The 15 Best Sci-Fi Books I've Ever Read [Updated] 

Updated Top 15 list for 2024: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-k0H584ftkQU.htmlsi=zlQVU4a5SWyWlI1U

You spoil us with no cheesy intro, 3 min setup about what you're going to talk about... You just get to it and that's why I love your videos.

i felt shocked when he literally got straight on the topic without giving a 1 - 2 min intro . hats off man❤

I like the no intro, so freaking cool

I'd just like to applaud not only your list of books but also your ability to articulate each one without giving total spoilers.

You are the first book tuber I've ever seen talk about a Mote in God's Eye. I read that when I was a teen and it has been one of my all time favorites.

I had never watched a video from you before nor heard of many of these books. Your eloquent expression of the power of these novels has convinced me to give them a try with no further investigation. Quite a feat.

Remembrance of Earth's Past by Cixin Liu. The full trilogy. It changed me. It changed the way I look at the stars at night. It changed how I read literature.

The dune sequels are truly some of the most profound fiction I have ever read, they make me laugh and cry and have affected how I view life, humanity, religions, family, war, conservation, survival, and much more. The first 6 books written by frank herbert stand alone and span long generations and are such quotable, meaningful experiences.

Dan Simmons Hyperion cantos has stuck with me for more than 25 years, I just listened to the audio version and was blown away. Best sci Fi series in my opinion.

I am rediscovering science-fiction after many years. This list has given me plenty more I will have to read. Thank you so much!

Props for putting Solaris on your list. I've read it for the first time not so long ago and I feel exactly the same as yourself - I keep asking myself whenever I was really ready for it and wondering how much more I can get out of it if I read it again. And this book has such qualities which can hardly be described to someone who has not read it.

I think a big reason why Mote in Gods Eye was so great, was that it doesnt bother with setting up all the complicated concepts in the book. It just brings them up as they are needed and trusts the reader to take them in stride and understand. This means the book never feels like its meandering, which is something i greatly appreciate

I would also recommend: HYPERION by Dan Simmons. RINGWORLD and INFERNO by Larry Niven. GATEWAY by Frederick Pohl. LORD OF LIGHT by Roger Zelazny and if no-one has read the works of Iain M. Banks I highly recommend all of his books.

The way I gasped when the list started in the first microsecond. I can't express just how grateful I am, lmao. I'm definitely subscribing.

I love your description of what it feels like when a book or film gets inside you. Things linger inside me often and I feel they change the quality, tone, and content of my thoughts and feelings.

Hyperion Cantos is my all time favorite. Having said that I have 15 Greg Bear books in my collection, the most of any author. RIP Greg.

This is how a book review is done ! Concise to the point and no BS ! Awesome Job Mate :)

You've sparked my curiosity with the short book summary's you've given. I love how you give just enough to hook me in but not enough to spoil the book. I am going to attempt to read a lot of them. Thank you! Great video!

Olaf Stapledon - Last and First Men and Starmaker, Philip K Dick - VALIS trilogy, Dan Simmons - Hyperion Cantos, Daniel Keyes - Flowers for Algernon, Kurt Vonnegut Jr - Sirens of Titan are all brilliant.

We all have lists, of course. Mine is : 1) Left Hand of Darkness 2) Stranger in a Strange Land 3) Dune 4) Mote in God's Eye 5) Cat's Cradle 6) Tau Zero 7) Time Enough for Love. I totally respect everything on your list.

I know people are going to inquire about this: I took Shadow of the Torturer off the list because I didn't feel qualified to include it this time, having only read Shadow and Claw of the Conciliator, and considering the fact that Wolfe wanted it published as a single volume. I intend to read the Book of the New Sun in its entirety and when I do it will be back in the top 15.

Real respect that you opened up immediately with Dune, and that you made clear that it just didn’t vibe with you completely. Its a great way to set the tone that this is your personal list and your choices.

I really enjoy your book reviews so much. I grew up reading sci-fi almost exclusively and so have that strong connection to your subject. I read much less sci-fi now, but just enjoy the way you go about describing the books and your reactions to them. Your reviews have encouraged me to re-read a few of my favorites (Le Guin, for example) and dive into a few that have been waiting patiently on my shelves for a first read. Thanks so much for sharing your enthusiasm.

