The Lily Hills Creatures Reading Guide

All books in the Lily Hills Creatures series can be read as standalones and in any order, but if you want to know everything there is to know about the world, the timeline order is most recommended. This order is just a suggestion. If you’ve read the books in a different order and came to this page after, you are not missing out.

More reading order options will be available as the books and shorts expand. Three starting options are below. Scroll to read more and find your path!

  1. The Timeline Order
  2. The Simplified Goodreads Timeline
  3. The Publication Order

The Lily Hills Creatures Timeline Map

This is not a perfect timeline with everything sequentially placed, it is a timeline of when information is fun or best known for the twists. It does mostly follow the sequential timeline, but certain elements are recommended later to avoid spoilers.

See the timeline map below and the written version with more details.

The Lily Hills Creatures Timeline Order

You do not have to read the series in this order to enjoy it or understand the plot, but it’s fun to know how each point plays into the next.

  1. The first half of the short story A Bright Spot Under A Dark Cloud is set two years before the start of ALH. It can be read first in the series for background on the academy in the forest, founded by Rosie’s ancestor Eleanora McKinney.
  2. The short story A Peculiar Day at Warm Welcome Café shows the dynamic between Beatrice and Rosie, set two weeks before ALH. It’s fun to read this next, adding color to the events at the coffee shop and The Crystal Witch in the early chapters of ALH.
  3. A Lovely Haunt is the first full length novel in Lily Hills Creatures. While this book features several flashback chapters to William’s life before his death, it is best read as part of ALH and not before, to avoid spoilers.
  4. The second half of A Bright Spot Under A Dark Cloud is set directly during chapter eight of ALH. You can read it while reading ALH, or after you finish reading.

This page will be updated as more content is published in the series.

The Simplified Goodreads Order

On Goodreads, I can’t recommend books partially at one spot and partially somewhere else, and had to pick exact numbers for each book. If that’s something you prefer, use the below order.

  • Book 0.5: A Peculiar Day at Warm Welcome Café, short story
  • Book 1: A Lovely Haunt, full length novel
  • Book 1.5: A Bright Spot Under A Dark Cloud, short story
Follow on Goodreads

The Publication Order

Read the world as they come into being, regardless of when they are set within the story. I am not a sequential writer, instead working in and out of documents for the series for years before those books come out. I’m even working on a spin off series that isn’t set to release for years! Publication order isn’t perfect timeline order, but it’s the easiest to follow.

  1. A Peculiar Day at Warm Welcome Café, short story published March 5, 2026
  2. A Bright Spot Under A Dark Cloud, short story published July 24, 2026
  3. A Lovely Haunt, full length novel, publication forthcoming
Follow on Amazon