Fantasy Series Reading Order Guides
Found an author you love? Browse their best books and discover where to start — or what to read next.
Some fantasy series are so long, so interconnected, or so full of side novellas that figuring out where to begin feels like a project in itself. These guides cut through the noise. Each one tells you the correct reading order, flags what you can skip on a first read, explains how the different arcs connect, and answers the questions every new reader inevitably asks. Whether you're about to start The Way of Kings or trying to figure out if Mistborn Era 2 requires Era 1, you're in the right place. Start with the series below — more guides coming regularly.
The Stormlight Archive
by Brandon Sanderson
7 books (5 main + 2 novellas) — the most ambitious epic fantasy series alive.
Mistborn
by Brandon Sanderson
Era 1 + Era 2 — two complete series set centuries apart in the same world.
Red Rising
by Pierce Brown
7 books across two arcs — revolution, betrayal, and brutal emotional stakes.
Robin Hobb — Realm of the Elderlings
by Robin Hobb
16 novels across 5 interconnected series — the complete reading order guide.
Brandon Sanderson — The Cosmere
by Brandon Sanderson
All the Cosmere series in order — how to read Mistborn, Stormlight, and everything in between.
ACOTAR
by Sarah J. Maas
5 books — the complete A Court of Thorns and Roses reading order, from Book 1 through A Court of Silver Flames.
The Wheel of Time
by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
14 books + prequel — the complete reading order for one of epic fantasy's defining series.
Sarah J. Maas Books in Order
by Sarah J. Maas
ACOTAR, Throne of Glass, and Crescent City — complete reading order with spoiler-safe guide.
Leigh Bardugo Books in Order
by Leigh Bardugo
Shadow and Bone, Six of Crows, and King of Scars — the complete spoiler-safe Grishaverse reading guide.
Joe Abercrombie Books in Order
by Joe Abercrombie
The First Law trilogy, standalones, and Age of Madness — the complete grimdark reading order.
Rebecca Yarros
by Rebecca Yarros
Empyrean Series — Fourth Wing, Iron Flame, Onyx Storm, and Book 4. Start with Fourth Wing.
Holly Black Books in Order
by Holly Black
Folk of the Air Series — The Cruel Prince, The Wicked King, and The Queen of Nothing.
Cassandra Clare Books in Order
by Cassandra Clare
The Shadowhunter Chronicles — City of Bones, The Infernal Devices, The Dark Artifices, and more. The complete reading order.
Laini Taylor Books in Order
by Laini Taylor
Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy and Strange the Dreamer duology — the complete reading order.
Mark Lawrence Books in Order
by Mark Lawrence
The Broken Empire, Red Queen's War, and Book of the Ancestor — the complete grimdark reading order.
Naomi Novik Books in Order
by Naomi Novik
Temeraire series, Uprooted, Spinning Silver, and A Deadly Education — the complete reading order.
N.K. Jemisin Books in Order
by N.K. Jemisin
The Broken Earth trilogy, the Inheritance trilogy, and the Dreamblood duology — the complete reading order.
Patrick Rothfuss Books in Order
by Patrick Rothfuss
The Kingkiller Chronicle — The Name of the Wind, The Wise Man's Fear, and The Slow Regard of Silent Things.
R.F. Kuang Books in Order
by R.F. Kuang
The Poppy War trilogy, Babel, and Yellowface — the complete reading order for one of fantasy's sharpest voices.
Tamora Pierce Books in Order
by Tamora Pierce
Tortall and Circle of Magic — the complete reading order for the pioneer of female-led fantasy.
Tamsyn Muir Books in Order
by Tamsyn Muir
The Locked Tomb series — Gideon the Ninth, Harrow the Ninth, Nona the Ninth, and Alecto the Ninth.
V.E. Schwab Books in Order
by V.E. Schwab
Shades of Magic trilogy, Villains duology, and Cassidy Blake series — the complete reading order.