Warcraft Novels Reading Order

If you're a fan of World of Warcraft, whether you're a reader or not, chances are that you've heard that there are a slew of novels set in the Warcraft universe that expand on the lore of Azeroth greatly.  Many of these novels feature some of our favorite prominent characters from World of Warcraft, like Thrall, and Jaina Proudmore and expand on their stories as well.

A problem one might run into with the extended universe novels of any fictional universe is both where to start and in which order one should read the stories in.  It's easy to get lost amid the vast library of stories, especially when you're excited to read them.  Fortunately, for the Warcraft novels at least, there is both a starting place, and a read order that will ensure your reading experience is fulfilling.

For best results, start with number 1 and keep going until you're finished.  Have fun!

1. Rise of the Horde by Christie Golden
2. The Last Guardian by Jeff Grubb
3. Tides of Darkness by Aaron Rosenburg
4. Beyond the Dark Portal by Christie Golden & Aaron Rosenburg
5. Day of the Dragon by Richard A. Knaak

Just a quick aside here - The War of the Ancients trilogy takes place LONG before Rise of the Horde.  That being said, to get a better handle on the story as a whole it's wise to read them AFTER the preceding stories and start them immediately after reading Day of the Dragon. 

1. War of the Ancients: The Well of Eternity by Richard A. Knaak
2. War of the Ancients: The Demon Soul by Richard A. Knaak
3. War of the Ancients: The Sundering by Richard A. Knaak
4. Lord of the Clans by Christie Golden
5. Of Blood and Honor by Chris Metzen
6. Arthas: Rise of the Lich King by Christie Golden
7. Illidan by William King
8. Cycle of Hatred by Keith DeCandido
9. Night of The Dragon by Richard A. Knaak
10. Stormrage by Richard A. Knaak
11. The Shattering: Prelude to Cataclysm by Christie Golden
12. Wolfheart by Richard A Knaak
13. Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects by Christie Golden
14. Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War by Christie Golden
15. Dawn of the Aspects by Richard A. Knaak
16. Vol’Jin: Shadows of the Horde by Michael A. Stackpole
17. War Crimes by Christie Golden
18. Before The Storm By Christie Golden

If you want to get the most economic bang for your buck when purchasing the novels, you might check out these collection volumes that feature multiple stories within the Warcraft Universe.

• World of Warcraft: Chronicles of War - Includes Rise of the Horde, The Last Guardian, Tides of Darkness, and Beyond the Dark portal
• World of Warcraft: Archive - Day of the Dragon, Lord of the Clans, The Last Guardian, and Of Blood and Honor
• WarCraft War of The Ancients Archive - Includes War of the Ancients books: The Well of Eternity, The Demon Soul, and The Sundering

There's a bit of an overlap here with The Last Guardian being in two collections, but you can get any of these for between $15 to $20 on Amazon.  So you can literally get almost half the series for under $60 if you bargain hunted.

Now, if you're looking to expand your Warcraft lore, but aren't necessarily interested in a strong narrative, then you might want to check into the Warcraft Chronicles Volumes.  These books are just filled with deep history and lore of the Warcraft universe, laid out (as one might expect) in chronological order.  Starting with the forming of the universe and the Warcraft Mythos, and ending with the Cataclysm, these texts are just bursting with interesting lore.

• World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume 1:  Chronicles the ancient, primordial history of the Warcraft universe and how it was created, along with the ancient history of the Night Elves
• World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume 2:  Chronicles the history of the Draenei, the Dwarves and of the beginnings of the wars between the Horde and the Alliance
• World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume 3:  Chronicles the war between the Horde, the Alliance, the Scourge and the Burning Legion, along with the fall of Arthas Menethil

I can vouch for these volumes personally, having received the first as a gift and acquired the others later.  The first volume, which details Warcraft's cosmology, I found particularly interesting.  It also details some of the history of Pandaria.

Well, hopefully you found that helpful.  Now you can read the stories of Warcraft to your heart's content and never worry if you've missed something, or are reading to far ahead.  Have fun, and have a wonderful day!