10 Best Brandon Sanderson Books (2024)

Bio

Sanderson was born on the 19^th of December, in the year of 1975, in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States of America. Sanderson is a famous and prominent American writer of sci-fi and epic fantasy works.

Life

As noted, Brandon was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, as a first child. Brandon also has two sisters and a brother. When going through high school, Brandon first found his proclivity for high fantasy novels, even going so far as to try and write a couple of stories by himself. Upon graduating from college, Brandon attended Brigham Young University, with a major in biochemistry.

Best Brandon Sanderson Books

Endeavors

However, in 1995, Brandon took a leave of absence so as to go and serve in a volunteer missionary mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, all the way to South Korea.

Upon his return two years later, Brandon came back to Brigham Young University but switched his major to English literature. In 2000, Sanderson received his Bachelor of Arts in English, with his Master of Arts in English with an emphasis on creative writing coming only four years later. With that noted, let’s see what the best Brandon Sanderson books are.

Mistborn Series

Masterpiece

Sanderson Mistborn’s series is unquestionably one of the best Brandon Sanderson series ever. It consists of some of the best Brandon Sanderson books to start with. Sanderson’s Mistborn series in order goes as follows:

The Final Empire
The Well of Ascension
The Hero of Ages
The Alloy of Law
Shadows of Self
The Bands of Mourning
The Lost Metal, yet to be published

Ashen Fluff

For millennia, there were no flowers, none at all, and all that fell and was moved by the tepid wind were ashes. The Skaa were enslaved and they lived daily in a state of absolute, abject fear, dread, and misery. We covered the first book of the series in our selection of the books like Eragon.

The Lord Ruler, the so-called Sliver of Infinity, ruled for millennia with power unquestioned and he was looked upon as invincible. Just as hope was about to forever be thrown into the abyss, a heavily-scarred half-Skaa found the shy ray in the most fiendish prisons of all. It’s no surprise that the Mistborn novels by Sanderson wrote are so beloved.

Born From the Fog

Kelsier had a slight moment of inexplicable transformation and thus he found himself the might and the abilities of the Mistborn. Being a born leader and a thief whom no one could hope to catch, Kelsier’s number one mark is none other than the Lord Ruler, himself.

The elite of the subterranean dwellings joined him, with the most loyal Allomancers by his side. It is only here that Kelsier understands what it is that is his calling – bringing upon the fall of the tyrant that rules. The Mistborn series by Sanderson is home to some of Brandon Sanderson’s best books.

One of a Kind

In the second novel of Sanderson’s Mistborn books, namely The Well of Ascension, we follow another important character. Vin, a girl that worked as an urchin on the street has come to be one of the mightiest Mistborn in all of the land. With a power that strikes fear even in the most ascended of beings, Vin is unmistakably a force to be reckoned with.

Epic Battle

Elend Venture, on the other hand, is a fairly young nobleman with an idealistic temperament that unambiguously loves Vin. The two of them have no choice but to try and create a society from the ruins of an empire so mighty.

As three different armies meet and clash with each other, hope comes only in the shape of an olden legend. How, though, can they find the Well of Ascension? The Mistborn series by Sanderson has authored is rightfully one of our favorites. Worth noting is that the Mistborn series is a part of Sanderson’s Way of Kings series.

The Stormlight Archive Series

Fascinating Series

Stormlight is one of the best Brandon Sanderson series. The most fascinating, but also most entertaining series the author has penned. The best order to read Brandon Sanderson books of the series at hand is as follows:

The Way of Kings
Words of Radiance
Oathbringer
Rhythm of War

Books five to ten are in the plan.

Cast Out

Having covered Brandon Sanderson’s books in chronological order, let’s take a look at the plot. If you follow in the steps of mythology, humanity once lived and resided in the Tranquiline Halls. For more reasons than one, the Tranquiline Halls are looked upon as Heaven.

However, when the Voidbringers attacked and took hold of the Tranquiline Halls, Man and God were cast out. Man tried to live on Roshar, the storm-world, but the Voidbringers have followed him. The premise, itself, is enough to assure one that these really are amazing books.

The Saviors

The Voidbringers have clashed with Man thousands upon thousands of times so that God granted Man the mighty armors and weapons of mystical origin known as the Shardblades. Helped by some ten Heralds of the Angels and ten orders of Radiants, humanity finally succeeded in getting a win against the fiends. This Sanderson’s series is one of his most inventive, by far.

