The 25 best science fiction books
The 25 highest-ranked science fiction books in our ranking of 2,819, scored on how much readers love them, their prize, best-list and bestseller record, and current buzz. We rank 313 science fiction books in all. How we rank
- 1
Project Hail Mary95.2Must-Read ScoreProject Hail Mary
It's the rare science-fiction novel that's pure joy to read: funny, tense, packed with clever problem-solving, and built on one of the most lovable friendships in recent fiction.
- 2Ender's Game94.2Must-Read Score
Ender's Game
It won both the Hugo and the Nebula, science fiction's two biggest awards, and it's one of the most widely read science fiction novels ever written.
- 3
The Fifth Season91.9Must-Read ScoreThe Fifth Season
It's one of the most inventive fantasies of the century, and its trilogy is the only one to win the Hugo Award for Best Novel three years running.
- 4
Dungeon Crawler Carl91.8Must-Read ScoreDungeon Crawler Carl
It's absurd, violent, very funny and surprisingly moving, and Carl's quiet rage against the people running the show gives it real heart.
- 5
Dune90.9Must-Read ScoreDune
It's the best-selling science-fiction novel of all time, and it earns it: a vast, intricate world of politics, religion, ecology and power, with a hero story that slowly turns into a warning about heroes.
- 6
198490.6Must-Read Score1984
It's one of the most influential novels ever written, and its ideas (Big Brother, doublethink, Newspeak, the memory hole) have become part of how we talk about power and truth.
- 7
The Handmaid’s Tale88.6Must-Read ScoreThe Handmaid’s Tale
It was a Booker finalist and is one of the most influential dystopian novels ever written, picked for both the BBC's Big Read and the PBS Great American Read.
- 8
The Martian87.4Must-Read ScoreThe Martian
It's an irresistible survival story, smart, funny and constantly suspenseful, with a hero whose sarcastic log entries make you laugh while he's facing death.
- 9
The Hunger Games87.0Must-Read ScoreThe Hunger Games
It's one of the best-selling books of all time and defined a whole era of young adult fiction.
- 10
Hyperion87.0Must-Read ScoreHyperion
It won the Hugo Award and is one of the most acclaimed science fiction novels ever.
- 11
The Stand86.5Must-Read ScoreThe Stand
It's Stephen King's epic, and many fans' favorite of his books: a sprawling, gripping story of the end of the world and the ordinary people who rebuild it.
- 12Gideon the Ninth86.3Must-Read Score
Gideon the Ninth
It was a finalist for both the Hugo and the Nebula awards.
- 13
Red Rising86.2Must-Read ScoreRed Rising
It's a relentless, thrilling science-fiction epic, The Hunger Games meets Game of Thrones in space, with huge battles, betrayals and an underdog hero.
- 14
11/22/6385.9Must-Read Score11/22/63
It was a #1 New York Times bestseller and became a Hulu series.
- 15
The Dispossessed85.9Must-Read ScoreThe Dispossessed
It's a thoughtful, humane novel of ideas about freedom, society and what makes a good life, and it won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards.
- 16
Ready Player One84.5Must-Read ScoreReady Player One
It was a #1 New York Times bestseller, a PBS Great American Read pick and a Steven Spielberg film.
- 17All Systems Red84.5Must-Read Score
All Systems Red
It begins the Murderbot Diaries, one of the most loved science fiction series of recent years, which has won both the Hugo and the Nebula.
- 18
Foundation84.0Must-Read ScoreFoundation
It was voted onto PBS's Great American Read, and the series won a special Hugo as the best science fiction series of all time.
- 19A Deepness in the Sky83.7Must-Read Score
A Deepness in the Sky
It won the Hugo Award and was a Nebula Award finalist.
- 20
A Memory Called Empire83.5Must-Read ScoreA Memory Called Empire
It won the Hugo Award.
- 21Barrayar82.8Must-Read Score
Barrayar
It won the Hugo Award for Best Novel and was a Nebula Award finalist.
- 22
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy82.6Must-Read ScoreThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
It was a pick on both the BBC's Big Read and the PBS Great American Read, and is one of the funniest books ever written.
- 23
Parable of the Sower82.5Must-Read ScoreParable of the Sower
It was a Nebula Award finalist and has become one of the most talked-about novels of the century because so much of it now feels prophetic.
- 24
The Three-Body Problem82.4Must-Read ScoreThe Three-Body Problem
It was the first translated novel to win the Hugo Award, and it made Chinese science fiction a global phenomenon.
- 25
Old Man's War82.0Must-Read ScoreOld Man's War
It was Scalzi's first novel, a Hugo finalist and a modern classic of military science fiction.