Science fiction is books about imaginary worlds. This genre forces writers and readers to go beyond their own universe and most often deals with questions of morality, war, or family values.

The best science fiction works also provide insight into the consequences of innovation, showing the endless possibilities of what can happen when we push the boundaries of science. We bring to your attention a list of the best such books from the Reddit website. Do you agree with the opinion of site users? You can leave your answers in the comments.

1. Rise from the dust

The novel Rise from the Ashes describes a fairly simple idea: what will happen if everyone who has ever lived on Earth is resurrected? Farmer's masterpiece, which opens the World of the River series, tells the story of the interactions and adventures of both fictional characters and important historical figures.

2. Master of Torture

The Master of Torture is the first novel in Wolfe's Book of the New Sun series, featuring Severian, an apprentice of the Executioner's Guild. Severyan is sent into exile for the betrayal he committed when he helped his beloved woman commit suicide. Thus begins his journey, in which he seeks answers to questions about reality and common sense.

3. Anathem

Stevenson's novel Anathem is about a society that drives intellectuals into special monasteries to focus solely on research in the name of science. However, the boundaries between monasteries and secular society are gradually blurring in the course of an unforeseen crisis that can affect everyone.

4. Space Apocalypse

When wealthy archaeologist and scientist Dan Sylvest discovers in 2251 that ancient civilization on the planet Resurgem was mysteriously destroyed, he begins to fear that humanity will suffer the same fate.

Cosmic Apocalypse runs several storylines in parallel, some taking place years or even decades before others.

5. Left hand of darkness

Considered one of the first major novels of so-called female science fiction, The Left Hand of Darkness is about a man's attempts to convince a race of genderless aliens to join an intergalactic alliance.

The Gethenians described by Le Guin and their constantly cold planet Gethen (Gethen), which means "Winter" in translation, is a view of the world, devoid of the usual human duality.

6. I, robot

Perhaps fans of Will Smith will be interested to know about the original source: it was Asimov who wrote ten short stories about the futuristic relationship between robots and people.

Central to I, Robot is Asimov's three laws of robotics, a set of rules for ensuring safety in his fictional reality that the writer repeatedly uses in his other novels.

7 Sirens Of Titan

Perhaps the most famous work Vonnegut could be called "Slaughterhouse No. 5", but in second place would be the novel "Sirens of Titan": on Titan there is an alien who, by chance, decides on all events on planet Earth, from war to the establishment of moral principles, and becomes, in the end, , perhaps the purpose of the existence of mankind.

8. Contact

Years after his appearance on American TV screens on the PBS program Cosmos, Sagan published the novel Contact, in which the Earth receives several messages from extraterrestrial beings.

Many of the messages are written in international language mathematics, which allows people to communicate and, ultimately, interact with representatives of alien life.

9 Red Mars

In the first novel from the Mars cycle, humanity is just beginning to explore the Red Planet - Mars is subject to terraforming for subsequent colonization.

The entire trilogy spans a period of several centuries. The focus is on several dozen deeply developed characters. The book attempts to answer questions about the scientific, sociological, and possibly ethical implications of human exploration of Mars.

10 Pandora's Star

In a world where hundreds of planets are connected by a series of wormholes, astronomer Dudley Bowes discovers the disappearance of a pair of stars at a distance of a thousand light-years from Earth. The study of this phenomenon begins.

The book also describes some "guardians of individuality" - a cult that sabotaged Bowes' mission and manipulated an entity called Starflyer.

11. Midge in the eye of the Lord

In the year 3016, the Second Empire of Mankind spans hundreds star systems. This was made possible thanks to the invention of Alderson Drive technology, which makes it possible to overcome gigantic distances at speeds exceeding the speed of light. So far, mankind has never encountered a race of other intelligent beings.

And suddenly, an alien race was discovered near the distant star Mot. People are happy with the so-called Moties, but the Moties hide dark secret that dominated their civilization for millions of years.

12. Passion for Leibovitz

It's been 600 years since nuclear disaster. A monk from the Order of St. Leibovitz discovers the technology of a great saint, which may be the key to saving humanity - the rejection of bomb shelters and the basis for an atomic bomb.

The book tells about how humanity is re-selected from the dark ages, but then again faces the horrors of nuclear war.

13. Excession

Two millennia ago black Star called the Excession have mysteriously appeared at the edge of space. The star was older than the universe and mysteriously disappeared.

Now she's back, and the diplomat Bir Genar-Hofen must solve the mystery of the lost sun while his race is at war with a dangerous alien civilization.

14. Starship Troopers

Starship Troopers tells the story of Juan Rico, who decides to join the military forces of the Earth to fight against an alien enemy. The book tells about the rigorous training of soldiers in a military camp, as well as the psychological state of conscripts and fleet commanders.

One of the first great science fiction novels, Starship Troopers inspired many other writers to create military science fiction novels. For example, Heinlein's motives can be traced in Joe Haldeman's novel Infinity War.

15. Do androids dream of electric sheep?

Based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? filmed the cult film "Blade Runner". In 2021, after millions of people died during the world war, entire species of living beings were doomed to extinction. So all that is left is to create artificial copies of endangered species: horses, birds, cats, sheep ... and humans.

Androids are so natural that it is almost impossible to distinguish them from real people. But bounty hunter Rich Deckards is trying to do just that - hunt down the androids and then kill them.

