The Cosmere: My Spoiler-Free Brandon Sanderson Rankings As Of 2021 (Tier List)

Mike ranks all of Brandon Sanderson's books within The Cosmere as of 2021.
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#MikesBookReviews #BrandonSanderson #Cosmere

[@mikesbookreviews]

Hey bookworms! How would you rank the Cosmere books? Let me know below.

[@turtleanton6539]

Read all of berserk then rank em :)

[@hardolds5436]

immediately gone. someone has comment approval on doesn't someone!!!! Aw you're pathetic! How sweet of you to say you want "discussion" when all you want is praise You've actually become a thing that you didn't want to, a self-involved egotistical youtuber that desires to be seen in nothing but a positive light. Hope your co-workers like your little videos and I hope they aren't laughing at you behind your back...

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

@@hardolds5436 wow u want some more salt on those fries bub

[@charlyts_]

I mostly agree with everything, Words of Radiance is the best Sanderson book IMO and Dalinar's arc is the best so I would rank everything pretty much the same except for Well of Ascension for me that book is just below Words of Radiance second best climax in the cosmere just second to Oathbringer and the whole politic trama with the mystery I just loved it but I get you think is not as good as the first one, also Warbreaker is awesome that book is way too underrated, I don't know exactly why I enjoy it that much I was expecting a Elantris 2,0 and I got a master work hahaha. Love your videos men, really appreciate your work.

[@seanhall7705]

Very enjoyable video! I appreciated hearing your take on the Cosmere books as a whole. I would probably rate them very similar to how you did, with the one exception of swapping the Mistborn Era 1 & 2 books. This is primarily just because I'm less of a fan of the "grim dark" aspect of the Era 1 books than you are. I enjoyed the lighter tone of the Era 2 books a lot more.

[@flyingsquirrel1486]

"Brandon can get u to a climax like no one else can"

[@calebmauer1751]

...said the actress to the bishop.

[@SurferKroky]

Lol

[@kristen7623]

Haha!!!😅

[@michaelgionti9988]

I mean, is he wrong? Weird to admit, but….

[@christopherjoynt2446]

A tier list video for King books would be epic

[@turtleanton6539]

Yeeees

[@fallout766]

Excellent idea!

[@mikesbookreviews]

I have to end Into The Multiverse somehow...stay tuned.

[@Sighience]

Shoot it’d be epic but it’d have to have a part 1 & 2 😂 king has so many books it would take probably close to an hour to get all his books on a tier list 😂 close to 65 books

[@corywinterberg8764]

Yes please, Mike just give up and start doing tier lists everyone loves them

[@mariob411]

WoR is absolutely my favorite book I have read now. I don't think I had as strong of an urge to stand up and cheer for characters in a book before, and multiple times throughout.

[@sergiobenitez7568]

The Way of Kings is my favorite. Probably the best intro book into an epic fantasy series that I can think of.

[@nathanbaca5131]

I read stormlight 1-3 before Warbreaker also and I wouldnt have done it any other way. Realizing who Vasher is was an incredible moment in my cosmere experience.

[@Bobbiitty]

YES!!! I completely agree with what you mean about Stormlight being his Dark Tower. I think Stephen King said that if all his books were the solar system Dark Tower would be his Jupiter. Stormlight Archive definitely feels like that for The Cosmere. (And how ironic that Roshar is inspired by Jupiter) .............Everything serves the Tower

[@supernorry3847]

the Emperor's Soul was awesome, i really do hope we go back to that character and that magic system.

[@Musicteachersheff]

I 100% agree with you on Emperor’s Soul! I loved that story so much! I actually got my Dad to read it. He has been resisting Sanderson because there is so much and he’s in his 70’s and won’t see the end to some of these series’s, but that such a good stand-alone and short so I convinced him. He really liked it! I want so much more of that story!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Suicide mission accomplished! I've read only the original Mistborn Trilogy and the first three books of The Stormlight Archive, so I couldn't propose a meaningful ranking of the Cosmere books. I enjoyed both Mistborn and Stormlight so far, but I have a slight preference for latter because of the big investment Sanderson makes into the character development of the POVs.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Yeah, Stormlight Archive is on another level from everything else he has done, IMO.