Shardblades

At present, the only proof of these alleged wars and battles are the very Shardblades, which when used on a field of battle make the wearer nigh-invincible. At present, also, the world is at war, but this has been going on for hundreds of years, ever since the Radiants took a stand against humanity.

The Kings of the world all desire to hold more Shardblades so that they can ensure their survival and triumph. The series at hand is also sometimes called Sanderson’s Shardblade series.

Another’s War

However, on a world that has been bared to the very sediment of rocks by virtue of so terrible and so frightening winds, there is a lone spearman that was forced to join the army as a so-called Shardbearer, pulled into a war he doesn’t comprehend, a war he doesn’t really want to be part of.

Soon, the secrets of humanity’s past will become revealed. Worth noting is that these are some of the most popular Sanderson books, as well as some of the best-selling Sanderson books.

The Reckoners Series

Awesome Trilogy

Sanderson’s Reckoners series is yet another fine set of books, all of which are worthy contenders for being Brandon Sanderson’s best book. Now, to see what is actually happening in these top Sanderson books, we first have to take a look at these particular Brandon Sanderson books in order:

Steelheart
Firefight
Calamity

Transcendent Humans

Having covered these Brandon Sanderson books’ reading order, we’ll start with Steelheart. About a decade in the past was when a catastrophe came down. A fire in the sky was all that could be seen before men and women, apparently all quite ordinary, were endowed with powers that were totally alien to the earthly world.

They were referred to as the Epics, but it soon became obvious that they weren’t all that friendly. With great power comes great responsibility, but with greater power comes a greater need to rule.

The Only Hope

There is no one on the face of the Earth that can stand against the Epics, none save the so-called Reckoners. The Reckoners are a group of ordinary humans, all operating under wraps, that dedicate their lives to learning of the Epics, to locating what their shortcomings and weaknesses are, and disposing of them duly.

David, for one, is a man that wants to join the Reckoners and he wants to be the one that kills Steelheart, the supposedly invincible one, the one that took his father’s life. These are definitely some of the best books by Brandon Sanderson.

Ancient City

What was once known as Manhattan is now referred to as Babylon Restored. It is here that David thinks he may get the answers to the many questions he has. Babylon Restored is reigned by the ominous High Epic, one Regalia. There aren’t many things that David is sure of in his heart of hearts, but that Babylon Restored will grant him answers is one thing he is willing to stake his life on.

Revenge

However, just going into yet another city ruled by a High Epic tyrant is nothing short of a perilous endeavor. Nonetheless, David is will to take the heat if it means that he can finally get what he wants. It seems that doing what he had wanted for so long in the previous novel isn’t quite enough for David, so that he has another Epic in his mind, he has Firefight in his sights.

Of all Sanderson’s books, there is an argument that all three could possibly be the best Brandon Sanderson books. The series at hand, along with the two preceding it are also part of the larger Sanderson’s The Way of Kings series, which itself is a part of Sanderson’s Cosmere novels.

Elantris Series

Part of Cosmere Series

Sanderson’s Elantris series is a marvel to read and, we believe it is worth noting, the books herein are part of the greater and broader Sanders’s Cosmere series.

In fact, Elantris is the first of Sanderson’s Cosmere books. The order of Brandon Sanderson books has only one book as of yet, though two will be published in the nearer future.

A Metropolis

Elantris, the first novel of the series, is where we see what exactly the name refers to. Elantris is the capital city of Arelon. Elantris is a sprawling, enormous, wondrous, genuinely bright city, where the kindest, most pleasant beings dwell, ones that have mighty powers of magic that they utilize for the greater of the goods.

Everyone of these powerful beings was quite average once upon a time ago, until the Shaod’s power of transformation touched them. Oftentimes, the series is also called Sanderson’s Steelheart series.

Languorous Shapes

However, just about one decade ago, something went awry and the magic failed. Since then, those that walk through Elantris are beings without power, always afflicted and always languished, while the city turned into a tenebrous, decaying, and decrepit shadow of its former self. That is why Arelon has a brand-new capital, one known as Kae. It comes to no surprise that Elantris is one of the best-rated Sanderson books ever.

Wool Over the Eyes

It is here that Princess Sarene of Teod comes to meet with Crown Prince Raoden, keeping a hope in her heart that there is a chance for love. However, as she arrives, she learns that Raoden has passed away and she is now, for all intents and purposes, his widow. The Fjordells continually beleaguer both Arelon and Teod, so that there is no time to waste. Thus, Sarene takes it upon herself to command the war against Hrathen, a Fjordell priest.