16. World-Ring

Ringworld is the story of 200-year-old Louis Wu, who goes on an expedition to explore an unfamiliar world with his 20-year-old colleague Teela Brown and two aliens.

The book tells about their adventures in the Ring World - a huge mysterious artifact with a length of about 966 million km, orbiting a star, about how people try to uncover the secrets of this world - and escape.

17. 2001: A Space Odyssey

The best scientists of the Earth are collaborating in research with the ultra-modern computer "HAL 9000", but made in the image and likeness human brain the machine turns out to be capable of feelings of guilt, neurosis... and even murder.

18. Infinity War

Written by a Veteran Vietnam War As an allegory of the Vietnam War, Infinity War tells the story of a soldier, William Mandella, who is forced to join the army and leave Earth to fight the mysterious alien race of the Torans.

But due to time distortions, the journey of a soldier takes ten subjective years, while on Earth it takes as much as 700 years. And Mandella ends up returning to a completely different planet.

19. Avalanche

Hiro Protagonist may seem like nothing more than a pizza delivery man in futuristic Los Angeles, but in the Metaverse he is a famous hacker and samurai warrior.

When a new drug known as Avalanche starts killing his hacker friends in the Metaverse, Hiro must figure out where the dangerous drug came from.

20. Neuromancer

Case, a former hacker and cyber thief, has lost the ability to enter cyberspace. But one day, his abilities return to him as a result of a miraculous combination of circumstances. He is hired by a mysterious man named Armitage, but during the course of the mission, Case discovers that someone - or something - continues to pull the strings.

Neuromancer was the first novel to receive three main sci-fi awards: Hugo, Nebula and Philip K. Dick Awards.

21. Hyperion

The Hugo Award-winning novel is the first book in a series about seven travelers who travel to an alien planet to find a mysterious monster called the Shrike and save humanity from certain doom.

Rumor has it that if you stay alive after meeting with the Shrike, then one wish will be granted. The galaxy is on the brink of war and Armageddon, and the seven pilgrims are humanity's last hope.

22. Foundation

Foundation is set in a future so far away that humans have forgotten Earth and now live throughout the galaxy.

Everything seems to be fine, but scientist Harry Seldon predicts that the Empire is about to collapse, and humanity will roll back about 30 thousand years ago, into new dark ages. He comes up with a scheme to save the knowledge of the human race in an encyclopedia in order to re-create an empire.
over a number of generations.

23. Ender's Game

Andrew "Ender" Wiggin believes he was chosen to train to fight an alien race. He is trained to manage the fleet with the help of a computer game that simulates military operations. In fact, this boy is the military genius of the Earth, and it is he who will have to grapple with the "buggers".

In the first book in the Ender's Game series, Ender is only six years old, and we can learn about his first years of training.

24. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

In the first book in the series, Arthur Dent learns from his friend Ford Prefect, a secret employee of the company behind the interstellar guide book The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, that the Earth is about to be destroyed.

The friends escape in an alien spaceship, and the book follows their strange journeys through the universe. Also, the novel is filled with quotes from the guide itself, for example, "A towel is perhaps the most valuable thing for a hitchhiker."

25. Dune

No such list would be complete without a mention of Frank Herbert's Dune, which is to science fiction what The Lord of the Rings is to fantasy.

Herbert created a story about politics, history, religion and ecological systems feudal interstellar empire. Having fallen on the desert planet Arrakis, Paul Atreides turns into a mysterious religious figure - Muad'Dib. He intends to avenge the murder of his father, for which he unleashes a revolution, during which he rises to the imperial throne.

Global discoveries and changes in the genre of science fiction happen infrequently. However, in each period there are works that mark a certain stage in the development of the genre, either attract close attention from critics, or simply win reader recognition. Or both, and another, and the third combined.

We present the ten most striking and sensational sci-fi novels that appeared in the 21st century - according to the World of Science Fiction.

Robert Charles Wilson "Spin" (Spin, 2005)

The protagonist lives on the Earth of the future, which some kind of super-civilization surrounded by a barrier known as "Spin". Moreover, the course of time has changed behind the barrier: for earthlings, hours pass, in the Universe - millions of years. And, since the life of the Sun is limited, the current generation of people may be the last. Therefore, humanity is looking for a way to salvation ... This is both a large-scale sci-fi epic and the history of human relationships, Arthur Clarke and Robert Heinlein in one bottle. At the same time, the “scientific” nature of the book at times seems rather doubtful, but Wilson is good as a stylist and psychologist.

Max Brooks "World War Z" (World War Z, 2006)

A novel about the war of mankind with zombies that appeared on the planet because of an unknown virus. This is the story of an absolutely merciless war, when the enemy can become the most close person turned into a mindless cannibal. And in order to survive, you have to kill without any pity - even small children ... A very dark, cruel and frighteningly plausible book, a hybrid of a sci-fi catastrophe and a military chronicle.

Where can I buy?

Peter Watts"False Blindness" (Blindsight, 2006)

In 2082, humanity encountered aliens. To establish contact in the Oort cloud, beyond the orbit of Pluto, the Theseus ship was sent. However, contact with aliens turned out to be completely different from what people imagined it ... Peter Watts discarded all the First Contact schemes developed by science fiction writers and created his own version with an emphasis on achievements modern science. The novel is valuable Science fiction: inventing the world and plot, the author skillfully and competently uses ideas, concepts and terms from various scientific disciplines - from psychology and linguistics to biochemistry and cybernetics. It turned out to be an inventive "gymnastics for the mind", although the book lacks literary content, so not everyone will like it.

