Looking for a brief reading order

I originally planned to start with Alpharius: Head of The Hydra, but have been told that this isn’t the best place to start, since it challenges lore that’s been previously set up in the books. Should I watch a summary of certain timeline events beforehand? Is there a book that compiles most of it? I’m not sure. What would be the quickest reading/watching (or both) order that would allow me to understand basics of the lore before I read A:HoTH? Thank you.