If you love to read SciFi as much as I do, then today is your lucky day.
Because 2016 has been one hell of a year. We have seen a wave of new releases, each better than the the last. I've been pleasantly surprised.
Despite a long list of books on my Goodreads To-Read list, I often have a hard time tracking down good SciFi to read next. But this year has been different. I've been blown away by book after book after book.
So today I thought I'd recommend some of my top picks for you all to enjoy!
In no particular order, out of the 48 books I've read this year so far, here are my top five recently released SciFi books:
My Top 5 SciFi Books of 2016:
Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang
This was by far and away the best book I've read in a long, long time. Stories of Your Life and Others is an 8 story anthology by one of the all time masters of SciFi short storytelling.
The depth of the ideas are beyond anything I've ever experienced winning Chiang Hugo, Nebula, and Locus awards. The title story is even being released as a major motion picture later this year staring Amy Adams, Jeremey Renner, and Forest Whittaker.
There are no simple SciFi themes and tropes in this one. From a linguist whose brain changes as she learns an alien language to a world where angels appear in brilliant displays of destruction, offering miracles to some, while others die in the crossfire, Chiang will take you on a journey unlike anything you've ever experienced.
Prepare to have your mind blown to pieces.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
This book moved me in way's I didn't expect and was a refreshing change of pace from the SciFi thrillers I tend to enjoy. But it checked all the boxes of what makes for an incredible read: a diverse and believable cast of characters, wonderful dialogue, massive world building, and tension in all the right places. It's remarkable what Chambers has accomplished with her debut novel.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet tells the story of the crew of the Wayfarer, a ship whose sole job is to build wormholes (read highways) between star systems. It's very much a character driven novel.
In my experience, far too often, SciFi novels tend to be filled with big ideas and empty characters. Not the case here. I haven't been this drawn into a story in quite some time. This is feel good science fiction at its finest. I can't recommend this one enough.
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
In stark contrast to my last recommendation, Dark Matter is a mind-bending thrill ride like no other. I wasn't sure what to expect going into this one, but it certainly was not what I got.
Dark Matter tells the story of the abduction of Jason Dessen. In the middle of the night, Jason is attacked by a masked man, beaten, and drugged, only to wake up in a world he doesn't know, but one that knows him.
This book kept me guessing at every turn and I tore through it in two sittings. If you are looking for a mind-bending SciFi thriller, this is your book.
Morning Star (Red Rising #3) by Pierce Brown
Book 1 of this series, Red Rising, came out three years ago and was a breakout success. Pierce Brown was a new author and the world was blown away by his debut novel. It told the story of Darrow, a lowly miner and a "Red", the bottom caste in universe divided by color. A series of events propels Darrow into a world he didn't know existed and on a mission that seems impossible.
It was the Hunger Games meets Game of Thrones, only better. The pacing was relentless and fans held their breath wondering how in the hell Brown could up the ante in the sequels.
Well, he did. My God did he up the ante. The conclusion to the trilogy was the best novel yet. It sucked me into the heart pounding action, kept me up late into the the night, and made it hard to fall asleep.
I'm not going to go into any specific details. I don't want to give anything away. Just do yourself a favor and read this trilogy!
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
While more fantasy than SciFi, this book surprised me more than any of the rest. On a recommendation from my younger brother, I tore through this insane, complex, terrifying and all around wonderful book.
It tells the story of a group of children, orphaned by a mysterious event, and adopted by a man they refer to only as father. Father is a supernatural being who over the course of eons, has amassed a giant library filled with the knowledge of how to obtain incredible power.
The Library at Mount Char is hard to describe without sounding ridiculous, but it blew my mind over and over with each reveal, and was one of my most enjoyable reads of the year.
Just grab a copy and jump in. You'll be glad you did.