Where can I buy?

Andy Weir "The Martian" (The Martian, 2011)

SF masterpiece "close sight" about the space robinson Mark Watney - an American astronaut, who was forgotten by his comrades on Mars. Written in a realistic style, and even with humor, the book became a worldwide bestseller and the basis for the popular film by Ridley Scott.

Where can I buy?

China Mieville "Embassytown" (Embassytown, 2011)

In the distant future, humanity has colonized the planet Arieka, whose natives speak a unique language - only some specially “changed” people-ambassadors understand it ... The leader of the “new strange” wrote a novel in the spirit of Ursula Le Guin and with a special “linguistic” shade. The result is one of the brightest books of modern "humanitarian" science fiction.

Where can I buy?

Neal Stevenson "Anathem" (Anathem, 2008)

The action takes place in a parallel universe on the planet Arb, where scientists, united in a religious order, have isolated themselves in a monastery and protect knowledge from secular authorities. However, due to an alien threat, a group of monks leave the monastery and embark on a dangerous journey to save the world... Stevenson wrote a multi-layered work with a lot of references to world philosophy, which absorbed the themes and motifs of almost the entire SF of the last half century. In terms of scale and significance, it is somewhere on the level of Hyperion and Solaris.

Paolo Bacigalupi "Clockwork" (The Windup Girl, 2009)

A well-written cyberpunk dystopia. The paths of the main characters intersect in Thailand, which in the 24th century has become one of the most prosperous countries. The author managed to create a lively, vibrant world populated by realistic and carefully crafted characters. A world obsessed with ecology and actually abandoned progress. A world where resources are limited. The world of genetic engineering and the total domination of food corporations. In terms of ideas and atmosphere - a kind of "Neuromancer" inside out.

Where can I buy?

Ernest Kline Ready Player One (2011)

The year is 2044, an uncomfortable future whose inhabitants are hiding from real problems in the virtual world of the OASIS. Somewhere in the depths of the virtual utopia, its creator has hidden the key to his gigantic fortune, which is being sought by both individuals and entire corporations. And only connoisseurs of science fiction literature, cinema and video games of the 20th century will be able to find the "treasure" ... Fascinating post-cyberpunk - a bestseller composed by a geek for geeks.

The heroine named Brek is a fragment of the "collective mind" of the deceased military starship, living in human body. She accuses the immortal empress of betrayal and dreams of revenge ... The author created original world, populating it with colorful characters and inventing an inventive plot intrigue with many mysteries.

Every self-respecting book lover must have a personal list "Best Science Fiction Writers". If you don’t have this yet, then we suggest you pay attention to the following authors who are loved, appreciated, and their works are read all over the world.

Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov (1920 - 1992) American science fiction writer. Author of about 500 books, both fiction and popular science. Multiple winner of the Hugo and Nebula awards. Some terms from his works, such as robotics, robotics, positron, have entered English and other languages.

Best Books: The Gods Themselves, Foundation, End of Eternity, Bicentennial Man, I, Robot series, Foundation, Lucky Starr and others.

Alexander Belyaev

Alexander Romanovich Belyaev (1884 - 1942) - Russian science fiction writer, one of the founders of Soviet science fiction literature, wrote more than 70 science fiction works, including 13 novels. He is called the Russian Jules Verne.

Best Books: "Professor Dowell's Head", "Island of Lost Ships", "Amphibian Man", "Ariel", "CEC Star", "The Man Who Found His Face", "Heavenly Guest" and others.

Ray Bradbury

Ray Douglas Bradbury (1920 - 2012) was an American science fiction writer who wrote more than eight hundred works in his lifetime. His stories have been the subject of several film adaptations and theatrical productions.

Best Books: Fahrenheit 451, The Martian Chronicles, The Illustrated Man, Trouble Coming, Dandelion Wine, Thunder Came, Dark Carnival, Goodbye Summer! and others.

William Gibson

William Gibson (1948-…) - American science fiction writer. Many consider him the father of cyberpunk. After all, it was he who introduced the term “cyberspace” into science fiction, and also because of his novel Neuromancer, which was published in 1984 and sold more than 6 million copies.

Best Books: Trilogy "Cyberspace", "Bridge Trilogy", "Bigend Trilogy", "Difference Machine", a collection of short stories "Burning Chrome" and others.

Sergey Lukyanenko

Sergei Vasilyevich Lukyanenko (1968-...) is one of the most widely read Russian science fiction writers. The writer himself defines the genre in which he writes his novels as "Fiction of hard action" or "Fiction of the Way"

Best Books: series of novels "Patrols", "Borderland", "Island of Rus'", "Seekers of the Sky", "Line of Dreams", "Genome", "Labyrinth of Reflections", "Lord from Planet Earth" and others.

Larry Niven

Lawrence van Cott Niven (1938 - ...) - American science fiction writer. Multiple winner of the Hugo, Locus, Dietmar and Nebula awards. His work is fantasy, which combines serious science and theoretical conjectures. Elements of detective and adventure are often found in his works.

Best Books: series "World-Ring", "Integral Trees", "Make a Wish", "Defender", "Gift from the Earth", Calm in Hell and others.

Clifford Simak

Clifford Donald Simak (1894-1988) is considered to be one of the founders of modern American fiction. IN different time was awarded the Hugo and Nebula awards, Jupiter, Locus, Brem Stoker, as well as the title of "Grand Master".

