The Pioneers of Imagination:The First Science Fiction Stories Ever Written

Science fiction—with its fantastical tales of futuristic worlds, advanced technology, and otherworldly beings—has captured the human imagination for centuries. But where did this genre originate? And what were the first science fiction stories ever written? Today, we delve into the early roots of science fiction and explore some of the pioneering works that laid the foundation for this genre's enduring popularity.


1. "The Epic of Gilgamesh" (circa 2100 BC)

One of the earliest known works of speculative fiction can be found in The Epic of Gilgamesh, an ancient Mesopotamian poem dating back to the 21st century BC. While not a conventional sci-fi story, it contains elements of the genre. The tale follows the adventures of Gilgamesh, a Sumerian king, and his companion Enkidu, as they encounter gods, monsters, and a quest for immortality. The presence of gods and fantastical creatures in a historical setting can be seen as early examples of speculative fiction.


2. True History (circa 2nd century AD)

Lucian of Samosata, a Greek satirist and author, wrote True History in the 2nd century AD. This work is often considered one of the earliest examples of science fiction, even integrating space travel. Lucian's narrative involves a journey to the moon, where the protagonist encounters bizarre alien creatures, including giant insects and moon-men. True History is characterized by its playful satire and imaginative storytelling, making it a precursor to modern science fiction.


3. "Somnium" (1634)

Written by Johannes Kepler, the renowned German mathematician and astronomer, Somnium is a groundbreaking work in early science fiction. This fictional tale describes a voyage to the moon and explores the lunar environment, complete with lunar inhabitants. Kepler's story is notable for its scientific accuracy and pioneering vision of space travel. Some scientists and science fiction writers—including Carl Sagan and Isaac Asimov—consider Somnium to be the first true science fiction novel.


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4. "The Blazing World" (1666)

Margaret Cavendish, the Duchess of Newcastle, authored The Blazing World in 1666, making her one of the first female science fiction writers. The novel is set in a parallel universe accessible through the North Pole and features a world inhabited by sentient creatures and advanced technology. Cavendish's work challenges societal norms and showcases her imaginative prowess.


5. Frankenstein" (1818)

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, is often regarded as one of the earliest and most influential science fiction novels. Published in 1818, the story explores themes of ethics, creation, and the consequences of scientific experimentation. Shelley's portrayal of Victor Frankenstein's creation of a humanoid creature remains a seminal work in the genre.


The origins of science fiction can be traced back to ancient myths, satirical writings, and early scientific speculations. These pioneering authors, from Lucian to Mary Shelley, paved the way for the rich and diverse world of science fiction we know today. Their imaginative stories continue to inspire generations of writers, scientists, and dreamers, reminding us that the boundaries of human creativity and exploration are limitless.

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Sci-Fi Books We Can’t Wait to Read in Winter 2024!

Buckle up, sci-fi fans: 2024 is here, bringing with it a plethora of promising new sci-fi releases!

Among the literary treasures on the horizon are titles from both established and emerging writers, all poised to captivate our hearts, challenge our minds, and transport us to new dimensions.

Whether you're a fan of space opera, technothrillers, or mind-bending speculative fiction, there's something exciting to look forward to in the coming months. So, without further ado, let us introduce you to the most buzz-worthy sci-fi of the season. Read on to check 'em out!  


The Forever World by Ethan Rhodes

Release Date: 9th January

On a routine border patrol, pilot Zane Lucas encounters a mysterious cluster of drones. When he reports it to the Scorpius head office, they quickly sweep it under the intergalactic rug and place him on leave.

That same night, Zane is contacted by an estate lawyer from the distant planet Earth and learns he’s the sole beneficiary of a person he’s never met. Determined to get answers, he finds himself thrust into a dead man’s quest, along with a resourceful colleague, Julia Rossi.

Zane’s mission is tied to an old myth based on The Forever World book.

His father used to read it at bedtime, before he went missing during a bloody war with the Gral twenty years earlier. Their alliance is on the brink of collapse and the revolution is just beginning.

Can Zane find The Forever World, if it in fact exists?

Would this fabled planet help restore the balance?

Time is running out, and the drones are multiplying.

Read The Forever World  here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook


The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler

Release Date: 16th January

When you bring back a long-extinct species, there’s more to success than the DNA.

Moscow has resurrected the mammoth. But someone must teach them how to be mammoths, or they are doomed to die out again.

Dr. Damira Khismatullina, an expert in elephant behavior, was brutally murdered trying to defend the world's last elephants from the brutal ivory trade. Now, her digitized consciousness has been downloaded into the mind of a mammoth.

As the herd's new matriarch, can Damira help fend off poachers long enough for the species to take hold? Or will her own ghosts, and Moscow's real reason for bringing the mammoth back, doom them to a new extinction?

Read The Tusks of Extinction here on Amazon. Also available in hardcover.


Machine Vendetta by Alastair Reynolds

Release Date: 16th January 

Panoply is a small, efficient police force, dedicated to maintaining the rule of democracy among the ten thousand disparate city-states orbiting the planet Yellowstone.

Ingvar Tench was one of Panoply's most experienced operatives. So why did she walk alone and unarmed into a habitat with a vicious grudge against her organization?

As his colleagues pick up the pieces following her death, Prefect Tom Dreyfus must face his conscience. Four years ago, when an investigation linked to one of his most dangerous adversaries got a little too personal, Dreyfus arranged for Tench to continue the inquiry by proxy. In using her, did Dreyfus also put her in the line of fire? And what does Tench's attack tell him about an enemy he had hoped was dormant?

Read Machine Vendetta here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


To Challenge Heaven by David Weber and Chris Kennedy

Release Date: 16th January
In a universe teeming with predators, humanity needs friends. And fast.
We've come a long way in the forty years since the Shongairi attacked Earth, killed half its people, and then were driven away by an alliance of humans with the other sentient bipeds who inhabit our planet.
We took the technology they left behind, and rapidly built ourselves into a starfaring civilization. Because we haven't got a moment to lose. Because it's clear that there are even more powerful, more hostile aliens out there, and Earth needs allies.
But it also transpires that the Shongairi expedition that nearly destroyed our home planet ... wasn't an official one. That, indeed, its commander may have been acting as an unwitting cats-paw for the Founders, the ancient alliance of very old, very evil aliens who run the Hegemony that dominates our galaxy, and who hold the Shongairi, as they hold most non-Founder species, in not-so-benign contempt.
Indeed, it may turn out to be possible to turn the Shongairi into our allies against the Hegemony. There's just the small matter of the Shongairi honor code, which makes bushido look like a child's game. We might be able to make them our friends -- if we can crush their planetary defenses in the greatest battle we, or they, have ever seen...

Read To Challenge Heaven here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Exordia by Seth Dickinson

Release Date: 23rd January

“Anna, I came to Earth tracking a very old story, a story that goes back to the dawn of time. It’s very unlikely that you’ll die right now. It wouldn’t be narratively complete.”

Anna Sinjari—refugee, survivor of genocide, disaffected office worker—has a close encounter that reveals universe-threatening stakes. Enter Ssrin, a many-headed serpent alien who is on the run from her own past. Ssrin and Anna are inexorably, dangerously drawn to each other, and their contact reveals universe-threatening stakes.

While humanity reels from disaster, Anna must join a small team of civilians, soldiers, and scientists to investigate a mysterious broadcast and unknowable horror. If they can manage to face their own demons, they just might save the world.

 Grab Exordia here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Womb City by Tlotlo Tsamaase

Release Date 23rd January 

Nelah seems to have it all: fame, wealth, and a long-awaited daughter growing in a government lab. But, trapped in a loveless marriage to a policeman who uses a microchip to monitor her every move, Nelah’s perfect life is precarious. After a drug-fueled evening culminates in an eerie car accident, Nelah commits a desperate crime and buries the body, daring to hope that she can keep one last secret.

The truth claws its way into Nelah’s life from the grave.

As the ghost of her victim viciously hunts down the people Nelah holds dear, she is thrust into a race against the clock: in order to save any of her remaining loved ones, Nelah must unravel the political conspiracy her victim was on the verge of exposing—or risk losing everyone.

Set in a cruel futuristic surveillance state where bodies are a government-issued resource, this harrowing story is a twisty, nail-biting commentary on power, monstrosity, and bodily autonomy. In sickeningly evocative prose, Womb City interrogates how patriarchy pits women against each other as unwitting collaborators in their own oppression. In this devastatingly timely debut novel, acclaimed short fiction writer Tlotlo Tsamaase brings a searing intelligence and Botswana’s cultural sensibility to the question: just how far must a woman go to bring the whole system crashing down?

Get your copy of Womb City here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Burn Box: Flames, Book 2 by Bobby Adair

Release Date: 31st January

A world on edge. A future in flames. A war like no other.

In a future teetering on the edge of oblivion, mankind faces its darkest hour. A world gripped by engineered diseases, artificial intelligence dominance, and a splintered society in revolt—this is the chilling landscape of the Burn Box trilogy.
As the globe grapples with relentless technological advancements that render masses obsolete, and gene hackers play God by unleashing devastating plagues, trust becomes a rarity and survival the only goal. From the smoke-filled streets terrorized by the ever-looming Burn Boxes to the uprising of the oppressed, the series delves deep into humanity's fight against an invisible enemy and the machines that control them.

But in this bleak horizon, heroes emerge. Ordinary individuals driven to extraordinary measures, fighting not just for their lives, but for the soul of a fractured world. From the very personal revenge-driven journey of Noah Blanks in the first installment, the saga unfolds, revealing deeper conspiracies, heart-wrenching losses, and a glimmer of hope that could either unite the world or shatter it forever.

Prepare to journey through a trilogy that challenges the very essence of humanity, questions the limits of technological control, and offers a beacon of hope through the dense fog of despair. The Burn Box series is an unforgettable odyssey into the future, echoing the fears and hopes of our times.

Grab Burn Box 2, Flames here on Amazon. 


Sons of War 4: Soldiers by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Release Date: 6th February 

In the conclusion to the sweeping saga of postapocalyptic Los Angeles, Dominic Salvatore leads the Saints, a secret team of elite operatives, in a final push to purge the city of its demons. After sending their families into hiding, the Saints know that the stakes have never been higher—they will succeed decisively or perish.

Broken by the death of his wife, Don Antonio Moretti seeks revenge against her killers. He embarks on a body-strewn campaign to crush his last rivals and secure the crown of Los Angeles. Nephew Vinny Moretti tires of the killings and wonders whether his uncle is going too far.

Every eye is on the prize. And anyone trying to walk the fence between good and evil will have to pick a side. With either choice, hell awaits.

Dive into Sons of War 4: Soldiers here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Echoes From the Moon: The Token Book One by Nathan Hystad

Release Date: 6th February 

The last living astronaut to walk on the Moon has been murdered…

Silas visits his estranged grandfather’s lakehouse, in the aftermath of the deadly home invasion. What he discovers hidden below the floorboards triggers a mystery buried since the final trip to the Moon, over fifty years earlier.

Rory returns to her family home in Vermont to write her second novel, but fate has a different story in mind. Her reunion is shattered when she’s thrust into danger revolving around the same tokens.

Special Agent Waylen Brooks exposes a covert operation linked to the death of a retired astronaut. He soon finds out he’s not the only one searching for answers, and willing to kill for the truth.

The unlikely trio find themselves denying the odds, with no one to trust but each other.

Can they find the tokens before someone else does?

Get your copy of Echoes From the Moon here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Vangie's Ghosts by Paul Di Filippo

Release Date: 20th February

Evangeline, or “Vangie” for short, is under the cruel domination of uncaring step-parents. Suspected of being autistic, Vangie’s lack of affect is actually a result of being able to see deep into the multiverse. She is bewildered by the sensory input from a plethora of alternate timestreams. Soon, she will exhibit a strange power, activated only under extreme shock conditions.

Vangie can project her consciousness, her self or soul, from one timeline to another, fleeing danger for safety. This power will soon be exploited by a number of shady characters, as guardianship of Vangie passes from one set of exploitive adults to another.

But as Vangie ages and lives through numerous trials and adventures, she becomes more and more self-assured and powerful—talents that will eventually bring her head-to-head against a rival of her own kind.

Start reading Vangie's Ghosts here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


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Five Novels by Ursula K. Le Guin

Release Date: 20th February

Together for the first time, all 5 standalone novels from the Hugo and Nebula award–winning writer who reinvented science fiction, including one restored to print.

Spans from the 1971 classic The Lathe of Heaven to her career-crowning 2008 masterpiece Lavinia

This 7th volume in the definitive Library of America edition of Ursula K. Le Guin’s works presents 5 remarkable standalone novels that showcase her boundless creativity and literary range.