Long Journey

What neither she nor the mighty Fjordell priest know, though, is that Raoden was afflicted with the same sort of curse that went through and brought Elantris to its knees so long ago. Knowing what it was, Raoden’s father sent him away to Elantris once more, so that he may perhaps find solace and a chance to live once more as the man he was.

However, the secrets that lurk in Elantris aren’t kind to those faint of heart. Accordingly, if one were to take all our Brandon Sanderson book reviews and try to find the best Brandon Sanderson books ranked, there could be no such list without this series.

Warbreaker Series

Sanderson’s Warbreaker series is one of those series that, out of all the books in the list of Brandon Sanderson books, we find ourselves thinking back about the most. The Warbreaker series is one of those fantasy series Brandon Sanderson wrote that we love so much and it’s comprised of the following books:

Warbreaker
Nightblood, though it is yet to be published

A Terrific Novel

Having covered this Brandon Sanderson series in order, we should note that fans are eagerly waiting for the upcoming Brandon Sanderson books, like, for instance, Nightblood. Warbreaker is a very engaging, entertaining, enthralling, and satisfying book to read. The story is gripping and captivating and once we have a taste for any Sanderson’s writing, let alone the one here, we can’t just stop without rereading it whole.

Reincarnated as a God

Warbreaker is the tale of two siblings, namely sisters, that just so happen to both be princesses. The world in which these two sisters reside is one in which those that perish in the halo or the light of glory come back to live as genuine gods, ones that reside to a certain pantheon in the capital city of Hallandren.

It is here that the BioChromatic magic, a veritable power, can be found. This is a book that we could very much call the best Brandon Sanderson novel and be quite content with that choice.

A God’s Breath

The BioChromatic magic is founded upon on the essence of a breath, one that can be collected and used one unit at one single moment from separate people. It is by utilizing these breaths and taking the color that exists in the most mundane and ordinary objects that all kinds of miracles, events, and even mischievous occurrences happen. For better or worse, the BioChromatic power needs to be.

Magic Beyond All Others

For Vivenna and Siri, the two princesses of Idris, Susebron, the so-called God King, Lightsong, the adamant God of Boldness, and the enigmatic Vasher, the Warbreaker, the BioChromatic magic is something they need, but it will take a bit too much time until they can have all of what they need.

So, they need to find a way to get it all, before doom comes upon them. For anyone asking questions like what are the best Brandon Sanderson books, then Warbreaker is one you cannot miss.

Skyward Series

Brilliant Storytelling

Skyward series Sanderson wrote is another fantastic example of the novelist’s terrific storytelling prowess. The series, itself, is home to some of the best Brandon Sanderson novels and the best Brandon Sanderson fantasy books. The books here go as follows:

Skyward
Starsight

With two Brandon Sanderson upcoming books to come.

Lonesome Survivors

The first book out of these particular Brandon Sanderson recommended books is none other than Skyward. Skyward is where we learn of the remaining few humans, meaning out of the whole race, that have been beaten, smashed, and almost culled completely.

The very few that have somehow managed to survive, whether by wit, chance, or machination, are now ensnared on a different planet, one that is under perpetual assault by extraterrestrial starfighters.

Dreams Beyond the World

Spensa, just a teenage girl that counts among the scarce survivors, has a dream and that dream has to do with becoming a pilot. When Spensa just so happens to come upon the ruins of a very, very old ship, she understands that the dream she has is not one that she should ignore, but one that has a chance to become a reality.

Living Space Ship

If Spensa is successful in repairing and patching up the ship, then maneuvering through the turmoil of flight school, and somehow, someway succeeds in coaxing the bizarre, yet all the more fascinating ship to aid her, then she could candidly become a pilot.

It does not take long for Spensa to learn that the vessel she plans to repair, patch up, and one day fly with, is perhaps a living being just like her. The reasons are very obvious why we consider this to be one of Sanderson’s best series.

Soar the Sky

In the second installment of the series, we see Spensa, a girl that has spent all her life dreaming of one day soaring the skies or even beyond that, showing that she can be a hero just like her dad was.

She has finally managed to reach the firmament, but what she found out about her dad is nothing short of completely disillusioning; all of the things she thought she knew for certain, Spensa is forced to reconsider.