[@demidrek-heyward]

thanks Mike!!! The GOAT of book tube

[@ericswearingenmusic9967]

Can’t forget about shadows for silence.. I love that story! That puts arcanum unbounded on the map for me (along with edgedancer and secret history of course)

[@andreabknight]

Yep, I love shadows for silence too- definitely want to see more stories from Threnody

[@martinaanne2709]

Warbreaker is definitely not talked about enough!! It’s one of my absolute favorites of Sanderson.

[@Allods132]

The finale of Oathbringer is one of my most used Audible bookmarks. I to this day get goosebumps just thinking about it

[@nl3237]

Thanks for this input. It'll help me through my Brandon Sanderson's journey

[@Dwish305]

I rewatched your previous cosmere videos the last couple of days and voila, perfect timing, thank you!

[@manrajgill4646]

Mike plz make more such kinds of videos!! Like: rank the dark tower books!

[@christopherjoynt2446]

I tend to agree with you on Rhythm of War... I think you were generous with its placement

[@heyerlaw]

Great tier ranking. I agree with most of your assessments..... except TRoW! My top 5 1. Words of Radiance- Chasmfiends in the rain, Adolin and Kaladin teamup 2. The Way of Kings - Sparticus Kaladin, and dalinar's bargin... 3. The Hero of Ages.... Showed us the Cosmere really for the first time 4. The Rhythm of War... Kaladin and Navani I guess was all I needed. 5. Oathbringer... Some slogging at first, but man the ending was epic like you said.

[@calebmauer1751]

I loved the Navani sections in RoW.

[@dipinbk8852]

You have to do this for First law after wisdom of crowds comes out!

[@beracmalina7173]

He ranked them already

[@llauram3650]

s++ - words of radiance s - final empire, way of kings, well of ascension, oathbringer, emperor's soul a - hero of ages, dawnshard, warbreaker, arcanum unbounded b - secret history, elantris, edgedancer Just started ROW and will read Era 2 later in the year

[@llauram3650]

I've only started reading Sanderson since November lol. Usually with at least one book by someone else in between.

[@kristen7623]

Omggggg I’m reading in order of publish date and I am soooooo excited to see this! I am only to Warbreaker and that is also my current favorite! SO underrated

[@zakcole1558]

Nice List, mine would be similar. I would flip WoR and Oathbringer - Stormlight #3 is as good as it gets in my opinion. I also totally agree with the RoW letdown. a "disappointing" Stormlight book is still better than most any other fantasy novel, but it frankly live up to the expectation it's predecessors left it. I think it's too bad Mistborn Era 2 doesn't quite land for you though. it took me a bit to recalibrate from the world-high stakes of Era 1 to the lightheartedness of Era 2, but once I did I really liked the series. Wax totally worked for me and the plot of BoM (less episodic feeling - more big picture) helped bring the series up a notch. I'm highly anticipating book 4.

[@Nxrth2001]

I also felt the flashbacks weren't for me in Rhythm of War, and we've gone through them before in the other books, but I loved Navani and Kaladin's arcs, and I really enjoy fabrial science haha

[@ivanjelenic5627]

Very similar to my ranking. Completely agree on the Emperor's soul, that one was amazing.

[@theoa126]

I devoured the Mistborn trilogy and loved it- and coupled with the Graphic Audio audiobooks...unreal!

[@ivanjelenic5627]

Graphic Audio is amazing.

[@jasonkonas]

I love Lyft. She cracks me up.

[@JAKandtheBookStack]

I’m knee deep in Era 2 right now and I’m teetering in the edge of being a super fan. I’m super new to his work

[@beninebot1]

Great List! Totally agree with the Rhythm of War take, I think it had some great stuff but was just too long.

[@CRohrscheib]

The Way of Kings (and Stormlight in general) will always be my favorite Sanderson entry, but I've got to say, Warbreaker comes in a near 2nd to me. Can we all agree that Night Blood is the best weapon in fantasy history? I'm slowly getting though Mistborn so my ranking might change in the near future.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Nightblood is the best!

