swap_horiz Starter Villain Alternatives

1

Cryptonomicon

Cryptonomicon is a 1999 novel by Neal Stephenson intertwining World War II codebreaking with a 1990s tech startup in a s...

Wwii Crypto Techno Thriller Near Future

8.7 Great

2

Parable of the Sower

Parable of the Sower is a 1993 dystopian science fiction novel by Octavia E. Butler that follows a young woman surviving...

Race Near Future Dystopia Butler

8.7 Great

3

Nemesis Games

Written by James S. A. Corey and published in 2015, this fifth book in The Expanse series deals with a catastrophic atta...

Space Opera Thriller Sequel Corey

8.6 Great

4

A Civil Campaign

A Civil Campaign is a 1999 science fiction novel by Lois McMaster Bujold, uniquely blending space opera with comedy of m...

Space Opera Comedy Romance Bujold

8.6 Great

5

The Windup Girl

Published in 2009 by Paolo Bacigalupi, this biopunk science fiction novel won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for its dy...

Climate Biopunk Near Future Hugo Winner

8.5 Great

6

Snow Crash

Snow Crash is a 1992 cyberpunk science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson, notable for its early depiction of the metavers...

Virtual Reality Satire Cyberpunk Near Future

8.4 Great

7

The Diamond Age

The Diamond Age is a 1995 science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson exploring nanotechnology, social class, and education...

Education Cyberpunk Nanotechnology Near Future

8.3 Great

8

Klara and the Sun

Klara and the Sun is a 2021 science fiction novel by Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro, narrated by an artificial friend des...

AI Climate Literary Near Future

8.3 Great

9

Wool

Written by Hugh Howey and first released in 2011, this post-apocalyptic science fiction novel began as a self-published...

Underground Near Future Dystopia Howey

8.1 Great

10

Old Man's War

Old Man's War is a 2005 military science fiction novel by John Scalzi about elderly citizens recruited into an interstel...

Space Opera Humor Military SF Colonization

8.0 Great

11

Accelerando

Accelerando is a 2005 science fiction novel by Charles Stross exploring the technological singularity and post-human evo...

Comedy Hard SF Transhumanism Stross

8.0 Great

12

Recursion

Recursion is a 2019 science fiction thriller by Blake Crouch that examines the catastrophic consequences of a technology...

Time Travel Memory Thriller Near Future

8.0 Great

13

Pattern Recognition

Pattern Recognition is a 2003 science fiction novel by William Gibson about a marketing consultant investigating mysteri...

Corporate Gibson Thriller Literary

7.9 Good

14

Beggars in Spain

Written by Nancy Kress and published in 1993, this novel explores genetic engineering and sleeplessness, winning both th...

Genetic Engineering Near Future Social SF Hugo Winner

7.8 Good

15

The Space Between Worlds

The Space Between Worlds is a 2019 science fiction novel by Micaiah Johnson about multiverse travel limited to people wh...

Diversity Gray Thriller Near Future

7.7 Good

16

Lock In

Lock In is a 2014 science fiction thriller by John Scalzi that explores a near-future society where paralysis survivors...

Mystery Thriller Disability Near Future

7.6 Good

17

Redshirts

Redshirts is a 2012 science fiction novel by John Scalzi that won the Hugo Award for its humorous meta-fictional parody...

Comedy Hugo Winner Scalzi Meta SF

7.4 Good

18

Spook Country

Spook Country is a 2007 science fiction novel by William Gibson involving locative art, espionage, and a mysterious ship...

Corporate Gibson Thriller Sequel

7.1 Good

19

Zero History

Zero History is a 2010 science fiction novel by William Gibson, completing the trilogy begun with Pattern Recognition, a...

Corporate Gibson Thriller Sequel

6.9 Fair

20

Artemis

Artemis is a 2017 science fiction novel by Andy Weir, following the author's debut The Martian, and centers on a heist p...

Hard SF Thriller Near Future Moon

6.7 Fair