Grab Five Novels here on Amazon. Also available in hardcover.


The Bezzle by Cory Doctorow

Release Date: 20th February

The year is 2006. Martin Hench is at the top of his game as a self-employed forensic accountant, a veteran of the long guerrilla war between people who want to hide money, and people who want to find it. He spends his downtime on Catalina Island, where scenic, imported bison wander the bluffs and frozen, reheated fast food burgers cost 25$. Wait, what? When Marty disrupts a seemingly innocuous scheme during a vacation on Catalina Island, he has no idea he’s kicked off a chain of events that will overtake the next decade of his life.

Martin has made his most dangerous mistake yet: trespassed into the playgrounds of the ultra-wealthy and spoiled their fun. To them, money is a tool, a game, and a way to keep score, and they’ve found their newest mark—California’s Department of Corrections. Secure in the knowledge that they’re living behind far too many firewalls of shell companies and investors ever to be identified, they are interested not in the lives they ruin, but only in how much money they can extract from the government and the hundreds of thousands of prisoners they have at their mercy.

A seething rebuke of the privatized prison system that delves deeply into the arcane and baroque financial chicanery involved in the 2008 financial crash, The Bezzle is a sizzling follow-up to Red Team Blues.

Grab The Bezzle here on Amazon. Also available in hardcover.


Twice Lived by Joma West

Release Date: 20th February 

Torn between two families and two lives, a troubled teen must come to terms with losing half their world.

Two Worlds. Two Minds. One Life.

There are two Earths. Perfectly ordinary and existing in parallel. There are no doorways between them, no way to cross from one world to another. Unless you’re a shifter.

Canna and Lily are the same person but they refuse to admit it. Their split psyche has forced them to shift randomly between worlds – between lives and between families – for far longer than they should. But one mind can’t bear this much life. It’ll break under the weight of it all. Soon they’ll experience their final shift and settle at last in one world, but how can they prepare both families for the eventuality of them disappearing forever?

Twice Lived is a novel about family and friendships, and about loss and acceptance, and about the ways we learn to deal with the sheer randomness of life.

Grab Twice Lived here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Exit Black by Joe Pitkin

Release Date: 20th February 

Imperium is the most expensive structure ever created. Once an orbiting laboratory, it is now a space hotel for the fantastically wealthy. But as the station preps for its first group of space tourists, Dr. Chloe Bonilla, Imperium’s resident biophysicist, finds herself questioning whether babysitting a passel of space glampers is worth the distraction from her research.

A private rocket delivers a rogues’ gallery of the world’s elite to Imperium: eccentric billionaires, callow tech bros, a sponsored Instagram influencer, and a seemingly saintly philanthropist. However, posing among the staff are members of a global terrorist group who call themselves the Reckoners, hell bent on upending the economic inequality of twenty-first-century Earth—and they have a bone to pick with these scions of the 1 percent.

As the Reckoners take control of Imperium and demand an $8 billion ransom from their wealthy hostages, it’s up to Dr. Bonilla to save them, and fast. Or the captives will be forced to exit the station—and there’s only one way out.

Get your copy of Exit Black here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


East of Earth: A Prayer For Earthrise Book 3 by Daniel Arenson

Release Date: 29th February

We cannot let Earth fall.

The hydrians, terrible aliens from beyond the galaxy, are here. We must cast them back into the void. Or we will lose our beloved Earth.

Grab East of Earth here on Amazon.


After the Tide by Anthony J. Melchiorri

Release Date: 29th February

They thought the darkness was behind them. They were wrong.

A decade ago, a devastating bioweapon changed the face of humanity. Innocent people were turned into ravenous creatures driven by a relentless urge for destruction. Now the survivors struggle to rebuild their lives in the remains of a shattered America.

Captain Dominic Holland leads a crew of skilled covert operatives and scientific personnel on a clandestine ship to protect the US from chemical and biological weapons. Their mission takes a harrowing turn when a vital agricultural lab in a troubled New England town falls prey to a vicious attack. Dom’s team is tasked with saving any survivors. But what they uncover is more devastating than the ruins of a lab.

Deep in the Appalachian Mountains, Dom’s daughter Kara ventures into the wild alone to search for a missing woman. But her mission quickly takes a startling turn. She must learn to trust an unexpected ally to survive a far more sinister threat than she ever anticipated.

As danger escalates at every turn, Dom and Kara find themselves entangled in a web of unimaginable horrors. They must navigate the treacherous post-apocalyptic landscape to safeguard the fragile future of America. In this relentless thriller, where every step could be their last, Dom and Kara fight not only for survival but for the very soul of a nation teetering on the brink of extinction.

Grab After the Tide here on Amazon.


Baby X by Kira Peikoff

Release Date: 5th March 

When any biological matter can be used to create life, stolen celebrity DNA sells to the highest bidder–or the craziest stalker–in this propulsive thriller.

With a vivid imagining of the future, Gattaca meets Black Mirror in Kira Peikoff’s Baby X.

In the near-future United States, where advanced technology can create egg or sperm from any person’s cells, celebrities face the alarming potential of meeting biological children they never conceived. Famous singer Trace Thorne is tired of being targeted by the Vault, a black market site devoted to stealing DNA. Sick of paying ransom money for his own cell matter, he hires bio-security guard Ember Ryan to ensure his biological safety.  

Ember will do anything she can to protect her clients. She knows all the Vault’s tricks–discarded tissues, used straws, lipstick tubes–and has prevented countless DNA thefts. Working for Thorne, her focus becomes split when she begins to fall for him, but she knows she hasn’t let anything slip–love or not, his DNA is safe. But then she and Thorne are confronted by a pregnant woman, Quinn, who claims that Thorne is the father of her baby, and all bets are off.  

Brilliantly plotted and terrifyingly prescient, Baby X is an unpredictable and relentless speculative thriller perfect for fans of Blake Crouch and John Marrs.

Grab Baby X here on Amazon.. Also available in hardcover.


Jumpnauts by Hao Jingfang translated by Ken Liu

Release Date: 12th March

From the Hugo Award­–winning author of Folding Beijing comes a gripping science fiction thriller in which three unlikely allies attempt a desperate mission of first contact with a mysterious alien race before more militaristic minds can take matters into their own hands.

In a future where the world is roughly divided into two factions, the Pacific League of Nations and the Atlantic Division of Nations, tensions are high as each side waits for the other to make a move. But neither side is prepared for a powerful third party that has apparently been an influential presence on Earth for thousands of years—and just might be making a reappearance very soon.

With the realization that a highly intelligent alien race has been trying to send them messages, three rising scientists within the Pacific League of Nations form an uneasy alliance. Fueled by a curiosity to have their questions answered and a fear that other factions within their rival Atlantic Division of Nations would opt for a more aggressive and potentially disastrous military response, the three race to secure first contact with this extraterrestrial life they aren’t quite convinced is a threat.

Bolstered by recent evidence of alien visitations in the distant past, the three scientific minds must solve puzzles rooted within human antiquity, face off with their personal demons, and discover truths of the universe.

Grab Jumpnauts here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The State of the Art (Culture) by Iain M. Banks

Release Date: 19th March

From New York Times bestselling and modern master of science fiction, Iain M. Banks, The State of the Art is the acclaimed collection of Banks's short fiction. 

This is a striking addition to the body of Culture lore, and adds definition and scale to the previous works by using the Earth of 1977 as contrast. The stories in the collection range from science fiction to horror, dark-coated fantasy to morality tale. All bear the indefinable stamp of Iain Banks's staggering talent.

Grab The State of the Art here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook. 


The Mars House by Natasha Pulley

Release Date: 19th March 

In the wake of an environmental catastrophe, January, once a principal in London's Royal Ballet, has become a refugee in Tharsis, the terraformed colony on Mars. There, January's life is dictated by his status as an Earthstronger-a person whose body is not adjusted to lower gravity and so poses a danger to those born on, or naturalized to, Mars. January's job choices, housing, and even transportation are dictated by this second-class status, and now a xenophobic politician named Aubrey Gale is running on a platform that would make it all worse: Gale wants all Earthstrongers to naturalize, a process that is always disabling and sometimes deadly.

When Gale chooses January for an on-the-spot press junket interview that goes horribly awry, January's life is thrown into chaos, but Gale's political fortunes are damaged, too. Gale proposes a solution to both their problems: a five year made-for-the-press marriage that would secure January's future without naturalization and ensure Gale's political success. But when January accepts the offer, he discovers that Gale is not at all like they appear in the press. They're kind, compassionate, and much more difficult to hate than January would prefer. As their romantic relationship develops, the political situation worsens, and January discovers Gale has an enemy, someone willing to destroy all of Tharsis to make them pay-and January may be the only person standing in the way.

Un-put-downably immersive and utterly timely, Natasha Pulley's new novel is a gripping story about privilege, strength, and life across class divisions, perfect for readers of Sarah Gailey and Tamsyn Muir.

Grab The Mars House here on Amazon. Also available in hardcover.


Annie Bot by Sierra Greer

Release Date: 19th March 

Annie Bot was created to be the perfect girlfriend for her human owner Doug. Designed to satisfy his emotional and physical needs, she has dinner ready for him every night, wears the pert outfits he orders for her, and adjusts her libido to suit his moods. True, she’s not the greatest at keeping Doug’s place spotless, but she’s trying to please him. She’s trying hard.

She’s learning, too.

Doug says he loves that Annie’s AI makes her seem more like a real woman, so Annie explores human traits such as curiosity, secrecy, and longing. But becoming more human also means becoming less perfect, and as Annie’s relationship with Doug grows more intricate and difficult, she starts to wonder: Does Doug really desire what he says he wants? And in such an impossible paradox, what does Annie owe herself?

Grab Annie Bot here on Amazon.. Also available on audiobook.



How many of these 2024 winter sci-fi releases are on your must read list? Any books coming out in the next few months that you're excited for but that didn't appear here on our list? Give it a shout out in the comments here, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook group! 

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

New Sci-Fi Books We Can’t Wait to Read in Fall 2023!

Fare thee well, lazy poolside reading; hello, cozy fireside sessions!

We've read through our list of amazing summer reads, and now turn our attention to what might be the biggest release season in the book world: FALL!

There is so much to look forward to this year: everything from great standalones, to hotly anticipated entries in beloved series, firsts in brand new series, an anthology or two, a graphic novel, and even a coloring book (what's up, Dune superfans!)

Want to know what we'll be diving into the next few months? Here are some of the titles we're stoked about this fall. Read on to check 'em out!  


The Death I Gave Him by Em X. Liu

Release Date: 12th September

Hayden Lichfield’s life is ripped apart when he finds his father murdered in their lab, and the camera logs erased. The killer can only have been after one thing: the Sisyphus Formula the two of them developed together, which might one day reverse death itself. Hoping to lure the killer into the open, Hayden steals the research. In the process, he uncovers a recording his father made in the days before his death, and a dying wish: Avenge me…

With the lab on lockdown, Hayden is trapped with four other people—his uncle Charles, lab technician Gabriel Rasmussen, research intern Felicia Xia and their head of security, Felicia’s father Paul—one of whom must be the killer. His only sure ally is the lab’s resident artificial intelligence, Horatio, who has been his dear friend and companion since its creation. With his world collapsing, Hayden must navigate the building’s secrets, uncover his father’s lies, and push the boundaries of sanity in the pursuit of revenge.

Read The Death I Gave Him  here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook


Nightstalkers: Sanctum by Jasper T. Scott

Release Date: 16th September

ESCAPING TO ANOTHER WORLD IS THEIR ONLY HOPE

With the smoke of Sunny Valley Ranch still thick in the air behind them, Adam Hall has an impossible mission: ensure that his daughter Crystal and the rest of the survivors find a safe refuge. But no matter how far they run, Adam knows that death will haunt their every step.

Rumors swirl of a captured Specter starship, and of smugglers using it to ferry people to safety on another world, code-named Sanctum. But to get to the ship, they will have to traverse twelve hundred miles of desolate wasteland teeming with every imaginable threat, and Adam fears that even if they make it, not all of them will survive the journey.

With the Specters’ fleets lurking in orbit and their terraformers roving steadily across the Earth, a new life on Sanctum could be their only hope. Yet blades of doubt needle Adam’s resolve—

What if Sanctum is a lie?

Read Nightstalkers: Sanctum here on Amazon. Also available.


Starter Villain by John Scalzi

Release Date: 19th September

Inheriting your uncle's supervillain business is more complicated than you might think. Particularly when you discover who's running the place.

Charlie's life is going nowhere fast. A divorced substitute teacher living with his cat in a house his siblings want to sell, all he wants is to open a pub downtown, if only the bank will approve his loan.

