Trending in Sci-Fi

Project Hail Mary

Andy Weir · Sci-Fi

Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission–and if he fails, humanity and the earth itself will perish.

quest · space opera · survival · high stakes survival

Red Rising

Pierce Brown · Sci-Fi

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future.

chosen one · dystopian society · high stakes survival · enemies to lovers · found family · revenge plot

The Martian

Andy Weir · Sci-Fi

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars.

survival · space opera

Dune

Frank Herbert · Sci-Fi

Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, heir to a noble family tasked with ruling an inhospitable world where…

space opera · chosen one · quest · political intrigue

The Last Contract of Isako

Fonda Lee · Sci-Fi

Get ready to be blown away by this searing standalone science fiction epic where corporate samurai fight beneath merciless stars, and death is always…

space opera · revenge plot · quest

Children of Time

Adrian Tchaikovsky · Sci-Fi

The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home.

space opera · survival · post apocalyptic · first contact

Operation Bounce House

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

All New Sonoran colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch and keep their aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking.

survival · space opera · high stakes survival

Hyperion

Dan Simmons · Sci-Fi

In the 29th century, the Hegemony of Man comprises hundreds of planets connected by farcaster portals.

space opera · quest · multiple timelines · found family

The Left Hand of Darkness

Ursula K. Le Guin · Sci-Fi

[Comment by Kim Stanley Robinson, on The Guardian's website][1]: The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin (1969) > One of my favorite novels…

space opera · coming of age · political intrigue · first contact

Children of Strife

Adrian Tchaikovsky · Sci-Fi

From the award-winning master of sci-fi Adrian Tchaikovsky, Children of Strife is the unmissable follow-up space opera to the highly acclaimed…

space opera · post apocalyptic · quest · found family

Empire of Silence

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

It was not his war. On the wrong planet, at the right time, for the best reasons, Hadrian Marlowe started down a path that could only end in fire.…

space opera · grimdark · anti hero · revenge plot · morally grey character

11/22/63

Stephen King · Sci-Fi

11/22/63 is a novel by Stephen King about a time traveller who attempts to prevent the assassination of United States President John F.

time travel · historical fiction · revenge plot

Neuromancer

William Gibson · Sci-Fi

Henry Dorsett Case was the sharpest data-thief in the Matrix, until an ex-employer crippled his nervous system.

space opera · dystopian society · heist · cat and mouse

Recursion

Blake Crouch · Sci-Fi

**Memory makes reality.** That’s what New York City cop Barry Sutton is learning as he investigates the devastating phenomenon the media has…

time travel · psychological thriller · twist ending · high stakes survival · amnesia

Slow Gods

Claire North · Sci-Fi

My name is Mawukana na-Vdnaze, and I am a very poor copy of myself.

space opera · quest · found family

Never Let Me Go

Kazuo Ishiguro · Sci-Fi

Ishiguro explores what it means to have a soul and how art distinguishes man from other life forms.

dystopian society · gothic atmosphere · trauma recovery · multiple timelines

Parable of the Sower

Octavia E. Butler · Sci-Fi

In 2025, with the world descending into madness and anarchy, one woman begins a fateful journey toward a better future.

dystopian society · coming of age · survival · road trip · trauma recovery

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams · Sci-Fi

DON'T LEAVE EARTH WITHOUT IT! THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY is the hilarious international bestseller--with over one million copies in…

space opera · fish out of water · road trip · found family

Shadows Upon Time

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

The seventh and final novel of the galaxy-spanning series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe at last lights the…

space opera · redemption arc · quest · multiple timelines

Annihilation

Jeff VanderMeer · Sci-Fi

Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades.

cosmic horror · psychological thriller · survival · twist ending

The Handmaid's Tale

Margaret Atwood · Sci-Fi

The Handmaid's Tale is a dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood, published in 1985.

dystopian society · survival · political intrigue · high stakes survival

Howling Dark

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

"Hadrian Marlowe is lost. For half a century, he has searched the farther suns for the lost planet of Vorgossos, hoping to find a way to contact the…

grimdark · space opera · quest · political intrigue · first contact

Foundation

Isaac Asimov · Sci-Fi

One of the great masterworks of science fiction, the Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov are unsurpassed for their unique blend of nonstop action,…

space opera · political intrigue · quest · chosen one

Kindred

Octavia Butler · Sci-Fi

Dana, a modern black woman, is celebrating her twenty-sixth birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California…

time travel · historical fiction · trauma recovery · survival · forced proximity

Divergent

Veronica Roth · Sci-Fi

‘Divergent’ is the first in a trilogy of dystopian, YA novels by Veronica Roth.

