I've finished Isles of the Emberdark, and with that, Iām finally fully caught up on the Cosmere. I started reading these books in November 2024 and I can pretty definitively say that this is now my favourite book series of all time. Iām usually the type to get right into the community when it comes to media I enjoy, but Iāve been so afraid of spoilers that Iāve somehow kept myself away until now. I thought it would be a bit of fun to share some thoughts on each book before my opinions are tainted by the consensus that a character I hate is actually a fan favourite, or that there is some massive plot hole that ācompletely ruinsā a story I enjoyed.
I started writing these whilst reading Tress of the Emerald Sea, well over a year after reading many of the books, so my memory isn't always crystal clear. Some of them are like mini-reviews, but most of them are just disjointed thoughts about characters and magic.
I'd like to preface the individual segments with a quick word about what I see to be the main theme of all of the Cosmere works: training.
I just love how no skill ever comes for free in these stories, be it magic, fighting, research, leadership or diplomacy. Characters and armies fail because they were underprepared, and their victories feel earned because we saw them put the work in. Powers and gear that give a huge physical advantage are often shown to be useless or actively detrimental without practice. On the rare occasions when a skill is gained without effort on the part of the user (using Connection to speak a new language or using a Scadrian coin/medallion), it's treated almost like cheating.
Obviously training is required in any story where we follow a novice, but we usually at least hear about how the role model characters keep themselves sharp. And if we're following an expert in a given field, we see them tackling an outside problem in this experimental and iterative way, calling upon their years of experience. It's a joy every single time.
Mistborn Era 1
I picked up the trilogy on a whim and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. This far out, I have enjoyed many other Cosmere stories more, but I have to give props for Mistborn getting me on board in the first place. The mechanics, depth and limitations of the magic of this world captured my imagination like nothing else before. I was pleasantly surprised to find that under all the cool concepts and flashy fights, these stories are very human. Connection is a theme of the Cosmere after all, and you can feel it here already.
The Final Empire
Like I'm sure everyone else was, I was hooked from the moment Kelsier first burned tin. Right from book 1, I thought it couldn't possibly get any cooler than this. I was fascinated by each and every reveal of what the next metal did, and each new application of one we had already seen. At first, I was a little disappointed by how much stronger and more useful the physical metals seemed to be, but upon reflection it actually makes the whole system feel more real. This isnāt a video game where competitive balance is important, of course some tools are more useful and versatile than others. I appreciate Kelsier having an edge and not being the perfect self-sacrificing mentor. He gives Vin something to aspire to, to not only surpass his skills but to find her own way of handling the nobility, unburdened by the anger he holds. Shoutout to my boy Sazed.
The Well of Ascension
The Final Empire was always going to be hard to live up to. The set pieces and action are as good as ever, with every usage of duralumin making me scrunch my face in satisfaction. I didnāt find Zane and Straff particularly compelling as antagonists. Vinās conversations with her Kandra were great, though she really did harp on the whole eating Kelsier thing. I found it a little tiresome watching Elend struggle through the politics of his new government, but at least it set us up for one of the best new characters. Shoutout to my girl Tindwyl.
The Hero of Ages
One word: Bleak. I know the situation is dire, but my goodness do we get beaten over the head with that fact. I felt as weighed down by the descriptions of ash as the characters did wading through it. That may have been intentional, but it was still a slog. On to the positives: TenSoon is cool as hell. Give him his own series. I loved getting some proper answers here, with everything we learned about Hemalurgy and the gods. I didnāt care for Spook in the first two books but his arc here was great. Iām still speculating about what savants for other metals might look like. Vinās final fight against Marsh was just sublime. A strong finish for Era 1.
Mistborn Era 2
My greatest mistake, my ultimate shame. I was vaguely aware that the books were connected in some way, but I just went ahead and picked up the ānextā book in the series I was enjoying so much. As such, I definitely missed some important connections and lore dumps without any context of the Cosmere at large. Maybe I would have enjoyed them more if I read them later in my journey, but itās too late for that now.