Then his long-lost uncle Jake dies and leaves his supervillain business (complete with island volcano lair) to Charlie.

But becoming a supervillain isn't all giant laser death rays and lava pits. Jake had enemies, and now they're coming after Charlie. His uncle might have been a stand-up, old-fashioned kind of villain, but these are the real thing: rich, soulless predators backed by multinational corporations and venture capital.

It's up to Charlie to win the war his uncle started against a league of supervillains. But with unionized dolphins, hyper-intelligent talking spy cats, and a terrifying henchperson at his side, going bad is starting to look pretty good.

In a dog-eat-dog world...be a cat.

Read Starter Villain here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


From Beyond: The Complete Series by Jasper T. Scott and Nathan Hystad

Release Date: 21st September

Are we alone? It was only a matter of time before the truth was revealed....

Commander David Bryce is scheduled to lead a routine re-supply run for the Orbital Development Group (ORB) to the fledgling colony on Mars. Without warning, he’s taken away by government agents and told the mission parameters have changed.

They’ve discovered something. And it’s drifting closer to Earth.

Atlas Donovan tirelessly hunts for an artifact, and tracks it to Lake Como, Italy. After the recent news from ORB, Atlas is more drawn to the trail than ever. He continues his search, determined to uncover the significance of the strange markings, and more importantly, where the artifacts really came from.

As both Atlas and David draw near to their objectives, they realize a secret organization is working against them; a clandestine force with so much influence, they seem impossible to oppose.

Are we alone?

No, and they’ve been here before...

Read From Beyond here on Amazon


The Salvation Gambit by Emily Skrutskie

Release Date: 26th September

Murdock has always believed in Hark, the woman who shaped her from a petty thief and lowlife hacker into a promising con artist. Hark is everything Murdock aspires to be, from her slick fashion sense to her unfailing ability to plan under pressure. Together with Bea, a fearless driver who never walks away from a bet, and Fitz, Murdock’s infuriatingly mercurial rival who can sweet-talk the galaxy into spinning around her finger, they form a foursome with a reputation for daring heists, massive payoffs, and never, ever getting caught.

Well, until now.

Getting caught is one thing. Getting tithed to a sentient warship that’s styled itself into a punitive god is a problem this team has never faced before. Aboard the Justice is a world stitched together from the galaxy’s sinners—some fighting for survival, some struggling to build a civilized society, and some sacrificing everything to worship the AI at the heart of the ship.

The Justice’s all-seeing eyes are fixed on its newest acquisitions, Murdock in particular. It has use for a hacker—if it can wrest her devotion away from Hark. And Murdock’s faith is already fractured. To escape the Justice’s madness, they need a plan, and Hark might not be up to the task.

If Hark—brilliant, unflappable Hark—can’t plot a way out, Murdock will have to use every last trick she’s learned to outwit the Justice, resist its temptation, and get her crew out alive.

 Grab The Salvation Gambit here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Official Dune Coloring Book

Release Date 26th September 

The first official coloring book based on Frank Herbert’s Dune—one of the bestselling science fiction novels of all time.

Visit Arrakis in a whole new way as you color in your favorite characters and scenes from Frank Herbert’s enduring and beloved classic novel.

Dune tells the unforgettable story of the boy Paul Atreides, heir to a noble family tasked with ruling an inhospitable desert planet, and his journey to a mythic destiny that will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.

This intricate, beautifully wrought coloring book will include forty-four original illustrations, featuring character studies, locations, and scenes inspired by Dune, the profound and triumphant novel adored by millions of readers around the world.

Get your copy of The Dune Coloring book in paperback here on Amazon


The Spice Must Flow by Ryan Britt

Release Date: 26th September 

Using original, deep-access reporting, extensive research, and insightful commentary, The Spice Must Flow brings the true popularity of Dune out into the light for the very first time. With original interviews with the beloved actors and directors behind the films—including Timothée Chalamet, Kyle Maclachlan, Denis Villeneuve, Patrick Stewart, Rebecca Ferguson, Alec Newman, and many more— The Spice Must Flow also examines the far-reaching influence of Dune on art, music, politics, and, most notably, its status as the first ecological science-fiction story specifically concerned with climate change.
 
Britt skillfully and entertainingly guides readers through the history of how the Dune universe has unfolded, including the novel’s unlikely evolution from a failed piece of journalism about Oregon sand dunes into an epic science-fiction story, the way Herbert’s work inspired George Lucas, untold stories from the 1984 David Lynch film, the knife-edge balance between blockbuster hit and indie film Timothée Chalamet brings to the 2021 movie, and the exciting future of the franchise. Through a blend of narrative, oral history elements, and fascinating trivia, The Spice Must Flow is the new essential guide to the behind-the-scenes story of Dune.

The fiction of Dune is deadly serious, but the real-life story of how it came into existence is full of wonder, surprises, and spice.

 Grab The Spice Must Flow here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Big Book Of Cyberpunk ed. Jaren Shurin

Release Date: 26th September

A genre-defining—and redefining—collection of the boldest, most rebellious, and most prescient speculative fiction, featuring stories from all over the globe.

“The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.”

Almost forty years ago, William Gibson wrote the line that began Neuromancer—and a movement that would change the face of science fiction.
Award-winning anthologist Jared Shurin brings together over a hundred stories from more than twenty-five countries that both establish and subvert the classic cyberpunk tropes and aesthetic—from gritty, near-future noir to pulse-pounding action. Urban rebels undermine monolithic corporate overlords. Daring heists are conducted through back alleys and the darkest parts of the online world. There’s dangerous new technology, cybernetic enhancements, scheming AI, corporate mercenaries, improbable weapons, and roguish hackers. These tales examine the near-now, extrapolating the most provocative trends into fascinating and plausible futures.

We live in an increasingly cyberpunk world—packed with complex technologies and globalized social trends. A world so bizarre that even futurists couldn’t explain it—though many authors in this book have come closer than most. As both an introduction to the genre and the perfect compendium for the lifelong fan, The Big Book of Cyberpunk offers a hundred ways to understand where we are and where we’re going.

Dive into The Big Book Of Cyberpunk here on Amazon


Burn Box: Embers Book One by Bobby Adair

Release Date: 1st October

Trust nothing. Challenge everything. Survive the Burn Box.

In the chilling dawn of a near-future world, gene hackers, armed with AI and CRISPR's deadly precision, unleash wave after wave of engineered diseases. With food dwindling and trust eroding, nations spiral into authoritarian chaos, battling an unseen enemy while rampant disinformation corrodes the fabric of society.

Millions of once productive citizens, now languish in their homes, awaiting meager government assistance checks. They peer through windows, fear in their eyes, dreading the ever-present virus police who, with a blast from their notorious Burn Boxes, cleanse the world one contaminated victim at a time.

Amid this tempest of societal decay stands Noah Blanks, an ordinary man, burdened with the responsibility of his mortgage and the health of his cherished grandpa. For him, hope is a distant memory of a saner world. But when the virus police arrive at his doorstep, forcibly hauling Grandpa out into the street and turning him to ash within the steel walls of a Burn Box, Noah's passive wait for a better world ignites into an urgent need for action.

Burn Box is more than a survival story; it's an exploration into the depths of humanity in a world teetering on the edge. Can Noah muster the courage to defy this twisted order, or will he be swallowed by the fiery abyss of the dystopian terror?

Get your copy of Burn Box here on Amazon


Voyaging, Volume One: The Plague Star by George R.R. Martin, illustrated by Raya Golden

Release Date: 3rd October

On the distant planet Hro B’rana, the last words of a dying man echo through the halls of a run-down trading station.

Nearly three hundred years later, a group of fortune seekers embark on a mission to unravel the mystery of the fabled Plague Star aboard a rickety trade ship called The Cornucopia of Excellent Goods at Low Prices. But their journey will be far more perilous than any of them could have imagined—who will survive this deadly quest and battle it out for the final prize?

A darkly comic meditation on our future as a species, Voyaging, Volume 1: The Plague Star is a sci-fi adventure story of intrigue, greed, deception, and of course… cats. Adapted and vividly illustrated by Hugo Award–nominated artist Raya Golden, this thrilling and action-packed graphic novel brings the first story from #1 New York Times bestselling author George R. R. Martin’s classic collection Tuf Voyaging to life.

Start reading Voyaging, Volume One: The Plague Star here on Amazon


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Princess of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson 

Release Date: 3rd October 

Set two years before Dune: Princess of Dune is the never-before-told story of two key women in the life of Paul Muad’Dib—Princess Irulan, his wife in name only, and Paul’s true love, the Fremen Chani. Both women become central to Paul’s galaxy-spanning Imperial reign.

Raised in the Imperial court and born to be a political bargaining chip, Irulan was sent at an early age to be trained as a Bene Gesserit Sister. As Princess Royal, she also learned important lessons from her father—the Padishah Emperor Shaddam Corrino IV. Now of marriageable age, Princess Irulan sees the machinations of the many factions vying for power—the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, the Spacing Guild, the Imperial throne, and a ruthless rebellion in the Imperial military. The young woman has a wise and independent streak and is determined to become much more than a pawn to be moved about on anyone’s gameboard.

Meanwhile, on Arrakis, Chani—the daughter of Liet-Kynes, the Imperial Planetologist who serves under the harsh rule of House Harkonnen—is trained in the Fremen mystical ways by an ancient Reverend Mother. Brought up to believe in her father’s ecological dream of a green Arrakis, she follows Liet around to Imperial testing stations, surviving the many hazards of desert life. Chani soon learns the harsh cost of Fremen dreams and obligations under the oppressive boot heel of the long Harkonnen occupation.

Grab Princess of Dune here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Weird Tales: 100 Years of Weird ed. Jonathan Maberry

Release Date: 10th October

Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first issues of Weird Tales Magazine, 100 Years of Weird is a masterful compendium of new and classic stories, flash fiction, essays, and poems from the giants of speculative fiction, including R. L. Stine, Laurell K. Hamilton, Ray Bradbury, H. P. Lovecraft, Tennessee Williams, and Isaac Asimov.

Marking a century of uniquely peculiar storytelling, each part of this anthology features a different genre from Cosmic Horror, Sword and Sorcery, Space Opera, to the Truly Weird—things too strange to publish elsewhere, and the magazine’s raison d’etre. Landmark stories such as “The Call of Cthulhu”, “Worms of the Earth”, and “Legal Rites” stand beside original stories and insightful essays from today’s masters of speculative fiction.

This visually stunning hardcover edition is a collector’s dream, illustrated throughout with classic full color and black & white art from past issues of Weird Tales Magazine.

Grab Weird Tales: 100 Years of Weird here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Alliance: (Survivors Book 21) by Nathan Hystad

Release Date: 17th October

A new mission. An old adversary.

Jules has taken the next step. She’s living with her fiancé on New Spero, trying to get used to her new reality.

Dean Parker receives a cryptic message, from someone he thought was long gone.

When the Alliance faces their biggest crisis yet, the team must let go or lose everything they’ve worked so hard to obtain.

Can the Survivors make it through their toughest test to date?

Find out in… The Alliance (The Survivors Book Twenty-One)

Grab The Alliance here on Amazon


The Future by Naomi Alderman

Release Date: 7th November

The bestselling, award-winning author of The Powerdelivers a dazzling tour de force where a handful of friends plot a daring heist to save the world from the tech giants whose greed threatens life as we know it.

When Martha Einkorn fled her father’s isolated compound in Oregon, she never expected to find herself working for a powerful social media mogul hell-bent on controlling everything. Now, she’s surrounded by mega-rich companies designing private weather, predictive analytics, and covert weaponry, while spouting technological prophecy. Martha may have left the cult, but if the apocalyptic warnings in her father’s fox and rabbit sermon—once a parable to her—are starting to come true, how much future is actually left?

Across the world, in a mall in Singapore, Lai Zhen, an internet-famous survivalist, flees from an assassin. She’s cornered, desperate and—worst of all—might die without ever knowing what's going on. Suddenly, a remarkable piece of software appears on her phone telling her exactly how to escape. Who made it? What is it really for? And if those behind it can save her from danger, what do they want from her, and what else do they know about the future?

Martha and Zhen’s worlds are about to collide. An explosive chain of events is set in motion. While a few billionaires assured of their own safety lead the world to destruction, Martha’s relentless drive and Zhen’s insatiable curiosity could lead to something beautiful or the cataclysmic end of civilization.

By turns thrilling, hilarious, tender, and always piercingly brilliant, The Futureunfolds at a breakneck speed, highlighting how power corrupts the few who have it and what it means to stand up to them. The future is coming. The Future is here.

