perfect order to read the cosmere

[High prince of geeks he/him]

Is there a perfect order for new readers to read the Cosmere? When I first started I didn't know there was a chronological order and did something like

Warbreaker

Mistborn 1,2

Elantris

Mistborn 3

Emperors soul

Way of kings (sadly it was about here I realized they were connected)

Alloy of law

Words of raidience

Sixth of dust

I am interested in getting some of my normal friends into the series, and I want the best order to make them slowly realize the nth dimensional, mind distorting, world shaking, reality of how good an author Brandon is.

[KamorianKandra he/him]

I read them in publication order, so Elantris, Mistborn, Warbreaker, Way of Kings, Alloy of Law, The Emperors Soul and then Words of Radiance.

This allowed me to see things as they were slowly revealed.

However, I really think you can read it in any order that wish.

[Curious Anamaximder he/him]

Brandon made a tweet about a article on Tor about order of books.

[gjustice99 she/her]

i read them this way:

Mistborn 1,2,3

Elantris

Stormlight 1

Warbreaker

Stormlight 2

[Axies he/him]

I'll say...

Elantris
The Emperor's Soul
Mistborn 1st Era
Stormlight1
Warbreaker
Stormlight2 (2-5 when they are published)
Mistborn 2nd Era

Still don't know where Nightblood will go if between Warbreaker and Stormlight2 or after Stormlight5...

[Quiver he/him]

I think the release order is (mostly) a chronological retelling of events, so I mostly stick with that... though I admit, I haven't read the Sel stuff, so I'm not quite sure where they fit into the timeline.

[Guest]

I read them in this order, roughly.

 

Mistborn 1

Mistborn 2

Elantris or Warbreaker

Mistborn 3

Elantris or Warbreaker

Alloy of Law

Steelheart

Way of Kings

Words of Radiance

Firefight

Sixth of the Dusk

Emperor's Soul

Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell

 

I'd tweak that order a bit depending on the person. For example, if I was trying to get my girlfriend to read them I'd start with Emperor's Soul, because she finds large books intimidating, or Mistborn 1 because she likes heist/thieving novels.

 

Personally, I'd never start anyone with Elantris. I find it to slow, and the setting is just to weird. There's also a definite lack of magic for most of the book, and part of why I read Sanderson (and Fantasy in general) is for the magic. Basically, I feel that the reader has to trust the author in order to read Elantris and not get frustrated.

(Reading "A Song of Fire and Ice" was similar for me. I never would have gotten through the 1st 200 pages if my trusted friends weren't telling me it was worth the slog)

[Orlion Blight he/him]

I would say read the current Sel books first:

 

Elantris

The Emperor's Soul

 

Followed by the Mistborn trilogy.

 

Warbreaker can then be read, but should definitely be read before Words of Radiance.

 

Stormlight Archive should be read after these, since it seems there's considerable more enjoyment gained by reading these books last. 

 

The short stories can be read at any time. 

[Mistrunner]

I say, start 'em young! I started with Alcatraz. Also, I like Elantris as a first book, both because it's his first and it's a stand-alone, so it's not too much of a commitment (read: they don't know they're addicted 'till it's too late).

 

So, if we're looking for a sort of 'indoctrinate the youngsters':

 

Alcatraz

The Rithmatist

Reckoners

Elantris

Mistborn

Warbreaker

Stormlight

Alloy of Law

[dayman]

For new readers I would tell everyone to start with the first 3 mistborn first (IMO). If that doesn't catch their interest in Sanderson and the cosmere as a whole nothing will. Also happen to be the best he has to offer IMO (so far)

[Lindel he/him]

I agree with the sentiment of starting with the Mistborn Trilogy. It does a great job showing off what Brandon's capable of, doesn't rely on the foundation of trust that the Stormlight Archive, for example, often requires, and the trilogy provides an excellent introduction to the Cosmere, as they're the only books so far to give us a close-up view of Shards in action.

[Elsecaller3414 she/her]

Just as long as you don't start with a book in the middle of a series, you will probably be fine.    I guess whatever works for length or interest, so if you don't already know, ask what genres your friend likes.

[cosmo009]

Brandon made a tweet about a article on Tor about order of books.

Does anyone have a link to this tweet? So far I have read all of the Mistborn novels to date (including Secret History and Bands of Mourning) and all of the Reckoners series up to Calamity (I realize that they are not part of the Cosmere).  I was just wondering where I should go from here.  As of right now, most things relating to Hoid and the others confuse me.  I am excited to learn so much more about the Cosmere and any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[Khyrindor he/him]

I've actually put a lot of thought into this.

 

Elantris was Brandon's first (published) book, and also the first we've seen chronologically, so I put that one first. It is a fantastic novel in its own right, but in my opinion, they keep getting better and better as they go along, so if you neglected to read Elantris until after, say, Stormlight Archive, you might be disappointed.

