Joyspren’s Cosmere Reading Order

Hello again to the few of you who read my blog! I’ve been thinking a lot about what to share today. I think though, we will go with my first idea for today. The Cosmere by Brandon Sanderson has a continually growing number of books, and knowing which order to read them in is sometimes tricky. So today I’ll give you my two cents about that. (Okay, it’s the Cosmere. You’ll get more than two cents on this topic anytime I bring it up. Just fair warning now; not even really sorry.) There are a lot of different versions out there, some extremely detailed (my friend Drew’s is all over and it’s down to essays in a certain volume). I will not be that picky here. Just because I don’t think it’s that necessary, tbh. But here’s the order I give them to my kids and others who are interested. Last note, I have my kids read all of Sanderson’s Middle Grade and YA books before starting the Cosmere. That’s not a thing, they just get that because mom is insane dedicated special. Though they’ve enjoyed them too.

To start off, What Is the Cosmere? It’s an interconnected group of different books/series set in the same universe. Some characters cross over between books, while the majority (for now) do not. Think of this as the MCU of fantasy series: they all connect somehow, but we are just entering phase 2 (maybe) so the connections are still a lot behind the scenes. Each series/book can supposedly be enjoyed on its own still, though Rhythm of War really stretches that idea.

Joyspren’s COSMERE READING ORDER

Mistborn Era 1 (complete)

              The Final Empire

              The Well of Ascension

              The Hero of Ages

Elantris (currently stands alone) This can come before Mistborn if you want to read a single book instead of a series to try it out. Mistborn is significantly better written however (As Brandon himself says). I do love this story, but the first half or 2/3 is pretty darn slow. I think the ending more than makes up for that, but not everyone agrees with me.

Mistborn Era 2 (will be completed next year)

              Alloy of Law

              Shadows of Self

              The Bands of Mourning

              The Lost Metal (forthcoming, 2022)

Warbreaker (currently stands alone)

Arcanum Unbounded, collected novellas/stories from different Cosmere worlds. They’re grouped by the worlds they come from. You can read everything EXCEPT the Rosharan System section now, it’s the last part of the book.

The Stormlight Archives (these are the Big Boys, each coming in at or over 1000 pages each.)

              The Way of Kings

              Words of Radiance

              Edgedancer (novella in the Rosharan section of AU, above. This is where it fits into the timeline.)

              Oathbringer

              Dawnshard (another novella novel, in between the events of the main books)

              Rhythm of War

              Untitled Book 5, expected late 2023

White Sand (either the graphic novels, which will sometime be available in an updated omnibus volume, or the non-canon prose which you can get by signing up for Brandon’s emails.) This actually takes place FIRST in the in-world timeline of Cosmere books, but I’m really not much of a Graphic Novel reader, so I just stick it there in the end. One of the characters though, Khrisalla, is in almost every other book writing the “Ars Arcanum” at the end (fancy glossary basically).  

Note: another way to read is just sticking to Publication Order. But I prefer to keep my series together as much as possible. There is no WRONG way to read these books, but as the list grows longer it’s sometimes hard to know where to start.

There are a few other small-to-medium stories floating around, like the Traveler for example. They have some nice lore bits, but aren’t required Cosmere reading. Also one other book, which like White Sand prose, isn’t canon or available to purchase. This list is approximately half or a little less of what is proposed for the full Cosmere, so once you’ve finished all these there will probably be a new book out just for you! And that will likely continue for another two decades, if current plans continue to be followed. We are just hitting our stride in this fantastic universe, and the hints for what is to come mean that eventually this collection of books will be the most epic universe ever written. And I can’t wait to see it!