chosen one · dystopian society · coming of age · forbidden romance · high stakes survival

This Is How You Lose the Time War

Amal El-Mohtar · Sci-Fi

Two time-traveling agents from warring futures, working their way through the past, begin to exchange letters—and fall in love in this thrilling and…

slow burn · space opera · romantic comedy · multiple timelines

All Systems Red

Martha Wells · Sci-Fi

The series is about an artificial construct designed as a Security Unit, which manages to override its governor unit, thus enabling it to develop…

space opera · anti hero · redemption arc

This Inevitable Ruin

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

They call it Faction Wars. The ninth floor. Nine armies, each led by rich and powerful aliens from across the galaxy. Each team has one…

survival · space opera

The Infinite State

Richard Swan · Sci-Fi

In this blistering science fiction epic, international bestselling author Richard Swan presents a thrilling tale of survival and an eviscerating…

dystopian society · political intrigue · survival · psychological thriller

The Subtle Art of Folding Space

John Chu · Sci-Fi

The Subtle Art of Folding Space, is the exhilarating debut science fiction novel from Nebula and Hugo Award-winning author John Chu channels unhinged…

trauma recovery · found family · coming of age

Chain-Gang All-Stars

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah · Sci-Fi

She felt their eyes, all those executioners… Loretta Thurwar and Hamara “Hurricane Staxxx” Stacker are the stars of the Chain-Gang All-Stars, the…

dystopian society · high stakes survival · political intrigue · revenge plot

Iron Gold

Pierce Brown · Sci-Fi

The explosive new novel in the Red Rising series

space opera · dystopian society · revenge plot · chosen one

The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet

Becky Chambers · Sci-Fi

When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn't expecting much.

space opera · found family · slow burn · friends to lovers

Revelation Space

Alastair Reynolds · Sci-Fi

Nine hundred thousand years ago, something annihilated the Amarantin civilization just as it was on the verge of discovering space flight.

space opera · cat and mouse · high stakes survival

Hell's Heart

Alexis Hall · Sci-Fi

Gideon the Ninth meets Moby-Dick in USA Today bestselling author Alexis Hall's thrilling SF debut, Hell's Heart!

space opera · found family · revenge plot · high stakes survival

All That We See or Seem

Ken Liu · Sci-Fi

Julia Z, a young woman who gained notoriety at fourteen as the “orphan hacker,” is trying to live a life of digital obscurity in a Boston suburb.

psychological thriller · time travel · missing person · high stakes survival

The Murderbot Diaries

Martha Wells · Sci-Fi

"We are all a little bit Murderbot." - NPR on Martha Wells's The Murderbot Diaries...

space opera · found family · anti hero

We Are Legion (We Are Bob)

Dennis E. Taylor · Sci-Fi

“Bob Johansson has just sold his software company and is looking forward to a life of leisure.

space opera · quest · survival · found family

Demon in White

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

The third novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy.

space opera · quest · political intrigue · demons

Klara and the Sun

Kazuo Ishiguro · Sci-Fi

"Klara and the Sun, the first novel by Kazuo Ishiguro since he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, tells the story of Klara, an Artificial…

trauma recovery · coming of age · paranormal romance

The Gate of the Feral Gods

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

New Achievement! Total, Utter Failure. You failed a quest less than five minutes after you received it. Now that’s talent. A floating fortress…

survival · high stakes survival · found family · quest

Dark Age

Pierce Brown · Sci-Fi

*He broke the chains. Then he broke the world….* A decade ago Darrow led a revolution, and laid the foundations for a new world. Now he’s an…

space opera · dystopian society · high stakes survival

House of Suns

Alastair Reynolds · Sci-Fi

Six million years ago, at the dawn of the star-faring era, Abigail Gentian fractured herself into a thousand male and female clones, which she called…

space opera · quest · multiple timelines

Dune Messiah

Frank Herbert · Sci-Fi

**Book Two in the Magnificent Dune Chronicles—the Bestselling Science Fiction Adventure of All Time** Dune Messiah continues the story of Paul…

space opera · grimdark · political intrigue · morally grey character

Platform Decay

Martha Wells · Sci-Fi

A most-anticipated title from USA Today, Goodreads, BookPage, BookRiot, Seattle Times, and The Nerd Daily!

