Alex here with another Short Look at a Long Series!
The Cosmere
By: Brandon Sanderson
Series Run: Elantris, Mistborn (Final Empire, Well of Ascension, Hero of Ages), Warbreaker, Wax & Wayne (Alloy of Law, Shadows of Self, Bands of Mourning), Arcanum Unbounded (Collection of short stories and novellas), The Stormlight Archive (The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, and Oathbringer, more on the way)
Where to Start: Mistborn: Final Empire, Elantris, Warbreaker, or The Way of Kings
One of the current big names in Fantasy, Sanderson’s doing something different–all his books are set in the same universe, where there’s the same underlying principles and magic is expressed in different ways on different worlds but all ultimately came from the same place. He’s begun showing connections between books and events with his recent few books, but the various sections and series do stand alone for whatever the work is.
Upsides: Good characters and the man earns his climaxes and happy endings. He’s also a huge believer in foreshadowing so, really, his books make a good value for the money, because it’ll be a different experience re-reading them–you catch clues and references. And once you’ve read all the books, you can go back and read again and find new stuff. This dude does his narrative and worldbuilding and lays in clues to the overarching plot and puzzle, and if that’s your cup of tea at all he makes it worth several rereads.
Downsides: His early books are written like he’d set up a domino course–he sets everything up and then about a hundred and fifty pages away from the end of the book he thumps the domino on the end, events cascade, angels come out of the sky shredding electric guitars–it’s awesome once you get there but there’s no denying some people find it slow going.
How to Purchase
Most of the books mentioned above are linked directly to our website where you can purchase for curbside, delivery or shipping. However, if we’re sold out, or you live out of town and would like them shipped, you can use our 3rd party supplier who will ship them to you (but will give us a commission).
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