About
Taran Matharu
Taran Matharu was born in London in 1990 and found a passion for reading at a very early age. His love for stories developed into a desire to create his own during early adolescence, beginning his first book at 9 years old.
- 9years old when he began his first book
- 8M+reads on Wattpad
- 17languages his books are published in
- #7Sunday Times Bestseller list, The Tainted Khan
Keen to explore a new avenue and get inside the publishing world, Taran landed an internship in Digital Sales at Penguin Random House. Thereafter, while taking time off to travel, he began to write the Summoner series at the age of 22, taking part in Nanowrimo 2013. Thanks to Wattpad.com and updating daily, its popularity dramatically increased, reaching over 3 million reads in less than 6 months. To date, he has had over 8 million reads on Wattpad.
His Summoner trilogy consists of The Novice (2015), The Inquisition (2016) and The Battlemage (2017). This trilogy was acquired by Macmillan in the US, and his books are now published in seventeen languages worldwide, with over 3 million copies sold in English. The series is a New York Times bestseller.
Taran has since written a prequel to this bestselling series, The Outcast (2018) and a companion guide called the Summoner's Handbook (2018). His 3-book YA fantasy series titled Contender consists of The Chosen (2019), The Challenger (2020) and The Champion (2021).
His first adult fantasy trilogy, the Soulbound Saga, began with Dragon Rider (2024), an instant Sunday Times bestseller. The Tainted Khan followed, reaching #7 on the Sunday Times Bestseller list, and the saga concludes with Emperor's Dragon, published on 19 November 2026 in the UK and 8 December 2026 in the US.
Taran Matharu is represented by Juliet Mushens.
The path so far
A writing life
- 1990
Born in London.
- Age 9
Begins writing his first book.
- 2013
Starts the Summoner series during NaNoWriMo, posting daily on Wattpad. Over 3 million reads in under 6 months.
- 2015
The Novice is published.
- 2016
The Inquisition. Summoner becomes a New York Times bestseller.
- 2017
The Battlemage completes the trilogy.
- 2018
The Outcast, the prequel, and The Summoner's Handbook.
- 2019
The Chosen opens the Contender trilogy.
- 2020
- 2021
- 2024
Dragon Rider, his debut adult fantasy, is an instant Sunday Times bestseller.
- 2025
The Tainted Khan reaches #7 on the Sunday Times Bestseller list.
- 2026
Emperor's Dragon concludes the Soulbound Saga. Published 19 November in the UK and 8 December in the US.