I love the new setting of industrial revolution Scadrial. Itās all too common for fantasy settings to remain unchanged for hundreds or even thousands of years, so itās really neat to see the new technology creeping in over the course of Era 2. We didnāt get to explore Mistings going super deep on one power very much in Era 1, so itās great to see it happen here, and each of the Twinborn combinations we encounter are interesting in their own ways.
I will say that aluminium takes some of the fun out of the setting at some points. Emotional allomancy already felt a little weak in Era 1, especially with Mistborn having copper to protect against it. Now, every decently important bad guy gets to just stick on a hat and be completely immune to it.
The Alloy of Law
It took me a minute to get on board with an entirely new cast, but Wax & Wayne are a brilliant pairing. I wasnāt entirely sold on Wayne for the first half or so, but I would definitely consider him the star at this point. Marasi shines right from her introduction. Steris is entertaining, but we of course get a very unfair view of her here. Miles was a decent enough villain, carried by his nigh-unkillable compounding gimmick. Not an earth-shattering entry, but set things up well for the new Era.
Shadows of Self
Probably the weakest entry in Era 2 by my memory. I was stoked to see more of the Kandra and hear them talk endlessly about bones some more, but Bleeder just didnāt quite do it for me as an antagonist. Her identity as Lessie had potential as a huge twist, but I didnāt really feel enough of an attachment to Lessie at that point for it to hit that hard.
The Bands of Mourning
A MacGuffin that turns anyone holding it into the Lord Ruler? Now weāre talking! This is where we really get to see Wax and Sterisās relationship taking off, and they were my favourite couple in the Cosmere until a certain pair of artists recently took their place. I was really worried when we encountered the airship and the Malwish that this was a huge crossover reference that I was missing a ton of context for (though I turned out to be wrong on that particular count). Much as I enjoy this one, I think it highlights my issue with a lot of Era 2: I really struggle to get emotionally invested with the characters and relationships from Waxās past. I just donāt care about Lessie, Telsin or old uncle Edwarn as much as I probably should. Naturally, I lost my mind right at the end when we found out Kelsier was alive in some form. Probably would have hit harder if Iād read up to Rhythm of War and caught wind of the āLord of Scarsā first, but oh well.
The Lost Metal
I really didnāt get the most out of this by reading it when I did. I skimmed back through it after Rhythm of War to go over the Ghostbloods sections and the discussions around the Shards. Itās hilarious looking back and seeing just how much I missed. We hear about Odiumās plans for destruction, and that Roshar is far too dangerous to visit. Codenames is reading Thaylen. They call Kelsier on a Seon. The jars of Investiture are explicitly identified as purified Dor. Shai turns herself into an Elantrian with an Essence Mark, and has to sketch a map of Scadrial on the ground before she can properly use her powers. Thereās actually a huge amount of Elantris in this book. I read on Kindle, and there were lots of highlights from other readers around some guy called Hoid. How important can he be? Missed connections aside, I quite enjoyed the politics in this book, and Era 2 in general. Definitely an improvement upon The Well of Ascension. Wayne finally learning to see himself as a hero was a wonderful conclusion to his story.
Secret History
Some serious exposition dumps here, and I enjoyed them for what they were. This all made a lot more sense when I revisited Secret History during my read of Arcanum Unbounded. On the first read, I was just enjoying Kelsier and Preservationās perspectives on events from Mistborn Era 1. Another appearance from Hoid with minimal context.
The Stormlight Archive
I was NOT prepared for Stormlight. From the title of the series alone, I pictured a swashbuckling adventure on the airships from Mistborn Era 2, capturing lightning in bottles like the pirates from Stardust. I couldnāt have imagined that it would really be all about stew. Seriously, the word stew shows up over 30 times in The Way of Kings alone. Great stuff.
