How to read the Dune books in order

Whether you’re here for Timothée Chalamet, Denis Villeneuve or Frank Herbert himself, here’s the complete order of all 23 books in the Dune series.

By Olivia Garrett

Published: Wednesday, 10 January 2024 at 11:26 AM

For sci-fi fans and “Chalamaniacs” alike, this year is all about Dune.

Finally, after a three-year-long wait, the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic is coming to cinemas on 1st March 2024 with Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh and Austin Butler in tow.

Dune: Part 2 is set to complete the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s original book – Dune (1965) – although Villeneuve has already expressed interest in another instalment.

“There is Dune’s second book, The Messiah of Dune [aka Dune: Messiah], which could make an extraordinary film,” he told CBC Radio Canada. “I always saw that there could be a trilogy; after that, we’ll see. It’s years of work; I can’t think of going further than that.”

Alongside the potential of more films, HBO Max recently commissioned a prequel series, The Sisterhood, which will see Villeneuve serve as executive producer.

Didn’t know there was a sequel or a prequel? Well that’s just the tip of the iceberg (or sand dune).

Herbert’s original novel is just the start of a collection of stories longer than your average sand worm. The author actually wrote six Dune books during his lifetime, but the series didn’t stop there, as, following his death in 1986, Herbert’s son Brian teamed up with sci-fi writer Kevin J Anderson to produce literally dozens of prequels, sequels and spinoffs.

Today, there are 23 Dune books in circulation, so we’ve decided to do the decent thing and list them for you in full. Below you’ll find the complete list of Dune novels in order of release and chronological order (although we decided to leave out the short stories because the RadioTimes.com team didn’t really fancy a breakdown just two weeks into January). Plus, we’ve grouped them into their different collections in case you want to split things up a bit more.

Here’s the complete list of Dune novels.

Want more complete lists? Here’s how to read the Jack Reacher books in order and how to read the Percy Jackson series in order. 

How to read the Dune books in order of publication

The cover of the first Dune novel.
Dune.
Amazon

Below is the full and complete release order of the Dune books – including both Frank Herbert’s original series and Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson’s follow-up novels.

  1. Dune (1965)
  2. Dune Messiah (1969)
  3. Children of Dune (1976)
  4. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
  5. Heretics of Dune (1984)
  6. Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)
  7. House Atreides (1999)
  8. House Harkonnen (2000)
  9. House Corrino (2001)
  10. The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
  11. The Machine Crusade (2003)
  12. The Battle of Corrin (2004)
  13. Hunters of Dune (2006)
  14. Sandworms of Dune (2007)
  15. Paul of Dune (2008)
  16. The Winds of Dune (2009)
  17. Sisterhood of Dune (2011)
  18. Mentats of Dune (2014)
  19. Navigators of Dune (2016)
  20. The Duke of Caladan (2020)
  21. The Lady of Caladan (2021)
  22. The Heir of Caladan (2022)
  23. Princess of Dune (2023)

How to read the Dune books in chronological order

If you’re looking to take on Dune’s epic canon from start to finish, here’s the complete list of Dune novels in chronological order.

  1. The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
  2. The Machine Crusade (2003)
  3. The Battle of Corrin (2004)
  4. Sisterhood of Dune (2011)
  5. Mentats of Dune (2014)
  6. Navigators of Dune (2016)
  7. House Atreides (1999)
  8. House Harkonnen (2000)
  9. House Corrino (2001)
  10. Princess of Dune (2023)
  11. The Duke of Caladan (2020)
  12. The Lady of Caladan (2021)
  13. The Heir of Caladan (2022)
  14. Dune (1965)
  15. Paul of Dune (2008)
  16. Dune Messiah (1969)
  17. The Winds of Dune (2009)
  18. Children of Dune (1976)
  19. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
  20. Heretics of Dune (1984)
  21. Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)
  22. Hunters of Dune (2006)
  23. Sandworms of Dune (2007)

Dune books by Frank Herbert (original series)

Dave Bautista as Count Glossu Rabban in Dune: Part Two.
Dave Bautista as Count Glossu Rabban in Dune: Part Two.
Niko Tavernise

Traditionalists among you may be looking to just read Frank Herbert’s original six books, so we’ve listed them below for you.

  1. Dune (1965)
  2. Dune Messiah (1969)
  3. Children of Dune (1976)
  4. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
  5. Heretics of Dune (1984)
  6. Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)

Following his death, Frank Herbert’s son Brian and Kevin J Anderson also published two novels that would conclude the arc and unfinished storylines of Herbert’s original series, these are Hunters of Dune (2006) and Sandworms of Dune (2007).

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Prelude to Dune

Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson’s first trilogy was a set of prequels, each set in the years before the original Dune.

  1. House Atreides (1999)
  2. House Harkonnen (2000)
  3. House Corrino (2001)

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Legends of Dune

The writing duo then produced a second set of prequels set over 10,000 years before the events of Herbert’s first novel.

  1. The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
  2. The Machine Crusade (2003)
  3. The Battle of Corrin (2004)

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Heroes of Dune

The first two parts of the Heroes of Dune series focuses on the time between Herbert’s original novels. Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson originally intended to write four books, but postponed the last two to work on another project. Consequentially, the last book, Princess of Dune, was only published last year.

  1. Paul of Dune (2008)
  2. The Winds of Dune (2009)
  3. Princess of Dune (2023)

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Great Schools of Dune

This trilogy acts as yet another prequel to the original series, but is also the sequel to the Legends of Dune collection.

  1. Sisterhood of Dune (2011)
  2. Mentats of Dune (2014)
  3. Navigators of Dune (2016)

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The Caladan Trilogy

The writers’ latest collection, The Caladan Trilogy, takes place after House Corrino in the first prequel series, but is still set before the events of Dune (1965).

  1. The Duke of Caladan (2020)
  2. The Lady of Caladan (2021)
  3. The Heir of Caladan (2022)

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