Best books: "The City", "Ring Around the Sun", "Goblin Sanctuary", "The Werewolf Principle", "All Flesh Is Grass", "What could be simpler than time?", "Almost Like Humans" and others.

Robert Heinlein

Robert Anson Heinlein (1907-1988) was an American science fiction writer who made an invaluable contribution to the development of the science fiction genre. He is the only one to win five Hugo Awards, a multiple Nebula winner.

Best Books: cycle "History of the Future", "Stranger in a Strange Land", "Starship Troopers", "Farmer in the Sky", "The Man Who Sold the Moon", "Red Planet", "Double Star", "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" and others .

Arkady and Boris Strugatsky

The brothers Arkady and Boris Strugatsky are a famous tandem of writers. Their books are known not only in the CIS, but also far abroad. They also worked individually. The novels of the Strugatsky brothers are rightfully included in the world classics of modern science fiction. Each book by these authors is distinguished by depth and philosophy, which is sometimes lacking in novels of this genre.

Best Books: Roadside Picnic, Snail on the Slope, Lame Fate, Doomed City, It's Hard to Be a God, Monday Starts on Saturday, A Billion Years Before the End of the World, Waves Kill the Wind, and other.

Arthur Clark

Arthur Charles Clark (1917 - 2008) - English writer, scientist, futurist and inventor, and, of course, a cult science fiction writer. His work includes 22 novels, 3 cycles of novels, short stories and adaptations of his books.

Best Books:"Prelude to Space", "Sands of Mars", "The End of Childhood", "Songs of a Distant Earth", "Space Odyssey 2001" Cycle, "Rama" Cycle, "Odyssey of Time" Cycle and others.

Henry Kuttner

The American science fiction and humor writer Henry Kuttner (1915-1958) created works that are classics today. Henry's co-author was his wife Katherine Lucille Moore. Kuttner's books have been published under the pseudonyms Lawrence O'Donnell, Lewis Paget, Keith Hammond, and Will Garth.

Best Books: a series of stories "Hogbeny", the novel "The Dark World", "Fury. The world of darkness. Stories", "Sim Makes Sure", "Five Tales of Gallegher", "Housing", "Mutant", "Mask of Cercea" and others.

William Tenn

The science fiction writer Philip Klass published under the pseudonym William Tenn (1920-2010). The world learned about the talent of the writer after the publication of his first story "Alexander the Bait" in 1946. During a long writing career, Tenn wrote only 2 novels, preferring short stories. For merits in the field of science fiction, William Tenn has repeatedly received awards, including the prestigious Nebula, Locus and Hugo Awards.

Best Books: collections of stories "The Baldezhny Criterion", "Star Carousel", "Invasion" and others.

Vladimir Mikhailov

Mikhailov Vladimir Dmitrievich (1929-2008) - author of numerous works in the fantasy genre. Vladimir Mikhailov began to write humorous stories, but achieved popularity and recognition thanks to science fiction books. The author himself, dreaming of becoming a great poet all his life, considered science fiction a happy accident.

Best Books:"My Brother's Watchman", "People of the Land", "Permanent Krata", "Option I", "Special Necessity" and others.

Frank Herbert

American science fiction writer Frank Herbert (1920-1986) is known to the world, mainly thanks to the chronicles of "Dune". The cycle of these books brought the author awards in the form of the Hugo and Nebula literary awards. The author's first story was "Looking for something?", published in Startling Stories magazine.

Best Books:"Dune", "Dragon in the Sea", "God Makers", "Dosadi Experiment", "Under Pressure", "Hellstrom Hive" and others.

Ivan Efremov

Ivan Antonovich Efremov (1908-1972) - Soviet writer science fiction writer, paleontologist and thinker. Ivan's knowledge thanks to him creativity turned into wonderful works of literature. The minor planet Ephraimiana and the mineral efremovite are named after the author.

Best Books:"Andromeda Nebula", "Razor's Edge", "Star Ships", "Thais of Athens", "Ox Hour" and others.

Paul Anderson

Paul William Anderson (1926-2001) became interested in science fiction as a student. Anderson, one of the few writers who has received the title of "Grand Master of Fantasy" Hugo and has been awarded this Award 7 times. The author's debut took place in 1947 with the story "Children of Tomorrow".

Best Books:"Time Patrol", "Space Crusaders", "Operation Another World", "Long Way Home", "Queen of Winds and Darkness" and others.

Ursula Le Guin

The work of Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (1929-2018) is not limited to the science fiction genre. The writer created many children's works, poems and novels, was the author of fantasy books and literary critic. Le Guin wrote her first science fiction story at the age of 11 and continued to delight fans with new works, for many of which Ursula received prestigious awards.

Best Books:"Wizard of Earthsea", "Trilogy", "The Left Hand of Darkness", "Tomb of Atuan", "The Dispossessed", "Planet of Exile" and others.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

• Goodreads rating: 4.4.
• Awards: International Fiction Award for Fiction (1957), SFinks Award for Book of the Year (2000), Prometheus Award for Hall of Fame (2009).

Peter Jackson's Tolkien trilogy stands the test of time and sets the bar for fantasy fiction. The book is different from the film, so the reader will be pleased with many interesting details and unexpected plot twists.

The hobbit Frodo and his companions set off on a journey through the fairy-tale universe to destroy the Ring and restore peace on earth. Many dangers await them along the way, which will require great valor and courage from little hobbits.