Lifetime of Lies

In her heart of hearts, Spensa is certain that the story doesn’t end just like that, but that there are things she still needs to learn. Spensa is also sure that what befell her father in the starships could just as easily befall her.

Even when she managed to exit into outer space and hear what it is that the stars sing of, she understood that she had been fed lies her whole life. Spensa is on a mission, on a mission to find out the truth about her dad, herself, and to save her kind.

Legion Series

People in His Head

Sanderson’s Legion series is yet another brilliant series penned by Sanderson. It contains some of Brandon Sanderson’s new books and it’s one of our favorites. The Brandon Sanderson list of novels that belong to this series go in this order:

Legion
Skin Deep
Lies of the Beholder

Stephen Leeds

Stephen Leeds is a young man with a mental condition that can only be described as idiosyncratic, unique, and quite bizarre, to say the least. Stephen Leeds is referred to as Legion for his ability to generate a plethora of different personalities. These are entities, wholly hallucinatory, that possess their own characteristics, quirks, oddities, and the like, and all their own abilities, advantages, etc.

Invaluable Contraption

As the story of Stephen Leeds begins, we see both the young man and the many facets of his condition come into play as he is trying to locate the missing Balubal Razon. Balubal Razon is the creator of a camera, one that possesses astounding components, which put together can modify the very outlook on the history of humans and the structure upon which society and civilization are based.

The Pros

By his lonesome, Stephen Leeds is capable of learning any skill, no matter how daunting, challenging, or odd, can adapt to any vocation that he may fancy for the nonce, all in just a couple of hours, tops.

That is, it seems, why his mind continually creates these hallucinatory people or aspects, as Stephen refers to them. Namely, the aspects are engendered as a means to grasp and exhibit certain information. They all pitch out with whatever Stephen is doing, but it’s not as simple as just that.

The Cons

The brain of Stephen Leeds, for a lack of better words, is slowly becoming inundated with the coming of new aspects and these very aspects have a proclivity for seemingly taking a life of their own. As his mission towards locating Balubal Razon and his camera that can take pictures of the past, Stephen sees himself going beyond whole oceans for his assignment, and even getting into clashes with vicious terrorists.

Any Means Necessary

As the mission of Stephen Leeds, or Legion for short, goes on, he comes to a number of discoveries, one of which might be capable of changing the very outlook upon one of the largest religions in the whole world.

Another of his discoveries, however, has to do with the aspects that dwell in his mind, but what he finds is something mind-breaking. Out of all the books in the list of Brandon Sanderson novels, the ones here are some of the most intriguing.

Rithmatist Series

Treat to Read

The Rithmatist series penned by the fantastic author Sanderson is another fine example of how one writer can pen so many series and have all of them be so gosh darn enjoyable. The Rithmatist series is a veritable treat to read and it has one of the new Brandon Sanderson books in its composition. This particular Sanderson series order is as follows:

The Rithmatist
The Aztlanian, though this one has yet to be published

Heart of Many Desires

The main character of the Rithmatist series and the first novel, The Rithmatist, is none other than Joel. Joel has many wishes, desires, wants, and dreams in his life, but the greatest of all of them has to do with becoming a Rithmatist. The Rithmatists have the ability to infuse or embed life into the Chalklings, which, themselves, are figures of only two dimensions.

Keeping the Line Alive

The Rithmatists are the only ones, out of all of mankind, that possess the might to defend against the Wildest of the Chalklings. These Wild Chalklings have so far succeeded in overrunning and taking the territory of the state of Nebraska, US, so that they are a genuine and terrifying threat to the rest of the American states. Before long, if left unchecked, the Wild Chalklings could not just take over the whole of America, but perhaps even the world, as they know it.

You Want What You Can’t Have

Joel, himself, is nothing more than the son of a humble, low-ranking chalk maker – the allusion very much intended by the author – who works at Armedius Academy. Joel has a fervent and powerful desire to become one of them, but for the moment, he can do nothing more than just look as the Rithmatist students learn of the magical art that Joel desires to learn of so, so much. However, a chance can arise from even the most terrible of events.

Chance to Be Yourself

As the students begin vanishing one after the other, inexplicably, with only bloody trails leading out of their rooms, the conclusion that is come to is that they are being abducted. Joel becomes assigned to aid the professor that is examining the crimes at hand, so that Joel and Melody, a friend of Joel’s, are put on the collision course with a revelation that will change not just the Rithmatists, but the very world, too.

Give It a Shot!

