Iron Gold Tetralogy reading order

A plan for the whole series

4 volumes, 2,872 pages, about 55 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 10 weeks.

• The series is still running; the last volume came out in 2023. You will wait for the next one anyway, so no need to rush.

Stages

4 stages, with 3 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around January 19, 2027, 11 days later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 112 h16 daysby November 14, 2026

   • 1. Iron Gold2018 · 672 pages · 12 h
2. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by November 18, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 215 h20 daysby December 8, 2026

   • 2. Dark Age2019 · 800 pages · 15 h
4. Short breakThe Emperor's Soul · Brandon Sanderson · 96 pp. · score 8.82 h, by December 11, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 313 h17 daysby December 28, 2026

   • 3. Light Bringer2023 · 682 pages · 13 h
6. Short breakOn Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century · Timothy Snyder · 128 pp. · score 8.42 h, by January 1, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 413 h18 daysby January 19, 2027

   • 4. Red God · ≈ 718 pages · 13 h
8. The end of the series

   January 19, 2027

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

≈ next to a page count: a volume with no page count in our data is counted at this series’s average.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: the finale is the best part. The last volume (9.1) stands above the rest. Whoever reaches the end gets the reward.

Best volume: Light Bringer (9.1, 636 ratings). Weakest: Iron Gold (8.1). The series is not finished; the last volume came out in 2023. The last volume (9.1) scores close to the series average or above it.