• Goodreads rating: 4.2.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1966), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1965), SFinks Award for Book of the Year (2008).

The action takes place in the distant future, where social life and culture revolve around the "spice", there is a constant struggle for the extraction and use of this special substance. At first glance, it may seem that this is another story of the struggle between good and evil, nobility and selfish interests. However, the book is more polyphonic.

Herbert managed to create a kind of chronicle of the distant future, which explores the issues of politics, religion, ecology and technology, rightfully considered the most striking and original in history.

3. A Song of Ice and Fire, George Martin

• Goodreads rating: 4.4.
• Awards: Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Award - first two books (2001), Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Award - first three books (2002).

This rating would be incomplete without the saga about. The book allows you to follow the endless confrontation between the Starks and Lannisters without downloading the next season of the series. Magic, mystery, intrigue, passion, romance and adventure fill its pages and take the reader to a whole new world.

• Goodreads rating: 4.1
• Awards: Prometheus Award in the Hall of Fame category (1984).

Orwell succeeded in creating the antipode of the great, but not universally recognized, dystopia of the 20th century - Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. The author tries to answer the question, what is more terrible: an ideal consumer society or an ideal idea society? It turns out that there is nothing worse than complete lack of freedom in both the first and second cases.

Orwell predicted the total power of television, ubiquitous surveillance, and many other cultural phenomena that we see today. Therefore, the book has not lost its relevance over the years.

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1973), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1972), Locus Award for Best Novel (1973), Dietmar Award for "Foreign Fiction (USA, novel)" (1973).

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1974), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1973), Locus Award for Best Novel (1974), British Science Fiction Association Award for category "Best Novel" (1974).

The case when the novel received as many as seven prestigious awards in the field of science fiction (Lifehacker listed the most famous of them) and marked the beginning of a series of books by various authors that explore the relationship of earthlings with a different mind.

The action takes place in the near future. An unusually shaped asteroid is moving across the galaxy towards solar system. The crew of earthlings land on the surface of the asteroid and begin to collect data that only complicate the search for an answer to the main question: “Who and why created this hulk? ..”

• Goodreads rating: 4.5.
• Awards: Jules Verne Prize in the Novel (USSR) category (1979), Golden Graulli Prize in the Foreign Novel category (1981).

One of the few works of Russian-language science fiction that does not lose, but only gains popularity over time.

"Roadside picnic" is reflected in world culture. According to him, Andrei Tarkovsky shot his legendary film "Stalker". A few decades later, the story formed the basis of a computer game and became the beginning of a series of books that take place in the created fictional world.

After the aliens visited the Earth, Zones appeared on it, in which completely different laws of existence operate. The society turned out to be unprepared for the "gifts" of the aliens and is struggling to adapt to the new reality, following the few Stalkers.

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1987), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1986), Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1987), Academy of Science science fiction, fantasy and horror in the category "Best Foreign Book (USA)" (1995).

In Russian translation, the book is also known under the titles "Voice of those who do not exist" and "Herald of the Dead". This novel was a direct continuation of the novel "", which also won several literary awards and received a great response from fantasy lovers.

Earthlings meet another race of advanced beings. The differences between them are so great that it almost leads to a new conflict of civilizations.

• Goodreads rating: 4.1.
• Awards: Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel (2001), Hugo Award for Best Novel (2002), Nebula Award for Best Novel (2002), Locus Award for Best Novel (Fantasy)" (2002), Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Award in the category "Best Fantasy (UK/USA)" (2001).

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Governor General of Canada Literary Award in the category "Prose in English language" (1985), Los Angeles Times Book Award in the category " Fiction"(1986), Arthur C. Clarke Award in the category "Best Novel" (1987).

Another book based on which the popular was filmed. Margaret Atwood builds a pretty compelling panorama of a future that could come as early as tomorrow.

In the new world, women do not have the right to own property, work, love, read or write. They are here only for one thing - to give birth. And if some of them are not capable of this, she is left to work in hard labor until her death, which under such conditions comes earlier than usual. main character books - Fredov's servant - challenges the system, for which she has to pay.

• Goodreads rating: 4.1.
• Awards: New Dimension magazine award in the category " Best Book(UK / Sri Lanka)" (1968).

An example of how a book is born after the film of the same name - and finds its audience while living own life. Arthur Clark wrote his science fiction novel based on a screenplay he worked on with Stanley Kubrick. It is believed that the work was ahead of its time.

An unknown object has been discovered on the Moon that sends a powerful signal to. Scientists managed to find out that the signal goes towards one of the satellites of Saturn. The interplanetary ship "Discovery" is sent there to explore the unknown expanses ...

Buy a book

• Goodreads rating: 4.2.
• Awards: Prometheus Award in the Best Novel category (2012), Alex Award (2012).

In the not-too-distant future, when the world is going through another economic downturn and resource shortages, you can truly feel alive only in the virtual space where the representatives of humanity spend their days. Before death, the creator of this space makes up a series of the most difficult puzzles. The one who solves them first will inherit his huge fortune and power over the whole world. The protagonist decides to try his hand and begins to look for clues.

Today, the writer is working on a sequel, so readers will soon have the opportunity to find out what happened to their favorite characters.

13. The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula Le Guin

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1970), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1969), Italian magazine Nova SF Award for Best Novel (1972), SFinks Award for Best Novel Book of the Year (1996).

