Nina Varela Books In Order

Publication Order of Crier's War Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Nina Varela is the author of the Crier’s War series and a nationally awarded writer of screenplays and short fiction. She is known for writing about queer kids, magic, and the magic of queer kids.

The author was born in New Orleans and raised in Durham, North Carolina on a hippie commune. As a kid, she spent most of her time playing in the woods. She lives far from that type of nature now as she makes her home in Los Angeles.

Nina has said that the seed of the story for Crier’s War, and the thing that made her want to write it, was the idea of watching a character become the truest version of themselves. She added that she’d always had a weakness for cold, hardened characters who make friends and grow in warm, empathetic, and gentle people.

The magic in the book focuses on the Four Pillars, a hybrid of the four alchemical elements. It is based on the flawed idea that you could break down a human psyche or soul into four categories.

Crier’s War is the first book in the duology of the same name. The book picks up after the War of the Kinds ravaged the kingdom of Rabu and the Automae best the human race to their will. The Automae were originally designed to be the plaything of royals, but they ended up usurping their owners and taking control. Ayla is a human servant who is rising the ranks at the House of the Sovereign with dreams of revenge. Her family was killed and now she wants to kill the sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier. The Lady was made to be beautiful and to carry on her father’s legacy, but that was before she was betrothed to Scyre Kinok and found out that her father isn’t the man she thought it was. It was before she met Ayla. With an evil new leader on the rise and growing human unrest, Crier and Ayla find that there may only be one path to finding love: making war.

Nina found writing the second book to be easier as she was writing to the end of the story instead of the middle. She also had a lot more confidence as she had already finished her first book. The writing process was much more relaxed this time around as she felt a lot less pressure knowing that first book was done.

The Crier’s War series continues with Iron Heart. The book picks up after the events of the first book with Ayla at the heart of the human revolution. She now finds herself as a fugitive after her narrow escape at the end of the last book. Now, Ayla has pledged allegiance to Queen Junn who wants to help destroy the Iron Heart. Without the power of the Iron Heart, the Automae will be nearly extinct. However, Ayla can’t shake the feelings that she has developed for Lady Crier. What she doesn’t know is that Lady Crier has also fled the palace and found her place among the rebels, in search of finding Ayla. As they work closer together, neither of them will be prepared for the dark secret within the Iron Heart.