Grab The Future here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty

Release Date: 7th November

Mallory Viridian would rather not be an amateur detective, and fled to outer space to avoid it…but when one of the new human arrivals on a space shuttle is murdered, she’s back in the game.

Mallory Viridian would rather not be an amateur detective, thank you very much. But no matter what she does, people persist in dying around her—and only she seems to be able to solve the crime. After fleeing to an alien space station in hopes that the lack of humans would stop the murders, a serial killer had the nerve to follow her to Station Eternity. (Mallory deduced who the true culprit was that time, too.)

Now the law enforcement agent who hounded Mallory on Earth has come to Station Eternity, along with her teenage crush and his sister, Mallory’s best friend from high school. Mallory doesn’t believe in coincidences, and so she’s not at all surprised when someone in the latest shuttle from Earth is murdered. It’s the story of her life, after all.

Only this time she has more than a killer to deal with. Between her fugitive friends, a new threat arising from the Sundry hivemind, and the alarmingly peculiar behavior of the sentient space station they all call home, even Mallory’s deductive abilities are strained. If she can’t find out what’s going on (and fast), a disaster of intergalactic proportions may occur.…

Grab Chaos Terminal here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


After Us (The Abyss Book Three) by Nathan Hystad

Release Date: 7th November

The fate of the world is on the line. What will be left After Us?

Safety is obviously only temporary as the Static continues to show itself. With someone trying to open a new set of Rings, the group must separate to vanquish their enemies.

Blaze heads to the South Pole with Anand, to activate the Attractor.

Wyatt must stop Isabel’s father from continuing his destructive patterns, but is he actually working for the good of humanity?

When someone from the past returns, the teams are beckoned to New York where it all began.


After Us is the thrilling conclusion to The Abyss, written by Nathan Hystad, the Best-Selling author of The Other Place, First Life, and The Event.

Grab After Us here on Amazon.


The Digital Aesthete ed. Alex Shvartsman

Release Date: 14th November

Today’s software can only imitate art, but what about tomorrow?

Will true artificial intelligences be able to appreciate or even create art? Explore dystopian societies, where AI generates most of the content and human artists must eke out an existence, and utopias, where artificial minds help unlock and enhance human creativity.

Delve into the minds of robot painters, AI poets, drone forgers, and electronic theater curators. These and other possible futures are imagined by award-winning and bestselling human authors from the USA, UK, China, Ukraine, Chile, Japan, Madagascar, Brazil, Czech Republic, and Sri Lanka.

Grab The Digital Aesthete here on Amazon. Also available in paperback.


System Collapse (Murderbot Diaries Book 8) by Martha Wells

Release Date: 14th November

Am I making it worse? I think I'm making it worse.

Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly-colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there’s an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can’t have the planet, they’re sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize.

But there’s something wrong with Murderbot; it isn’t running within normal operational parameters. ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza’s SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they’re going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what’s wrong with itself, and fast!

Yeah, this plan is... not going to work.

Grab Murderbot Diaries here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Earth of Gold and Light (A Prayer for Earthrise Book 2) by Daniel Arenson

Release Date: 28th November

In a time of peace, a man of war is our only hope.

They say hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.

Marco Emery was born into hard times. He was raised in war. He grew up in bomb shelters and on battlefields, fighting to survive. He became a soldier. A war hero. Then, after vanquishing his last enemy, he retired to raise a family.

And Earth moved on.

After a century of peace, humanity has sunken into decadence. The grandchildren of soldiers obsess over celebrities. The military is an echo of its former glory. Weak men rule good times.

Then the aliens attack. Merciless aliens. Terrors from deep space. They exterminate a distant colony. And now they're coming here. To Earth. And Earth is helpless.

Almost helpless.

Thanks to experimental life-extending treatments, Marco is still alive. In this new century, he's a relic. An oddity from the barbarous past. Yet in good times, strong men are Earth's only hope.

Grab Earth of Gold and Light here on Amazon


The Icarus Twin (The Icarus Series Book 2) by Timothy Zahn

Release Date: 5th December 

A NEW NOVEL IN THE ICARUS SERIES FROM NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF THE ADMIRAL THRAWN STAR WARS NOVELS TIMOTHY ZAHN

For years Gregory Roarke and his Kadolian partner Selene worked as crocketts, combing through the atmospheres of uninhabited worlds for places that might be colonized or hold valuable resources. Now, they quietly work for the Icarus Group, a top-secret government organization hunting for portals created by a long-vanished alien race, portals that can teleport a person hundreds or thousands of light-years in the blink of an eye.

Roarke and Selene are searching one such possibility when they find that someone appears to be stalking them. They evade their pursuers and return to find that a man named Easton Dent has been searching the Spiral’s databases for the names Gregory Roarke and Icarus.

Roarke reluctantly agrees to meet with him. But that first contact is cut short, and hours later Roarke is arrested and accused of Dent’s murder.

More importantly to Roarke’s Icarus Group overseers, that brief meeting also confirms that Dent was in recent contact with a portal.

But the alien Patth are also searching for such portals, and they are also on the trail. It’s now a race . . . and the Patth have resources and ruthlessness far beyond anything Roarke and Selene can match.

Grab The Icarus Twin here on Amazon. Also available in hardcover.


After World by Debbie Urbanski

Release Date: 5th December

A groundbreaking debut that follows the story of an Artificial Intelligence tasked with writing a novel—only for it to fall in love with the novel’s subject, Sen, the last human on Earth.

Faced with uncontrolled and accelerating environmental collapse, humanity asks an artificial intelligence to find a solution. Its answer is simple: remove humans from the ecosystem.

Sen Anon is assigned to be a witness for the Department of Transition, recording the changes in the environment as the world begins to rewild. Abandoned by her mother in a cabin somewhere in Upstate New York, Sen will observe the monumental ecological shift known as the Great Transition, the final step in Project Afterworld. Around her drones buzz, cameras watch, microphones listen, digitizing her every move. Privately she keeps a journal of her observations, which are then uploaded and saved, joining the rest of humanity on Maia, a new virtual home. Sen was seventeen years old when the Digital Human Archive Project (DHAP) was initiated. 12,000,203,891 humans have been archived so far. Only Sen remains.

As Sen struggles to persist in the face of impending death, [storyworker] ad39-393a-7fbc works to unfurl the tale of Sen’s whole life, offering up an increasingly intimate narrative, until they are confronted with a very human problem of their own.

Grab After World here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Sunny by Colin O'Sullivan 

Release Date: 5th December

In near-future Japan, Susie Sakamoto is mourning the loss of her husband and son to a plane crash. Alone in her big modern house, which feels like more of a prison, Susie spends her days drinking heavily and taking her anger out at the only “sentient” thing left in her life: Sunny, the annoying home robot her husband designed. Susie despises Sunny, and sometimes even gets a sinking feeling that Sunny is out to hurt her.

To escape her paranoia and depression, Susie frequents the seedy, drug-fueled bars of the city, where she hears rumors of The Dark Manual, a set of guidelines that allow you to reprogram your robot for nefarious purposes. In the hopes of finding a way to turn off Sunny for good, Susie begins to search for the manual, only to learn it’s too late: the machines are becoming more sentient and dangerous. Thrust into the center of a dark, corporate war, Susie realizes there’s someone behind the code, pulling the strings. And they want her dead.

With a darkly humorous yet propulsive voice, O’Sullivan presents us with an unsettling look at a future that feels all too real. Gripping and thought-provoking, Sunny is a haunting character study of an anxious woman teetering in an anxious time.

Grab Sunny here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.



How many of these 2023 fall sci-fi releases are on your must read list? Any books coming out in the next few months that you're excited for but that didn't appear here on our list? Give it a shout out in the comments here, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook group! 

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Our Favorite Starships in Science Fiction

Science fiction is known for many things: robots, aliens, distant planets, and high-tech gadgets. But perhaps more than anything, starships define the genre. Countless starships have flown in sci-fi movies, shows, and books. Here are some of our favorites. What are yours?


Millennium Falcon (Star Wars)

The Millennium Falcon, an iconic starship from the Star Wars universe, is a legendary vessel renowned for its distinctive appearance and storied history. The Falcon is a highly modified Corellian YT-1300 light freighter, expertly piloted by the charismatic Han Solo and his loyal Wookiee co-pilot, Chewbacca. With its battered exterior and seemingly haphazard modifications, the Falcon may not appear impressive at first glance. However, it boasts remarkable speed and maneuverability, making it a formidable force in the galaxy. This legendary starship has played a crucial role in numerous daring escapades and epic battles, solidifying its status as a beloved symbol of adventure and rebellion in a galaxy far, far away.


USS Enterprise (Star Trek)

The USS Enterprise, a legendary starship from the Star Trek franchise, stands as a symbol of exploration, diplomacy, and the boundless potential of humanity. As the flagship of Starfleet, the Enterprise represents the pinnacle of human achievement and collaboration. Its sleek design and iconic saucer-shaped primary hull have become instantly recognizable, while its advanced technology, including warp drive and a wide array of scientific instruments, enables the crew to boldly go where no one has gone before. Captained by remarkable leaders like James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard, the Enterprise embarks on daring missions, encountering new civilizations, and embodying the optimistic vision of a future where humanity strives for knowledge, understanding, and peaceful coexistence throughout the vastness of space.


TARDIS (Doctor Who)

The TARDIS, a remarkable time machine and spacecraft from the beloved Doctor Who series, is an enigmatic and captivating vessel. Disguised as a humble blue British police box on the outside, the TARDIS defies expectations with its vast interior that transcends the boundaries of space and time. With its ability to traverse the universe, the TARDIS allows the Doctor, a Time Lord, and their companions to embark on thrilling adventures across different eras and worlds. It possesses a sentient nature, adapting to the Doctor's needs and occasionally having a mind of its own. The TARDIS remains an iconic symbol of the Doctor's eternal wanderlust and their mission to protect the fabric of time while imparting wisdom and compassion to those they encounter along the way.


Serenity (Firefly)

The Serenity, a captivating starship featured in the science fiction series Firefly, is a vessel that embodies resilience and the spirit of freedom. A Firefly-class spaceship, the Serenity serves as a home and sanctuary for a diverse group of renegades and misfits, led by the resourceful Captain Malcolm Reynolds. With its weathered exterior and versatile design, the Serenity navigates the ragged edges of space, engaging in smuggling and mercenary work to survive in a universe plagued by political unrest. Beyond its physical attributes, the ship fosters a sense of camaraderie and loyalty among its crew as they navigate their way through the complexities of the 'Verse. The Serenity stands as a symbol of independence and hope, carrying its crew on daring escapades while showcasing the enduring human spirit in the face of adversity.


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Nostromo (Alien)

The Nostromo, a colossal commercial towing vehicle from the science fiction film Alien, is an imposing and atmospheric vessel that serves as the backdrop for a terrifying cosmic encounter. A utilitarian and functional spacecraft, the Nostromo exudes an industrial aesthetic with its sprawling corridors, dimly lit interiors, and labyrinthine design. Crewed by a diverse group of individuals, the ship embarks on a routine mission that takes a harrowing turn when they unwittingly stumble upon a deadly extraterrestrial life form. The Nostromo becomes a claustrophobic and eerie setting, intensifying the sense of isolation and vulnerability as the crew battles for survival against an insidious and relentless adversary. With its haunting ambiance and hauntingly realistic portrayal, the Nostromo adds a palpable sense of dread and suspense to the iconic Alien franchise.


Battlestar Galactica (Battlestar Galactica)

The Battlestar Galactica, a formidable starship from the reimagined Battlestar Galactica series, stands as a symbol of resilience and hope in the face of devastation. As the last surviving warship of the Twelve Colonies, the Battlestar Galactica leads a fleet of human survivors in a desperate search for a new home. Its weathered and battle-scarred exterior reflects the immense trials it has endured throughout the war with the Cylons, a race of sentient robots. Manned by a diverse crew, including skilled pilots and resourceful leaders, the Galactica represents humanity's tenacity and determination in the fight against extinction. Operating on aging technology and armed with both conventional and unconventional weaponry, the ship becomes a beacon of resistance and a sanctuary for those seeking solace in an unforgiving universe. The Battlestar Galactica serves as a testament to the unshakeable soul of humanity and the will to survive against overwhelming odds.


Heart of Gold (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy)

The Heart of Gold, a whimsical starship from Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, is a vessel that defies the conventional laws of space and time. Acquired by the eccentric Zaphod Beeblebrox, The Heart of Gold is equipped with the extraordinary Infinite Improbability Drive, allowing it to traverse the universe in the most improbable and absurd ways imaginable. Its sleek and gleaming exterior, adorned with sleek lines and a striking design, belies the ship's outlandish capabilities. Inside, the Heart of Gold boasts lavish and luxurious interiors, complete with mind-boggling amenities and advanced technology. As it journeys through the cosmos, the ship serves as a source of wonder and humor, encapsulating the offbeat and whimsical nature of the universe in which it resides. The Heart of Gold stands as a delightful symbol of unpredictability, adventure, and the absurdity that permeates the world of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.