I've read 9 out of the 15 and would largely agree on the ordering. The one thing that surprised me was the absence of Liu Cixin's "The Three Body Problem".

Nice to see The Mote in God's Eye get a mention. First Sci Fi book I ever read and it's stuck with me ever since, which has been about 45 years. For me it's the book all alien first contact stories should be judged against. Thank you for mentioning Norstrilia by Cordwainer Smith. Love that book and all his writings.

An excellent list. I've read 11 of the 15 you reviewed and I'm just getting ready to start Blindsight...I can't wait! Props to you for including 'City' on your list, it's such an incredibly moving story. You often talk about a book sticking with you long after you have read it. I read 'City' maybe 45 years ago and it's still popping up in my head all the time. Love your videos.

Thank you for this. It's refreshing to see a list that is so different.

Saving for later but had to look at the list. I'm shocked at how many titles we share, since I'm a lot older. The Stars My Destination , City, Norstilia, Dying Earth, Solaris--multiple rereads all, good to see you recommending them to folks, they're in for such treats--no bad books on this list.

My all time favorite is Dan Simmons Hyperion series... particularly the original 2. Blew my mind.

One of the most eloquent and informative book reviews I have come across. Cheers

So much good stuff, so much to read (although I've read many of these). And I LOVE the different book versions you show for each title, with all the different cover art.

One of my favorites is the Foundation series by Asimov. I first read the Foundation Trilogy, and then I discovered separate prequel and a separate sequel. Fantastic reading!

Really quality insight/overviews of the books. This channel has been a breath of fresh air-- glad I found it.

I just finished "Dune" by Frank Herbert. I’m glad I finally read this book! There’s quite a bit of marvelous detail in this story. A gripping and memorable journey! There were some details and reveals that blew my mind! Definitely a long read, but worth it. 😀

Well presented list. I like the different cover art variants per title and the elaborate explanations with their authentic subjectivity!

I read War of the Worlds for the first time a few months ago and I was so struck how Wells wrote the black fog seeping through the streets. It was so poetic that it has stuck with me since. Definitely an amazing story.

Your discussion of the books, and what it is about them that moved you, got them on the list... for me, as good as 'the list' itself. Super insightful, given me a bunch more books to look forward to.

My first visit to your channel: love how you talk about books. You communicate your response to these books in a way that enchants me.

I’ve only read 4 of this whole list and I didn’t even care about seeing MY picks in your video. Your passion, your zeal sticks out and is palpable and infectious! Loved your delivery! Very well done!!

My list would absolutely have to include at least one book from the late and great Iain M. Banks. "The Player Of Games" , or "Use Of Weapons", or maybe "Inversions". His Culture series of books are really worth checking out if you like Sci Fi.

In my teen years many many years ago I came across an antique Frankenstein book and read it. It was amazing and the story sticks with me to this day.

I love how you open up the video instantly cracking on with your choices. Of the books I have read in your list, most of them I enjoyed (the only outlier being Dune, which i tried 3 times but couldn't finish) and your descriptions of the ones i haven't read sound like my kind of bag. I've added the top 2 as my next 2 books to read, thank you for the recommendations. One slight aside (and I am afraid to say this due to your scary pinned post), but I was surprised that Philip K Dick didn't appear anywhere in your top 15. Not that he should, as it is your own preference, but he usually dominates most lists, so it was unexpected and refreshing. Thanks again!

Nice list, you inspired me to make my own: 1. Neuromancer - William Gibson 2. Excession - Iain M. Banks 3. Seven Eves - Neal Stephenson 4. Dispossessed - Ursula LeGuin 5. At the Mountains of Madness - HP Lovecraft 6. Integral Trees - Larry Niven 7. Red Mars - Kim Stanley Robinson 8. The Gate to Women’s Country - Sherri S Tepper 9. The Many Coloured Land series - Julian May 10. The White Dragon - Anne McCaffrey 11. Accelerando - Charles Stross 12. Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams 13. Titan - Stephen Baxter 14. I, Robot - Isaac Azimov 15. Hyperion - Dan Simmons

It’s impressive how many of these are new adds from your last list. And, as always, your enthusiasm is infectious.