[@aliciasorenson3807]

Such a fun way to make your tier list! 😄 It's always interesting to see how other people feel about these books! I agree with you that it would be silly to expect other people to feel exactly the same as you. We're all different and coming from a different place. This is my Cosmere ranking, favorite to least: Words of Radiance The Way of Kings The Emperors Soul Rhythm of War Oathbringer The Hero of Ages Bands of Mourning Warbreaker Sixth of the Dusk The Alloy of Law Well of Ascension Dawnshard Edgedancer Elantris Shadows for Silence in the Forest of Hell Shadows of Self The Final Empire Secret History

[@kostisth1436]

I have read mistborn era 1-2 and this video makes me hyped for stormlight and warbreaker

[@SleeplessNinja]

I've read The Way of Kings three times, Words of Radiance three times, Oathbringer two times, and Rythem of War once. Everytime a new book was released I would start it over from the start. It's amazing everytime! I've also read Warbreaker twice. Probably my favorite stand alone book ever and will be doing many more rereads!

[@MetalGildarts]

You’re in for a ride.

[@shannon2123]

After reading Mistborn era 1, I just finished Warbreaker yesterday. It was incredible, the characters, politics, magic everything was just Sanderson at his best (so far in my opinion) and I was a HUGE Mistborn fan. So you have a lot to look forward to with that book! I’m super hyped to start Stormlight too 🤩

[@PnutButtaJllyMan]

S- mistborn, Hero of Ages, The Way of Kings A- Well of Ascension, The Emperors Soul B-Warbreaker C-Elantris D-The Alloy of Law F

[@tkinsey3]

Overall, I mostly agree. I would probably have Oathbringer on the second line, and I would definitely have Dawnshard much higher. Dawnshard was probably my favorite thing Sanderson has written since WoR, to be honest. I absolutely loved it.

[@thejohnsanger]

I honestly think part of what makes Stormlight so good is it has something for everyone in so that leads to varying book rankings. You could ask five different fans their rankings and could easily see each book land at #1. I never get bent out of shape when some doesn’t like one as much as others even if my person ranking is 1. WOR 2. ROW 3. WOT 4. OB

[@danielvanrooyen9602]

I am with you on Rhytm of War, the more I think about it, the more I am disappointed in the book. Great list, Final Empire is also S tier for me, but think it is because it was one of the first fantasy books I read, massive nostolgia goggles.

[@mikequist1]

Thanks for the overview. I haven't read any Sanderson yet, but I have a few of his books on my kindle and expect to get to them within the year. Based on your comments, I think I'll start with Warbreaker and then head into The Way of Kings.

[@cynthiaholmes5124]

Yes that's exactly what I did I read warbreaker just to see if I liked his writing style I really enjoyed it 🤠😀😁

[@grnberet9401]

Good video. I still have yet to dive into the Stormlight Archive. But I am looking forward to it.

[@brittanyhager8027]

Great ranking video, thank you! I really like the tier list ranking style, it's super fun!

[@Remeran]

I'm going to be controversial here and say the Wax & Wayne series is my second favorite series that he's done right behind Stormlight Archives.

[@bobmcbill100]

That's not controversial - that is the correct opinion. Subjectively of course.

[@totesmagotes213]

I know this comment is a year late, but I’ve just gotten caught up with the cosmere. I find wax and wayne to be far superior to the original mistborn. Better characters, more original world, the magic system has evolved, and it’s the most lived in fantasy world ever. It wouldn’t be so good without the original series having existed, but it’s so great and I’m looking forward to the 4th and final book coming out soon,

[@joshuareich580]

Warbreaker is also up there for me in the top tier, but I would have been thrilled if there was about 200 more pages in the last act.

[@JLchevz]

No way!!! Moby Dick was incredible for me. Sure it was a drag but I'm glad I finished it. But I can see why some people hate it. I actually love books in boats and the sea LOL

[@brightskysyl3913]

Rhythm of War is my favorite SA book so far!

[@praetorxyn]

I STILL haven't started Stormlight Archive (despite owning all of them) because I'm so butt hurt about A Song of Ice and Fire lol.

