You may be reading the Cosmere novels wrong, and author Brandon Sanderson has the best idea for which book you should start the series with.
Sanderson is one of the most respected and popular authors in the fantasy fiction genre. He proved himself by taking on the daunting task of completing the Wheel of Time saga when original author Robert Jordan passed away in 2007. Sanderson was able to use Jordan's detailed notes to finish the saga the way fans wanted, making the epic a huge success.
Sanderson is just as prolific in his various works, the most notable being the Cosmere saga. This universe is home to various books with Sanderson's acclaimed works of the Mistborn series, The Stormlight Archive, Elantris, and Warbreaker, along with several standalone tales. The books all share the same universe of magic, although set on different worlds and time periods. Overall, there are nearly two dozen books in the main Cosmere saga, with the additional stand-alones, making it a bit daunting to figure out where to start.
Brandon Sanderson recommends starting with the Mistborn novels, of course
Sanderson has just arranged the physical release of Isles of the Emberdark after a crowdfunding campaign pushed the ebook to get a regular release, due out in 2026. It's a great way for fans to check into this world, but not the one Sanderson wants them to start with!
Speaking in a YouTube video this month, as reported by Screen Rant, Sanderson admitted that Isles is more for Cosmere veterans and not the best starter novel for a newcomer.
"This might not be a good book for your first Cosmere novel," he stated. "But, I mean, if you're on this channel, I doubt this is your first Cosmere novel. But it may not be the best one to give to your friends as their first Cosmere novel."
Perhaps unsurprisingly, he recommends the Mistborn novels to start with, which makes sense as they are the first entries in the saga. Technically, three books (The Final Empire [2006], The Well of Ascension [2007], and The Hero of Ages [2008], the saga remains a landmark for fantasy with its amazing mix of magic, combat, engaging characters, and world-building.
Somewhat surprisingly, Sanderson also named 2023's Tress of the Emerald Sea as a good starting novel. This is a standalone novel that Sanderson wrote mostly for his wife, focusing on heroine Tress embarking on a grand journey across a deadly ocean. Sanderson feels this book works by introducing the world of magic Cosmere utilizes and "breaking in" new readers before they tackle the larger saga.
It's a good move by Sanderson to openly recommend which books should be used for newbies to the Cosmere saga. Of course, he also has plenty of works not set in this universe, like the Skyward, Reckoners, Alcatraz, and Legion series. It all proves how amazing an author Sanderson is, that his universe can be so vast that he has to guide new readers into it.
Isles of the Emberdark releases on February 3, 2026.
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