space opera · found family · anti hero · psychological thriller

The Faith of Beasts

James S. A. Corey · Sci-Fi

James S. A. Corey's Expanse series has sold more than 12 million copies worldwide and has been translated into more than 23 languages, establishing…

space opera · political intrigue · survival

Ender's Game

Orson Scott Card · Sci-Fi

Young Ender Wiggin thinks he is playing war games at the Battle School, high in orbit, but he is engaged in something far more desperate.

space opera · coming of age · chosen one · survival · first contact

The Dream Hotel

Laila Lalami · Sci-Fi

"From Laila Lalami-the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist and a "maestra of literary fiction" (NPR)-comes a riveting and utterly…

dystopian society · psychological thriller · survival · post apocalyptic

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Philip K. Dick · Sci-Fi

It was January 2021, and Rick Deckard had a license to kill.

space opera · psychological thriller · anti hero

After The Fall

Edward Ashton · Sci-Fi

Part alien invasion story, part buddy comedy, and part workplace satire, After The Fall by Edward Ashton, author of Mickey7 (inspiration for the film…

space opera · first contact · survival · found family

Pandora's Star

Peter F. Hamilton · Sci-Fi

Critics have compared the engrossing space operas of Peter F.

space opera · first contact · quest

Light Bringer

Pierce Brown · Sci-Fi

The Reaper is a legend, more myth than man: the savior of worlds, the leader of the Rising, the breaker of chains.

space opera · grimdark · revenge plot · anti hero · political intrigue

The Maze Runner

James Dashner · Sci-Fi

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name.

chosen one · survival · dystopian society · post apocalyptic · amnesia · high stakes survival

The Forever War

Joe Haldeman · Sci-Fi

"The legendary novel of extraterrestrial war in an uncaring universe comes to comics, in a stunningly realized vision of Joe Haldeman's Vietnam War…

space opera · survival · trauma recovery · first contact · time travel

A Fire Upon The Deep

Vernor Vinge · Sci-Fi

Thousands of years in the future, humanity is no longer alone in a universe where a mind's potential is determined by its location in space, from…

space opera · first contact · quest · survival

2001: A Space Odyssey

Arthur C. Clarke · Sci-Fi

A deluxe hardcover edition of the wondrous space adventure that is the basis for Stanley Kubrick’s Oscar-winning film—now celebrating its 50th…

space opera · first contact · high stakes survival

Morning Star

Pierce Brown · Sci-Fi

Born a lowly Red in the mines of Mars, Darrow lost his beloved wife to the treacherous Gold overlords.

dystopian society · revenge plot · anti hero · high stakes survival

Sublimation

Isabel J. Kim · Sci-Fi

Doppelgangers, corporate intrigue, heartbreak, betrayal, and the harsh permanence of the border: Sublimation is a thrilling and provocative debut for…

dystopian society · psychological thriller · political intrigue · morally grey character

Dead but Dreaming of Electric Sheep

Paul Tremblay · Sci-Fi

Philip K. Dick meets the Coen Brothers in this genre-bending near-future tech nightmare that is as bitingly funny as it is horrifically believable…

dystopian society · psychological thriller · unreliable narrator

There Is No Antimemetics Division

qntm · Sci-Fi

(from back cover) An antimeme is *an idea with self-censoring properties*; an idea which, by its intrinsic nature, discourages or prevents people…

cosmic horror · psychological thriller · unreliable narrator · twist ending · survival

The Butcher's Masquerade

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

**Attention. Attention. The gates are down. The hunters are loose. Run, Run, Run.** A lush jungle teeming with danger. Savage dinosaurs seeking…

survival · high stakes survival

A Psalm for the Wild-Built

Becky Chambers · Sci-Fi

It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the…

space opera · cozy vibes · coming of age · found family

The Lathe Of Heaven

Ursula K. Le Guin · Sci-Fi

“The Lathe of Heaven” ; 1971 ( Ursula Le Guin received the 1973 Locus Award for this story) George Orr has a gift – he is an effective dreamer: his…

dystopian society · psychological thriller

The Vanished Birds

Simon Jimenez · Sci-Fi

A “highly imaginative and utterly exhilarating” (Thrillist) debut that is “the best of what science fiction can be: a thought-provoking, heartrending…

space opera · found family · quest · coming of age · multiple timelines

Catching Fire

Suzanne Collins · Sci-Fi

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the Hunger Games.

