Hello, speculative spectators! It’s time to rock your skull squiggles with more great science fiction. This time, I have five excellent sci-fi novels with immersive settings. The descriptions of these universes are so good, you almost feel like you’re there.
Much like the recent post I did about immersive fantasy worlds, since there are so many books to choose from, I didn’t want to recommend novels that are always included on lists of sci-fi books. I love series like The Murderbot Diaries, Dune, Dungeon Crawler Carl, and The Expanse as much as the next person, but there are so many more books out there to explore! Here are five immersive novels that I love, and even though some have won awards, they still need more attention, imo.
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Archivist Wasp by Nicole Kornher-Stace
Wasp is a ghost hunter and also the Archivist of her post-apocalyptic world. She keeps tabs on history through the stories she learns. So in order to better understand the past and learn more than any Archivist before her, she makes a deal with the ghost of a soldier: she will help him find the ghost of his partner in exchange for all the information about their world before the apocalypse.
Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee
I didn’t mean to choose another book with ghosts, but here we are. At the start of this epic military space opera series, Captain Kel Cheris is at a low point in her career. She thinks she can redeem herself by capturing the nearly-impregnable Fortress of Scattered Needles. Unusual tactics are what got her into hot water, but now they might get her out. Kel decides to ask for help from the ghost of Shuos Jedao, a renowned tactician…and mass murder. What could go wrong?
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Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
Binti is worried that her parents won’t let her attend Oomza University, a school far from Earth, even though she is the first of the Himba people to be accepted. So she runs away and boards the ship without telling anyone where she is going. But before Binti can even get used to the idea of school in space, the ship is attacked by the deadly Meduse. Can her brains help keep her safe and bring peace to an intergalactic war?
Moonbound by Robin Sloan
This is a science fantasy, meaning it blends both genres. But since it’s set 11,000 years in the future, has AI and spaceships, and is told by a sentient robot recording device, I am including it with the sci-fi books. Especially since it’s just so rad. It starts with a young boy living in the shadow of the wizard’s castle, chosen to go on a grand Arthurian adventure. It’s wicked smart and wicked fun!
The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
And last, but not least, another science fantasy, and this one is an older classic in the genre. Ursula K. Le Guin called this one “a masterpiece,” so you don’t have to take my word for it! It’s set on a planet called Urth, and in the first book in the series, failing to be cruel gets Severian banished from the Guild of Torturers. Now exiled, he must make his own way out in the world and decide if he wants to continue down the compassionate route.
Okay, star bits, now take the knowledge you have learned here today and use it for good, not evil. If you want to know more about books, I talk about books pretty much nonstop (when I’m not reading them), and you can hear me say lots of adjectives about them on the Book Riot podcast All the Books! and on Instagram.
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