Good Sci-Fi
A list for @onebatch2batch by me, an expert*
This list will be in no particular order but faves are probably near the top for the most part. But also my brain cannot be trusted to recall things in order of importance so who knows. WE BEGIN
The Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie (Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword, Ancillary Mercy)
These are probably my favorite books of all time. The last remaining part of a sentient warship seeks revenge on the dictator who ruined her life. Single POV. Fascinating look at the relationship between language and gender identity. A study on personhood. Plus found family! THE BEST FUCKING BOOKS EVER I AM NOT NORMAL ABOUT THESE.
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells (All Systems Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol, Exit Strategy, Network Effect, Fugitive Telemetry)
A security android has hacked its governor module but continues to do a half-assed version of its job so it can stay under the radar and watch tv shows. An attack reveals its rogue status to its current employers. Trouble ensues. Single POV. This one is also a study on personhood. Murderbot is fucking hilarious and SO relatable - it has anxiety and depression and struggles with its existence. All of these except Network Effect are novellas, so they are super quick reads.
The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir (Harrow the Ninth, Gideon the Ninth, Nona the Ninth [out this September, I am dying from the wait], Alecto the Ninth [due sometime next year??? *grabby hands*])
Lesbian necromancers in space! This one is more space magic than hard sci-fi but it’s so fucking good. Gideon is the dumb jock lesbian of my dreams. She is rough and tumble and funny as fuck. Harrow is MEAN and I love her so much. The first book is as much a murder mystery as anything else. The second book is uhhhhh… no idea how to describe it without some pretty massive spoilers so. Just take my word for it that these are so so good. First book is single POV iirc.
NeoG series by K.B. Wagers (A Pale Light in the Black, Hold Fast Through the Fire, third book tba?)
Space Coast Guard! Multiple POV, very diverse cast of characters, big mystery to solve, all framed around like… the space military Olympics. I know that sounds weird lmao but TRUST ME ITS GOOD OK. If you read this and like it, the author has another sci-fi universe that she wrote two completed trilogies in, but I’ve only read the first of those trilogies. Not quite as good as NeoG but still worth a read! I’m still planning on reading the second trilogy one of these days.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (Wayfarers series)
This is the first of a series but I haven’t gotten around to the other books (I think she’s up to four now??? I need to get on that). Follows the crew of a spaceship whose job is to take the long way to a planet so they can put a wormhole gate there so no one else has to take the long way. Another ensemble cast, including aliens and AIs as well as humans.
The Martian by Andy Weir
I hope you’ve seen the movie too but the book is so fun! Hard sci-fi at its most approachable. Astronaut Mark Watney is stranded alone on Mars when his team’s mission is cut short. He has to survive on his own against impossible odds. Multi POV.
The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling
Spelunking! Ok this book made me Very Tense so like. You’ve been warned. Unreliable narrator is working her way through a cave system and the only person she has (radio) contact with is just straight up unreliable. I am terrified of caves lmao why did I read this. But it was very good! Single POV.
Native Tongue by Suzette Haden Elgin
It has been forever since I read this but I remember being fascinated by it. Set in a future where there are huge families that make up the Translators, basically clan-guilds of humans who raise their children in tandem with alien children (multiple species) so they all grow up fluent in both the alien language and their native earth language. Interesting but also kind of horrifying situation wrt body autonomy because they need more and more kids to keep up with all of the different alien species. Maybe don’t read right now if you’re feeling stressed about current body politics. I think it’s multi POV but again, it’s been like, a decade since I read this. It was required reading for the feminist sci-fi class I took in college.
The Machineries of Empire series by Yoon Ha Lee (Ninefox Gambit, Raven Strategem, Revenant Gun)
Full disclosure I have yet to make it through the third book, oops. But the first book is SO FUCKING GOOD and the space magic system is like mind-bending and fascinating. In a universe where mass adherence to a specific calendar allows technologies to work, heretical calendars are a big problem. When the Fortress of Scattered Needles is taken by heretics, it threatens to destroy the entire empire’s system, so calendrical mathematics prodigy Kel Cheris is chosen to lead the siege of the fortress and bring it back into the fold. She gets to pick one weapon from the arsenal to take with her, so she chooses the ghost of General Jedao. The good news is that Jedao never lost a battle. The bad news is, he’s the worst war criminal the empire has ever seen. Multiple POV. The series was written by a trans man during and after his transition, which is pretty clearly reflected in the writing, so it’s an interesting read from that perspective as well as the interesting sci-fi going on.
Paradox trilogy by Rachel Bach (Fortune’s Pawn, Honor’s Knight, Heaven’s Queen)
Badass mercenary Deviana Morris has one goal: make a name for herself as a merc so she can make it to the Devastators, the elite guard of her home planet’s god-king. All she has to do is survive one year working security on the Glorious Fool. Too bad the captain is cursed and most mercs don’t last a month, let alone 12! These are very fun and light reads. Single POV iirc.
Okay I could probably keep going but this is already really long and I think it’ll keep you busy for a while. Please report back with your opinions!
*my credentials are: I read a lot of sci-fi