[@bmoneybby]

Post trauma. I feel you.

[@odiums_taint]

this list is pretty spot-on ... id move RoW waaay down... but love the list Mike!

[@haleffect9011]

YOU SHALL NOT HAVE MY PAIN! Yeah, that was probably one of the most epic moments in all of fantasy

[@ThisIsJaysWorld]

I love the concept of Elantris but it's clumsy and you can tell it's a debut novel

[@jakobine92]

I really enjoyed reading the novel script version of White Sand that you can get for free via link in Sanderson's newsletter. As it's only a script that was never published there are quite a few typos and the like, but I really liked the story! I think you should check it out, Mike! I put it onto my Kindle, so it was almost the same as reading a published e-book.

[@nicodemogawronski2052]

"YOU CAN'T HAVE MY PAIN!"

[@MetalGildarts]

S tier moment.

[@djsuth7727]

Not bad, not bad. You may survive a smidge longer ! ;) Seriously, very similar to my personal rankings. I'd place Mistborn : The Final Empire in "S" tier, and I'd drop Warbreaker to mid rank. I'd also drop the Well of Ascension down a tier ... it suffered from middle book syndrome in my opinion. One of my hot takes is that the Mistborn Era One would read better as a duology, not a trilogy.

[@JLchevz]

I've only read mistborn, and I only read WoA and HoA because you said it was awesome, I actually didn't like TFE very much lmao but I continued and was very pleasantly surprised. Interesting how often that happens to me...

[@cynthiaholmes5124]

My favorite book of the cosmere so far is words of radiance 😍😘🥰🤩💖💝💞

[@bobgdn]

Nice and well thought out list! I agree with everything but I'm in the minority and like Elantris a lot for some reason. I do agree that the ending was a little rushed and kind of meh. I would rank RoW lower. I still liked it but it started to feel like a PSA for mental illness to me. I'm not saying that I didn't like that he wrote about it, I just felt that he made his point but then kept driving it deeper and deeper and deeper.

[@IskarJarak]

Been waiting for this one 🤤💪✊

[@bobmcbill100]

I don't think it's the best Stormlight book, Words of Radiance is still the book I could reread until I die, but the ending of Rhythm of War is bested by none in my opinion. It's rare that I openly cry, but my goodness I cried in part 5.

[@emmamurphy480]

Great video Mike! I'm really wanting to start reading the Wheel of Time and have heard you used a spreadsheet or something to keep track of things that happened in the series? Would you be able to do a video going through how and what you took notes of? It would be my first read of the series and want to catch every bit I can

[@andrewhanson405]

I don't know why you apologize for your Rythm of War ranking when the spot you gave it was super generous

[@LuzzyStef]

Wow I agree with you about the top three

[@Ulmo90]

I really need to get my hands on Emperor's Soul

[@NamasteBbooktube]

Interesting video!! 👍 I think I enjoyed Way of Kings wee bit more than Words of Radiance. Yet to read Oathbringer.

[@JARHuygebaert]

the way of kings - words of radiance - the final empire - elantris - all the rest

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

Yesss to WoK, WoR (my fav) and Warbreaker!!!🙌🙌

[@bradkrick8254]

Pretty similar. Oathbringer is probably my favorite after way of kings and I put RoW above all Mistborn but the magic in Mistborn has just never really worked for me. Otherwise about the same. I’ll be interested to see on reread if they change but stormlight and warbreaker are the only ones I would reread.

[@nathanbaca5131]

I read it as E-Lind too. Wasn't until I listened to the audiobook that I realized other people pronounce it L-end.

[@AverageJoesLibrary]

I’m pretty far behind cosmere. I think I’ve only read the 6 Mistborn? In no rush for Stormlight since it’s gonna be so long and 5th will be a while. But warbreaker I need to get to.

[@sernoddicusthegallant6986]

Oof this just made me realise how much sexier the UK covers are for Cosmere books, I guess this evens out how cool your Barnes and Noble Collectible editions are

[@JotaCool9]

Not in a million years

[@AikenFrost]

I detest the UK covers, I think they are terribly ugly.

