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Brandon Sanderson is the American author who is you may know as being the one who finished The Wheel of Time novel series after its creator, Robert Jordan, tragically passed away before he could complete it. But this isn't all Sanderson is known for. Since starting as an author, he has become a well-respected writing machine, producing several novels every year, with no signs of slowing down any time soon.
His most notable work is his wide-reaching Cosmere franchise, which features a galaxy in which there exist several solar systems, all of which feature their own unique stories, characters, and systems of magic. To this day, he is the fourth most followed author on Goodreads, and he has definitely earned this title. Every one of his books is unique, and crafted with such care that clearly shows Sanderson's passion for his craft. However, like any author, some books are going to be better than others, and the scores on Goodreads reflect this.
Release Date November 19, 2021
Creator Rafe Judkins
Seasons 3
15 'The Emperor's Soul' (2012)
Goodreads score: 4.38/5
Image via Tor Fantasy
The Emperor's Soul is Sanderson's award-winning novella that takes readers to the Earth-like planet of Sel, the setting of the very first Cosmere novel, Elantris. This side story occurs far away from the main events of the novel, in a hidden kingdom known as the Rose Empire, which is inspired by East Asia. Here, a woman named Wan ShaiLu, or simply "Shai" is imprisoned for her skills as a Forger, meaning she can meticulously craft exact duplicates of objects by using a magical stamp, which allows her to get away with petty crimes.
Shai is eventually caught for stealing the Royal Moon Scepter, and is set to be executed. However, the day before she is supposed to die, she is approached by imperial officials, who ask her to create a copy of a soul, specifically the emperor's soul, because he is dying and they are trying to cover it up. In exchange, she will be granted freedom... if she can pull it off, that is. The Emperor's Soul is a fun little side story that explores new magic systems in the Cosmere, one that is surprisingly moving and unique as far as side stories go.
14 'The Well of Ascension' (2007)
Goodreads score: 4.38/5
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The Well of Ascension is the second book of the first arc of the critically-acclaimed Mistborn saga, which takes place on the urban hellscape of Scadrial. Scadrial is a bit of a dystopian planet, one that is grey and drab, lacking much colour and with a sinister and dangerous mist that occasionally creeps across the planet. In the oppressive regime of the Final Empire, resistance begins to rise.
Set one year after the first Mistborn novel, the Final Empire is falling into pieces, with many areas dissolving into anarchy following the success of the rebellion and the overall resistance against the regime. However, with all the anarchy comes a new would-be ruler, who tries desperately to restore order. While The Well of Ascension isn't the best Mistborn novel by a long shot, it is an eventful story and one that is infinitely memorable, which has helped it stay fresh even after nearly 20 years of publication.
13 'Dawnshard' (2020)
Goodreads score: 4.39/5
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Dawnshard is a novella that takes place between books three and four of The Stormlight Archive series, set on the barren world of Roshar. The novella stars Rysn, a Thaylen woman who was formerly an apprentice to a travelling merchant. Unfortunately, a nasty fall from a cliff into the ocean has rendered her paralyzed and unable to travel. She mostly appears as a side character in the main series, along with her pet Larkin, Chiri-Chiri.
However, in Dawnshard, Rysn is given the chance to travel again, this time sailing across the sea to the abandoned island kingdom of Aimia, which has been constantly bombarded by rough storms, an opportunity she takes with gratitude. Rysn is a beloved character, but only really appears in the background and, until this book, was fairly inconsequential to the story, so it was really nice to see her get her own chance in the spotlight on an adventurous journey across the sea.
12 'The Bands of Mourning' (2016)
Goodreads score: 4.41/5
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The Bands of Mourning is the third novel of the second arc of Mistborn, which takes place in a steampunk/Wild West setting several decades ahead of the first arc. This new Scadrial is much more technologically advanced, coming as an exciting Western and steampunk fantasy all in one package. The protagonists are two law enforcers known as Wax and Wayne, named after the phases of the moon, who have remarkable chemistry with each other despite their differences.
The Bands of Mourning, at the time of its release, was a significant improvement upon the two that came before it, even if it fails to live up to some of the original Mistborn novels. But of course, when it comes to Brandon Sanderson, that in no way means the previous books are bad or even average—they're just not as good. The Bands of Mourning left fans hungry for more, and luckily for them, more was on the way.
11 'Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection' (2016)
Goodreads score: 4.46/5
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Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection is not a novel at all, but a collection of short stories and novellas. It comes with the short stories The Eleventh Metal, Allomancer Jak and the Pits of Eltania, and The Hope of Elantris, along with the novellas Sixth of the Dusk, Shadows for Silence: In the Forests of Hell, Mistborn: Secret History, The Emperor's Soul, and Edgedancer, and even includes a sneak peek at the White Sand graphic novel, along with a chapter of the White Sand original manuscript.