The Way of Kings
Do you realise how many fakeouts we get at the start of the Way of Kings? First, we see the Heralds dumping their Honorblades on Aharietiam and leaving Taln to it. Seems ominous. Then, we meet Szeth on the night of the treaty. You can immediately tell heās an outsider, so maybe heās our main character? Oh wait, seems like heās actually a villain. Ah, finally. A teenage soldier in his first battle, taken under the wing of a legendary mentor who will of course die tragically around the 70% mark. This MUST be our hero. He immediately dies. And finally, we join that same legendary mentor, the one who was supposed to die, in the slave cart.
I think this introduction sets our expectations for Stormlight. It gives a sense of the scale of the world and that every one of the soldiers who get cut down in these epic battles had their own story to tell. Shoutout to Jasnah killing four guys who had their own stories, just to prove a point.
Itās crazy looking back at The Way of Kings and seeing just how in the dark we and the characters are. When I think of Stormlight now, itās all Radiants and Fused, but we had equally thrilling action when it was slaves running bridges getting mown down by ordinary listeners with conventional arrows. The only constants are stew and people falling into stances.
Warbreaker
Warbreaker, my beloved. My favourite of the bunch. What a vibe. I love Sandersonās action sequences, and yet I love Warbreaker for its restraint. The setting and the magic make for so many evocative worldbuilding moments and facilitate a lot of the story beats. The grotesque way awakened objects try to mimic living forms. The austerity of Idrian life and their drab colouring versus the decadence of the Court of Gods. The music and art created for those with perfect pitch and perfect colour sense. Vivennaās entire arc grappling with the heresy of the Breaths she holds. The poor being forced to literally sell their childrenās souls to the gods who they petition to save the lives of those very children, keeping the whole stagnant system going.
Shoutout to Nightblood. Non-human characters with a different view of morality is standard fare for speculative fiction, but I think I enjoy Nightblood so much because it thinks that it thinks the same as a human. Assuming everyone is evil and needs to be destroyed reminds me of Futurama's Robot Santa judging everyone to be naughty, in the best way.
Elantris
When reading Cosmere stories, Iām always thinking about how everything comes back to Connection. In Elantris, it couldnāt be more clear. This is a story about community. Between the slime-free streets of New Elantris, Elendās perpetually-scrubbed emperor clothes, the ashless streets and walls of the rich parts of Luthadel and the emphasis on uniform in Stormlight, Sanderson really likes cleanliness as a metaphor for order, doesnāt he?
I think most of the best stuff happens outside of Elantris itself. Hrathenās quest to convert the populace was the strongest arc in my eyes. Both he and Sarene shine in their interactions. Hrathen himself is the man. Having read Elantris straight after Warbreaker, I realised just how much I enjoy this archetype: the deeply religious character working through a crisis of faith. Itās Hrathen, itās Vivenna, itās Sazed.
If I have one complaint, itās that AonDor feels a little bit too much like a ādo anythingā superpower, in stark contrast to the rigidly defined rules and limitations of many other systems seen in the Cosmere. Of course, it features so little in the story at full power that itās basically a non-issue.
This is Hoidās āofficialā introduction, and I donāt really remember it making any sense, even though I already knew who he was at this point.
Words of Radiance
I would happily read an entire series of life around the warcamps once everyone is together, catching glimpses of Shallan and Sebarial trying to outmanoeuvre one another, Dalinar mentoring Kaladin, and Adolin training and going on date after disastrous date. I adore The Way of Kings but for me this is where The Stormlight Archive really takes shape and becomes itself. Kaladin swearing the Third Ideal to protect Elhokar and earning his blade might be the single biggest hype moment of the whole series. Szeth teaming up with Nightblood is pure Avengers-level fanservice and I completely ate it up.
It was very strange to see Ghostbloods come across so villainous after their pretty heroic role in The Lost Metal, but thatās a me problem for reading out of order.