[@mandalor5012]

Always when you said "spoiler alert" ironically, my hand smashed a space bar without thinking anyway. :D

[@andreabknight]

So glad that Warbreaker is getting love here

[@martinaanne2709]

Kaladin saved Rhythm of War for me! His moments especially dealing with mental health made me sob. But definitely agree it’s the weakest of the 4 so far

[@ishanabhi4540]

Navani and Raboniel did it for me

[@aysseralwan]

As a german I always had to think about misery when reading Elend because well Elend is the german word for misery

[@dinocollins720]

Mike once again thanks for getting me through investment banking projects! I agreed with almost eveything you said. If you read Skyward you wouldn't think Lift fits in there either. Skyward is actually a really good book. It doesn't seem YA at all tbh. I do not enjoy lift either.

[@secondaccount1688]

I know you don’t usually do audio books, but i highly recommend the Graphic Audio version of White Sand! Just finished listening to it through my library app. Very enjoyable! Especially loved the search for Easter eggs💖

[@muppet1011]

I think that Sanderson is my favourite author, so many good books. Warbreaker though, for me, was so boring. I only finished it because it’s linked so strongly to Stormlight archive. The rest of the rankings were spot on.

[@umangu2466]

My list would be almost simillar to Yours.. only some noteworthy (and scandalous) exceptions will be I'll want to swap Warbreaker with well of Ascension.. and Oathbringer with Rhythm of War.. well of Ascension is my fvrt mistborn book ( It's the reason I love Vin so much).. and I loved the science stuffs in RoW while I hated Oathbringer middle stuffs.. Also please put Arcanum unbounded in S.. only for Emperor's soul!!! Coz STORMS!! It's AMAZING!!

[@colburn0004]

I love Sanderson, but I think only Way of Kings and Final Empire would end up in S tier for me.

[@gunveersingh5893]

Brandon has gave us a lot of quality content.

[@timothywinters2357]

I'm struggling to get through Warbreaker. Maybe I need to revisit it.

[@officernasty6634]

Completely agree with WoR above WoK

[@Tatooed_Trees]

I haven't read any Brandon Sanderson books yet, but I did end up buying the Stromlight Archive books. Probably not most people's first choice to start out with, but it was the first book that I found in the store. I would like to read something shorter to start out though. The Emperor's Soul seems like a good place to start.

[@cynthiaholmes5124]

The first book from Sanderson that I read was warbreaker I really enjoyed it it's part of the cosmere yes but it's a Standalone book 😀😁😊

[@PugFeist]

Great video. I’d love to hear your opinion on David Eddings someday.!

[@txy9911]

Are you planning to read Skyward? It’s actually way greater than one may think

[@TeamSnitchSeeker]

I agree. Skyward doesn't really have the tired YA tropes and the romance is super light, like .5 on a scale of 1 to 10. I wasn't sure I would like it but then I really got into it. Definitely an enjoyable read. Second book started a little slower for me but then it got rolling.

[@tennesseedime407]

The climax of the first Skyward made me cry

[@thecaffeinatedbookwyrm3051]

Great ranking video.

[@SupremeDP]

Finally! Someone who, also, doesn't enjoy Lift! I swear everyone I've heard just loves her and I just DON'T. She's fine, it's nice to see her bounce off other characters sometimes. It's fine... But Edgedancer was probably the weakest Sanderson I've read, even with the pretty good ending, just because Lift kind of bores and annoys me and I didn't care to see her shenanigans. You put it perfectly. So thanks! lol. (I did like Rysn way more, though)

[@davidfossen5751]

I ranked Rythm of war higher because I love navanhi and the fabrial "science" in this, but I understand the critizism that it is to slow, even though I loved the slow parts. My problem with the book is that the scenes that are on papper really cool I didn't care about as much as in the previus books. But through the amazing worldbuilding in this book I am hyped for the next.

[@MoonisHavn]

You may ruffle some feathers with this one. Great video as usual.

[@toriwellington9228]

I loved The Rithmatist. Something you could read with your kiddos 😁

[@jean-philippelavoie7138]

If I wanted my opinion id just talk to myself all day haha, we want your true opinion thats why we watch! Keep up the good work!