dystopian society · survival · revenge plot · high stakes survival

Ready Player One

Ernest Cline · Sci-Fi

In the year 2044. reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts *really* feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known…

quest · dystopian society · chosen one · heist

The Time Machine

H. G. Wells · Sci-Fi

H. G. Wells' The Time Machine, from 1895, popularized the idea of a vehicle that allows its user to travel intentionally and selectively across time,…

time travel · survival

Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury · Sci-Fi

Celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of this timeless classic with a special edition featuring a new introduction by the author and a message that is…

dystopian society · survival

Altered Carbon

Richard K. Morgan · Sci-Fi

In the 25th century, humankind has spread throughout the galaxy, monitored by the watchful eye of the U.N.

space opera · cat and mouse · high stakes survival · dystopian society

Leviathan Wakes

James S. A. Corey · Sci-Fi

When Captain Jim Holden's ice miner stumbles across a derelict, abandoned ship, he uncovers a secret that threatens to throw the entire system into…

space opera · psychological thriller · found family

Childhood's End

Arthur C. Clarke · Sci-Fi

Childhood's End is a 1953 science fiction novel by British author Arthur C.

space opera · first contact · dystopian society · high stakes survival

The One

John Marrs · Sci-Fi

A simple DNA test is all it takes.

dystopian society · psychological thriller · twist ending

Celestial Lights

Cecile Pin · Sci-Fi

A coming-of-age tale inspired by Odysseus set both on Earth and in space, Celestial Lights is perfect for fans of Orbital and Normal People.

space opera · coming of age · quest · multiple timelines

The Mercy of Gods

James S. A. Corey · Sci-Fi

A spectacular new space opera that sees humanity fighting for its survival in a war as old as the universe itself.

space opera · high stakes survival · political intrigue

To Be Taught, If Fortunate

Becky Chambers · Sci-Fi

At the turn of the twenty-second century, scientists make a breakthrough in human spaceflight.

space opera · survival · found family

Winter

Marissa Meyer · Sci-Fi

Princess Winter is admired for her grace, kindness and beauty, despite the scars on her face.

space opera · dystopian society · chosen one · found family · twist ending

Automatic Noodle

Annalee Newitz · Sci-Fi

"From sci-fi visionary and acclaimed author Annalee Newitz comes Automatic Noodle, a cozy near-future novella about a crew of abandoned food service…

cozy vibes · found family · space opera

Intercepts

T. J. Payne · Sci-Fi

The word-of-mouth BookTok hit about a supervisor at a top-secret government facility running experiments on human beings.

psychological thriller · dystopian society · trauma recovery · revenge plot

The Merge

Grace Walker · Sci-Fi

'[A] clever and provocative debut ...

dystopian society · forbidden romance · psychological thriller

The War of the Worlds

Hg Wells · Sci-Fi

The seminal masterpiece of alien invasion, The War of the Worlds (1898) conjures a terrifying, tentacled race of Martians who devastate the Earth and…

first contact · high stakes survival · survival · cosmic horror

Carl's Doomsday Scenario

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

"The training levels have concluded.

survival · high stakes survival · found family

The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook

Matt Dinniman · Sci-Fi

Welcome to the Iron Tangle! Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, have to team up with other contestants not just to survive, but to…

survival · high stakes survival · found family · quest

Blindsight

Peter Watts · Sci-Fi

*Two months since the stars fell...* Two months since sixty-five thousand alien objects clenched around the Earth like a luminous fist, screaming…

cosmic horror · space opera · first contact · high stakes survival

The Mote in God's Eye

Larry Niven · Sci-Fi

Writing separately, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle are responsible for a number of science fiction classics, such as the Hugo and Nebula…

space opera · first contact

Snow Crash

Neal Stephenson · Sci-Fi

Within the Metaverse, Hiro is offered a datafile named Snow Crash by a man named Raven who hints that it is a form of narcotic.

space opera · heist · anti hero · morally grey character · dystopian society · high stakes survival

Starship Troopers

Robert A. Heinlein · Sci-Fi

With Earth embroiled in a vast interplanetary war with the "Bugs," a young recruit in the Federal Reserves relates his experiences training in boot…

survival · dystopian society · coming of age

Speaker for the Dead

Orson Scott Card · Sci-Fi

Ender Wiggin, the young military genius, discovers that a second alien war is inevitable and that he must dismiss his fears to make peace with…

chosen one · quest · space opera · redemption arc

Legend

Marie Lu · Sci-Fi

! What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family…

dystopian society · cat and mouse · coming of age · revenge plot

A Memory Called Empire

Arkady Martine · Sci-Fi

Won the 2020 Hugo for Best Novel.

