The authors in the title are examples of ones who never flop for me whether I’ve only read 1 of their books or 40. I tend to lean toward comedy if it’s very absurd but I still like serious stories if they can set a powerful tone early on. I like books with worlds that feel complex and dynamic, where you can really feel the historical context of the present story even if it isn’t explicitly discussed. Speculative fiction, sci fi, social commentary/satire. I really like dystopias and post apocalyptic stories when they center marginalized people and don’t conform to the “lone badass wolf against a disordered world” trope. I love multiple narrators/storylines, especially when they never or barely converge. Stories about community resilience, especially when they feature social/cultural/political systems that are radically different from mainstream US. Some individual books for more reference:
Geek Love by Katherine Dunn
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
Enders Game by Orson Scott Card
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
the first book in the World of Tiers series by Philip José Farmer
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Tumithak of the Corridors by Charles R Tanner
Galapagos by Kurt Vonnegut
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
the Atherton trilogy by Patrick Carman
I’m especially interested in authors who aren’t white men because that’s what I was mostly reading growing up. Women, gender diverse people, people of color, people who have experienced marginalization in the form of poverty and government sanctioned oppression, etc. Topics I’m particularly drawn to these days are anarchism, climate apocalypse, restorative justice, communities surviving/thriving after “world ending” events, neocolonialism, space/aliens/traveling thru space time, and detailed looks at what is normal in an alternative society
thanks!
by localguac
3 Comments
Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee is well worth the read if you commit to the series. It’s scifi, speculative, gender bending, and kind of far out there.
Ian M. Banks series called The Culture is exceptionally rewarding. Banks is about as white as you can get, but he may be the best SciFi author in the last 30 years. There is strong progressive social commentary underpinning all of his works, and always a sly (sometimes almost slapstick) wit.
From what you’ve said, I think you’d really love The Locked Tomb series (starting with Gideon the Ninth) by Tamsyn Muir and the Broken Earth series (starting with The Fifth Season) by N.K. Jemisin.
The [Nevermoor](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/6a6d5ca1-b2f5-47be-828c-018144d3bbc7) fantasy series by Jessica Townsend is excellent! It’s set in a really magical whimsical world while at the same time touching on some darker themes like xenophobia. The characters and story are great too!
And for sci-fi, Becky Chambers is excellent! Her [Wayfarers](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/47260618-eb7b-4664-b3ae-814c1c36eded) books are great, and so are her novellas.
And I’d also recommend checking out Victoria Goddard, especially her book [The Hands of the Emperor](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/af2bba9c-8f41-4a3e-b87a-8532a44ccb67). The book is basically a beautifully written slice of life book about the personal secretary to the emperor of the world, with a heavy focus on platonic relationships.