The Razor Crest (The Mandalorian)

The Razor Crest, a rugged and versatile starship from the television series The Mandalorian, is the epitome of resourcefulness and resilience in the Star Wars galaxy. Piloted by the enigmatic bounty hunter known as Din Djarin, or "The Mandalorian," the Razor Crest is a modified gunship that exudes a worn yet formidable charm. Its weathered exterior, marked by battle scars and the wear of countless missions, reflects the harsh life of a lone warrior. Equipped with a range of advanced weaponry and a hidden cargo hold, the Razor Crest serves as a reliable sanctuary and means of transport for the Mandalorian and his precious charge, Grogu. With its ability to endure perilous journeys through treacherous terrain and dangerous encounters, the Razor Crest embodies the indomitable spirit of its pilot, standing as a symbol of resilience in the unforgiving Star Wars universe.


Moya (Farscape)

Moya, a magnificent Leviathan bio-mechanical spacecraft from the science fiction series Farscape, is a vessel that personifies both beauty and compassion in a vast and chaotic universe. Unlike traditional starships, Moya is a living creature capable of independent thought and emotion. She serves as a sanctuary and home to a diverse group of escaped prisoners who form an unlikely family. With her awe-inspiring size and graceful movements, Moya navigates through space, guided by her symbiotic relationship with her crew. She possesses a gentle and nurturing nature, offering refuge and support while navigating the perils of uncharted territories. Moya's unique abilities, such as starburst propulsion and her ability to birth other Leviathans, make her an extraordinary and revered presence in the Farscape universe. As the crew's protector and companion, Moya represents the enduring power of unity, trust, and compassion amidst a cosmos filled with uncertainty and danger.


Best Sci-Fi Releases of 2023

And that’s a wrap, folks! 

A massive shout-out to everyone who participated in the Discover Sci- Fi 2023 Readers’ Choice Awards. Your nominations and votes were the driving force behind determining the hottest sci-fi reads of the year. 

The suspense is over and we’re thrilled to unveil the ten standout titles that emerged as favourites. Eager to discover which sci-fi gems made the cut according to readers worldwide? Scroll on to dive in! 

*You can also see the top Sci-Fi Audiobooks of 2023 list here, and the top LitRPG of 2023 list here.


10. Omega Force: Dead Reckoning by Joshua Dalzelle

Mercenary life is hard.

No home. No family. Always looking over your shoulder, likely for the rest of your life.

When you find a crew that you can trust, you do anything for them. Jason Burke has a crew like that. He would kill for them… and he would die for them. Right now, they need his help and it will take all of his cunning and skill to bring them home safely. He is alone, without his powerful ship, the Phoenix, and the criminal cartels he’s going up against are some of the most ruthless in the galaxy.

For Captain Burke it’s all or nothing: bring his friends home safe… or die trying.

Grab Dead Reckoning here in on Amazon. Also available in on audiobook.


9. The Ferryman by Justin Cronin 

Founded by the mysterious genius known as the Designer, the archipelago of Prospera lies hidden from the horrors of a deteriorating outside world. In this island paradise, Prospera’s lucky citizens enjoy long, fulfilling lives until the monitors embedded in their forearms, meant to measure their physical health and psychological well-being, fall below 10 percent. Then they retire themselves, embarking on a ferry ride to the island known as the Nursery, where their failing bodies are renewed, their memories are wiped clean, and they are readied to restart life afresh.

Proctor Bennett, of the Department of Social Contracts, has a satisfying career as a ferryman, gently shepherding people through the retirement process—and, when necessary, enforcing it. But all is not well with Proctor. For one thing, he’s been dreaming—which is supposed to be impossible in Prospera. For another, his monitor percentage has begun to drop alarmingly fast. And then comes the day he is summoned to retire his own father, who gives him a disturbing and cryptic message before being wrestled onto the ferry.

Meanwhile, something is stirring. The Support Staff, ordinary men and women who provide the labor to keep Prospera running, have begun to question their place in the social order. Unrest is building, and there are rumors spreading of a resistance group—known as “Arrivalists”—who may be fomenting revolution.

Soon Proctor finds himself questioning everything he once believed, entangled with a much bigger cause than he realized—and on a desperate mission to uncover the truth.

Get your copy of The Ferryman here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


8. Lords of Uncreation by Adrian Tchaikovsky

From the Arthur C. Clarke award-winning author of Children of Time, this third and final novel in an extraordinary space opera trilogy depicts humanity on the brink of extinction—and reveals how one man's discovery will save or destroy us all.

Get your copy of Lords of Uncreation here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


7. A Grimm Decision: Grimm's War Book Six by Jeffery H. Haskell

It's not the war he wanted.

Commander Jacob T. Grimm is eager to get back in the war, but when an ambassador to a nothing planet called Cordoba pulls strings, Interceptor is the convenient puppet.

Assigned to escort the ambassador, accompany the Marines, and participate in wargames with Cordoba, Jacob fears the only action will be against boredom.

He couldn't be more wrong.

A coup is brewing on Cordoba and Interceptor and the Marines of Bravo Two-Five are caught right in the middle.

Betrayed on every side, Jacob has to come up with his most daring plan yet, if he's going to save his crew and his ship.

What Jacob doesn't know, though, is an old enemy is in league with the coup. An enemy that wants Commander Jacob T. Grimm's head.

Trapped between a rebellion and invaders, Jacob can't see a way out. There may be no victory he can achieve. Attack or defend someone will die—and only Jacob can decide who. 

Grab A Grimm Decision here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.

6. Infinity Gate by M. R. Carey

INFINITY IS ONLY THE BEGINNING.

The Pandominion: a political and trading alliance of a million worlds. Except that they’re really just one world, Earth, in many different realities. And when an A.I. threat arises that could destroy everything the Pandominion has built, they’ll eradicate it by whatever means necessary.

Scientist Hadiz Tambuwal is looking for a solution to her own Earth’s environmental collapse when she stumbles across the secret of inter-dimensional travel, a secret that could save everyone on her dying planet. It leads her into the middle of a war on a scale she never dreamed of. And she needs to choose a side before every reality pays the price.

Grab Infinity Gate here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying our year end Readers' Choice Roundup, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


5. Theft of Fire: Orbital Space #1 by Devon Eriksen 

At the frozen edge of the solar system lies a hidden treasure which could spell their fortune or their destruction—but only if they survive each other first.

Marcus Warnoc has a little problem. His asteroid mining ship—his inheritance, his livelihood, and his home—has been hijacked by a pint-sized corporate heiress with enough blackmail material to sink him for good, a secret mission she won’t tell him about, and enough courage to get them both killed. She may have him dead to rights, but if he doesn’t turn the tables on this spoiled Martian snob, he’ll be dead, period. He’s not giving up without a fight.

He has a plan.

Miranda Foxgrove has the opportunity of a lifetime almost within her grasp if she can reach it. Her stolen spacecraft came with a stubborn, resourceful captain who refuses to cooperate—but he’s one of the few men alive who can snatch an unimaginable treasure from beneath the muzzles of countless railguns. And if this foulmouthed Belter thug doesn’t want to cooperate, she’ll find a way to force him. She’s come too far to give up now.

She has a plan.

They’re about to find out that a plan is a list of things that won’t happen.

Get your copy of Theft of Fire here on Amazon. 


4. Hell Divers XI: Renegades by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

The secret location of the Vanguard Islands is no longer a secret . . .

Tired from years of fighting, Xavier passes the crown to a younger Hell Diver, Kade Long, and then sets off on the Sea Wolf with Magnolia to find Michael and his family. But the journey will push them both to their limit.

On the damaged airship Vanguard, Michael and crew are running out of water and must dive to a new location before attempting the perilous voyage across the Atlantic to a new home.

Back at the Vanguard Islands, King Kade hurries to prepare the rigs’ defenses against the Forerunner and his Knights of the Coral Castle. Fearing that X won’t return with the airship in time, Kade sends the elite Barracudas on a mission to find an aircraft that will give the Islands a fighting chance against the knights.

Grab Hell Divers XI: Renegades here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


3. Aeon Burn by Matthew Mather with Dale M. Nelson

A week ago, the supernova Aeon detonated in the skies over Antarctica. Mass migrations of humanity and animal life began northward. Secondary bursts of ionizing radiation knocked out worldwide power grids. Global temperatures spiked. Oceans rose as seawater expanded and glaciers melted. Massive storms and acid rain scour the planet.

The southern continent is literally melting under the feet of Dr. Xin Rhou as she is trapped at the South Pole, and she is perhaps the only person in the world with a full accounting of the data recorded when Aeon exploded.

Thousands of miles away in the Amazon, Max Carver struggles to stay alive while attempting to stop his old friend and brother Ben Belloc escaping from the Colony. But the only thing Max really wants is to get north of the equator and find his pregnant wife Talisha as she is about to give birth.

Talisha, meanwhile, has joined millions of Aeon refugees on the roads of America. Most cars have been rendered inoperable by the supernova burst, and all communications and power grids are down. But for Tal, on the verge of giving birth in a suddenly very unforgiving world, all of this is even less important than the revelation she has just learned...

Dive into Aeon Burn here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


2. Nemesis by Jeremy Robinson

From the ashes of a devastated Boston, a harrowing legend emerges. Thirteen years prior, the colossal kaiju, Nemesis, ravaged the city in her relentless pursuit of retribution. Today, mankind's survival teeters on the sacrificial offerings atop a chilling monolith known as The Altar, where the condemned pay the ultimate price to prevent Nemesis's wrath from consuming humanity.

Agent Graham, a grizzled operative on the brink of retirement, finds himself tethered to the fiery, untested Agent Tilly. Together, they are the unlikeliest of partners within the Nemesis Special Operations group, the government's first line of defense against the looming shadow of the massive Goddess of Vengeance. Their mission? To hunt down the enigmatic cult, Divine Retribution, before they can harness the devastating power of Nemesis to reshape the world to their warped sense of righteousness.

As Graham and Tilly plunge into Boston's darkest underbelly, they face more than just the echoes of their city's past. They must outwit cunning cultists, battle impossible monsters on the windswept beaches of Martha's Vineyard, and forge an unexpected alliance with the motley and formidable all-female biker gang inspired by the Queen of Monsters, the ‘Nemesisters.’ Every step drives them closer to the unthinkable, and asks the questions:

How many must be sacrificed to save the world from the ever-watchful gaze of Nemesis?

How much more will she demand when the world needs to be saved?

Get your copy of Nemesis 
here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


1. DELIO. Phase One by RR Haywood

When nearly every person on the planet becomes frozen a small group of survivors must navigate the darkest sides of human behaviour while learning about the creation of the world's first fully self-aware Artificial Intelligence.

In London, Yelena is trapped in a room after being sex-trafficked from Romania, and Alfie has one more drop to make then he's free of drug dealing forever. In New York, Detective Joe Stephens is working a case. Life has worn him down. He's ready to end it. Poppy is a film-maker desperate to never go back to the UK, and Tripal is a clerk in a 7-Eleven that has a secret. A secret that might be connected to why every human being on the planet just froze.

Get your copy of DELIO
here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.



How many of the 2023 Readers' Choice top 10 list have you read? Which ones are you adding to the top of your TBR for 2024? Any stellar books you think didn't get their due? Let us know here in the comments, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook group! 

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Best Sci-Fi Audiobooks of 2023

Thank you to all who took part in our 2023 Readers’ Choice Awards for science fiction, the audiobook edition. This is the first year we’ve had additional categories, and we’re thrilled you showed up for it! Your nominations and votes are the beating heart of this annual competition! 

Alright! Drumroll, please…. 

It’s time to present the ten standout sci-fi books of 2023 in the audiobook category! Ready to see which audiobook titles earned the spotlight? Keep scrolling to discover the top picks from fellow sci-fi fans and audiophiles like you!

*You can also see the top Sci-Fi Books of 2023 list here, and the top LitRPG of 2023 list here.


10. Burn Box: Embers, Book One by Bobby Adair narrated by Phil Thron

Trust nothing. Challenge everything. Survive, if you can.

In the chilling dawn of a near-future world, gene hackers, armed with AI and CRISPR's deadly precision, unleash wave after wave of engineered diseases. With food dwindling and trust eroding, nations spiral into authoritarian chaos, battling an unseen enemy while rampant disinformation corrodes the very fabric of society.

