Help with reading order

[masquacks]

So recently I learned about Brandon Sanderson and the Cosmere... I learned that you should read books in a good order... however, I looked everywhere and I only found websites that felt outdated and/or didn't include the novellas/and/or didn't say what novellas were in the Arcanum Unbounded. I just want a full list of everything cause I don't want to miss secrets and lorebits thank you for your help

[Treamayne]

2 hours ago, masquacks said:

So recently I learned about Brandon Sanderson and the Cosmere... I learned that you should read books in a good order... however, I looked everywhere and I only found websites that felt outdated and/or didn't include the novellas/and/or didn't say what novellas were in the Arcanum Unbounded. I just want a full list of everything cause I don't want to miss secrets and lorebits thank you for your help

I discuss Reading order in depth here (and many other reading order threads). But, really the key things to keep in mind is that there is no single "correct" reading order (and the "opinion maxim" applies). It is, in my opinon, far more important to enable people to make informed decisions so they can craft a reading order for themselves that suits their preference(s). 

Publication order is always a solid choice, but only applicable for people who have not yet started Cosmere (or "accidentally" started with one of the first three). As mentioned elsewhere, I have known people whose first Cosmere was "Thrill" or Sixth of the Dusk (and other "anthology" releases) - when you have already started out-of-order, trying to then follow publication order is less helpful

Links:

• Which book next
• What Book to Start On
• "Best" Cosmere Reading Order
• Reread Order
• My Reading Order

At the risk of quoting myself, here's the most relavent bit:

On 2/24/2023 at 4:31 PM, Treamayne said:

Spoiler

The first three in any order based on reader's preference on the action-politics scale:

Spoiler

• Elantris - It's a stand-alone (for now - 1 Short Story and one tangentially related Novella) and was the first published. Start here if you really like political intrigue books and a cerebral atmosphere. Less action than Mistborn or Warbreaker, until the end. 
• Mistborn Trilogy (Book 1 Mistborn: The Final Empire / Era 1) - It's a Trilogy (so more initial time investment) but it is packed with action, great magic, great (dystopian) worldbuilding. Some political intrigue - can be a lot to take in at once for some readers. 
• Warbreaker - Stand-alone (for now - no short stories). About mid-way between the the first two in both action and politics. The world is specifically meant to contrast to Mistborn's setting (so I recommend reading this either right before or right after Mistborn) and introduces many important things for shared universe (Cosmere)

• Mistborn Era 1
  1. The Final Empire
  2. Well of Ascension
  3. Hero of Ages
  4. The Eleventh Metal (Short Story) takes place before The Final Empire - but may be read after Book 1 or after the Trilogy)
• Warbreaker
• Elantris
  1. Hope of Elantris (Short Story) - anytime after finishing Elantris
• The Emperor's Soul - should always be next after those three in any order - this is the best introduction to understanding some of the fundamentals of how different series are related and connect

Followed by these caveates for the remaining works

• Stormlight Archive
  • Read at least Warbreaker and Mistborn Era 1 before starting this
  • Can fit other works between SA novels if you like to switch things up and not tackle 4x 1000+ page books in a row
  • Note that if you prefer Audio or eBook, the books contain some amazing and important art that you may miss in audio or only see well with an eBook on PC
• Mistborn: Secret History
  • Do not read before Bands of Mourning (Spoilers)
• White Sand (prose or graphic novel/omnibus just released on the Dynamite website)
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul
  • (Recommended) Read before Rhythm of War
  • Non-canon unpublished Prose version available by joining the newsletter) - The forum section discusses differences to Canon Graphic Novel (See above link for more info)
• Allow of Law
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul
• Mistborn Era 2 Trilogy 
  • Shadows of Self - Anytime after Alloy of Law
  • Bands of Mourning - Anytime after Shadows of Self
  • The Lost Metal - Do not read before Rhythm of War (Spoilers)
• Sixth of the Dusk (novella)
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul (Highly recommend the Shadows Beneath version*)
• Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell (novella)
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul
  • (Recommended) Read before Oathbringer
• Silverlight Essays (from the section headers in Arcanum Unbounded)
  • Each essay should be read after reading at least the primary work for that "world"
  • If you want to read them all together, read at least Mistborn Era 1, Allow of Law, Elantris, the Way of Kings then you can read all of them in Arcanum Unbounded and read the Novellas (except below) there paired with their essay
    • Edgedancer comes after Words of Radiance
    • Mistborn: Secret History has spoilers for Bands of Mourning
• Tress of the Emerald Sea
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul and Sixth of the Dusk
  • Note that if you prefer Audio or eBook, the books contain some amazing and important art that you may miss in audio or only see well with an eBook on PC
• Yumi and the Nightmare Painter
  • Anytime after The Emperor's Soul and Sixth of the Dusk
  • Do not read before Oathbringer (Spoilers)
  • Note that if you prefer Audio or eBook, the books contain some amazing and important art that you may miss in audio or only see well with an eBook on PC
• The Sunlit Man
  • Anytime after Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell, The Emperor's Soul and Sixth of the Dusk
  • Do not read before Oathbringer (Spoilers)
  • Note that if you prefer Audio or eBook, the books contain some amazing and important art that you may miss in audio or only see well with an eBook on PC

