Astral Alignment and the Alignment Archive cover a broad span of time, hundreds of thousands of years in fact, and the ideal reading order is not necessarily in line with the series’ chronology. Several stories run concurrently, and some take place years before their immediate predecessor. Nevertheless, the series can be most easily digested if read in the following order, but stories can also be read in the order of publication, and each entry in the Alignment Archive is meant to be standalone. Keep in mind that this is just the author’s recommendation.
The story begins with Astral Alignment, an obvious must-read for anyone getting into the series.
This one is set in an alternate reality, but Guardians of Theia is still an ideal point of entry into the Alignment Archive spinoffs.
Addendum offers an expanded viewpoint of Earth in its final days, introducing new characters and revealing the secret histories of a few that you’ll recognize.
Find out what became of Mallory and her daughter in Seasons of Alfheim, a spinoff set in the legendary homeworld of the elves.
Aftermath continues the story of the established cast before jumping ahead to the distant future, peering into the myriad realms of the astral plane.
Twilit Kingdom zooms in on just one of those many worlds, offering a standalone fantasy adventure in the Astral Alignment universe.
Apocalypse reveals the fate of many important characters from Earth, wrapping up the stories of Clover, Josiah, Ray and Morgana.
Embers of the Afterlife takes place at the same time as Apocalypse, and its heavy spoilers about the lore of Astral Alignment has me putting it this far down the reading list.
The Pioneer Star is set in the far future, an epic space opera that concludes the arc of Inanis Aeternatus and his war against humanity.
Delta Freya takes place an unspecified amount of time after the events of The Pioneer’s Star, but before the war in Arcturus that occurs in Atlantis. It also has a few characters and locations reappearing from earlier books, such as Twilit Kingdom and Aftermath, so it is ideal for you to have read those beforehand.
Atlantis is simultaneously the earliest and latest book in the timeline, being told partly in retrospect. Having a strong grip on the setting is essential for this one to make sense.
Antiquity is also told mostly in retrospect. It is set very early in the timeline but includes references to Astral Alignment: Atlantis. Thus, it comes last in my recommended reading order.
Randall Sharpe 