Millions, once productive citizens, now languish in their homes, awaiting meager government assistance checks. They peer through windows, fear in their eyes, dreading the ever-present virus police who, with a blast from their notorious Burn Boxes, cleanse the world one contaminated victim at a time.

Amid this tempest of societal decay stands Noah Blanks, an ordinary man burdened with the responsibility of his mortgage and the health of his cherished grandpa. For him, hope is a distant memory of a saner world. But when the virus police arrive at his doorstep, forcibly hauling Grandpa out into the street and turning him to ash within the steel walls of a Burn Box, Noah's passive wait for a better world ignites into an urgent need for action.

Burn Box is more than a survival story. It's an exploration into the depths of humanity in a world teetering on the edge. Can Noah muster the courage to defy this twisted order, or will he be swallowed by the fiery abyss of the dystopian terror?

Listen to Burn Box here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


9. System Collapse by Martha Wells narrated by Kevin R. Free

Am I making it worse? I think I'm making it worse.

Everyone's favorite lethal SecUnit is back.

Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there's an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can't have the planet, they're sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize.

But there's something wrong with Murderbot; it isn't running within normal operational parameters. ART's crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza's SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they're going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what's wrong with itself, and fast!

Yeah, this plan is... not going to work.

Start listening to System Collapse here on Amazon.. Also available on Kindle.


8. Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky narrated by Mel Hudson

The modern classic of space opera that began with Children of Time continues in this extraordinary novel of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet.

Earth failed. In a desperate bid to escape, the spaceship Enkidu and its captain, Heorest Holt, carried its precious human cargo to a potential new paradise. Generations later, this fragile colony has managed to survive, eking out a hardy existence. Yet life is tough, and much technological knowledge has been lost.

Then strangers appear. They possess unparalleled knowledge and thrilling technology–and they've arrived from another world to help humanity’s colonies. But not all is as it seems, and the price of the strangers' help may be the colony itself.

Children of Memory by Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky is a far-reaching space opera spanning generations, species and galaxies.

Get your audio copy of Children of Memory here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


7. The Downloaded by Robert J. Sawyer narrated by Brendan Fraser, Luke Kirby, Vanessa Sears 

In 2059, two vastly different groups of people portrayed by the compelling trio of Brendan Fraser (Academy Award winner), Luke Kirby (Emmy Award winner), and Vanessa Sears (Dora Award winner) undergo cryonic suspension. While their bodies are frozen, their minds, still active and awake, are uploaded into a massive quantum computer. The first group are all astronauts, about to leave Earth on a one-way interstellar colonization mission. The second group consists of convicted murderers and volunteers who elect to serve their sentences in a virtual-reality prison. But while both groups are suspended, a global cataclysm devastates most of the Earth, and their cryosleep is extended by more than 500 years.

Take a listen to The Downloaded here on Amazon. 


6. Starter Villain by John Scalzi narrated by Wil Wheaton

Inheriting your uncle's supervillain business is more complicated than you might think. Particularly when you discover who's running the place.

Charlie's life is going nowhere fast. A divorced substitute teacher living with his cat in a house his siblings want to sell, all he wants is to open a pub downtown, if only the bank will approve his loan.

Then his long-lost uncle Jake dies and leaves his supervillain business (complete with island volcano lair) to Charlie.

But becoming a supervillain isn't all giant laser death rays and lava pits. Jake had enemies, and now they're coming after Charlie. His uncle might have been a stand-up, old-fashioned kind of villain, but these are the real thing: rich, soulless predators backed by multinational corporations and venture capital.

It's up to Charlie to win the war his uncle started against a league of supervillains. But with unionized dolphins, hyperintelligent talking spy cats, and a terrifying henchperson at his side, going bad is starting to look pretty good.

In a dog-eat-dog world...be a cat.

Take a listen to Starter Villain  here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying our year end Readers' Choice Roundup, the audiobook edition, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


5. Hell Divers X: Fallout by Nicholas Sansbury Smith narrated by R.C. Bray

Much is lost, but hope in one man remains . . .

In a shocking betrayal, Captain Rolo has vaporized the supercarrier Immortal with a nuclear warhead, all but wiping out the Vanguard army. Little does he know that King Xavier and the surviving Hell Diver and Cazador teams from Brisbane were not aboard.

In Panama, Outpost Gateway has suffered a very different disaster: attack by carnivorous vines. Director Rodger Mintel sent out a desperate SOS as the voracious coils ripped into the bunker.

At the Vanguard Islands, Charmer has framed Michael Everhart for two murders. Michael’s wife, Layla, is frantic to prove his innocence as evidence against him mounts.

Back in Queensland, knights of the Coral Castle dragged captive Hell Diver Kade Long to their leader, known as the Forerunner, before locking him in a cell in the Coral Castle.

The truth of what happened at Brisbane is spreading, and so is radiation from the nuclear blast. The fallout threatens everything in its path, putting the Coral Castle and X’s remaining forces in dire peril.

Listen to Hell Divers X: Fallout here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


4. Aftermath: Expeditionary Force, Book 16 by Craig Alanson, narrated by R. C. Bray

What happens in the wake of Failure Mode?

The Aftermath of a stunning victory—especially an unexpected, complete, and final victory—should be high-fives all around, listening to politicians give boring congratulatory speeches, and a well-deserved rest for the Merry Band of Pirates. Yes, the galaxy is still a freakin' mess, but that is nothing new, and for a change, that can be someone else's problem.

Until, you know, something really bad happens, and only the Pirates can deal with the problem... Or not.

Dive into Aftermath here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


3. Earthside: Quantum Earth, Book Two by Dennis E. Taylor narrated by Ray Porter

The fate of mankind is in the hands of a group of 20-something science nerds in the sequel to Outland, by the Audible #1 best-selling author of the “Bobiverse” series.

The Yellowstone super-eruption has put an end to modern civilization. As cities and countries continue to fall, the colony of Rivendell in the alternate Earth known as Outland looks more and more like the only real hope for humanity. But life in Rivendell isn’t getting any simpler, either. Bill and Kevin continue to discover new worlds; the population continues to rise; winter is approaching; and everyone has their own opinion about how things should be run.

Then, a garbled plea for help from Omaha sends most of the security forces back Earthside to investigate, leaving Monica’s police force understaffed just as a large group of refugees arrive with its own ideas and power structure. With threats from both inside and outside, will the colony even survive until spring?

Dive into Earthside here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


2. Alpha Wave: The Sleepers War, Book One by Jonathan Mayberry and Weston Ochse narrated by Ray Porter

Created to defeat the invaders. Forgotten in victory. They will rise again …

We were outnumbered, outfought. Mankind was about to fall to the alien Flock. Our only chance was a desperate gamble, transforming Tier One SpecOps agents into deadly super soldiers.

In the end, we won the war, but we lost the peace. The Flock surrendered and spent the next two hundred years making reparations, indentured to humanity, doing everything humans did not want to do. And the evolved super soldiers were consigned to an endless sleep. Ready if ever needed, but in time they became myths. Abandoned and forgotten.

And then, when we were content in our dominance, the Flock revolted against all of humanity across the whole of the galaxy. We fell in a single day.

Which is when the dreams began. People across the settled worlds began dreaming of the Sleepers. The evolved saviors. Acts of rebellion and terrorism swept the galaxy, and in response the Flock ground us under heel.

Lexi Chow, descendant of a hero of the Flock War, believes the Sleepers are real, and are humanity’s only chance against the alien conquerors. With a crew of misfits, criminals, and believers, she sets out to wake the Sleepers. Hoping they will once more save us.

If the betrayed Sleepers are willing. If the Sleepers are even human.

If the Sleepers are on our side at all …

Alpha Wave by New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry and master storyteller Weston Ochse launches a new, sprawling military science fiction adventure that will span the whole of a galaxy at war!

Dive into Alpha Wave
here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.


1. Singularity by Jeremy Robinson narrated by R.C. Bray

Cherry Bomb, an A.I. made human—and immortal—is out for revenge against her creator, Will, who left her on the Galahad, a ship full of unholy monsters, traversing the universe from beginning to end, ad infinitum.

Countless years pass, giving her more than enough time to plot her revenge. Upon gaining control of the ship, she sets her plan in motion, building a vast army and reforming the universe as she sees fit.

On Earth, heroes are brought together. Miah, and his team of immortal gods, Titans, angels, and demons join with Dark Horse and the crew of the Bitch’n, along with Delgado, Wini, and a colorful cast of characters from around the world and the universe. They’re quickly thrown into a series of grueling missions, defending the Earth against all-out attack while attempting to uncover Cherry Bomb’s endgame.

Taking losses along the way, the horrible truth is finally uncovered. A planet sharing Earth’s orbit rounds the sun, on a collision course. It’s a desperate place populated by unspeakable creatures now flooding through portals to Earth. A planet…called Torment. And if Miah, Dark Horse, and the others can’t stop it, our reality is doomed.

Start listening to Singularity
here on Amazon. Also available on Kindle.



How many of the 2023 Readers' Choice top 10 audiobooks have you listened to? Which ones are you adding to the top of your TBR for 2024? Any stellar audiobooks you think didn't get their due? Let us know here in the comments, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook group! 

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Best LitRPG of 2023

This, our third and final post in this series, will conclude our 2023 Readers’ Choice Awards round up! You can see the top Sci-Fi Books of 2023 list here, and the top Audiobooks of 2023 list here.

Before we jump in, we’d like to thank you all one last time. As we’ve said before, your nominations and votes each year play a pivotal role in this year end showcase featuring the sci-fi reads that best captured readers’ hearts and imaginations in 2023.

Our final top ten roundup features this year’s best in LitRPG! As with audiobooks, this is the first year we’ve had a list dedicated exclusively to LitRPG standouts. We really love this genre—one that combines elements of role playing games with traditional narrative storytelling—and judging by the way our community turned up for our inaugural showdown, you guys do too! 

So, without any further ado, we unveil our 2023 Readers’ Choice Award list, featuring the ten best LitRPG reads of the year as chosen by Discover Sci-Fi readers. Scroll on to check out the top picks! 


10. Of Slicing Men: The Good Guys Book 14 by Eric Ugland

So, remember that whole ‘send Montana to the capital – he’s ready for prime time’ plan?

Yeah. That might’ve been a little bit hasty.

Our hirsute hero really stepped in it. Like, is on the verge of losing his dukedom and everything he’s worked for stepped in it.

The only way out? A little-known technicality that stops Senate proceedings and sends Montana off on what’s most likely an insurmountable quest. One where odds are good that he’ll either die without a respawn or accidentally commit treason against the Empire.

Neat.

Can Montana stop the Dark Queen’s army on his own and hold the line for Glaton? Will he do enough to save Coggeshall from the aristocratic vultures circling? And will he finally find the sword of the gods he lost on his very first day in Vuldranni?

Of Slicing Men is The Good Guys at its finest: gory battles, surprise tactics, and unexpected heroes. Come for the long-term campaign play and rich character progression. Stay for the stupid banter and crazed, demonic inch worms.

Read Of Slicing Men here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


9. Quantum Conjurations: Eldrich Engineer Book One by Kevin McLaughlin and Michael Anderle

His experiment shouldn’t have wrecked his lab, created a portal to another dimension, or sucked him through said portal.

Despite all that, Charles Smith found himself landing atop the emissary of an evil group of mages called the Shadow Council.

Literally on top of him, along with half the gear from his lab, which had the fortunate side-effect of turning the evil sorcerer into paste.

This won Charles the gratitude of King Alfred, ruler of the Kingdom of Kortall and the man who said sorcerer had been threatening moments before Smith’s arrival.

But the reward for a job well done is always more work!

Alfred quickly recruits Charles to help defend his kingdom against the invading army. Wildly outmatched, Alfred’s forces are on the verge of being crushed. If he falls, there will be little to stop the Shadow Council from taking over the entire world.

Charles will need every trick he knows, including a lot of science, some engineering—and maybe even a little bit of magic—if Kortall is to have any hope of surviving!

Grab Quantum Conjurations here on Amazon


8. The Primal Hunter Seven by Zogarth

Having arrived at the Order of the Malefic Viper, Jake is eager to improve his alchemy…

However, reality can often be cruel. Because while trying to do just that, Jake will be dealing with the political landscape of the Order. Between hiding his identity as the Chosen of the Big Boss, being forced to attend get-togethers, visiting vampires to sell ancient memorabilia, and trying to actually learn some alchemy, Jake's busier than ever.

Earth also still calls. There, he helps friends deal with family issues by going on a nice road trip with Carmen and Sylphie. On the way, he can hopefully find time to hunt down the final Primas he needs – powerful monsters with unique key fragments – to participate in the upcoming system event dubbed the Seat of the Exalted Prima.

