Read-alikes
Books like The Way of Kings, according to Reddit
Not an algorithm's guess and not an editor's opinion: these are the books Redditors bring up in the same discussions as The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. It appears in 198 indexed threads — the overlap below happens mostly in r/printSF.
The read-alike list
Ranked by co-mention strength — how often each book shares a thread with The Way of Kings, normalized so ubiquitous books don't dominate.
#1 Mistborn: The Final Empire
Brandon Sanderson
A street thief gets recruited into a heist crew plotting to overthrow a god-emperor who has ruled unchallenged for a thousand years.
#2 The Eye of the World
Robert Jordan
A farm boy's village burns in one night, and the Aes Sedai who saves him says the Dark One marked him before he could walk.
#3 Gardens of the Moon
Steven Erikson
An empire quietly marks its own soldiers for death, and the gods are already choosing sides before the Bridgeburners find out.
#4 The Blade Itself
Joe Abercrombie
Nine-Fingers the barbarian just wants to survive one more winter, but a torturer's investigation and a prince's war have other plans.
#5 The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss
An orphaned actor's son claws his way toward becoming a legend by the University's fire-and-sympathy magic — a story stuck at book two for over a decade.
#6 Dune
Frank Herbert
A duke's son survives his family's betrayal on a desert planet and becomes the prophet who leads its people to war.
#7 Assassin's Apprentice
Robin Hobb
A bastard prince trained as an assassin narrates sixteen books of loss, loyalty, and one very long grudge against fate.
#8 The Fifth Season
N. K. Jemisin
A woman searches a dying continent for the daughter her husband stole, while the world ends again on schedule.
#9 Storm Front (The Dresden Files)
Jim Butcher
Harry Dresden, Chicago's only wizard listed in the phone book, takes a double-murder case that ordinary police work can't touch.
#10 Hyperion
Dan Simmons
Seven pilgrims journey toward a monster that grants one wish and kills everyone else, and each tells the story of why they came.
#11 The Lord of the Rings
J. R. R. Tolkien
A gardener, a burglar's heir, and seven others walk a piece of jewelry to a volcano because destroying it is the only way to stop a war.
#12 A Game of Thrones
George R. R. Martin
A direwolf litter found beside a dead stag opens a decades-spanning war for the Iron Throne with no guaranteed survivors.
The overlap, in numbers
Where each pairing actually shows up. Click through for the full Reddit verdict on each book.
- #1 Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson — 70 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #2 The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan — 49 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #3 Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson — 57 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #4 The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie — 32 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #5 The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss — 26 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #6 Dune by Frank Herbert — 93 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #7 Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb — 21 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #8 The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin — 52 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #9 Storm Front (The Dresden Files) by Jim Butcher — 23 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #10 Hyperion by Dan Simmons — 84 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #11 The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien — 41 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
- #12 A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin — 27 shared threads , mostly in r/printSF
Books like The Way of Kings — frequently asked
What do Redditors read after The Way of Kings?+
The books most often brought up in the same discussions as The Way of Kings are: Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson; The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan; Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson. This ranking counts 575 shared thread appearances across 198 threads — it reflects what commenters actually pair together, not editorial picks.
How is this list ranked?+
We scan Reddit comments for book mentions and count how often two titles appear in the same thread. Books that keep showing up alongside The Way of Kings — mostly in r/printSF — rank higher. A minimum of 3 shared threads is required, so one viral thread can't fabricate a match.