After Words of Radiance, I learned to take a few notes on the major changes at the end of each Stormlight book, because I was a bit lost when starting Oathbringer a couple of months later. One thing I didn't forget was Taravangian's situation with the Diagram; that concept really stuck with me.
Arcanum Unbounded
The essays around each system gave me life. Sometimes I just want a fat chunk of exposition, and these delivered in spades. The really short stories (The Hope of Elantris, The Eleventh Metal and Allomancer Jak) were a huge letdown, and Iād been really looking forward to the Eleventh Metal in particular. I got to reread (well, skim) Secret History with a little more context, which was fun.
The Emperorās Soul
Loved this one. Iād been thinking about Soulstamps ever since The Lost Metal so I got really excited when I realised this is where they came from. I much prefer the emphasis on craft and artistry in contrast to AonDor. AonDor takes practice, but Elantrians just sketch out the Aons seemingly effortlessly, whereas here we really feel the sweat that goes into each and every Stamp. Another religious character having their faith challenged in Gaotona. Good stuff.
Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell
A little too magic-lite for my liking. Silence is a strong character and itās a cool, creepy setting, but I wasnāt quite hooked. If nothing else, we see an early example of silverās relationship with Invested entities, which crops up in a few later stories.
Sixth of the Dusk
Heās done it again. What do you mean that the magic on this planet is in the birds!? The worldbuilding alone carried the story for me. Yeah yeah, exciting set pieces, strong anti-colonial message, musings on progress, whatever. The birds are magic! Looking forward to coming back here in Isles of the Emberdark.
Edgedancer
I just donāt like Lift. She's like Wayne without the charm. The whole āeating your dinnerā shtick got old immediately, calling her spren a Voidbringer is equally tiresome and referring to her powers as ābecoming awesomeā is basically the only thing Iāve found properly cringey in the whole series. At least we have Wyndle to balance Lift out. The appearance of the Sleepless really excited me, as it showed just how much more there was still to learn about this world. Great to see an appearance from Szeth and Nightblood.
White Sand
Something of a low point. The action scenes really didnāt hit for me. I have to put some of the blame on having to read it on my phone so I could have colour, which probably didnāt do action pages any favours. A lot of them just didnāt feel dynamic or weighty. I have very little experience with comics, so being unfamiliar with the language of the medium probably didnāt help either. It felt like we were just hopping around from event to event and the story never really got any hooks in me. I did enjoy the subplot with the merchant having to give up his empire for being too successful. Khriss is a great character, and it was nice to put a face to the author of the Ars Arcanums. Couldnāt help noticing a character named Trell, though if there was a clear connection to Autonomy (outside of inhabiting the same planet), I didnāt spot it. They didn't seem like Autonomy's vessel, at any rate.
Oathbringer
I found the trips to Kholinar and Shadesmar to both be massive slogs. Whilst both ended with extreme highs, those middle sections were rough, especially Veilās whole Robin Hood arc. Elhokar's death and Kaladin's failure to swear the 4th Ideal were both equal parts jaw-dropping and heartbreaking. This was easily my favourite final battle out of the Stormlight books, with everyone getting their turn to shine, especially Szeth and Nightblood. I was a big fan of Dalinar's arc, and I really did believe he was going to become Odium's champion right until the moment he broke through. The flashbacks of Dalinar as the true Blackthorn added a lot of important context to the earlier books, as we were told about his former reputation but never got to feel it for ourselves. A lot of his interactions with other characters make more sense now we can see who those characters thought they were talking to.
Dawnshard
A nice break with one of my favourite Stormlight interlude characters in Ryzn, and a good female supporting cast between Cord and Rushu. I can't wait to see Ryzn eventually flying around on a dragon-sized Chiri-Chiri. Lopen was just as annoying as ever, but at least we got to learn what Huio is actually like (big ups for his mention in Isles of the Emberdark). The Dawnshards seem to be the MacGuffins that will actually bring the series to a close. One down, three to go. I just hope Sanderson maintains his incredible output and we do actually reach that ending!
