Stormlight Archive reading order

Short version of the door: Where to start the Stormlight Archive. Cosmere planet choice is Where to start the Cosmere. This page is Stormlight only.

This page is a Stormlight guide. It is not a Cosmere reading-order chart. Stormlight is planned as ten novels in two five-book arcs. Wind and Truth (2024) closes the first arc. Books 6–10 are later work. Do not postpone book one until you have a 40-title spreadsheet.

If you want the other Cosmere door Sanderson names, use the Mistborn Era 1 and 2 guide. For “which planet first,” see the Cosmere starter. You do not need both doors before you open one.

The five novels (so far)

Publication order is the Stormlight order. There is no contested novel sequence.

A first read can be novels only. You will understand the arc. The two novellas below earn their keep; they are still not secret novels.

The novellas

Sanderson wrote two Stormlight novellas to sit between the big books. They are optional in the strict sense and useful in the practical one.

House rule:

1. The Way of Kings
2. Words of Radiance
3. Edgedancer if you have it
4. Oathbringer
5. Dawnshard if you have it
6. Rhythm of War
7. Wind and Truth

If your library does not have the novellas, keep going. Do not stall a five-book arc on a 200-page bridge.

Edgedancer also lives in Arcanum Unbounded. That collection is a Cosmere sampler, not Stormlight book 3. Do not read the whole collection as homework between Words of Radiance and Oathbringer.

Cosmere, kept in its place

Sanderson’s page is explicit: you can start the Cosmere with Stormlight, Mistborn, Elantris, Warbreaker, or The Emperor’s Soul. Tidbits inform other books. You do not have to notice them to follow the story you are in.

A few Stormlight names and objects make more sense if you have read Warbreaker. That is a bonus, not a prerequisite. Do not read Warbreaker first in order to “prepare” for The Way of Kings. The Way of Kings is the preparation.

We are not listing a Cosmere publication order here. Those charts go stale, argue with each other, and turn a first novel into a syllabus. If a later Stormlight book makes you curious about another planet, go read that series then.

Common mistakes

• Opening a Cosmere spreadsheet and postponing The Way of Kings.
• Starting with Edgedancer because it is shorter.
• Treating Arcanum Unbounded as Stormlight book 3.
• Reading Warbreaker first because a forum said you “have to” before Words of Radiance.
• Waiting for books 6–10 before starting the first arc. Wind and Truth is a planned pause, not an unfinished sentence you must sit out.

What to read next

1. Mistborn Era 1 (Brandon Sanderson) — If you want the other Cosmere door, as a finished trilogy, before anyone mentions Era 2.
2. Warbreaker (Brandon Sanderson) — If Stormlight made you curious about a specific returning trick, and you want that novel as itself. Placement sits on the Cosmere starter.
3. The Wheel of Time (Robert Jordan) — If you want another finished long epic, with a prequel that should stay a prequel.
4. The Will of the Many books in order (James Islington) — If you want another long epic that starts at one book and does not ask for a Cosmere chart. Hierarchy book one is The Will of the Many (2023). Short door: where to buy The Will of the Many.
5. Book of the Fallen reading order (Steven Erikson) — If you liked the military campaign scale and you can tolerate a book that will not explain itself in chapter one.

FAQ

Do I need the rest of the Cosmere first?
No. Sanderson lists The Way of Kings as a start.

Do I need Edgedancer and Dawnshard?
No. They help. They are not secret novels.

Is Wind and Truth the end?
It ends the first five-book arc. The series is planned to continue later.

Can I start with Mistborn instead?
Yes. That is the other door. It is not a Stormlight prequel.

Which printing of The Way of Kings?
Whichever your shop has. The text is the book.

Sources

• Brandon Sanderson, “Where do I start?” — The Way of Kings as a Cosmere start; series sequential inside themselves. Opened 2026-09-13.
• Brandon Sanderson, The Stormlight Archive — official series page. Opened 2026-09-13.