Not the most famous novel by an American writer, but big, complex and serious. In it, Le Guin poses and resolves global philosophical and moral questions - this is precisely why fans of intellectual fiction love him.

The book describes the world of the distant planet Zima, on which main character arrives with a mission of goodwill - the unification of many planets into one system. But to do this, he must bridge the gap between his own views and the ideas of a completely alien culture with which he encounters.

• Goodreads rating: 4.7.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1968), Lazar Komarchic Award for Best Foreign Novel (1985).

The writer's biographers agree that the science fiction writer was well versed in Eastern culture. And the novel is proof of this, because on its pages the gods of the Hindu pantheon come to life, who interact with people and demons.

This book is more of a philosophical discussion of being than a classic science fiction novel. However, the sharp plot keeps the reader's attention throughout the story.

• Goodreads rating: 4.1.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1976), Nebula Award for Best Novel (1975), Locus Award for Best Novel (1976), Lazar Komarchic Award for Best Foreign Novel (1986).

The most famous book of the author, thanks to which his name is heard today among fans of science fiction. Haldeman fought in Vietnam, which had a great influence on all his work and this novel in particular. The novel can be called anti-militarist.

The main character is a soldier space troops, who fights insidious aliens and dreams of returning home. When he gets on native earth, then he realizes that he feels like an outsider here too. It turns out that finding happiness and your place in life in peacetime is even more difficult than in wartime.

• Goodreads rating: 4.1.
• Awards: Italian magazine Nova SF Award in the category "Best Novel" (1970).

This science fiction novel brought Bradbury his first success. Thanks to him, the writer received many prestigious awards and gained the love of fans around the world.

The novel consists of separate stories-chronicles, in which the author reflects on the pressing issues of the existence of mankind - both on Earth and in the entire Universe. People so dream of conquering the cosmos, but they don’t think about how endless longing for everything human that remains at home can seize them ...

• Goodreads rating: 4.3.
• Awards: Barry Levin Award for Book of the Year (Restored and Expanded Edition) (1990), Balrog Award for Best Novel (1979), World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (1979).

Despite the fact that other books brought great fame, this novel received many awards. Agree, a good reason to pay attention to it.

The population of America is dying out because of the virus, however, even in such a situation, the struggle for world domination does not subside. mysterious man, which can subjugate the weak, seeks to seize power. Few of those who managed to survive and retain adequate ideas about good and evil decide to stop the impostor at all costs.

18. Starship Troopers, Robert Heinlein

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1960).

In Russian, this book was also published under other names: Star Infantry, Star Rangers, Space Marines and Space Soldiers. Even if you've seen the film adaptation, the book is still worth reading. Heinlein focuses on important political and social phenomena, and the plot boasts even more unpredictable twists. At the same time, the novel is considered one of the most controversial works of the science fiction writer: after its release, Heinlein was called a militarist and accused of promoting fascism.

Earth is being attacked by a dangerous enemy, and the Star Marines must confront an intelligent Bugs civilization that has nothing to do with humans. In such a war, strength decides everything, because there is simply no time to seek reconciliation.

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Nebula Award for Best Novel (1966)

The book will appeal to those who want to take a break from space fantasy, switching to science fiction with a universal face. The novel is deeply psychological and makes you think about the questions of love and responsibility that we often ask ourselves in everyday life.

33-year-old floor washer Charlie Gordon is mentally retarded. Despite this, he has a job, friends and an overwhelming desire to socialize. After he takes part in a scientific experiment, his life is turned upside down. Charlie's IQ almost triples, and he begins to comprehend things familiar to him in a completely new way.

20. Harry Potter books, JK Rowling

• Goodreads rating: from 4.3.
• Awards: British National Book Award for Children's Book of the Year (1998), Nestle Children's Book Award (1997-1999), Whitbread Award for Children's Book of the Year (1999).

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Award (1995–1999)

• Goodreads rating: 4.2.
• Awards: Geffen Prize (2003)

The novel describes the relationship of people with the intelligent ocean of the planet Solaris. At the same time, Lem disputes the position of other science fiction writers who believe that contact with extraterrestrial civilizations will bring total happiness to humanity. The heroes of Solaris cannot cognize the alien mind, they feel lonely far from the Earth and are afraid of everything new.

The action takes place in the distant future. But the author raises philosophical questions that are relevant for humanity in the present. Perhaps that is why Andrei Tarkovsky made a film of the same name, and the idea of ​​a smart ocean was reflected in the work “Stars are Cold Toys” by Sergei Lukyanenko.

• Goodreads rating: 4.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1964).

Simak became famous thanks to original ideas, carefully crafted plots and the ability to talk simply about complex things.

The hero of the novel from the American wilderness. At first glance, he leads a measured and uninteresting lifestyle. Everything would be fine, but only a person is not. This is what attracts the attention of a CIA agent to him.

• Goodreads rating: 4.2.
• Awards: Hugo Award for Best Novel (1990).

This novel by an American writer is often compared to the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, where the narrative includes several timelines at once, and several characters can be called the main ones.

Many worlds are involved in an interstellar war, and the fate of mankind depends on how it ends. On the planet Hyperion, which occupies a key place in this confrontation, the Tombs of Time begin to open - gigantic structures that move from the future to the past. Seven pilgrims are sent to these objects to solve their mystery and save people.

• Goodreads rating: from 4.
• Awards: Lituanikon Prize (2006).

The cycle can be attributed to the so-called dark fantasy. The main character - the witcher Geralt - protects people from monsters. The action takes place in the world of many races, peoples, communities, each of which strives to defend its interests at all costs.