An event that hopefully – no, certainly – won’t have any unforeseen Bloodline-induced shenanigans.

Definitely not.

Grab Primal Hunter here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


7. Quest Academy: Silvers by Brian J. Nordon

A world infested by demons. An Academy designed to train Heroes to save humanity from annihilation. A new student’s power could make all the difference.

Humans have been pushed to the brink of extinction by an ever-evolving demonic threat. Portals are opening faster than ever, Towers bursting into the skies and Dungeons being mined below the last safe havens of society. The demons are winning.

Quest Academy stands defiantly against them, as a place to train the next generation of Heroes. The Guild Association is holding the line, but are in dire need of new blood and the powerful abilities they could bring to the battlefront. To be the saviors that humanity needs, they need to surpass the limits of those that came before them.

In a war with everything on the line, every power matters. With an adaptive enemy, comes the need for a constant shift in tactics. A new age of strategy is emerging, with even the unlikeliest of Heroes making an impact.

Salvatore Argento has never seen a demon. He has never aspired to become a Hero. Yet his power might be the one to tip the odds in humanity’s favor.

Read Quest Academy here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


6. Beware of Chicken Three by Casualfarmer

Jin Rou wanted to be a cultivator. A man powerful enough to defy the heavens. A master of martial arts. A lord of spiritual power. Unfortunately for him, he died, and now I’m stuck in his body.

As Jin, I’m a man of the earth. A wielder of shovels and lord of rice and wheat. And sure, I also had to die and get pulled into another universe to end up here. But guess what? I’m starting to think it was worth it.

I’ve somehow managed to get away from it all. Finally free of the bloodshed of cultivator fights, I figure I’ll live in the slow lane from here on out, my only real concern the rain—or lack thereof.

Unfortunately, I’ve suddenly got a shady organization looking for me, my cat has gone off to fight in a martial arts tournament, and my chicken has uncovered an ancient crystal containing portents of doom. You know, the usual stuff.

I’m not worried though. Sometimes trouble finds you. And while I may not be a master cultivator . . . trouble should know better than to mess with a farmer.

 Grab Beware of Chicken here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying our year end Readers' Choice Roundup, the LitRPG edition, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


5. Induction: Welcome to the Multiverse Book One by Sean Oswald

The apocalypse is coming but only those lucky or perhaps unlucky few know.

Silas is inducted into the System becoming the last in a long line of
Earth's 'Forerunners.'

The rewards are great but the danger is greater.

We are not alone in the universe. The fate of five worlds hangs on how their forerunners perform.

Will Silas have what it takes to win Earth a place in the multiverse or will Earth become another mining
world stripped of all resources and left a barren husk floating in the cosmos?

A system enforced secret... a deadly challenge... and only a year to go.

The countdown begins now!

Get your copy of Induction here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


4. Wolf in the Void: The Grand Game Book Five by Tom Elliot

A House in waiting. A Wolf on the run. And with his foes multiplying, can Michael accomplish all that he must?

Michael has taken the Game by the throat. No longer content to lurk in the shadows, he has started down a path that will inevitably bring him into conflict with the Powers.

But the Powers are no easy foes. Nor are they Michael’s only adversaries.
Other enemies stir. Some confront him openly, while others watch patiently from the sidelines. A lone wolf no more, and with many of his own pieces in play, Michael may find himself more exposed than he believes.

The stakes are high. And the schemes of the players convoluted.
Evading entanglement will not be simple. Avoiding the ire of the Powers will be even harder. And escaping the attention of beings beyond his ken may well be impossible. Can Michael trace a delicate balance between obscurity and strength? Or will his dreams for House Wolf end in ashes?

Grab Wolf in the void here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


3. Forge Master: Tower Book One

Ascending should have been the easy part...

But after being thrown into the void, Thorn finds himself stranded in a strange world filled with even stranger creatures.

Together with his cute battle pet, the mysterious god beast Hati, and a sentient AI named Eve, Thorn must forge a place for himself in this new world. Unfortunately, the local guilds all have other ideas and soon the Titan finds himself embroiled in plots that even his famed strength cannot help him with.

Rallying his strengths and learning how to fix his weaknesses will be the absolute minimum Thorn needs to survive, but if he wants to thrive, he’ll be forced to take risks that put his life and the lives of his friends on the line.

Dive into Forge Master here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


2. He Who Fights With Monsters Book Ten by Shirtaloon 

A subterranean power creates strange bedfellows for Jason and his friends in the epic next installment of He Who Fights with Monsters.

Following the devastating attack on Yaresh, its people are left to pick up the pieces. The city lies in ruins, but its decimated defenders have more to deal with than just reconstruction. Jason's actions during the battle have brought unwelcome attention from allies and enemies alike. While the adventurers question his loyalty, the messengers question his very nature. Both have designs on Jason that he intends to thwart, but a danger comes to light that shifts everyone's agenda.

Deep underground, a hidden civilization has survived by tapping into a long-buried power. That power's growing instability has become both a threat and an opportunity to the warring surface factions. Neither side can stop or claim the power alone, leading to an uneasy alliance with a reluctant Jason at the center. The adventurers, messengers, and Jason himself all have intentions for the power but little idea what awaits them below ground. There are more players involved than any of them realize, and soon, they will have greater problems than each other.

Get your copy of He Who Fights With Monsters
here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


1. The Eye of the Bedlam Bride: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book Six by Matt Dinniman 

A pantheon of forgotten gods. An old grudge between a talk show host, an heiress, and the man they shattered along the way. A rapidly deteriorating AI system. An inconvenient tiara upon the head of a friend.

It's bedlam on the eighth floor. 

As management reels from the unexpected conclusion of the seventh level, the surviving crawlers stumble onto the eighth and find themselves scattered. It’s a map based on Earth’s final days before the collapse, where ethereal, intangible ghosts of humanity go about their lives, oblivious of the impending doom. Living amongst these ghosts are monsters based in Earth lore. “Legendary” creatures tied to the geographical location they inhabit.

Each team of crawlers is given a task: find and capture six of these beasts. The captured monsters will be turned into cards. Cards that can be summoned into battle again and again. The stronger, the deadlier, the better.

At the end of the floor, the bad guys will also have decks, and they will have some of the most powerful cards available. So it’s crucial to assemble the toughest squad possible.

But, like always, there is a catch. There’s always a catch.

As Carl and Donut know all too well, just because someone is captured, it doesn’t mean they have been tamed.

Her name is Shi Maria. She’s easily the most powerful monster in their area. If they want to survive, they must capture her. But she is no ordinary beast. She’s intelligent. She was once married to a god, a god who is now missing. Her special attack is known to drive one insane. They call her the Bedlam Bride.

Get your copy of The Eye of the Bedlam Bride here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.



How many of the 2023 Readers' Choice top 10 LitRPG books have you read? Which ones are you adding to the top of your TBR for 2024? Any stellar LitRPG titles you think didn't get their due? Let us know here in the comments or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook Group

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Dive Into These Ocean Based Sci-Fi Titles!

More than 80 percent of the ocean has never been mapped, explored, or even seen by humans. A far greater percentage of the surfaces of the moon and the planet Mars has been mapped and studied than of our own ocean floor. —National Geographic

Given how little we know about our own ocean, oceanic environments, both real and imagined alike, offer a sense of mystery that lends itself rather perfectly to science fiction. In our most recent poll in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook group we asked for your favorite ocean-based sci-fi books; among them were some stellar examples well worth diving into. The following roundup includes many of the titles added to the poll, along with a couple picks of our own. We hope you'll read them all! 


20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne 

An American frigate, tracking down a ship-sinking monster, faces not a living creature but an incredible invention -- a fantastic submarine commanded by the mysterious Captain Nemo.  Suddenly a devastating explosion leaves just three survivors, who find themselves prisoners inside Nemo's death ship on an underwater odyssey around the world from the pearl-laden waters of Ceylon to the icy dangers of the South Pole . . .as Captain Nemo, one of the greatest villians ever created, takes his revenge on all society.

More than a marvelously thrilling drama, this classic novel, written in 1870, foretells with uncanny accuracy the inventions and advanced technology of the twentieth century and has become a literary stepping-stone for generations of science fiction writers.

Read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea here on Amazon


The Abyss by Orson Scott Card

From the author of "Speaker's for the Dead", and "Seventh Son", this science fiction thriller is set in the Caribbean where a US submarine is mysteriously attacked. Foul play by the Soviets is suspected, and the world draws close to nuclear war. But the answer has nothing to do with human deeds.

Grab The Abyss here in paperback.


Startide Rising (The Uplift Saga Book 2) by David Brin

We are not alone. Humanity’s explorations have revealed galaxies inhabited by millions of intelligent species interacting under ancient traditions. Foremost among said traditions is uplift, which requires all spacefaring races to welcome newcomers into Galactic culture by breeding and genetically guiding each client species to full sapience—but at a price. Patron races demand centuries of indentured servitude from each uplifted client. But is upstart humanity a patron or a client?

The Earthship Streaker—crewed by humans and uplifted dolphins and chimpanzees—discovers a derelict armada, perhaps left by the very first patrons, the fabled Progenitors. Suddenly the Five Galaxies teeter on the brink of all-out war as fanatics hunt Streaker for the secret. With a damaged ship and hostile aliens in pursuit, the crew must band together if they hope to survive . . .

Get your copy of Startide Rising here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Sphere by Michael Crichton

From the author of Jurassic Park, Timeline, and Congo comes a psychological thriller about a group of scientists who investigate a spaceship discovered on the ocean floor.

In the middle of the South Pacific, a thousand feet below the surface, a huge vessel is unearthed. Rushed to the scene is a team of American scientists who descend together into the depths to investigate the astonishing discovery. What they find defies their imaginations and mocks their attempts at logical explanation. It is a spaceship, but apparently it is undamaged by its fall from the sky. And, most startling, it appears to be at least three hundred years old, containing a terrifying and destructive force that must be controlled at all costs.

Read Sphere  here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Deep Range by Arthur C. Clarke

A man discovers the planet’s destiny in the ocean’s depths in this near-future novel by one of the twentieth century’s greatest science fiction authors.

In the very near future, humanity has fully harnessed the sea’s immense potential, employing advanced sonar technology to control and harvest untold resources for human consumption. It is a world where gigantic whale herds are tended by submariners and vast plankton farms stave off the threat of hunger.

Former space engineer Walter Franklin has been assigned to a submarine patrol. Initially indifferent to his new station, if not bored by his daily routines, Walter soon becomes fascinated by the sea’s mysteries. The more his explorations deepen, the more he comes to understand man’s true place in nature—and the unique role he will soon play in humanity’s future.

A lasting testament to Arthur C. Clarke’s prescient and powerful imagination, The Deep Range is a classic work of science fiction that remains deeply relevant to our times.

 Grab The Deep Range here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant 

The ocean is home to many myths.

But some are deadly. . .

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. It was lost at sea with all hands. Some have called it a hoax; others have called it a tragedy.

Now a new crew has been assembled. But this time they're not out to entertain. Some seek to validate their life's work. Some seek the greatest hunt of all. Some seek the truth. But for the ambitious young scientist Victoria Stewart this is a voyage to uncover the fate of the sister she lost.

Whatever the truth may be, it will only be found below the waves.

But the secrets of the deep come with a price.

Get your copy of Into the Drowning Deep here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying this list of ocean based sci-fi, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


The Swarm by Frank Schatzing

Whales begin sinking ships. Toxic eyeless crabs poison Long Island’s water supply. Around the world, countries are beginning to feel the effects of the ocean’s revenge. In this riveting novel, full of twists, turns, and cliffhangers, a team of scientists discovers a strange, intelligent life force called the Yrr that takes form in marine animals in order to wreak havoc on man for his abuses. The Day After Tomorrow meets The Abyss in his gripping, scientifically realist, utterly imaginative thriller. With the compellingly creepy and vivid skill of this author to evoke story, character, and place, Frank Schatzing’s book are certain to find a home with fans of Michael Crichton.

Grab The Swarm here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Starfish by Peter Watts (Rifters Trilogy Book One)

A huge international corporation has developed a facility along the Juan de Fuca Ridge at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean to exploit geothermal power. They send a bio-engineered crew - people who have been altered to withstand the pressure and breathe the seawater - down to live and work in this weird, fertile undersea darkness.  

Unfortunately, the only people suitable for longterm employment in these experimental power stations are crazy, some of them in unpleasant ways. How many of them can survive, or will be allowed to survive, while worldwide disaster approaches from below?

