Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1912–1943)

  1. “Under the Moons of Mars” begins serialization

    Labels: John Carter, Barsoom, All-Story Magazine

    Edgar Rice Burroughs introduced his Mars setting—called Barsoom—by serializing his first John Carter story in All-Story Magazine. The serial ran over multiple issues and established key series elements: a swashbuckling Earth hero, Martian city-states, and a blend of adventure with speculative science.

  2. “The Gods of Mars” expands Barsoom’s mythology

    Labels: The Gods, Barsoom, All-Story Magazine

    Burroughs quickly followed with a sequel that deepened Barsoom’s cultures and beliefs. Serialized in All-Story, it broadened the series beyond simple adventure by turning Martian religion and political control into central plot forces.

  3. “The Warlord of Mars” completes the early trilogy

    Labels: The Warlord, John Carter, Barsoom

    Serialized across late 1913 and early 1914, this story concluded the main conflict begun in the first two installments. It helped cement the John Carter books as a continuing saga with cliffhangers and payoffs across multiple releases.

  4. “Thuvia, Maid of Mars” shifts focus to new heroes

    Labels: Thuvia, Carthoris, Barsoom

    This fourth entry moved attention away from John Carter and toward younger characters such as Carthoris (Carter’s son) and Thuvia. The shift showed that Barsoom could continue by expanding its cast and exploring new parts of the Martian world.

  5. “A Princess of Mars” published as a book

    Labels: A Princess, Hardcover, Barsoom

    After its magazine success, Burroughs’s first Barsoom story was issued in hardcover as A Princess of Mars. The book release helped move the story from pulp serial entertainment into the longer-lived novel market, supporting wider reprints and later adaptations.

  6. “The Gods of Mars” appears in novel form

    Labels: The Gods, Novel edition, Barsoom

    The second Barsoom installment was published as a complete novel, making the series easier to read as a connected set. This also reinforced the “series identity” of the books, rather than treating them as standalone magazine adventures.

  7. “The Warlord of Mars” published as a novel

    Labels: The Warlord, Novel edition, Barsoom

    The third installment was released in book form, allowing the early John Carter arc to be collected and sold to readers who preferred novels over magazines. With three novels available, Barsoom had a solid foundation as a long-running franchise.

  8. “The Chessmen of Mars” broadens Barsoom’s scope

    Labels: The Chessmen, Barsoom, 1920s

    Published after a gap, this installment added new locations, creatures, and social systems, keeping the series fresh for 1920s readers. Its serial run and quick book publication also show that Burroughs still had a market for Barsoom adventures.

  9. “The Master Mind of Mars” experiments with narration

    Labels: The Master, Ulysses Paxton, Amazing Stories

    This novel used a different first-person narrator (Ulysses Paxton) instead of John Carter, signaling a more flexible series structure. It first appeared in Amazing Stories Annual before being released in book form, reflecting Barsoom’s movement across magazines and publishers.

  10. “A Fighting Man of Mars” continues the wider Barsoom era

    Labels: A Fighting, Tan Hadron, The Blue

    Serialized in The Blue Book Magazine and later published as a novel, this entry again centers on a different narrator (Tan Hadron). The continued rotation of viewpoints helped Burroughs tell stories across Barsoom without always relying on the original hero.

  11. “Swords of Mars” returns John Carter to center stage

    Labels: Swords of, John Carter, Edgar Rice

    After several books focused on other characters, Burroughs brought John Carter back as the primary narrator and protagonist. The story was serialized in Blue Book and later published by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., reflecting the author’s growing control over how his work was issued.

  12. “Synthetic Men of Mars” introduces new kinds of threats

    Labels: Synthetic Men, Argosy Weekly, Barsoom

    This novel was first serialized in Argosy Weekly in 1939 and then published in book form in 1940. The focus on “synthetic men” (artificially created beings) shows the series leaning into stronger science-fiction ideas while keeping its action-adventure style.

  13. “Llana of Gathol” becomes the last lifetime Barsoom book

    Labels: Llana of, Amazing Stories, Barsoom

    Four Barsoom stories originally published in Amazing Stories (1941) were later collected as Llana of Gathol in 1948. It is widely treated as the final Barsoom volume published while Burroughs was alive, marking a late-career closing phase for the series.

  14. Burroughs dies, ending new Barsoom writing

    Labels: Edgar Rice, Encino California, Barsoom

    Edgar Rice Burroughs died in Encino, California, in 1950. His death ended the series’ original author-driven development, leaving later Barsoom publications to rely on previously written material and estate-managed editions.

  15. “John Carter of Mars” collects late tales in hardcover

    Labels: John Carter, Canaveral Press

    In 1964, Canaveral Press published John Carter of Mars, bringing together two late John Carter stories: “John Carter and the Giant of Mars” (from Amazing Stories, January 1941) and “Skeleton Men of Jupiter” (from Amazing Stories, February 1943). This volume provided a clear “capstone” publication path for parts of the Barsoom canon that had appeared in magazines and helped define the series’ long-term legacy in book form.

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Last Updated:Jan 1, 1980

Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs (1912–1943)