Rhythm of War
I can't believe he got me with the same trick twice in a row. This time, I was fully convinced that Kaladin would be Odium's champion. I actually fell for it again.
We've had hints of metals having universal properties across the Cosmere, but I still got chills reading about how closely the fabrial housings match the Allomantic powers.
Navani and Raboniel's relationship really stole the show, and at this point Navani has more than earned her spot in the main cast. I will be shocked if Shallan somehow has any more dark secrets left after this (well, not that shocked). [UPDATE: I just found out who Shallan's mother was and what killing her actually did. Fair enough, there were more secrets.] I would have liked a little more development for Dalinar, but we needed to make room for Navani's spotlight. RIP Teft. He's burning moss in the Tranquiline Halls now.
Hoid's Travails
When it became evident that these stories were taking place from Hoid's perspective, I was wary at first. I've always enjoyed his appearances in other books, but thought he might overstay his welcome (as many characters feel in-universe). Ultimately these fears were unfounded, and I now really appreciate the freedom this voice allows for pontificating on various topics and references to both the Cosmere at large and real life. I don't think humour has ever been Sanderson's strong suit but I enjoy a lot of it here.
Tress of the Emerald Sea
Adonalsium knows I needed something a bit lighter after Rhythm of War. Sanderson mentioned in the afterword that the tone was inspired in part by The Princess Bride, and it shows. He may not share William Goldman's wit, but he more than makes up for it with an enchanting sincerity and another dazzling new setting. I am once again in awe of this world, speculating wildly about the spores in the seas we don't encounter in the story.
Tress is up there competing with Vivenna for my favourite protagonist in the series. Whilst I enjoyed all of Hoid's actual narration, most of his idiot persona's antics and comments fell flat for me. The Huck twist completely caught me by surprise, and at this point Iāve come to accept that I am just not that bright and will never see a twist coming in advance.
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter
This title had intrigued me for months. Just who, or what would the Nightmare Painter be? I don't know what I expected from the story, but I'll tell you what I didn't expect: a body swapping romcom with an East Asian aesthetic that explores both the marvels and dangers of technological progress, taking what feels like a hardline stance against generative AI before it even really entered the wider public awareness.
I criticised Shadows for Silence for being too light on magic. That makes me a giant hypocrite, because I adored this story where, for much of the time, magic is essentially blue and pink electricity powering mundane appliances. Instead of using magic to propel themselves explosively through the air, our heroes cling to a tree drifting lazily in the breeze and enjoy a romantic moment in the process. This is the closest thing to romantasy that I've read, and I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it.
Nikaro is a painfully accurate representation of a certain kind of self-absorbed young adult with an attitude that I'm sure many of us can relate to. He reminds me a little bit too much of myself at that age. As for Yumi, it's another religious character having a crisis relating to their faith! I love those! One of my favourite moments was when Yumi discovered dramas. Sanderson captured that moment that comes as an adult when you realise that no one can stop you from staying in watching HV (Hion Viewer) all dayā¦ but concluding that you probably shouldn't.
Wind and Truth
I unfortunately have a couple of minor gripes to start with. I'm personally not a huge fan of how frequently we hop around perspective characters within parts and even chapters in the later Stormlight entries, even I though I understand that it has become necessary. I always liked finding out which 2-4 characters we would follow in each part, and seeing the character's symbol heading each chapter. It was a big deal to have an entire part where we didn't see what Dalinar was up to, for example. It all feels a little redundant now. I've also found that the writing has become a lot more quippy and Marvel-esque. The style was common in Mistborn Era 2 but I feel that the levity was better suited to that setting, those stories and those characters. It's not enough to ruin it for me, not even close, but it did get distracting at points. It works great in Hoid's Travails and I think that's where it should stay.