space opera · political intrigue · twist ending

Wool

Hugh Howey · Sci-Fi

In a ruined and toxic landscape, a community exists in a giant silo underground, hundreds of stories deep.

dystopian society · survival · closed circle · post apocalyptic

Stories of Your Life and Others

Ted Chiang · Sci-Fi

Ted Chiang's first published story, "Tower of Babylon," won the Nebula Award for 1990.

magical realism · time travel

Green City Wars

Adrian Tchaikovsky · Sci-Fi

In a city of sunshine and secrets, the shadows belong to the animals.

dystopian society · survival · political intrigue

Spin

Robert Charles Wilson · Sci-Fi

One night in October when he was ten years old, Tyler Dupree stood in his back yard and watched the stars go out.

space opera · survival · time travel

Us Dark Few

Alexis Patton · Sci-Fi

Khalani Kanes has never stood on the surface of the earth.

coming of age · dystopian society · survival · fish out of water

Isles of the Emberdark

Brandon Sanderson · Sci-Fi

All his life, Sixth of the Dusk has been a traditional trapper of Aviar - the supernatural birds his people bond with - on the deadly island of Patji.

space opera · quest

Ancillary Justice

Ann Leckie · Sci-Fi

On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest.

revenge plot · space opera · psychological thriller · quest · trauma recovery

Disquiet Gods

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

The sixth novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path…

space opera · grimdark · revenge plot · anti hero · political intrigue

The Sparrow

Mary Doria Russell · Sci-Fi

The Sparrow is a novel about a remarkable man, a living saint, a life-long celibate and Jesuit priest, who undergoes an experience so harrowing and…

space opera · first contact · trauma recovery · redemption arc · quest

Sea of Tranquility

Emily St. John Mandel · Sci-Fi

Edwin St. Andrew is eighteen years old when he crosses the Atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society following an ill-conceived diatribe at a…

time travel · multiple timelines · slow burn · space opera · paranormal romance

Old Man's War

John Scalzi · Sci-Fi

John Scalzi channels Robert Heinlein (including a wry sense of humor) in a novel about a future Earth engaged in an interstellar war against more…

space opera · survival · high stakes survival

Gateway

Frederik Pohl · Sci-Fi

Gateway opened on all the wealth of the Universe...and on reaches of unimaginable horror.

space opera · psychological thriller · survival · trauma recovery

Where the Axe Is Buried

Ray Nayler · Sci-Fi

All systems fail. All societies crumble. All worlds end. In the authoritarian Federation, there is a plot to assassinate and replace the President, a…

dystopian society · psychological thriller · political intrigue · survival

This Brutal Moon

Bethany Jacobs · Sci-Fi

Bethany Jacobs returns with the thrilling conclusion to The Kindom Trilogy that began with the Philip K.

space opera · revenge plot · high stakes survival · political intrigue

Ashes of Man

Christopher Ruocchio · Sci-Fi

The fifth novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path…

space opera · revenge plot · political intrigue · high stakes survival

Overgrowth

Mira Grant · Sci-Fi

Day of the Triffids meets Gretchen Felker-Martin's Cuckoo.

dystopian society · post apocalyptic · unreliable narrator

Ringworld

Larry Niven · Sci-Fi

The ' (1970–2004), by science fiction author Larry Niven, is a part of his Known Space set of stories.

space opera · quest · first contact

The Employees

Olga Ravn · Sci-Fi

"Is this a human problem? If so, I'd like to keep it. The crew of the Six-Thousand Ship consists of those who were born, and those who were made. …

space opera · psychological thriller

Anathem

Neal Stephenson · Sci-Fi

Anathem, the latest invention by the New York Times bestselling author of Cryptonomicon and The Baroque Cycle, is a magnificent creation: a work of…

chosen one · quest

Exhalation

Ted Chiang · Sci-Fi

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • Nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant stories—two published for the very first…

Severance

Ling Ma · Sci-Fi

Candace Chen, a millennial drone self-sequestered in a Manhattan office tower, is devoted to routine.

dystopian society · psychological thriller · survival · trauma recovery

Ode to the Half-Broken

Suzanne Palmer · Sci-Fi

In the abandoned New York Botanical Gardens, forty years after the world nearly ended, a worn-out robot is attacked, and realizes old evils are…

found family · post apocalyptic · survival

Halcyon Years

Alastair Reynolds · Sci-Fi

A private investigator is hired to look into a mysterious, high-profile death aboard the starship Halcyon in this fresh new science fiction…

space opera · cat and mouse

Rendezvous with Rama

Arthur Charles Clarke · Sci-Fi

Written in 1973, a massive 50 kilometre long alien cylinder begins to pass through the solar system provoking a hurried effort to intercept it.