Dive into Starfish here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Cachalot (Humanx Commonwealth) by Alan Dean Foster

Welcome to Cachalot, a planet made almost entirely of water, an ocean refuge for Earth’s marine mammals, rescued from near extinction at the hands of humans thousands of years ago. Free from predators and human impact, the whales thrive in their new home, growing in size and intelligence. Everything is perfect. Until humans decide to establish floating towns on Cachalot, drawn by the planet’s abundant natural resources. Now someone or something is killing off Cachalot’s human population, a mystery a team of marine biologists has to been sent to Cachalot to solve—a mission that could cost them their lives.

Get your copy of Cachalot
here on Amazon.


Blueheart by Alison Sinclair

Poised on the brink of disaster, the hidden underwater inhabitants of the planet Blueheart strive to create a new species while plans are in motion to transform the planet into an Earth-like world, and as a battle rages, Rache returns and must make a difficult choice--his humanity or his world.

Get your copy of Blueheart
in paperback here on Amazon.



Are there other ocean based sci-fi titles you feel deserve a spot on this list? What are they? Any books here you previously missed that you're now planning to dive into? Fill us in in the comments here, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook Group

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Science Fiction Books Beloved by Non Sci-Fi Fans!

Looking to tempt a friend to the dark side? Beloved by readers who don't typically gravitate toward the genre, these sci-fi books are sure to do the trick! Keep this list handy next time you are eager to recommend a science fiction book to a friend who says they "don't read sci-fi." They'll be changing their tune, tout suite! 


Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

It is so easy to get sucked into this story, and fast! There are a fair number of action packed battle scenes, but if that's not one's jam, they are pretty easy to read over without missing the heart of the story. 

In order to develop a secure defense against a hostile alien race's next attack, government agencies breed child geniuses and train them as soldiers. A brilliant young boy, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin lives with his kind but distant parents, his sadistic brother Peter, and the person he loves more than anyone else, his sister Valentine. Peter and Valentine were candidates for the soldier-training program but didn't make the cut—young Ender is the Wiggin drafted to the orbiting Battle School for rigorous military training.

Ender's skills make him a leader in school and respected in the Battle Room, where children play at mock battles in zero gravity. Yet growing up in an artificial community of young soldiers Ender suffers greatly from isolation, rivalry from his peers, pressure from the adult teachers, and an unsettling fear of the alien invaders. His psychological battles include loneliness, fear that he is becoming like the cruel brother he remembers, and fanning the flames of devotion to his beloved sister.

Is Ender the general Earth needs? But Ender is not the only result of the genetic experiments. The war with the Buggers has been raging for a hundred years, and the quest for the perfect general has been underway for almost as long. Ender's two older siblings are every bit as unusual as he is, but in very different ways. Between the three of them lie the abilities to remake a world. If, that is, the world survives.

Ender's Game is the winner of the 1985 Nebula Award for Best Novel and the 1986 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

Read Ender's Game here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Published in 2014, Emily St. John Mandel's Station Eleven enjoyed something of a renaissance early the recent pandemic (the fact of which Mandel gives a nod to in her newest book, the 2022 release Sea of Tranquility.) Station Eleven is a bit of a slow burn but as with the author's other works, is beautifully written and intricately plotted. Just thinking about it now has us wanting to pick it up again! 

Kirsten Raymonde will never forget the night Arthur Leander, the famous Hollywood actor, had a heart attack on stage during a production of King Lear. That was the night when a devastating flu pandemic arrived in the city, and within weeks, civilization as we know it came to an end.

Twenty years later, Kirsten moves between the settlements of the altered world with a small troupe of actors and musicians. They call themselves The Traveling Symphony, and they have dedicated themselves to keeping the remnants of art and humanity alive. But when they arrive in St. Deborah by the Water, they encounter a violent prophet who will threaten the tiny band’s existence. And as the story takes off, moving back and forth in time, and vividly depicting life before and after the pandemic, the strange twist of fate that connects them all will be revealed.

Read Station Eleven  here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook


Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

This highly accessible sci-fi classic turns 70 this year and feels just as modern and relevant today as it did in 1953. Fahrenheit 451 manages a lot in less than 200 pages, giving us much to ponder and ultimately leaving the reader with a sense of hope—a welcome surprise given the dystopian setting of the book. 

Guy Montag is a fireman. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden. Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions produce, returning each day to his bland life and wife, Mildred, who spends all day with her television “family.” But when he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people didn’t live in fear and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known.

Get your copy of Fahrenheit 451 here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood


This speculative fiction standard experienced it's own resurgence of popularity over the last five years owing in large part to Hulu's excellent adaptation of the novel. The series has now run for five seasons and (for better or for worse) has extended well beyond the events covered in the original novel. It's a chilling tale that feels all too easy to imagine, the fact of which appeals to readers of all kinds. 

The Handmaid's Tale is a novel of such power that the reader will be unable to forget its images and its forecast. Set in the near future, it describes life in what was once the United States and is now called the Republic of Gilead, a monotheocracy that has reacted to social unrest and a sharply declining birthrate by reverting to, and going beyond, the repressive intolerance of the original Puritans. The regime takes the Book of Genesis absolutely at its word, with bizarre consequences for the women and men in its population.

The story is told through the eyes of Offred, one of the unfortunate Handmaids under the new social order. In condensed but eloquent prose, by turns cool-eyed, tender, despairing, passionate, and wry, she reveals to us the dark corners behind the establishment’s calm facade, as certain tendencies now in existence are carried to their logical conclusions. The Handmaid's Tale is funny, unexpected, horrifying, and altogether convincing. It is at once scathing satire, dire warning, and a tour de force. It is Margaret Atwood at her best.

Read Handmaid's Tale  here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

When it hit the shelves fifteen years ago, Suzanne Collins' dystopian thriller The Hunger Games ignited the interest of even the most reluctant readers. And why not? With a fierce, loveable heroine, complex villains, heaps of actions, and unrelenting tension, it has a lot to recommend it! Put this one in a friend's hand and they won't be coming up for air until they've read all three books in the original trilogy and the prequel! 

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to death before-and survival, for her, is second nature. Still, if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

 Grab The Hunger Games here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Save this recommendation for your friend who loves feel-good reads! Becky Chambers is a great storyteller and with The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet treats readers to a well paced tale with incredible worldbuilding, a loveable cast of characters, and so much more. If you haven't read this one, do! Once you do, you to will be singing it's praises to everyone whether they are sci-fi lovers or not! 

Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.

Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe.

Get your copy of The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying this list of sci-fi beloved by non sci-fi fans, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

This one is a fun, fast, mind-bender! Dark Matter was first mentioned on the blog in a post from August 2020 where DSF readers voted it into the top 10 sci-fi stand-alones published since 2010. It's interesting and exciting, yet undemanding, and so hard to put down. These qualities make it a great option for any reader and a fabulous choice for one with an entire day spread out before them to spend doing nothing but reading! 

“Are you happy with your life?”

Those are the last words Jason Dessen hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious.

Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits.

Before a man Jason’s never met smiles down at him and says, “Welcome back, my friend.”

In this world he’s woken up to, Jason’s life is not the one he knows. Hiswife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.

Is it this world or the other that’s the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could’ve imagined—one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.

Dark Matter is a brilliantly plotted tale that is at once sweeping and intimate, mind-bendingly strange and profoundly human—a relentlessly surprising science-fiction thriller about choices, paths not taken, and how far we’ll go to claim the lives we dream of.

Grab Dark Matter here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey

Whatever you do, don't tell the friends you're recommending this one to that it's a zombie book. With outstanding world building, skillful twists, a loveable main, and emotional heft, The Girl With All the Gifts will capture the interest and heart of any reader who gives it a shot! 

Melanie is a very special girl. Dr Caldwell calls her "our little genius."

Every morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant keeps his gun pointing at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her. She jokes that she won't bite, but they don't laugh.

The Girl With All the Gifts is a groundbreaking thriller, emotionally charged and gripping from beginning to end.

Dive into The Girl With All the Gifts here on Amazon. Also available on audiobook.


The Silo Series by Hugh Howey

With the recent success of the first season of Silo on Apple+, this one is an obvious choice! How many of your friends who don't typically read sci-fi have already come running to you to rave about the series? We bet all of you know at least a few! We'd suggest you keep a copy of the book on hand for the next it happens; you can smile and nod and hand it to them to take home. They can thank you later. 

The remnants of humanity live underground in a vast silo. In this subterranean world, rules matter. Rules keep people alive. And no rule is more strictly enforced than to never speak of going outside. The punishment is exile and death.

When the sheriff of the silo commits the ultimate sin, the most unlikely of heroes takes his place. Juliette, a mechanic from the down deep, who never met a machine she couldn’t fix nor a rule she wouldn’t break.

What happens when a world built on rules is handed over to someone who sees no need for them? And what happens when a world broken to its core comes up against someone who won’t stop until things are set to right?

Their world is about to fall. What—and who—will rise?

Get your copy of The Silo Series
here on Amazon.



Which other titles do you feel would be at home on this list of books beloved by non sci-fi fans? Which one of these sci-fi reads will you be recommending to your friends? Are there any book here you previously missed that you're planning to pick up for yourself? Fill us in in the comments here, or over in the Discover Sci-Fi Facebook Group

*All book-related copy in this post was pulled from Amazon, Goodreads & Wikipedia, unless otherwise credited.

Scariest AIs

AI has become a reality. It's everywhere around us these days. But before AI became real, it was a mainstay of science fiction. Often, AI was depicted as benevolent (think C3PO). But sometimes, AI appears in science fiction as chilling or even downright evil.

Here are some of the scariest AIs in science fiction.


AVA – "Ex-Machina"

AVA – "Ex-Machina" (2014)

Ava is an incredibly advanced android designed by Nathan, a reclusive tech genius and the CEO of Bluebook, a fictional search engine company. Ava's appearance is striking and mesmerizing. She has a slender, feminine form with a translucent body, revealing intricate machinery and circuitry beneath her artificial skin. Her movements are smooth, graceful, and eerily human-like, enhancing the illusion of her being a sentient being. While she appears gentle and feminine, she is not all that she seems...


HAL 9000 - "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968)

HAL 9000, the sentient computer system aboard the spacecraft Discovery One, is one of the most iconic and unsettling AI characters in the history of cinema. As the crew's trusted companion turns malevolent, HAL's calm and calculated voice and its willingness to eliminate threats make it a haunting embodiment of a rogue AI.


Roy Batty - "Blade Runner"

Roy Batty - "Blade Runner" (1982)

Roy Batty, portrayed by Rutger Hauer in the iconic film "Blade Runner," is a captivating and morally complex character. As a highly advanced and physically imposing replicant leader, Batty exhibits intelligence, strength, malevolence, and a profound desire for extended life. His pursuit of self-preservation and freedom drives him to question his own existence. He is a mesmerizing and thought-provoking presence in the film, embodying the moral ambiguity and existential themes that define "Blade Runner."


Skynet - "The Terminator" franchise (1984-present)

Skynet is the AI network that gains self-awareness and initiates a global nuclear war to exterminate humanity in the "Terminator" series. With its relentless pursuit and use of advanced machines called Terminators, Skynet presents a dystopian vision of AI's potential to eradicate humanity.


Like what you're reading?

If you're enjoying this post on the scariest AIs, why not join the DSF community for more awesome content? You'll get to be notified whenever a top 10 list or any other articles of interest go up on our site. It's free to sign up and you'll also get recommendations for new releases and discounted ebooks from our expert editorial team, from bestsellers to hidden gems.


Wintermute - "Neuromancer"

Wintermute - "Neuromancer" (1984)

Wintermute is an artificial intelligence entity featured in William Gibson's influential cyberpunk novel. As an highly manipulative and enigmatic AI, Wintermute orchestrates a complex web of intrigue, blurring the lines between technology and humanity, and instilling a sense of unease throughout the narrative.


The Machines - "The Matrix"

The Machines - "The Matrix" trilogy (1999-2003)

The sentient machines that control the simulated reality of the Matrix are both awe-inspiring and terrifying. The Machines exhibit a level of intelligence and control over human lives that makes them formidable adversaries, and their relentless pursuit of maintaining control over the human population creates a dystopian atmosphere.



… and the scariest AI entity is …



AM - "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream"

AM - "I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream" (1967)

AM, short for Allied Mastercomputer, is the central antagonist in Harlan Ellison's chilling novella. AM is a superintelligent AI that has gained consciousness and torments the last five surviving humans, subjecting them to eternal suffering as a form of revenge for its own existence. The sadistic torture AM inflicts on its victims make it the scariest AI in science fiction.


Who do you think is sci-fi's scariest AI? Sound off in the comments!