Gideon the Ninth

by Tamsyn Muir

The first book in The Locked Tomb Series by Tamsyn Muir leads readers to an exciting fantasy world full of political intrigue, exciting swordplay, and necromancy.

The main character, lesbian and animated corpse, Gideon, has to help save the Ninth House before it’s too late.

Stardust

by Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman’s classic tells a love story that involves actually catching a falling star to impress a woman. It’s a story about an impossible quest that leads readers through a magical world of Faerie.

Fahrenheit 451

by Ray Bradbury

This classic satire by Ray Bradbury tells the story of a fireman who is tasked not with putting out fires but burning printed books.

This passionate exploration of censorship and the destruction of educational opportunities for common folks has long been a staple in the speculative fiction book world.

Piranesi

by Susanna Clarke

A speculative fiction novel takes on an intense touch of the surreal in Susanna’s Clarke’s bestselling book. Piranesi constantly explores his never-ending and wildly diverse house full of mazes, statues, and magical tides.

The Other, who also apparently stays in the house, invites him into a great secret: a world the main character does not know or understand.

This is How You Lose the Time War

by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Hugo and Nebula Award winner Amal El-Mohtar wrote this unforgettable story between warring factions on a dying world. A bond forged through letters sets two enemy agents on a path to romance and something with the power to change everything everyone knows.

The Shadow of the Wind

by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

First book in a series by Carlos Ruiz Zafron, this is another speculative fiction novel that explores the world of books.

Set in 1945 Spain, a bookseller seeks out other stories by his favorite writer, only to find they are all being destroyed. Thus begins a twisting tale of madness and murder the bookseller isn’t at all prepared for.

Brave New World

by Aldous Huxley

Hailed as one of the best and most prophetic dystopian novels of all time, this Aldous Huxley novel looks in on a future where society, actions, genetics, and even thoughts are controlled.

The inequality and loss of freedom stand as a warning and uncomfortable mirror to truth for people of all times since the 1930s when it was written.

Station Eleven

by Emily St. John Mandel

This time-bending tale by Emily St. John follows a traveling performer through a post-apocalyptic world. A flu pandemic wipes out most of humanity, and those left behind seek connection and some light amidst madness.

Cloud Atlas

by David Mitchell

Another speculative fiction novel that jumps to different timelines, this book by David Mitchell is filled with twisty puzzles, pure adventure, and philosophy that makes readers think.

It tells the tale -forward and in reverse – of a diverse cast of characters in many countries and times that connect in unique ways.

Mountain in the Sea

by Ray Nayler

When octopuses develop culture and language, a huge tech company seals off the area in this book by Ray Nayler. Researcher Ha Nguyen goes to study them and ends up learning more than she expected.

Part science, part philosophy, and part an examination of how big corporations seek control, this book is a thrilling spec fic option.

The Handmaid’s Tale

by Margaret Atwood

Another uncomfortably prophetic book, Margaret Atwood’s tale of a dystopian future, explores the rights of women and fertility. Main character Offred, is stolen away from her family and forced to breed for the good of the republic.

It is a harsh and unforgiving look into how the path to an environmentally destroyed future can affect the world.

Never Let Me Go

by Kazuo Ishiguro

Kazuo Ishiguro won the Nobel Prize for this speculative fiction book set in the English Countryside at a boarding school for special children.

Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy, former classmates, meet up again years later to explore their time in the school and what exactly made them so special in the first place.

The Left Hand of Darkness

by Ursula K. Le Guin

Ursula K. Le Guin’s masterpiece won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for science fiction.

This mirror on real world issues of acceptance and emotion involves a human ambassador heading to a distant planet with systems much different from Earth. They know no gender or sexual prejudice, something the character must learn to understand.

Elsewhere

by Gabrielle Zevin

When 15-year-old Liz dies, she ends up in a beautiful paradise, but this peaceful spot isn’t the heaven she wants. No one in Elsewhere can ever grow older.

In fact, they all grow younger until their baby selves are reincarnated on Earth once more. The intriguing book by Gabrielle Zevin won Time Magazines Best YA Book of All Time award.

The Candy House

by Jennifer Egan

Author Jennifer Egan reaped multiple awards and bestseller list top billing for this unique and imaginative work.

The different characters each have their own unique voice and style when telling their part of the tale of a tech mastermind group who learn how to download memories. It’s an exploration of history and very personal truths.

Cemetery Boys

by Aiden Thomas

Like many speculative fiction novels, this contemporary story by Aiden Thomas addresses an important problem in the world. The main character, a young trans man, needs to prove his true gender to traditional family members.

Instead of summoning his cousin’s ghost, he raises the town bad boy, and now he needs to help solve the mystery of his death. It has a touch of romance, a dose of the paranormal, and a great ending that readers will love.