space opera · first contact

The Invisible Man

H. G. Wells · Sci-Fi

The Invisible Man (1897) is a science fiction novel.

anti hero · morally grey character · unreliable narrator · psychological thriller

When the Moon Hits Your Eye

John Scalzi · Sci-Fi

John Scalzi flies you to the moon with his most fantastic tale to date: When the Moon Hits Your Eye The moon has turned into cheese.

space opera · high stakes survival · political intrigue

First Mage on the Moon

Cameron Johnston · Sci-Fi

Cameron Johnston returns in this innovative space fantasy, where wizards race to be the first on the moon – also known as the land of the gods.

space opera · quest · chosen one

Contact

Carl Sagan · Sci-Fi

In December, 1999, a multinational team journeys out to the stars, to the most awesome encounter in human history.

space opera · first contact · quest

Defiance of the Fall 7

JF Brink · Sci-Fi

The Dimensional Seed is about to mature.

dystopian society · quest · survival

Pluto

Ben Bova · Sci-Fi

Major Larry Randall has been called to Pluto to retrieve Dr.

space opera · quest · high stakes survival

Startide Rising

David Brin · Sci-Fi

David Brin: “Startide Rising” (1983) This is a sci fi story about a Terran (Earth) crew of neo-dolphins and humans on the starship “The Streaker”.

space opera · first contact · quest

Voidverse

Damien Ober · Sci-Fi

AN ENDLESS VOID. A POWERFUL ANOMALY. A QUEST FOR REVENGE. When The Sinker was a child, her home was destroyed by The Construct, a floating machine…

revenge plot · dystopian society · survival · quest

Love Is an Algorithm

Laura Brooke Robson · Sci-Fi

Pattern is more than just a dating app—it’s your friendly relationship coach.

dystopian society · romantic comedy

Lord of Light

Roger Zelazny · Sci-Fi

space opera · quest · redemption arc

The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances

Glenn Dixon · Sci-Fi

In a near future, where even the smallest of appliances are sentient, a young Roomba vacuum sets out to save the humans of her house from a rising…

dystopian society · survival · post apocalyptic

Radiant Star

Ann Leckie · Sci-Fi

Space opera's sharpest mind returns to the world of the Imperial Radch in this brilliant standalone from award-winning author Ann Leckie.

space opera · political intrigue · found family

Skyward

Brandon Sanderson · Sci-Fi

**SPENSA'S WORLD HAS BEEN UNDER ATTACK FOR DECADES.** Now pilots are the heroes of what's left of the human race, and becoming one has always been…

space opera · coming of age · chosen one · high stakes survival

Wild Seed

Octavia E. Butler · Sci-Fi

Doro is an entity who changes bodies like clothes, killing his hosts by reflex--or design.

dark romance · paranormal romance · obsessive love · time travel

A Closed and Common Orbit

Becky Chambers · Sci-Fi

Once, Lovelace had eyes and ears everywhere.

found family · space opera · trauma recovery · slow burn · chosen one

The King Must Die

Kemi Ashing-Giwa · Sci-Fi

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of The Splinter in the Sky comes a pulse-pounding science fiction adventure following the daughter of rebel…

enemies to lovers · space opera · political intrigue · quest

Inherit the Stars

James P. Hogan · Sci-Fi

space opera · first contact

Salvation

Peter F. Hamilton · Sci-Fi

"Humanity's complex relationship with technology spirals out of control in this first book of an all-new trilogy from "the owner of the most powerful…

space opera · high stakes survival · political intrigue

A CANTICLE FOR LEIBOWITZ

Walter M. Miller Jr. · Sci-Fi

dystopian society · post apocalyptic · political intrigue

The Fall of Hyperion

Dan Simmons · Sci-Fi

On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike.

space opera · quest · multiple timelines · time travel · high stakes survival

Seveneves

Neal Stephenson · Sci-Fi

"What would happen if the world were ending?

post apocalyptic · survival · high stakes survival · space opera

Rosewater

Tade Thompson · Sci-Fi

"Rosewater is a town on the edge.

space opera · political intrigue · first contact

Timelike Infinity

Stephen Baxter · Sci-Fi

Timelike Infinity: the strange region at the end of time where the Xeelee, owners of the universe, are waiting...