I'm SO glad you have A Fire Upon The Deep on this list. I feel like Vinge is never recognized in these lists, and he's just brilliant. And this is one of my favorite books.

Love your articulate thoughtful presentation.

I finished "The Stars My Destination". Whoa! What an adventure! This book was crazy fun, especially at the end! The story telling! It totally blew me away. Another excellent suggestion. Thank you! 😃👍

I love that our top 15 lists are completely different, but yours is great!

Thanks for putting together this video and doing it in such a ways as not to spoil the stories. With such a wide variety of topics and styles, I should be able to find something I really like in there!

I just finished "Solaris" by Stanislaw Lem. Definitely a thought provoking journey. I can't help but be moved, left in a frustrated suspense, and warm glow by this story. I very much enjoyed the journey. So many questions, but a strange satisfaction at the same time. Thanks for the recommendation! 😀

This is my first time seeing your channel and I'm already a fan. You're picking books that I've never heard of, and that's not to say that niche books are better or cooler than the big name books, but these clearly meant a lot to you on an emotional level. You don't seem to be picking books you think everyone might like, but the books that meant something to you individually and that to me is so much more interesting than the same 10 or so titles you tend to see in a list on booktube.

I was getting disappointed when it got to top 5 without Blindsight being mentioned - what a surprise! Read it over a year ago on your recommendation and it is still so vivid in my head, incredible book. Great list Matt.

Man in the High Castle, Ubik, VALIS, Flow My Tears the Policeman Said, A Scanner Darkly, these Dick novels, one or more belongs on this list. Also, A Canticle for Leibowitz which is extraordinary. I have re-read these and they hold up as well as when I first read them. A Scanner Darkly was most ably adopted into a movie, pretty much precisely following the book and extraordinary…

I picked up A Fire Upon the Deep because of your enthusiastic recommendation and I'm loving it so far. It's SO imaginative and ambitious yet so unpretentious for what it is.

I just finished "A Fire Upon the Deep" by Vernor Vinge. Absolutely incredible! I loved this adventure. So many wonderful characters. Such amazing world building. Definitely a book I will remember for a very long time. I read it in 17 days. Your recommendations have been spot on! Thank you! 😀

Thanks for unearthing some new reading material for me and shedding light on what I believe are some lesser known important gems in the SF genre

Got immense pleasure out of hearing such a literate review of some of my favorite genre novels. I just finished Li Cixin’s trilogy “Remembrance of Earth's Past” & found it enthralling. I'll have to give it some distance to see how it compares to many of these books that are on your most excellent list

Ok. This was a pretty good list. Kudos for putting The Mote In Gods Eye in here. I have it as a 1st edition hardcover lol. Thanks also for mentioning Jack Vance. That man wrote books with such a superb grasp of prose and poetry that it is criminal that so few people know of him. And then there’s Blood Music by Greg Bear. I met him and have a signed copy of that very book! He was doing a book sign thingy at a shopping mall in melbourne, Australia right near the factory that I was doing my apprenticeship as a boilermaker in so I grabbed all my copies of his books that I’d actually been bingeing and skipped out of work and walked to the bookshop and the poor guy was sitting at a desk in the bookshop all by himself so I wound up talking to Him for nearly two hours! He was actually a really nice and down to earth guy who seemed to really enjoy having a conversation with a spotty 17 year old in filthy grease smeared overalls and a mullet haircut (it was 1987) he actually told me that he’d signed off the movie rights to Blood Music and that they were going to use the morphing CGI effects that had been pioneered in The Abyss to make it into a big budget Hollywood movie. Damn I really wish that had happened. Other books that I think are worthy of your list are: Star tide Rising by David Brin Downbelow Station By C J Cherryh Hyperion by Dan Simmons The Songs of Distant Earth by Arthur C Clarke Use of Weapons by Iain M Banks (or any other culture novel by him) Tough call to make a top 15 but you did a great job mate. Liked and subbed from Oz…

Your description of these books made them all sound so interesting and something I would want to read immediately. Surely going to do some shopping. Thanks!

