Best Caroline Peckham Books
Caroline Peckham — best known as one half of the Peckham & Valenti duo — has carved out a devoted following in dark fantasy romance with series that lean hard into emotional chaos. Zodiac Academy is the flagship: a fae academy world built around astrology and elemental magic, propelled by enemies-to-lovers tension, brutal power dynamics, and the kind of slow-burn anguish that keeps readers awake until 3am. The Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac spinoff expands that universe with even sharper edges. Her prose is fast, emotionally raw, and unashamedly addictive — not concerned with literary restraint, but expert at escalating stakes until readers are fully hostage to the outcome. If you like your fantasy romance with genuine darkness, morally complicated love interests, and worlds that feel lived-in rather than decorative, Peckham delivers exactly that.
Where to Start with Caroline Peckham
- Best entry point → Dark Fae
- Start the Crown of Hearts and Chaos series → Hollow
- Underrated but highly rated → Cinder Vale
- What readers keep coming back to → Ruthless Fae
- Highest rated by readers → The Reckoning (Part 2 of 2) (Zodiac Academy [Dramatized Adaptation] #3, Part 2 #3)
Best Caroline Peckham Books
- 1
Warrior Fae
Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac • Book 5
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
★ 4.26 Goodreads (76.7K ratings) - 2
The Reckoning (Part 2 of 2)
Zodiac Academy [Dramatized Adaptation] #3, Part 2 • Book 3
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti, Khaya Fraites, Jessica Schly, Gregory Linnington, Julian Dailey, Jon Vertullo, Ryan Dalusung, Gabriel Michael
More about this pick
Senior students torture freshmen during Hell Week preparation for The Reckoning — the brutal assessment that decides who stays at Zodiac Academy — as the revealing Lunar Eclipse draws near.
★ 4.38 Goodreads (1.5K ratings) - 3
Ruthless Fae
Zodiac Academy • Book 2
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
★ 4.20 Goodreads (363.3K ratings) - 4
The Reckoning (Part 1 of 2)
Zodiac Academy [Dramatized Adaptation] #3, Part 1 • Book 3
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti, Khaya Fraites, Jessica Schly, Gregory Linnington, Julian Dailey, Jon Vertullo, Ryan Dalusung, Gabriel Michael
More about this pick
Hell Week begins as senior students torment freshmen before the assessment that will determine their fate at magical Zodiac Academy. Dark secrets and forbidden attractions complicate survival in this supernatural boarding school thriller.
★ 4.30 Goodreads (1.6K ratings) - 5
Cinder Vale
Sins of the Zodiac • Book 3
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
More about this pick
Ash stirs across battlefields as fate whispers of buried secrets in this enemies-to-lovers expansion of the Zodiac Academy universe. Peckham and Valenti weave elemental magic through romantic tension and ancient mysteries.
★ 4.67 Goodreads (133 ratings) - 6
Dark Fae
Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac • Book 1
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
More about this pick
Vampire Elise goes undercover at an academy to identify her brother's killer among four dangerous supernatural students—a Dragon, Basilisk, Lion Shifter, and tattooed Harpy—while a new drug threatens their world.
★ 4.04 Goodreads (113.0K ratings) - 7
Hollow
Crown of Hearts and Chaos • Book 1
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti
More about this pick
The Great Hunt occurs every fifty years, drawing Champions willing to face death in cursed woods to break an ancient spell. One ordinary person enters the forest anyway, defying every warning about shadows, spirits, and darkness.
★ 4.04 Goodreads (22.4K ratings) - 8
The Awakening
Zodiac Academy [Dramatized Adaptation] • Book 1
by Caroline Peckham, Susanne Valenti, Khaya Fraites, Jessica Schly, Gregory Linnington, Julian Dailey, Jon Vertullo, Ryan Dalusung, Gabriel Michael
More about this pick
Gemini twins discover they're Fae royalty who must survive supernatural school where proving their power means every classmate becomes their enemy. Peckham and Valenti blend deadly academia with royal intrigue.
★ 4.02 Goodreads (1.8K ratings)