space opera · survival · post apocalyptic · high stakes survival · quest

Discovery

J. A. J. Minton · Sci-Fi

In 1992, at the dawn of the age of technology, disgraced ex-game show host Manny di Martini schemes for a comeback with a deep-sea television special…

cosmic horror · psychological thriller · first contact

The Chrysalids

John Wyndham · Sci-Fi

This book is about a post apocalyptic world returned back to the times of the horse and carriage seen through the eyes of a young boy.

post apocalyptic · dystopian society · coming of age · survival

The Space Between Worlds

Micaiah Johnson · Sci-Fi

NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS’ CHOICE • An outsider who can travel between worlds discovers a secret that threatens the very fabric of the…

space opera · first contact · survival

Embassytown

China Mieville · Sci-Fi

Embassytown: a city of contradictions on the outskirts of the universe.

space opera · first contact · political intrigue

Hyperion Cantos

Dan Simmons · Sci-Fi

space opera · quest · multiple timelines · twist ending

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August

Claire North · Sci-Fi

Wildly original, funny and moving, The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August is an extraordinary story of a life lived again and again from World…

time travel · coming of age · cat and mouse

Look to Windward

Iain M. Banks · Sci-Fi

It was one of the less glorious incidents of a long-ago war.

space opera · grimdark · high stakes survival

Nightfall

Daniel Barnett · Sci-Fi

"Tomorrow died on the last morning of May.

dystopian society · post apocalyptic · high stakes survival

Inverted World

Christopher Priest · Sci-Fi

The city is winched along tracks through a devastated land full of hostile tribes.

dystopian society · twist ending · psychological thriller

Dead Silence

S.A. Barnes · Sci-Fi

Titanic meets The Shining in S.A.

cosmic horror · locked room · survival · psychological thriller

Xeelee Sequence

Stephen Baxter · Sci-Fi

Beginning with RAFT in 1991, Stephen Baxter's epic sequence of Xeelee novels introduced readers to perhaps the most ambitious fictitious universe…

space opera · quest

Story of Your Life

Ted Chiang · Sci-Fi

Ted Chiang's first published story, "Tower of Babylon," won the Nebula Award in 1990.

time travel · first contact · space opera

The Running Man

Stephen King · Sci-Fi

The Running Man is a dystopian thriller novel by American writer Stephen King, first published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman in 1982 as a…

dystopian society · survival · high stakes survival

The Power

Naomi Alderman · Sci-Fi

ix, 340 pages : 20 cm

dystopian society · political intrigue · multiple timelines

An Unkindness of Ghosts

Rivers Solomon · Sci-Fi

"Aster has little to offer folks in the way of rebuttal when they call her ogre and freak.

space opera · morally grey character · survival · trauma recovery

Into the Drowning Deep

Mira Grant · Sci-Fi

Seven years ago, the Atargatis set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to film a “mockumentary” bringing to life ancient sea creatures of legend.

space opera · survival · high stakes survival

Toothsucker

Kaden Love · Sci-Fi

In a cyberpunk future, an alarming disease strikes, dissolving the bones of those with cybernetic enhancements.

dystopian society · survival · paranormal romance

Silo 2

Hugh Howey · Sci-Fi

Dies ist Teil 2 von SILO: Hugh Howeys verstörende Zukunftsvision ist rasanter Thriller und Gesellschaftsroman in einem.

dystopian society · closed circle · survival · political intrigue

The Perfect Run

Maxime J. Durand · Sci-Fi

Ryan "Quicksave" Romano is an eccentric adventurer with a strange power: he can create a save-point in time and redo his life whenever he dies.

dystopian society · time travel · survival

Count Zero

William Gibson · Sci-Fi

Turner, corporate mercenary, wakes in a reconstructed body, a beautiful woman by his side.

space opera · heist

American Rapture

CJ Leede · Sci-Fi

An Indie Next Pick! "Blood-soaked, heart-wrenching, grim and glorious.”—Rachel Harrison, national bestselling author of Black Sheep From CJ Leede,…

dystopian society · grimdark · post apocalyptic · high stakes survival

Network Effect

Martha Wells · Sci-Fi

**Murderbot returns in its highly-anticipated, first, full-length standalone novel.** You know that feeling when you’re at work, and you’ve had…

found family · space opera · anti hero · slow burn · trauma recovery

The Shadow of the Torturer

Gene Wolfe · Sci-Fi

It relates the story of Severian, an apprentice in the Seekers for Truth and Penitence (the guild of torturers), from his youth through his expulsion…

grimdark · redemption arc · coming of age · quest

Vorkosigan's Game

Lois McMaster Bujold · Sci-Fi

Miles Naismith Vorkosigan was not a mutant, though he was often mistaken for one.