Fantastic list, I love your taste and style when it comes to talking about and sharing your thoughts on novels you absolutely love. You have a great way of communicating your connections to each of these stories and it makes me want to go out and read all of them as soon as possible. I have not yet properly read any of the books you mention here but I do own eight or so of them and am very eager to collect the ones I haven't. Thank you so much for this great video Matt, please keep doing what you're doing and talking weird and wild sci-fi my dude :)

For some reason I was expecting you to name as your number one book, "Star Maker" by Olaf Stapledon. I'm also surprised that Asimov, Clarke, Bradbury, Ballard and Heinlein all failed to make your list. Still, as Asimov said "When was the Golden Age of science fiction? When you were 16," and those were the writers I read in my youth.

I'm excited to read a few of these books that had not entered my sphere to date! Thank you for the recommendations!

I haven't watched many other book reviews that make me frantically trying to add everything you say to my list. You have a good rationale for every book and a genuine excitement

Absolutely superb description of the books I know (Dune, Dispossessed, Neuromancer, Dying Earth, Solaris) making me very curious and keen to read all the others.

Your list is actually mostly books that I haven't read, so thank you for making this video. I've added them all to my reading list!

I just stumbled onto your channel and I couldn’t be happier. I’m tired of “top ten” lists without commentary or previews. Given the amount of titles and lists to choose from, I find yours unapologetically personal. THANK YOU!

So glad to see Solaris mentioned, and ranked so highly! I haven't read much sci-fi but it easily blew everything else out of the water. I'd like to do a video review on it but there are so many layers to its meaning that I don't know how to do it concisely, haha. If you revisit it, I'd recommend reading up a bit about Andre Breton, one of the founders of surrealism. If you remember, one of the earliest researchers on Solaris who encountered some crazy stuff on the planet is named Andre Berton, so Lem is definitely telling the audience that surrealism is a big key to understanding the book's deeper themes. The philosophical underpinnings of the movement and its fixation on the human subconscious is a big element to 'figuring out' the book. Anyway, thanks for this list! Anyone who doesn't put the typical fare at the top always gets my attention so I'm sure I'll be following some of your recommendations soon :)

I couldn't agree more with your feelings on the Dispossessed. While probably a lot higher on my list (LeGuin has been my favorite author for quite a while now), Anarres is a place that I think of constantly. I couldn't have described the escapism aspect of novel better. The fact that she packs so much punch in such a relatively short book left me in awe once I finished it.

I love your description of the thrill of reading FotD. Vinge’s way of describing how the minds of the Tines work also gave me that eye-opening view of what sci-fi could be.

Thank you so much for this list. Sci-fi is my favorite genre! I have a long flight from Vietnam back to New Orleans, and I’m downloading audiobooks from my library on my phone. I’ll have plenty left to listen to for when I drive Uber after I’m back. Lots to look for later too!

Just discovered the channel with this video and have already added 4 or 5 new books to my list. Liked, commented, subscribed for the algorithm. Channels like this deserve to blow up.

23:31 - "They command magic which might be forms of high technology" See also: Clarke's third law; Any technology that is sufficiently advanced is indistinguishable from magic.

Never felt the urge to actually read "Frankenstein"... until now. Thx. (I did totally enjoy reading Blood Music. Glad to see it made the list.)

Thankyou. Enjoyed your list. Off to get a couple I hadn't heard of, including your No.1!

Hyperion series was amazing.

This is a fantastic sci-fi book review. Bookpilled reminds me of guys I knew back in high school/college back in the 70's and 80's. Very smart, intense people who know what they like or set goals for a month and very politely tell you: "Man, I can't see or talk to you until next month as I've planned for years to read these 15 Sci-Fi novels, if I don't do it now I'll never get it done..drop on by my pad at the first of the month". Then when the month is finally over he answers the door, looking completely overwhelmed from the exhausting enterprise.

Great! Found your channel today and also something to put on my eternal, never-ending TBR Pile. Keep Going, growing and reading! :)

Loved this vid, as a fan of sci-fi thank you for the synopsis of all these books, some of which I haven’t read but am sure to check out!

Wow, a blast from the past. So many of these were my introduction to SciFi in the early 90’s. Niven, Bear, Vinge, Lem, Vance & many notable others.