[@andreabknight]

My Dad was a fantasy fan (he used to read Moorcock) but Dad died in 1997. So sad that he didn't get to read some of the modern fantasy authors, including Sanderson...

[@mrjamiec9892]

Nothing can beat The Way of Kings imo

[@cynthiaholmes5124]

I need to finish the stormlight archives and start on mistborn era 1 and 2 this year ☺️😉🌞☀️🌝

[@cynthiaholmes5124]

@@DoctorAsshole1 thanks 😀😁👓🤠

[@JoeMama410]

I just finished White Sand. Pick them up from the library and knock them out in a day. I didn’t enjoy it but I’m a completionist.

[@Riz_]

I guess the Wax and wayne isn't for everyone but I think that it's Wax who makes Wayne what he is. In a comedy double act the straight one doesn't tend to get the love because they aren't supposed to be the funny one, Wax is that one for these two. Wayne is always funnier when he is with Wax. I actually like Wax. Controversial view number two, I actually love Elantris. The annoying part of it is only the romance but the rest is really good I think.

[@avsambart]

I haven't read many 😫😭 so mine is Warbreaker > Final Empire > Eleventh Metal > Elantris > Well of Ascension > The Hope of Elantris > Hero of Ages This is literally based off how well I remember and how well the book has stuck with me. Spoilers: I could not tell you wtf happened in HoA besides my least fav character finally biting the dust. That made me so happy.

[@GideonCyn]

I would say Brandons romance is more middle grade than YA.

[@jessi4894]

The arranged marriage but it works out trope and grown adults acting like awkward middleschoolers at their first boy-girl dance is getting tiresome at this point.

[@oliviabrakel6129]

I liked Kaladin instantly because he’s so gwumpy.

[@andrzejrejnhardt6906]

I dont think his books are bad, but i dont enjoy them as much as others because of bad, cringy dialogue and awful humor, for me he regressed a bit cause dialogue in mistborn 1 is not as bad as in era 2 or stormlight

[@jessicaflower71]

He doesn't seem to have an editorial oversight anymore. He just pumps out bloated rough drafts. Rythm of War makes me think he is going into a Tommyknockers phase of his career.

[@Dylankiwi1]

@@jessicaflower71 that is objectively false, you can dislike the man books all you want. But the dude goes through 5 major revisions for his SA novels. 2nd draft taking into feedback of editorial, 3rd is editorial and beta readers, 4th I think Alpha and 5th is cut 10% of the fat. ( ain't exactly sure which step does what) but regardless stating he pumps out bloated rough drafts is wrong.

[@AlanW1983]

Hey Mike! Where did you get that stormlight shirt?

[@emmettfitz-hume9408]

Shameful confession: Sanderson's WOT books exempted, I haven't been able to finish Brandon Sanderson book yet. I've tried to read The Way of Kings three times and I can't make it past the 40% mark. What am I missing?

[@mikesbookreviews]

Nothing. Sometimes certain popular authors just aren't for you. Look at me with Rothfuss. It happens.

[@thesmuli83]

Simply not everyone can be liked. It is life.

[@george65517]

I dropped the Way of kings too on my try, but I picked it up again & finished it. Long story short, now Stormlight Archive is my all time favorite

[@gut.6925]

To me mistborn was so boring, i couldn't finish

[@emmettfitz-hume9408]

@@mikesbookreviews I'm with you on Rothfuss. Now there's a writer I just don't get. I guess some people like prose over everything else. At least with Sanderson, I can give him credit for bringing the WOT to a satisfying close, especially given how monumental the task was.

[@proseandcons7730]

The emperor’s soul was my first Sanderson book and I really enjoyed it but since I haven’t read Elantris yet, I might not understand everything. Is it worth reading Elantris?

[@TheArtfulBrittani]

The only cosmere I've read so far is the Mistborn Trilogy, which I absolutely loved. I just haven't gotten around to starting others...I own the first book of Era 2 and also Stormlight, Warbreaker and Elantris. I think Era 2 is higher on my TBR because the chonky stormlight books are a little too daunting still...like I think about how I could read 2-3 books or Way of Kings.