Sapkowski draws analogies with our reality and makes fun of . The cycle is not over yet, and, according to the author, the next book should be released very soon.

Despite the fact that science fiction is still a very popular genre in cinema and literature, many readers know only the classics of the 20th century. Everyone remembers Bradbury, Asimov and Philip Dick, but few can name modern science fiction writers. Science fiction is thriving nonetheless - and there are at least as many good novels coming out as they were 50 years ago. Look At Me has collected 12 contemporary science fiction writers worth reading.

We compiled a list according to several criteria:

Peter Watts

Year of birth: 1958

First novel:"Sea stars" (1999)

Best Novels: False Blindness, Starfish, Echopraxia

A marine biologist by training, Canadian Peter Watts began writing in the late 90s, but for most of his career he was not noticed until he posted his works in the public domain on the Internet. After that, readers discovered "False Blindness", main novel Watts, and now the writer is deservedly considered one of the best modern science fiction writers. False Blindness is a book that asks unexpected questions about human neuroscience and questions the evolutionary validity of consciousness. On the one hand, everything is mixed in the novel at once: vampires, posthumanism, aliens, on the other hand, this is an extremely minimalistic and clear book in which there is nothing superfluous. Watts' education definitely influences his literature: he looks at humanity from a non-standard angle and invents new creatures, starting from existing marine organisms.

Ken McLeod

Year of birth: 1954

First novel:"Star Faction" (1995)

Best Novels:"Newton's Wake: Space Opera", "Invasion", "Execution Channel"

Ken McLeod has been called "anarcho-primitivist" and "techno-utopian"; in his novels there are always socialist, communist and anarchist ideas, and the author himself admits that he is inspired by the views of Leon Trotsky. McLeod takes an active political position and often gives public lectures - and criticizes the state of modern Britain. His books also cannot do without fantastic themes: first of all, he is interested in posthumanism, cyborgs and cultural evolution. What, for example, will happen to our culture if we upload consciousness into a computer? At the same time, McLeod has a sense of humor: his novels are often called satirical, and he himself is very fond of puns - for example, he calls the chapters of his books with ambiguous phrases like "revolutionary platform".

China Mieville

Year of birth: 1972

First novel:"Rat King" (1998)

Best Novels:"Embassy City", "City and City", "Station of Lost Dreams"

China Mieville was born in London to a hippie family. His parents gave him the strange name "China" - this was accepted in the countercultural British society of that time - he, for example, had a friend "India". Mieville is not a science fiction writer in the classical sense, but one of the most popular contemporary authors in the genre of speculative literature; he writes both fantasy and horror, and is part of the New Weird, a British fantasy movement that tries to save fantasy from commercialization and clichés. Anything can be found in Mieville's books: magic, people with insect heads, steampunk and cyborgs. Sometimes, however, Mieville is engaged in pure science fiction, and he does it brilliantly. A good example is his novel The Embassy City, in which he deals with the problems of language; the author is trying to imagine what kind of culture rational beings will have who are not capable of imaginative thinking.

Peter Hamilton

Year of birth: 1960

First novel:"Rise of the Mind Star" (1993)

Best Novels:"Pandora's Star", "Great Northern Route", "Dreaming Abyss"

Englishman Peter Hamilton became famous in the early 90s thanks to a trilogy of detective novels about psychic detective Greg Mandela. Since then, however, he began to write fiction of a completely different kind. Hamilton is the author of large, elaborate space epics, having written several space cycles, the most famous of which is the Commonwealth Saga. Its action takes place in the distant future. (the plot of all the books included in the Saga universe stretches over thousands of years): humans colonize the galaxy and fly to distant stars. Together with people, several alien races coexist at once; for the novels, Hamilton imagined and described a complex world with its own politics, economy, and diplomacy. In general, Hamilton's fiction is about what people imagine when they hear the phrase "space opera", only very well thought out and written.

Carl Schroeder

Year of birth: 1962

First novel:"Ventus" (2000)

Best Novels:"Order", "Labyrinth Lady", "Invariance"

A trained futurist and an influential author for followers of the philosophy of speculative realism, Canadian Carl Schroeder writes novels that border on cyberpunk and space opera. On the one hand, the action of his books usually takes place in the distant future, and the plot is connected with interstellar flights, on the other hand, the writer is interested in issues most often associated with cyberpunk: privacy, self-awareness of an individual (and its dissolution), augmented and virtual reality, artificial intelligence. Schroeder is engaged in futurism professionally: in his spare time, he advises organizations that predict the development of technologies. The best thing about Schroeder's books is what they call worldbuilding; the ability to beautifully, quickly and accurately describe imaginary worlds. In his latest novel, Order, for example, he talks about very long space travel and describes hundreds of strange worlds, from lonely planets without a star, illuminated by lasers, and planets consisting entirely of water, to gas planets, where people live in huge balloons, and planets where the atmosphere is like a huge neon lamp.