I was surprised that so many of your choices were written so long ago - but pleased that I had read so many of them, and broadly agree with so many of your choices. For consideration if you haven't already considered them: "Stand on Zanzibar" by John Brunner - overpopulation, Artificial Intelligence, social change... "The Rose" by Charles Harness - arts v. science and a possible resolution...

Earth abides (1949) by George R. Stewart. Is an interesting short read. Earth Abides is a 1949 American post-apocalyptic science fiction novel by George R. Stewart. The novel tells the story of the fall of civilization from deadly disease and the emergence of a new culture with simpler tools.

I like these recs and I like your straight-forward style. It’s nice when Booktubers actually have some knowledge of their subject, instead of just giddy, reactive emoting. Frankenstein is in my top 5 books of all time and I also love Solaris and all things LeGuin, so on the strength of that similar taste I’ll be checking out some of these older recs. Thanks man!

Frankenstein is an amazing book. Its allusions to greek mythology are very interesting, and I found its philosophical underpinnings and its search for humanity really compelling. Also your love for The Dispossessed is legitimate. Le Guin is a phenomenal writer, very subtle and yet profound. I love her Earthsea books for the same reason. Also, Vance's books are the basis for Dungeon's and Dragon's magic system, which is literally called the "Vancian" magic system - because spells once used are forgotten and have to be remembered, thus explaining spell slots.

Great list. "The stars my destination" is such a great book, I have always wondered why it hasnt been adapted into a film or series yet. So good man.

Thanks for the awesome recommendations. Lots of my favourites plus some I’d never heard of. Just bought City and The Mote

I cannot thank you enough for putting Blindsight on my radar. I just finished it less than an hour ago, and I already can tell that it’s going to live with me for a long time. It’s the kind of book that makes you sad for having read it because it’s hard to imagine anything else hitting in quite the same way any time soon. But wow am I glad that I did! So thank you, very much.

A worthwhile 35 minutes. I'm not sure if the number of classic authors is representative of your reading range, or the true quality of the 'past masters'. I personally tend to default back to such authors. My experience with more recent authors has not been as positive overall. I'm also glad to see you vary wildly from the standard lists of the 'best' science fiction. You got more than one cheer from me for some authors and books you cited.

Thank you for putting this list together. I've only read a few of the titles on this list, but they are books that I respect deeply. Now I have a list of other books to add to the queue. If you have not read it yet, I would strongly recommend "Children of Time", by Adrian Tchaikovsky. I've recommended it to everyone I can since I read it in 2017.

Thanks, for exposing me to many of these titles for the first time. I look forward to giving a number of them a read.

Thank you so much for the Blood Music recommendation. It’s one of my top 3 favorites now.

For Dune, I think the first book is in many ways the simplest. It has great narrative cohesion, but as the series progresses - it becomes much more rich and complex. I read the series 2.5 times. In high school I couldn’t get through book 4. In college I completed it. And in my mid 20s, I found the last 3 books to be my favorite. I encourage you, as a mature and sophisticated reader, to read the series as I think the world building, themes, and topics in the later part will be more captivating. Cheers and I enjoyed this video. Will read a couple of these!

Good list. I recall 'The Left Hand of Darkness' from Ursella Guinn.

Thanks for the great list. The RU-vid algo really nailed it, serving this up to me - I haven’t seen any other of your videos. I have read enough of the works on your list to be excited to read the others. I’ve been looking for a good guide to new (to me) SF.

Thanks for sharing. You gave a voice to several feelings I had while reading a few of these books. I can’t wait to dive into to several of your recommendations. Cheers -

I really loved The Dispossessed. It continues to stay with me. I've read about 100 pages of the Mote in God's Eye and I'm already very impressed. Just coming off of the Forever War and Startroopers helped prepare me for the military aspect of Mote.

I was expecting to see Aldous Huxley's Brave new world on this list, but there you go. Years ahead of its time.

What an excellent overview. I’m so glad your channel was recommended. Keep up the great work, I’m now subbed and can’t wait to watch more :)

Added several of these to my reading list, thanks for the suggestions

Thank you for sharing your favorite sci-fi novels and why you like them. There were a couple I don't recall reading, but I'll check them out asap. My favorites are Asimov's Foundation trilogy and Blish's Cities in Flight tetralogy. They address the human condition so powerfully that I've read them several times over the years.