It should come as no surprise why we consider the books herein to be some of the best Brandon Sanderson books of all time. The writing of Brandon is at an all-time high, as both the mystery, the dread of what may come, and the joy with the chance that the main character is given make this to be such a terrific novel to read. We cannot recommend it just enough.

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians Series

The Family Fortune

Sanderson’s Alcatraz series is one of the most well-known series that the writer has ever published. It is comprised of some six novels in total, all of which get our nod of approval and we hope that the reader will pick each of them up. The Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians series in order goes like this:

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians
Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener’s Bones
Alcatraz Versus the Knights of Crystallia
Alcatraz Versus the Shattered Lens
The Dark Talent
Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians: The Worldspire, which is yet to be published

With the order of the Alcatraz books Sanderson has penned written up, we can take a look at the story of the series. When Alcatraz Smedry, a boy in foster care, got to the age of thirteen, he received something in the mail. As Alcatraz learned, it was to be the only thing he would ever inherit from his parents, a bag of sand. However, this is no normal bag of sand, but something quite fascinating and even out of this world.

Keepers of the Books

In no time, however, the bag of sand is stolen and the perpetrators are none other than the Evil Librarians and their cult followers. The Evil Librarians are the ones that are slowly gaining control of the world by means of propagating information they deem is adequate and suppressing all the venues of info that they find to be inauspicious to their own plans, existence, and future. Alcatraz has a plan in his mind to put a stop to the Evil Librarians and he will do this with his proclivity for breaking things.

Small Setback

In the second novel of the series, the Evil Librarians are still going strong, though they have endured a setback by the dint of Alcatraz Smedry and his doings.

In this entry, Alcatraz Smedry is going to find the Library of Alexandria, along with his group. Only, the Evil Librarians had been spreading rumors for so long that it had been destroyed so long ago. Alcatraz, however, knows that it exists and that it possibly holds the key to ending their reign once and for all.

Journeying Towards the Ruins

As Alcatraz Smedry and his group make their way towards the Library of Alexandria, it becomes clear very soon that it is not just any place, but an ominous location, where dark secrets have been kept for so long. Will Smedry along with his proclivity for breaking things get a break and finally get the tools he needs to finish what he started?

Infinity Blade Series

Magnificent Series

The Infinity Blade series by Sanderson is going to be the final entry on our list of the best Brandon Sanderson books of all time. The Infinity Blade series is a magnificent series, by its own, and the books it is comprised of are some of our all-time favorites from the author. The order of the books in the series is:

Awakening
Redemption

Bred for War

It ought to be noted that the Infinity Blade series is founded upon the brilliant video game made by Epic Games and ChAIR Entertainment. However, the writing of Sanderson right here is what makes the series quite so enjoyable.

Even when he was quite young, Siris, a knight, had been trained in the art of swordplay, combat, fighting, and the like. Now, Siris has made the journey towards the Dark Citadel and he has but one intention with coming there.

Family Mission

The knight known as Siris wants to do battle with the whole army of Titans that the God King has in his control, just so that he can finally make it through them, and face the God King, himself, in a man vs god battle.

The mission on which Siris has set out was a mission that his dad had, and his grandpa had, and his great-grandpa had, and going back to innumerable generations, it was the mission they all had as a means to liberate their people from slavery.

Unexpected Situation

However, when Siris does succeed in the endeavor that all of his forbearers had minor success, he sees himself in a world that he never actually expected to be in.

This is a giant world that he is in, one brimming with thieves, warriors, with allegiances that go from one state to the next, and with feuds that have endured millennia. Here dwell beings that are immortal and kings that had the potential to become kings, but something or other happened that hindered them in this quest.

The Worker of Secrets

As the journey and the endeavor on which Siris has set out goes on, he finds himself in the search of a figure that was thought to be nothing more than a product of myth and legend – the Worker of Secrets.

The Worker of Secrets is the single entity in the whole, wide world that might have the know-how to ravel the Infinity Blade’s secrets, upon which Siris’ future rests. These are some of the most intriguing novels that Sanderson has ever written and we cannot recommend them just enough. Pick them up as soon as possible.

Other Novels to Recommend?

Sanderson’s The Wheel of Time series is one that we recommend picking up, as well.

Robert Hazley

Robert is a science fiction and fantasy geek. (He is also the best looking Ereads writer!) Besides reading and writing, he enjoys sports, cosplay, and good food (don't we all?). Currently works as an accountant (would you believe that?)

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