Charles Strauss

Year of birth: 1964

First novel:"Sky of the Singularity" (2003)

Best Novels:"Accelerando", "Greenhouse", "Rule 34"

The most versatile writer in the entire wave of New British Fiction (the British are distinguished by their craving for "hard" sci-fi and often left-wing political views) Strauss has worked as a computer programmer, pharmacist and technology journalist in his lifetime. For ten years he wrote a monthly Linux column for Computer Shopper magazine, but eventually closed it to devote himself to writing. In literary genres, Strauss is about as extraordinary as in his choice of profession: apart from stories, he has published about 20 books in a variety of styles, from "hard" science fiction to fantasy and horror in the spirit of Lovecraft. His science fiction novels are best described as "mindfuck": Strauss deceives the reader a lot and comes up with the most incredible designs. An exemplary novel in this sense (he, by the way, may well be the only thing you will read from this list - he is so good)- "Greenhouse", in which a group of people from the future agree to an experiment: they live on an isolated space station in the 20th century. The book leads the reader by the nose and turns everything upside down several times.

John Scalzi

Year of birth: 1969

First novel:"Destined to Win" (2005)

Best Novels:"Men in Red", "Android's Dream", "Locked Up"

Scalzi is a classic geek turned writer. Since 1998, he has been running the blog Whatever, where he speaks on a variety of topics, writes books and articles about video games, cinema and astronomy; he even acted as a consultant on one of the Stargate series. Scalzi's most famous book is The Men in Red, an utterly geeky novel. It comically plays on the well-known stamp from “ Star Trek”- there were often nameless characters in red uniforms who always died in missions to emphasize the danger to the viewer. In most of his time, Scalzi writes more serious - often military - fiction. However, he is capable of much: in one of his latest novels, Locked Up, he writes a real detective story. The main thing that distinguishes Scalzi's books is ironic, resourceful characters and witty dialogues.

Alastair Reynolds

Year of birth: 1966

First novel:"Revelation Space" (2000)

Best Novels:"Space of Revelation", "House of Suns",
"Pushing Ice"

Favorite in Russia (Azbuka publishing house regularly prints his novels) Welsh writer known for hardcore science fiction and massive space operas. Like other authors of space operas, he can be described only by numbers: his cycle "The Space of Revelation" covers a time period of tens of thousands of years (although the main action takes place over three centuries), and interstellar travel in it takes place with the help of ships that move almost at the speed of light. Reynolds explains the existence of a mechanical race that destroys intelligent civilizations when they develop to a certain level. Behind the complex and detailed descriptions of space, technology and alien civilizations, Reynolds, however, hides more personal, private things: lyrical reflections on the philosophy of life and a melancholy mood.

Stephen Baxter

Year of birth: 1957

First novel:"Raft" (1991)

Best Novels:"Proxima", "Ark", "Space Diversity"

Author of nearly 50 novels, Briton Stephen Baxter is one of the biggest thinkers in modern hard science fiction. Baxter invents truly massive space fiction, while managing to maintain scientific accuracy. (say, in one of his books, he describes the history of the universe from its birth 20 billion years ago to death 10 billion years later). In addition, he performs in the genre of a disaster novel and alternative history. Whatever Baxter writes, he precedes any of his novels with long and detailed studies - therefore, he even predicts the future of mankind according to scientific theories. He himself says that he is inspired by the old fiction of HG Wells; the writer, by the way, is vice-president of the International Society of Herbert Wells.

Adam Roberts

Year of birth: 1965

First novel:"Salt" (2000)

Best Novels:"Salt", "Yellow-blue Tibia",
"Glass Jack"

Postmodern trickster Adam Roberts is the most unpredictable author of modern fiction. From each of his new books you do not know what to expect: he has futuristic detective stories, and novels about the colonization of other planets, and space utopias; in addition, under the pseudonyms A. R. R. R. Roberts and The Robertsky Brothers, Roberts wrote several parodies - including Tolkien's novels, The Matrix and " Star Wars". Every Roberts novel is a literary game, in all the books he uses unexpected structure and plays with language. His book “Glass Jack” is coming out soon in Russian, and it perfectly characterizes Roberts: it is a detective story about three murders, written like classic Agatha Christie novels, but with the condition that the reader knows from the very beginning that the killer is the main character. The problem with Roberts is that he never continues his novels and turns them into series, and in fiction, this is a sure way to never become a popular author: science fiction readers prefer large series, sagas and cycles to dive into one over and over again. and the same world.

Ann Leckie

Year of birth: 1966

First novel:"Servants of Justice" (2013)

Best Novels:"Servants of Justice", "Servants of the Sword"

Despite the fact that Anne Leckie has only published two novels and has not yet completed her debut trilogy, The Empire of Rudch (the final part will be released in October this year), it is already named along with the best modern science fiction writers. Lecky tried to get into science fiction at a young age, but failed to get published. Leki got married, had two children and took up housework, but in order not to be too bored at home, she continued to write - and finished the first draft of the novel "Servants of Justice" back in 2002. The book was published in 2013 - and this is one of the most unusual novels of recent times. The main character is a former spaceship (Yes exactly),

First novel:"Moxyland" (2008)

Best Novels:"Moxieland", "Shining Girls", "Broken Monsters"

South African writer, primarily writing detective novels. Let's say one of her books is about a time-traveling assassin, another about supernatural murders, the nature of fame and social networks, another one - to an alternative Johannesburg, where criminals are tied to magical animals as punishment. In her novels, Beukes explores contemporary phenomena that excite her: from global surveillance and xenophobia to autotune. The supernatural is mixed with technology, ghosts and magic coexist with smartphones and email, but at the same time, Bukes does not write fantasy - and certainly does not abuse African flavor. At its core, her books are science fiction, because the main thing that distinguishes the genre is the unexpected questions that are asked in it to humanity; that's what Bukes is doing.