 

The Emperor's Soul comes next for a few reasons. 1: It introduces the Realmatic Theory very well. In a first read through of the Cosmere, it might be nice to have that knowledge, especially when it comes to dealings with the Cognitive Realm later on. 2: It's on the same world as Elantris. 3: It's quite short, so it's less intimidating for introducing people to the Cosmere.

 

Mistborn Era 1: The Final Empire, The Well of Ascension, The Hero of Ages. As far as I know, that's where it sits chronologically as well.

 

Followed by Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell for another 'short break' between big books.

 

Warbreaker, since it is intended as a prelude to Stormlight Archive, and I'm pretty sure it's after 

 

Stormlight Archive (Arc 1) Since the break between books 5 and 6 is when Alloy of Law era is. (Yes, I know only two books are out so far, but that's where I'd put it unless something changes.)

 

Mistborn Era 2: The Alloy of Law, Shadows of Self, The Bands of Mourning, The Lost Metal (The last of these also isn't out yet).

 

Mistborn: Secret History. Please read this AFTER the first Mistborn Trilogy at the VERY least. Preferably after Bands of Mourning and (SH spoiler:)

 

 

Elantris as well

 

Sixth of the Dusk. This is last in chronology so far, so it makes sense to read it last.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Khyrindor

[Zathoth]

My opinion:

 

Mistborn era 1

(Alloy of Law if you are really curious what happened after era 1)

Warbreaker

Elantris

The Emperors Soul

The Way of Kings

(Alloy of Law if you didnt read it yet as a break between these giant epics)
Words of Radiance

Mistborn era 2 (Including The Alloy of Law if you managed to put it off this long)

 

I have not read the novellas yet, so I wont say anything about them.

 

Reason I have Elantris after Mistborn and Warbreaker is that I started with Mistborn and loved them. Then I read Elantris and was disappointed in the lack of magic, so read something with more magic before you read Elantris.

 

Alloy of Law can be read any time after Era 1 Mistborn. Right after if you are really curious how the world turned out, between the two Stormlight books if you need a breather (Otherwise you can read Storm Front in the middle of Words of Radiance like I did ) or you can read it when you read the rest of era 2.

[Delightful]

I'd be wary of handing someone Elantris first because it's probably the weakest of his books (although I don't know how the changes in the 10ty year reprint affected this). I'd start people out on either mistborn or warbreaker, read warbreaker before WoR, and then go in whatever order you like.

[Pechvarry]

Do you think they need action to really get invested?  If yes: Steelheart then Elantris.  If you think thought-provoking and "being different from other authors" is important, go straight to Elantris.  If they need action but want Fantasy? Mistborn book 1 (not trilogy) and then Elantris.

 

After Elantris, Emperor's Soul.  This is NOT because it's tied to the world of Elantris.  It's simply because Emperor's Soul is 100 pages long and really displays how much Brandon's writing chops have improved over the course of a decade.

 

After Elantris comes Mistborn trilogy.  If you directed them to book 1 before, then this is where books 2 and 3 are read.

 

Now comes Warbreaker.  I actually find this ideal.  Elantris and Mistborn are both "reactions" to fantasy at-large.  They take and intentionally twist your expectations based off of other authors. 

 

Warbreaker is important because it's instead a reaction against the other books you just finished.  What if the gods yet lived?  What if the immortal ruler wasn't what you expected him to be?  What if the world was bright and cheerful instead of covered in ash or infested with magical zombies?

 

Only suggest The Way of Kings when they already love Sanderson.  This book relies on trusting the author to an extremely large degree.  Seeing Kaladin be a bad chull right out the gate and then spend 800 pages moping is hard.  I speak from experience -- my friend ignored my suggestion to read Mistborn because it's awesome, because, as far as I can tell, he thought reading a thicker book made him more legit or something.  

 

He never finished The Way of Kings because it was boring, and now thinks Sanderson is a boring author. 

Don't let this be your friend.  Don't let them look at Stormlight Archives until they've already said "Wow!" at another book or 3.

Edited February 9, 2016 by Pechvarry

[Orlion Blight he/him]

I think it is important to start on Sel. So Elantris or The Emperor's Soul (I introduced a friend to Sanderson with Emperor's Soul, and she went to Mistborn after that). Mistborn after is good, since with that, you can start pointing out various aspects of the Cosmere: namely the concept of world hoppers and Shards.

After that, I would say Warbreaker and then Stormlight Archive. The remaining novelletes can almost be read at any time... Except Secret History...that should be read after Bands of Mourning.

[Khyrindor he/him]

My dad started me with Elantris and I was immediately going "No way can any book be this good" and then I said the same thing with Mistborn...and then with Way of Kings...And then Words of Radiance. If they start with a weaker book like Elantris and work their way up, it just keeps getting better and better, but if they read Elantris after, they might be a bit more disappointed in it, IMO.

[Orlion Blight he/him]

Their expectations definitely need to be lowered, I think.