What are the essential 21st century sci fi novels?

[D'wards]

I've pretty much read all the 20th century ones you see

 

[strung out]

Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson.

A novel set in the near future as the world deals with climate catastrophe, the Ministry for the Future is set up to ensure that future citizens of the world still have a habitable Earth. An optimistic novel about how the human race could deal with the climate crisis.

The Ministry for the Future - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[hitmouse]

That Emily St John Mandel seems pretty decent. Does Iain M Banks count as 21st c?

 

[danny la rouge]

That Emily St John Mandel seems pretty decent. Does Iain M Banks count as 21st c?

Station Eleven is fab. Not sure Glass Motel is sci fi, but still good.

I’m on Ministry for the Future, KSR, it’s good ideas rather than good writing.

 

[trabuquera]

Paolo Bacigalupi's The Water Knife and The Wind Up Girl

 

[D'wards]

That Emily St John Mandel seems pretty decent. Does Iain M Banks count as 21st c?

Yes I very much enjoyed Station Eleven

 

[hegley]

Children of Time - Adrian Tchaikovsky; I only dip into sci-fi occasionally but that one blew me away.

 

[D'wards]

Children of Time - Adrian Tchaikovsky; I only dip into sci-fi occasionally but that one blew me away.

Yeah this was great. I have the sequel but Old Pa D'wards reckons it's not much cop

 

[Steel Icarus]

Yes I very much enjoyed Station Eleven

I'm reading it at the moment, I'm enjoying it but it isn't very sci-fi to my eyes

 

[DotCommunist]

Last new SF I read was Infinity Gate by M R Carey. Its the first in a longer (many worlds) story but v good.

Also new to me and I think to 2023 but v v good indeed Leech by Hiron Ennes

if we say 21st as a whole then theres tons and tone from the 00's I'd recc. Three Body Problem (rememberance of earth past) Cixin Lui's trilogy is 21st c, a magnum opus etc

 

[May Kasahara]

Southern Reach and Rosewater trilogies, I reckon.

 

[Gramsci]

Ann Leckie novel Ancillary Justice I remember was a good read

 

[zedr]

absolutely loved Embassytown by China Meiville.

would say Ian M Banks' Culture books.

have also really been enjoying Becky Chambers esp To Be Taught, If Fortunate. tho haven't read the Monk & Robot books

 

[krtek a houby]

Perdido Street Station - China Mievelle
Brasyl - Ian McDonald
Great North Road - Peter F Hamilton
Engines of Light trilogy - Ken MacLeod
Revelation Space - Alastair Reynolds
End of the World Blues - John Courtenay Grimwood

 

[Chz]

Yeah this was great. I have the sequel but Old Pa D'wards reckons it's not much cop

It's good, but it's certainly not as good.

 

[lazythursday]

It's more on the fantasy end of the spectrum perhaps (though no elves or dragons in sight) but Piranesi by Susanna Clarke is the best sci-fi/fantasy I've read for many many years.

 

[May Kasahara]

I loved Piranesi but didn't think of it as sci fi or fantasy.

 

[D'wards]

I loved Piranesi but didn't think of it as sci fi or fantasy.

One of best books I've read all century. It defo has sci fi elements

 

[DotCommunist]

Dan Simmons did some good work in the last decades, 'Olympos' and 'Illium' from the mid noughts are the ones I'd recc. Sci fi and Homer.

 

[Chz]

I'd say the entire series of The Murderbot Diaries is essential reading. Light and entertaining, but done so, so well.
A Memory Called Empire and its follow-up A Desolation Called Peace were great grand space opera.

 

[D'wards]

Thanks chaps, some great suggestions. I have downloaded the Three Body Problem then will work through the rest of the suggestions

 

[spitfire]

Perdido Street Station - China Mievelle
Brasyl - Ian McDonald
Great North Road - Peter F Hamilton
Engines of Light trilogy - Ken MacLeod
Revelation Space - Alastair Reynolds
End of the World Blues - John Courtenay Grimwood

I'm on book 3 of the Revelation space series, it's very good.

Also Peter F Hamilton is great, I think I've read all of them...

 

[krtek a houby]

I'm on book 3 of the Revelation space series, it's very good.

Also Peter F Hamilton is great, I think I've read all of them...

Have a bunch of Reynolds to read, but currently doing Dune and Culture novels... not a bad complaint , tbf

 

[Sweet FA]

Are any of the recommendations up there ^ like Iain M Banks? Not sure how to describe the style but you know; massive scope, sex, war, drugs, gadgets, violence, tight plots etc.

 

[May Kasahara]

Children of Time /Children of Ruin have the massive scope, violence, gadgets, war, tight plots.

Id say Ancillary Justice also ticks most of those boxes. Loved it, must read the other two actually.

Neither are exactly like IMB in style or tone, of course, but they're the ones that sprang to mind in terms of similarities.

 

[A380]

Ministry of the future you have covered.

The Murderbot Diaries series by Martha Wells are excellent. A brilliant twist on AI and the like.

Anything by John Scalzi. But the Old Man's War series and the DispatcherTravel by Bullet series are particularly good. Red shirts is pretty funny and better than it needed to be,

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, One of the best aliens in fiction.

Dogs of War and Bear head series by Adrian Tchaikovsky are great takes on genetic engineering and consciousness.

All of these are towards the harder end of SF (except the Dispatcher series) and are all great reads as well as being thought provoking,

 

[xenon]

A couple off the top of my head, very different stories. Blindsight by Peter Watts. And the follow-up. I think Blindsight still free, legitimately so, online. Amazing ideas. Read the notes at the back when done.

Spin, by Robert Charles Wilson. A touching end of the world story.

 

[xenon]

I’m on the last of the red rising series by Pierce Brown at the moment. they flag a bit in the middle but this one, light bringer, is back on form so far.

 

[D'wards]

The Koli series by M.R. Carey were a pretty good read

 

[xenon]

glasshouse by Charli Stross. ‘ I used to be a tank.’