**********

Rough Cosmere Internal Timeline

*Note the reading order does not match the internal timeline

• Dragonsteel (Not published)
• White Sand
• Elantris
• Mistborn Era 1
• Warbreaker
• Stormlight Archive Cycle 1 (Books 1-5)
• Mistborn Era 2
• Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell
• Stormlight Archive Cycle 2 (Books 6-10)
• Mistborn Era 3
• Silverlight Essays (from Arcanum Unbounded)
• Sixth of the Dusk
• The Sunlit Man (not definitive - most likely shortly before or after Sixth)
• Yumi and the Nightmare Painter (not definitive - most likely shortly before or after Sixth - likely before Tress)
• Tress of the Emerald Sea (not definitive - most likely shortly before or after Sixth)
• Mistborn Era 4

Edited March 19 by Treamayne
Clarity/SPAG/Links

[The cheeseman Sola Scriptora]

This video should answer your question.

Cosmere reading order 2024

[masquacks]

i actually just barely went to youtube right before you answered but what are your thoughts on this just go to it and click the description cause he feels knowledgeable but i just want to here what the community says

j 

[The cheeseman Sola Scriptora]

39 minutes ago, masquacks said:

i actually just barely went to youtube right before you answered but what are your thoughts on this just go to it and click the description cause he feels knowledgeable but i just want to here what the community says

j 

That's a very solid reading order. Another thing you can do is read them all by order of publication, which is a little bit what that video is recommending.

[Dunkum he/him]

4 hours ago, masquacks said:

i actually just barely went to youtube right before you answered but what are your thoughts on this just go to it and click the description cause he feels knowledgeable but i just want to here what the community says

j 

I'd probably pick this order over the one Brandon suggests in the other response - I think keeping the secret projects at the end of the current books works best, especially if you are trying to catch connections the first time through. but some notes:

note 1: I agree with Brandon about Elantris being one of the weaker entries, and probably wouldn't start with it. Mistborn or Warbreaker would be my choices instead (I think Mistborn was actually where I did start so many years ago). that said, I agree with the list, if not necessarily the precise order, of the pre-stormlight books.

note 2: personally I don't like the idea of jumping back and forth between Stormlight and Mistborn Era 2. I mean, i read them as they came out so I DID do that, but I wouldn't do it that way again. so if you'd prefer to read through one series before jumping to the next, then I'd have to recommend Mistborn Era 2 before Stormlight. there is not a huge amount of intersection there, and most of it comes from book 4 of Mistborn era 2 if memory serves, so if you wanted to retain something like the level of surprise that you would have had reading them as they came out, you could theoretically do SA 1-3 (including Edgedancer, and maybe Dawnshard if you want, though it can go later as long as it is before Stormlight 4) then Mistborn Era 2 (including Secret History where he puts it relative to those books) then Stormlight 4. but if you want to spot all the connections as soon as possible, then Mistborn Era 2 comes first.

EDIT: i looked it up and I had the release order for Rhythm of War and The Lost Metal backwards. so to revise my note 2: to keep the surprise aspect you would do all of Stormlight before all of Mistborn Era 2.

Edited March 19 by Dunkum