All of these stories take place on different worlds in the Cosmere, and come with a map of their respective solar systems along with a blurb about what life is like on the planets. It's a must-own for any fan of the Cosmere, as it features a lot of contextual stories that connect various novels, along with a lot of general context that explains the world of the Cosmere.
10 'Skyward' (2018)
Goodreads score: 4.47/5
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Skyward is the only non-Cosmere book to make the top 15 of Sanderson's highest-rated books. The first in its series, this novel takes place in the distant future, where humans are confined to an alien planet that is under constant bombardment by extra-terrestrial spaceships. Spensa, a younger woman dreams of being a pilot, and finds an ancient sentient starfighter that might just help her dreams come true and assist her in fighting the alien attackers.
Taking a venture into the sci-fi rather than the fantastical, Skyward remains one of Sanderson's most thrilling adventures yet. It is self-contained within its own universe, spawned a few sequels, and is much simpler than anything in the Cosmere, making it a great introductory novel to Sanderson's works.
9 'Yumi and the Nightmare Painter' (2023)
Goodreads score: 4.47/5
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Yumi and the Nightmare Painter is the third of Sanderson's secret projects that he wrote while in quarantine. It has also been the most well-received out of all of them. It takes place on the planet Komashi, featuring two vastly different people in two distinct worlds. First, there is Painter, a young man who lives in a futuristic urban society. The city is encapsulated by a black dome, which unfortunately sometimes lets "nightmares" through. Painter's job is to fight the nightmares by magically painting their likeness on a canvas and turning it into something harmless.
Elsewhere, there is Yumi, a young noble woman who lives in near-constant sunlight. Komashi is very close to the sun, so the ground is too hot to stand on. Everyone in Yumi's world has to wear platform shoes, live in raised dwellings and farm floating plants due to the heat of the earth. Due to cosmic circumstances, the two become intertwined, forced to live in each other's worlds. It's one with a unique premise, blending fantasy and sci-fi in a heartwarming tale of unconventional friendship. If you're a fan of either genre, you will be sure to enjoy this.
Goodreads score: 4.48/5
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The Lost Metal is the most recently-released novel in the Cosmere's Mistborn series, coming in as the long-awaited finale to the second arc. The second arc takes more of a steampunk/western approach to the world of Mistborn, a technological step up from the urban fantasy setting of the first arc. Mistborn is set to be the longest series in the Cosmere, with two more arcs still on the way, each taking place in more modernized and futuristic settings.
The Lost Metal, as with the three novels before it, follows Wax and Wayne, a comedic, yet action-oriented duo on the world of Scadrial. On Scadrial, magic is performed by ingesting various metals, each of which has its own unique quality and powers. The world of Scadrial is bleak, and is commonly seen as an industrial wasteland, making it feel oppressive, yet wildly interesting. The perfect conclusion to an already perfect leg of the Mistborn journey, The Lost Metal is not one that Cosmere fans will want to miss.
7 'Mistborn: The Final Empire' (2006)
Goodreads score: 4.49/5
Image via Tor Fantasy
Mistborn: The Final Empire is the first novel in the first Mistborn arc, which features a lot of memorable and iconic characters, including Kelsier, Vin, and Sazed. Some of these characters have famously been added to the video game Fortnite as playable character skins. This installment in the Scadrial chronicles is more of an urban fantasy, taking place largely in the city-state known as the Final Empire, an oppressive regime that burdens an already tired and dying world.
The Final Empire also happens to be the second Cosmere novel ever released, coming right on the heels of Elantris. While it is clear that Sanderson is just starting out, as his writing technique now is much more refined, he still remains a magnificent storyteller that takes readers on an adventure to another world, one that feels fresh and new as always. The Final Empire is one of the most quintessential Cosmere novels, and one of its most crucial entries, fleshing out the universe in an essential way.
6 'The Hero of Ages' (2008)
Goodreads score: 4.54/5
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The Hero of Ages is the third and final installment in Mistborn's first arc. It comes as an epic conclusion of cosmic proportions, as the very way of life on Scadrial is turned upside-down. The planet itself, along with its place in the universe and the pantheon of god-like entities known as "Shards" will never be the same throughout the Cosmere. So much happens in such a short time in this novel, yet it doesn't feel overwhelming at all.
Instead, it is consistently exciting, as familiar characters find their place in the Cosmere, and alter the course of Scadrial's history forever. It wraps everything up in a nice little bow, complete with epic fights, clever usage of the magic systems, and gorgeous setpieces that are even beautiful when pictured in the readers' minds. It genuinely does feel like the end of an age and the dawn of another, which is exactly how it should feel.
