With the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens just around the corner, we’ve got outer space on the brain here at BookBub. Whether or not you’re planning to see the film, check out some of these interstellar epics if you’re looking for a little more science fiction in your reading life.
1. Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
With their planets at war, the last thing these soldiers should be doing is raising a child on the run together. But that’s exactly what happens in this award-winning graphic novel that combines romance, science fiction, and fantasy in new and imaginative ways. It’s all brought to life by the stunning artwork of Fiona Staples.
2. Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
At age 75, John Perry has decided to join the Colonial Defense Force. A war rages over the few habitable planets in the galaxy, and if he serves two years on the front lines — and survives — he will be rewarded with a home and plot of land on one of Earth’s hard-earned colonies.
3. Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
As the Justice of Toren, Breq once used her artificial intelligence to link the thousands of soldiers that manned her starship in service of the Radch Empire. But now she has been betrayed and is left in control of a single human body in her hunt for vengeance.
4. Dune by Frank Herbert
This sci-fi classic takes place on the desert planet Arrakis, where young Paul Atreides fights to survive in the desolate wasteland after his family is sabotaged by a rival noble family. Having grown up to be the mysterious Muad’Dib, he must now avenge his fallen family.
5. Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
A war rages between the Terran Federation of Earth and an alien arachnid species from the planet Klendathu. When Juan “Johnny” Rico joins the Mobile Infantry he isn’t sure what to expect, but he’s determined to defend his planet. Told through a series of Johnny’s flashbacks, Starship Troopers follows his rise through the ranks of the military and reflects on the politics surrounding it.
6. William Shakespeare’s Star Wars by Ian Doescher
Who says Star Wars isn’t a classic? Combine your love of lightsabers and laser blasters with the lyricism of the great Bard himself in this fun and entertaining series of novels.
7. Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey
As he and his crew witness the destruction of their ship, Jim Holden is unaware of a political conspiracy brewing to spark interstellar war. Meanwhile on Ceres, police detective Miller is equally ignorant to the machinations of an expansive Earth corporation. Yet somehow, the lives of these two men become linked as they discover they are the only ones who can prevent the destruction of the solar system.
8. The City and the Stars by Arthur C. Clarke
A billion years into the future of Earth, oceans have evaporated and humanity is extinct, with the exception of the City of Diaspar. Surrounded by a giant wall that no one has crossed in millions of years, the citizens of the city cannot know the fate of the outside world — until one brave young man discovers the truth.
9. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Andrew “Ender” Wiggin has been chosen for a selective program that trains child geniuses to be soldiers in order to fend off the attacks of an alien race known as the Buggers. The military’s search for a phenomenal general to succeed against the invasion has been ongoing as long as the invasion itself. Can Ender be the general who finally saves Earth?
10. A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
While prospecting in Arizona after the end of the American Civil War, Confederate veteran John Carter discovers a cave that transports him to Mars. He soon discovers that he is stronger and more agile due to the planet’s atmospheric differences from Earth, and quickly rises among the ranks of the green Martians. After rescuing the princess Dejah Thoris, the two fall in love, and he becomes the Prince of Helium.
11. Red Rising by Pierce Brown
As a Red, the lowest caste, Darrow works diligently to make the surface of Mars livable for future generations. He and other Reds believe that they are doing noble work, until Darrow discovers that the surface has been colonized for years, and that he and the rest of his caste are no more than slaves to the whims of the upper classes. He becomes determined to disrupt the system by infiltrating the highest caste and destroying them from within.
12. Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Hari Sheldon foresees a future of ignorance and war that leads to the destruction of the Galactic Empire. To prevent this dim future, he creates a settlement at the edge of the empire composed of its brightest minds. But this new civilization is challenged by corrupt warlords, and they must decide whether to fight or be overwhelmed.
13. Hidden Empire by Kevin J. Anderson
The Terran Hanseatic League of Earth is determined to colonize the galaxy. But in their rush for interstellar control, they unintentionally disturb the ancient and powerful Hydrogues, beginning a war that spans galaxies.
14. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Arthur Dent barely survives the destruction of Earth when he is saved by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for a book called The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Together they journey through the stars, meeting several companions along the way, including Galactic President Zaphod, the depressed robot Marvin, and Trillian, the only other human to survive Earth’s annihilation.
What are your favorite space adventure stories? Tell us in the comments below!
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