Masterpieces: The Best Science Fiction Of The 20Th Century
The following is a list of science fiction books that have been widely considered classics of the genre.
1. 1984 by George Orwell
2. “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams
3. “Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card
4. “The Andromeda Strain” by Richard Preston
5. “Dune” by Frank Herbert
6. “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins
7. “The Foundation Trilogy” by Isaac Asimov
8. “The Lord of the Rings” by J.R.R. Tolkien
9. “The War of the Worlds” by H.G. Wells
10. “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams
POSITIVES
- Ace Books
NEGATIVES
Looking for the best science fiction of the 20th century? Look no further than Ace Books! From classics like 1984 and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to more recent hits like The Martian and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Ace Books has something for everyone. So what are you waiting for? Pick up a copy today!
Best Sci Fi Books
Remembrance Of Earth’S Previous (Series)
Liu Cixin won the Hugo Award in Best Novel from Asia for The Three-Body Problem. This volume is about the most fundamental question in science fiction, what will happen when we encounter aliens. Liu’s sci-fi is the most difficult. It contains brain-stretching passages about artificial intelligence and quantum mechanics. These are grafted on to the spine of a highly-stakes political thriller. Tochi Onyebuchi, poll judge, said that the books “distributed me by zero.” And, yes, that is a compliment.”
25 of the Best Science Fiction Books Everybody Should Read
Looking for your next read? You’re looking for the next great sci-fi novel? Take us on a journey into the future. We’ve gathered some of our favourite science fiction novels, including cyberpunk and space operas. Some are eerily plausible, others are wild trips of the imagination, but all present compelling visions of our possible future. These are listed in order of chronological importance for completeists.
These guides are also great for sci-fi movie and space movies. Our selection of best fantasy books will inspire you. We also offer a guide on the best audiobooks for lazy readers.
Dune, By Frank Herbert (1965)
Goodreads has 30 of the best sci-fi novels
Derek Attig.This content includes affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
A lot of people ask me the question, “What’s the top sci-fi novel?”. I’ve seen this question more than once. You can’t answer this question easily (top according what metrics?) Which metrics? but one worth trying to. So that’s what I did, looking to see the top sci-books according to Goodreads users.
Top Classic Science Fiction Books
“Classic” is generally defined as “published within the 20th century, and still being discussed regularly.” Lilith’s Bood by Octavia Butler (4.33 – 123.63). It’s not surprising that Butler’s books are highly rated on Goodreads. This collection, which consists of three volumes (Dawn, Adulthood Rites, & Imago), was published previously as Xenogenesis. This book, like many of Butler’s, creates an incredible rich world. The author also explores gender, race and sexuality.
2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke (4.14-214,170). It is unusual that 2001: A Space Odyssey was simultaneously written and the screenplay to the film. The latter was cowritten by Clarke as well as Stanley Kubrick. In fact, the film was released just after it premiered. The movie’s status as a landmark in 20th century sci fi cinema was evidently reflected in Goodreads reviews.
Frank Herbert’s Dune (4.21 to 510.994) Which may explain why so many people love this book and the five sequels and film and television adaptations it spawned.
The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin (4.12-174.74) The decision to include The Dispossessed and The Left Hand of Darkness was up for debate. However, both received a better average rating, so it is here. Like a lot sci-fi that is great, The Dispossessed is about technology, but more so about politics and their effects on the worlds they are born into. And in the way of complex sci-fi series, The Dispossessed was the fifth novel in Le Guin’s Hainish Cycle but takes place first, chronologically speaking. The series can be enjoyed in a variety of order. It is also a great way to learn a lot about the universe.
Madeleine L’Engle’s “A Wrinkle in time” (4.01 – 876.850) You have been saved from your childhood (although it was surprising to see the low rating of 4.01). Many of the names in this classic of bizarre, wonderfulal science fiction are hilarious, including Mrs. Whatsit? Mrs. Who, and Mrs. This and the other non-name, but equally fun Tesseracts I recommended previously as amazing literary cat name suggestions by George Orwell (4.17-2.559,807) A novel about the politics of free speech, political power and the impact of technology on society was the beginnings for everyone’s favorite advertising cudgel. It’s also the earliest book on this list (Frankenstein and The Time Machine didn’t qualify).
Mary Doria Russell’s The Sparrow (4.17-41,819) Aliens! Jesuits What else do you need to know? You’re fine, I will tell you more. The Sparrow is the first book in a classic ’90s duology. Children of God also qualifies for top sci-fi according to these criteria. It received all of the Awards (James Tiptree Jr. Award. Arthur C. Clarke Award. British Science Fiction Association Award …)) and tells the story about a Jesuit mission that takes them to an alien civilization. They cleverly play with history and potential futures for religion and imperialism.
Neal Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon 4.25 – 9.748 p.
The 21st Century’s Top Sci-Fi Book Lists
Leviathan, Wakes by James S.A. Corey (4.24 – 123.697). This novel is what launched The Expanse franchise, with eight very well-loved books: Leviathan, Leviathan, Caliban, War Abaddon,’s Gate Cibola Burn Nemesis Games Babylon,’s Ashes Persepolis, Rising Tiamat,’s Wrath. Leviathan Wakes takes place in a world where there are off-planet colonies, yet humans can only access our solar system technologically. This novel has both thoughtfulness about social structures as well as a lot of thrilling action. In 2015, it was adapted into the Sy. The Expanse series on Fy is being moved to Amazon Video by the creators of Sy.
Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (4.14 – 29,927) Fforde chose an unfortunate name for this book, given that two years later a wildly popular book would come out and completely torpedo this one’s searchability. Shades of Grey is worth the effort, even though they are a bit difficult to find once you put its title in a Google search bar. This book is brilliantly bizarre, and fantastically entertaining. It takes place in an imaginative world where your view of color can determine your social status.
The Gone-Away World of Nick Harkaway (4.12-10.675) This is post-apocaplyptic, in which strange bombs turn much of this world and its citizens into masses of “Stuff”. A nameless narrator gets hired to help put out an extraordinary fire. Drama ensues. The Gone-Away World is the most beloved (on Goodreads, at least) of Harkaway’s many novels.
Ann Leckie – Ancillary Saddle (4.05 – 33.609) This is the second in the Imperial Radch trilogy, following the Hugo, Nebula and Clarke Award winning Ancillary Justice. Leckie’s series explores technology, empire, gender and other topics. Leckie also imagines a society that doesn’t mark gender by using female personal pronouns. Leckie follows an AI, who once was a ship, but now lives in one body.
Raven Strategem, by Yoon Ha Le (4.16-4.504) This book is the second most popular in Machineries of Empire’s trilogy. It also includes Ninefox Gambit Revenant Gun. Raven Strategem is a large-scale, military sci-fi series in which an empire calendar governs the universe. The book and its rest have received high critical praise and been loved by many. Hugos nominations went to both Raven Strategem, and the predecessor.
Warcross by Marie Lu (4.19. – 54.390) The charming, engaging novel represents a group of games-within books, which have emerged in recent years. These novels form a new, sub-genre. There are connections to cyberpunk. But they also possess a distinctive aesthetic. Warcross like many other books this style, Ready Player One is another well-known example. Warcross examines a very popular game along with the extraordinary person who discovers its secrets.
Binti, Home by Nnedi Okorafor, 4.14-12.250. This second installment in Okorafor’s Binti series sees the main character Binti return to Earth to find her family after a galactic war. Binti’s Home defies conventional categorisations in all its best, just as it is with every Okorafor book. Binti, Home made it to the Hugo Finals in 2018.
The Best Sci-Fi Books Series
I focused on trilogies for this section of the list. To qualify, every book in a sci-fi trilogy had to meet the 4+ stars/4,000+ ratings threshold.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (4.17 – 48,677) Chambers’s Wayfarers series is a 2019 Hugo nominee for Best Series , which maybe isn’t a surprise when you see these numbers. All three books set in the exact same world have some characters and overarching themes. But they still work as well when read as separate books. The books are amazing. This one is, in my own opinion, the most rip-roaring fun of the three, with Firefly vibes, great characters, and an exciting plot.
Becky Chambers’ A Closed And Common Orbit (4.36-21.792). I am intrigued by the fact that this volume has the highest rating of all three. It’s also my favourite. This is by no means the best! the darkest of the series and the most experimentally structured, neither of which would seem to guarantee top marks across the board. Goodreads!
Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers (4.17 – 9,670) In the last of the Wayfarers books, Chambers focuses the thoughtful, anthropological eye she used in the first two books on a single civilization of humans who long ago fled earth and reimagined their humanity in the process. The author explores what happens when an individual culture interacts with many other cultures, as well as when disasters call into question its customs and behaviors.
Cixin LIU’s Three-Body Problem (4.55 – 89.618). One of China’s most popular science-fiction authors, this is the debut book of his Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy. You will find physics and political chaos, as well as a bizarre role-playing game and a number of strange suicides. This book was a phenomenon in the U.S. after its translation and release, helping launch a broader interest in Chinese sci-fi in translation embodied recently by collections like Invisible Planets Broken Stars , both edited by Ken Liu.
Cixin LIU’s Dark Forest (4.41-38,746). An alien invasion has begun and all data of humans have been compromised. The story of a secret project that uses puzzles and secrecy in order to stop the alien invasion and save mankind is told in this book.
Death’s End (4.55 – 28574) It is a unique sci-fi series because the average rating increases book by book. Most ratings drop or fluctuate. The Remembrance of Earth’s Past concludes with a tentative agreement between humans and an extraterrestrial civilization.
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The best sci-fi books of 2021 We take a look at the most exciting new sci-fi books of 2021, the best sci-fi books of 2020, as well as the best science fiction novels of all time.
This list includes award-winning novellas and sequels to classic science fiction stories. It also features continuing adventures in the worlds of science fiction. It doesn’t matter what science fiction lover you might be, there’s something here for you. Also, we take a look at the top sci-fi books for 2020 and share the greatest sci-fi novels ever.
What is a good science fiction book to read?
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Douglas Adams published The Ultimate Hiker’s Guide To the Galaxy, (4.3).
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257.751… 2001 Space Odyssey By Arthur C. Dune by Frank Herbert
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510,994) … A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle (4.0
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876.850)… 1984 George Orwell
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2,559,807)
What Are the Best Modern Science Fiction Writers of All Time?
Ann Leckie.Martha Wells.Tamsyn Muir.Cixin Liu.Charles Stross.John Scalzi.Alastair Reynolds.Peter F. Hamilton.More items…*May 5, 2020
What Is The Best Fantasy Book Of All Time?
The Lord Of The Rings. J.R.R. Tolkien.The Lies Of Lock Lamora by Scott Lynch.The Last Unicorn by Peter S. … Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson.Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay.The Name Of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss.A Song Of Ice And Fire by George R.R. Martin.More …*Jul 21 2019,
What are the Best Sci-Fi Stories?
Annihilation.Star Wars.Star Trek.2001: A Space Odyssey.E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.aliens.Blade Runner.Back to the Future.More items…
.Best Sci Fi Books