won the Mythopoeic Award. Between 2014 and 2018 Black and Cassandra Clare wrote the five Magisterium novels together.
The Folk of the Air books follow Jude Duarte, a mortal girl, and the faerie prince Cardan Greenbriar. “The Wicked King” (2019) entered the New York Times bestseller list at number one, and “The Queen of Nothing” followed later the same year. “The Stolen Heir” (2023) and “The Prisoner’s Throne” (2024) return to the same world through the characters Oak and Suren.
“Book of Night” (2022) was her first fantasy novel for adults and won a Dragon Award, and “Thief of Night” (2025) completed the Charlatan Duology. “A Conspiracy of Charming Monsters”, an illustrated collection of six stories set in Elfhame, is due on 3 November 2026.
Publication Order of Modern Faerie Tales Books
Tithe
2002
Valiant
2005
Ironside
2007
Publication Order of The Spiderwick Chronicles Books
The Field Guide (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2003
The Seeing Stone (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2003
Lucinda’s Secret (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2003
The Ironwood Tree (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2004
The Wrath of Mulgarath (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2004
Publication Order of Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles Books
The Nixie’s Song (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2007
A Giant Problem (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2008
The Wyrm King (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2009
Publication Order of Spiderwick Chronicles Companion Books
Arthur Spiderwick’s Notebook for Fantastical Observations (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2005
Arthur Spiderwick’s Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2005
The Spiderwick Chronicles: Care and Feeding of Sprites (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2006
The Chronicles of Spiderwick: A Grand Tour of the Enchanted World, Navigated by Thimbletack (With: Tony DiTerlizzi)
2007
Publication Order of The Curse Workers Books
White Cat
2010
Red Glove
2011
Black Heart
2012
Publication Order of Magisterium Books
The Iron Trial (With: Cassandra Clare)
2014
The Copper Gauntlet (With: Cassandra Clare)
2015
The Bronze Key (With: Cassandra Clare)
2016
The Silver Mask (With: Cassandra Clare)
2017
The Golden Tower (With: Cassandra Clare)
2018
Publication Order of The Folk of the Air Books
The Cruel Prince
2018
The Lost Sisters
2018
The Wicked King
2019
The Queen of Nothing
2019
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories
2020
Publication Order of The Stolen Heir Duology Books
The Stolen Heir
2023
The Prisoner’s Throne
2024
Publication Order of The Charlatan Duology Books
Book of Night
2022
Thief of Night
2025
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
Doll Bones
2013
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown
2013
The Darkest Part of the Forest
2015
Heart of the Moors
2019
Publication Order of Short Story Collections
The Poison Eaters and Other Stories
2010
A Conspiracy of Charming Monsters
2026
Publication Order of Children’s Books
Sir Morien: The Legend of a Knight of the Round Table (With: Kaliis Smith)
