Brandon Sanderson Community discussion
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Elantris, Mistborn, Stormlight and stand-alones - Where should I start?
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I think it depends on what you’re into. Theoretically, you could start anywhere (except mid-series, of course). Most people say Mistborn, but I tried that and couldn’t get into it. I didn’t read anything Cosmere related for years until I tried Stormlight because I love high fantasy and the world intrigued me. The standalone a, especially Tress, are great places to start if you aren’t sure if you want to dive into a full blown series yet. But, in the end, I think it’s up to what you want to do.
Tomato wrote: "I've been collecting Cosmere books for a while now and I'm finally ready to start. However I'm finding it a bit hard to decide which series to start from.I mostly heard about starting with either ..."
I started on the Mistborn trilogy, so you can start there easily, or go Warbreaker, which I think is a very good starting place for the Cosmere, as it is (so far) only a stand-alone story. You could go Elantris also, but it is considered by many the worst Cosmere novel (a notion which I don't agree with), so if you end up not liking it, just know they get better.
I’d say Mistborn or Elantris, if the Cosmere is your thing, but Elantris has some pacing issues among other things, so Mistborn 1-3 is the best intro imo. In addition you will probably catch a few extra goodies in Elantris, having read the first 3 Mistborn books. Also Cosmere related stuff is very low key in these first books. Tress is a very good book, but not typical Cosmere as of now, I’d say. And you would have to reread it, assuming you’re following the publication order, to catch the lore.
I'd do Stormlight Archive last since it has so many Easter eggs for the other Cosmere books. Plus it's big, and it's a good idea to get used to Brandon's epic writing style beforehand.The Rithmatist was my first Sanderson -- it was excellent. Then I did Elantris and Mistborn. Both took me a bit to get into, as I was still not used to the writing style. Tress is a good standalone.
The YA books (Skyward, Reckoners) are faster-paced and make a good starting place.
For the Cosmere, I did Elantris, Mistborn Era 1, Warbreaker, Mistborn Era 2, Arcanum Unbounded; more or less publication order. That worked well.
I mostly heard about starting with either Stormlight Archive or Mistborn, but I know Elantris was published before Mistborn, so is that the better book to start with? What about the stand-alone books that take place in the cosmere? Would you recommend any of them to start with? What about reading them in release order? What are your recommendations and why?