space opera · political intrigue · quest

Downbelow Station

C. J. Cherryh · Sci-Fi

From back cover Daw paperback February 1981: Pell's Star occupied the central spot in the coming conflict between Earth's tired stellar empire and…

space opera · political intrigue · closed circle

The Cure

K a Riley · Sci-Fi

Before the Blight, becoming an adult was something teenagers looked forward to.

dystopian society · coming of age · high stakes survival · survival

The Radiant Dark

Alexandra Oliva · Sci-Fi

***Arrival meets Wild Dark Shore in this captivating novel that follows a family for over fifty years—a bold and compassionate exploration of the…

coming of age · multiple timelines · trauma recovery · space opera · found family

The Forest on the Edge of Time

Jasmin Kirkbride · Sci-Fi

The Future of Another Timeline meets The Bone Clocks in this dazzling piece of time-travel climate fiction.

time travel · multiple timelines · slow burn · quest · dystopian society

The Word for World is Forest

Ursula K. Le Guin · Sci-Fi

Centuries in the future, Terrans have established a logging colony & military base named “New Tahiti” on a tree-covered planet whose small,…

space opera · dystopian society · political intrigue · survival · grimdark

The Mountain in the Sea

Ray Nayler · Sci-Fi

When pioneering marine biologist Dr.

first contact · quest · survival · space opera

The Day of the Triffids

John Wyndham · Sci-Fi

John Wyndham's 1951 classic post-apocalypse novel introduced the world to triffids, walking man-eating plants, preying on humanity in a world struck…

post apocalyptic · survival · high stakes survival · dystopian society

The Primal Hunter 3

Zogarth · Sci-Fi

With a huge open planet before him, Jake has literally grown wings as he begins his conquest of the local wildlife.

space opera · quest · coming of age · survival

Jitterbug

Gareth L. Powell · Sci-Fi

In this twisty and action-packed adventure from the BSFA award-winning author of Descendant Machine and Future’s Edge, a crew of bounty hunters find…

space opera · cat and mouse · heist · high stakes survival

The Man in the High Castle

Philip K. Dick · Sci-Fi

Slavery is back. America, 1962. Having lost a war, America finds itself under Nazi Germany and Japan occupation. A few Jews still live under assumed…

dystopian society · political intrigue · survival

Detour

Jeff Rake · Sci-Fi

A space shuttle flight crew discovers that the Earth they’ve returned to is not the home they left behind in the first book of this emotional,…

space opera · psychological thriller · twist ending · high stakes survival · paranormal romance

Sky Full of Elephants

Cebo Campbell · Sci-Fi

In this “bold and imaginative” (Tananarive Due) “truly powerful and riveting story” (Booklist) set in a world where white people no longer exist,…

dystopian society · post apocalyptic · political intrigue

The Player of Games

Iain M. Banks · Sci-Fi

The Culture - a human/machine symbiotic society - has thrown up many great Game Players, and one of the greatest is Gurgeh.

space opera · political intrigue · cat and mouse

Exodus: The Helium Sea

Peter F. Hamilton · Sci-Fi

The epic conclusion of the Archimedes Engine duology by legendary author Peter F.

space opera · high stakes survival · political intrigue

Of Monsters and Mainframes

Barbara Truelove · Sci-Fi

**Spaceships aren't programmed to seek revenge--but for Dracula, Demeter will make an exception.** Demeter just wants to do her job: shuttling…

space opera · revenge plot · survival · post apocalyptic

Juice

Tim Winton · Sci-Fi

One of The Guardian's best sci-fi books of 2024 An edge-of-your-seat post-apocalyptic thriller, perfect for fans of Station Eleven and The Road, from…

post apocalyptic · high stakes survival · dystopian society · psychological thriller

Alpha

K. D. Marchesi · Sci-Fi

How many lives will be lost for the sake of a non-existent war?

dystopian society · survival · found family

The Lunar Chronicles

Marissa Meyer · Sci-Fi

Cinder Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg.

space opera · dystopian society · chosen one · quest

The Dispossessed

Ursula K. Le Guin · Sci-Fi

Shevek, a brilliant physicist, decides to take action.

dystopian society · political intrigue

Binti

Nnedi Okorafor · Sci-Fi

Afro-futurist science fiction.

space opera · coming of age · first contact · fish out of water · quest