5 'Wind and Truth' (2024)
Goodreads score: 4.58/5
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The recently released Wind and Truth is the fifth and final novel in the first arc of The Stormlight Archive, taking viewers once again to the distant planet of Roshar, a world that feels extremely foreign and alien when compared to that of our own. Roshar is plagued by highstorms, which are super powerful storms that sweep across the planet, with way more destructive power than a hurricane. As such, there is little to no plant life. Any flora has evolved to retreat into the ground at the first sign of a storm, and all fauna are crustacean in nature so that they can take shelter in their shells.
Each entry in the series follows multiple points of view, with one character in particular receiving a set of flashback chapters, following their lives before the war that is going on. In this novel, it is about the assassin in white, Szeth-son-son-Vallano. Interspersed throughout the five parts of regular chapters are "interludes" which follow small-time characters, or one-off characters, either on their own adventures, or giving extra context. Wind and Truth is generally considered the worst in the series, but that doesn't mean it's bad. One of the main reasons for its criticisms is that the story takes place over ten days, and felt much more rushed and fast-paced, also undergoing some formatting changes. Granted, it's still a wonderful read, with high emotions and with established characters reaching their full potential.
4 'Rhythm of War' (2020)
Goodreads score: 4.61/5
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Rhythm of War is the fourth novel of The Stormlight Archive, but also among the least interesting ones. Even though it is still a fantastic read, the novel failed to explore any new locations in the mysterious world of Roshar, instead largely focusing on the dimension known as the Cognitive Realm. Much of the novel takes place in locations already introduced or not very interesting, and there's very little movement or opportunity to explore the vast expanse of Roshar as revealed on the map at the beginning of each book.
What is unique is that Rhythm of War dives deep into the technical specifications of how the magic system works, which is way more complex than it seems at first glance. This makes for a surprisingly interesting read, even if it is kind of confusing at times. It's also a bit jarring to read straight from book three, as there's a bit of a time jump and things that don't make sense unless one were to read the novella Dawnshard. Ideally, novellas are supposed to be side stories in the same world, but this one was pretty necessary to read before Rhythm of War, which can be really confounding for readers who decided to skip it.
3 'Oathbringer' (2017)
Goodreads score: 4.62/5
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Book three in The Stormlight Archive series, Oathbringer is about Dalinar Kholin, a wartime general and nobleman who was once a well-respected fighter. This is the most action-oriented in the series, featuring, not one, not two, but three major battles, all of which are exhilarating to the max. It also introduces a lot of new mechanics to the world of Roshar, which had only been hinted at before. It's the first time readers get to see new characters in action, and also features some familiar faces that were present in the Cosmere novels Elantris and Warbreaker.
Characters die, cities are besieged, and the war really takes off as it goes way above and beyond what was seen before. The ending is a little bit confusing, but it's not too bad. The only area this one really suffers is how much new information is presented to the reader, which feels a bit like it's too much all at once, but it's by far the most "fun" in the entire series, especially for those who like their fantasy to be action-oriented.
2 'The Way of Kings' (2010)
Goodreads score: 4.67/5
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The Way of Kings is the first novel in The Stormlight Archive series. It's a bit of a slow start, but a lot of fun once it gets going. This main character of this novel is Kaladin, a former soldier who is turned into a slave on the battlefield. His sole purpose is to carry a super heavy wooden bridge and lay them across the many chasms of the Shattered Plains, to allow the soldiers to cross. He, along with his crew of about two dozen other slaves, are primarily used as arrow fodder. The survival rate for a "bridgeman" is low, but Kaladin and his crew are determined to survive.
The book also falls an artist named Shallan Davar as she tries to steal a magical device from her mentor, along with general Dalinar Kholin overseeing the war effort. It features a lot of fundamental aspects of The Stormlight Archive series, and comes as a superb introduction to the major players, whom readers will fall in love with immediately. It's also the most shining example of what the series is all about: never giving up. It's morbid, yet somehow positive, and brilliantly executed all around.
1 'Words of Radiance' (2014)
Goodreads score: 4.76/5
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Words of Radiance is the second novel in The Stormlight Archive series, in which the main character is Shallan Davar, the artist who first appeared in The Way of Kings. A little time has passed and Kaladin and his fellow bridgemen have been promoted from slaves to soldiers after Kaladin saves general Dalinar Kholin's life on the battlefield. Shallan is betrothed to Dalinar's son, which she is happy about, and life is good all around. But a new threat is slowly rising behind the scenes, and it's only a matter of time before the war is lost.
In this installment, the magic system is much more in-depth and apparent, revealing more about the world in which it exists. This is one of the most emotional entrances in the series, with slow-burning tension and a sense of impending doom looming in the background throughout. The climactic final battle is arguably the best in the series, with massive armies clashing at a place of great importance. All in all, there is no doubt that this is the best in the series, but also Sanderson's finest work, no question about it.
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