The chapters where Adolin takes a break from the fighting in Azimir were a surprise highlight. In both visiting the wounded and learning his scribes' names, we see Adolin embodying the ideals of an Edgedancer to match his bonded Cultivationspren, allowing nobody to be forgotten. Yanagawn learning to use Shardplate and to play Towers was a solid, grounding instance of worldbuilding. We've gotten so far away from where it all started and this felt like an almost nostalgic return to the Roshar we saw before the Radiants and the Fused returned. I'm always down for a Plate scene, and it's a shame we didn't see Kaladin really getting to grips with his. Sanderson is a known Magic: The Gathering player, and Adolin's conversation with Gezamal about the various formats and variations of Towers felt like a fun wink to the Magic-playing audience. Adolin's later conversation with Yanagawn about 3+ player matches vs 1-on-1 duels echoes common sentiments thrown around the Magic community too.
It was a worthy end to Dalinar's story, but it's a shame he never got to master his Bondsmith powers. I was also hoping for a moment summoning the Stormfather as a several mile-long shardblade, but oh well. I'm sad to see the world change so dramatically with the ending of Part 1 of Stormlight. Everything seems so busted beyond repair that I'm struggling to imagine another 5 books on Roshar. I have some hope for the future that the Radiants as we know them aren't finished, as we still only scratched the surface of what a lot of the orders are capable of.
The Sunlit Man
In the section for Wind and Truth, I criticised the quippier writing we've seen since around Mistborn Era 2. I don't know what the community consensus is on this style, but I was immediately struck by this rebuttal in the 2nd chapter: āIn his youth, Nomad had been far too serious and rarely allowed himself levity. More because he'd been too embarrassed and frightened by the idea of possibly saying something cringeworthy.ā It seems like the shift in tone was very much deliberate, and maybe I was too harsh.
There are so many references to the other Cosmere works that this feels almost like a payoff for keeping up with everything. I find it strange that some parts are written in a way that doesn't assume you've read everything else; you're really only getting half a story if you don't know who Sigzil is, what a Scadrian is and why they love metal, the value of a Breath, or what life on Threnody looked like.
As always, I thought the setting was great, and I really enjoyed the sci-fi angle. I understand that Mistborn will be moving into a futuristic setting as Scadrial develops, and it was cool to get a sneak preview of their technology.
I wasn't too convinced about the deep bond Sigzil formed with these people when the whole story takes place in less than 2 Earth days total. That said, I did tear up along with him when he finally said his own name. I have no idea if I'm right, but I got the impression that Auxiliary was in fact Szeth's formerly bonded highspren, 12124.
Isles of the Emberdark
I was happy to reread Sixth of the Dusk in the first part and was looking forward to more adventures on First of the Sun, with Aviar talents aplenty. So, imagine my surprise when the only things that remained from the first story were the characters and the themes of colonising and progress. As far as I could tell, we didnāt even learn about a single new Aviar talent! That said, Starling and her crew were a great set of new characters and I could see any one of them popping up in future for a story of their own.
Despite dealing with Duskās expedition across the unsea, and Starlingās spacefaring adventures, the scope of this story actually felt quite small, confined to the one small island once everyone had arrived. It gave me a similar feeling to The Sunlit Man, where a small story takes place in an unremarkable corner of the Cosmere, with its weight coming from all the context afforded to a long-time reader. This was especially true with the returning characters of Nazh, Captain Crow and Xisis.
I really like the characterisation of the Scadrians in the later Cosmere stories. Scadrial still feels like home, and the āmainā planet of the series, but I canāt root for them when theyāre out colonising indiscriminately and forcing their policies on all these peoples weāve come to know and love. Kelsier now seems positioned as a major villain in books to come, and I canāt wait to see how it turns out, and how he and Sazed justify themselves.
Conclusion
And there we have it, fully caught up! I can finally read about the Cosmere online without fear of being spoiled to death, and Iāll be waiting right there with everyone else for every upcoming entry. If you made it this far, thanks for keeping up with my nonsense.
