Hugonauts: The Best Sci-Fi Books of All Time

In this episode we review Left Hand of Darkness, talk about the things that make it so timeless and fun to read, Ursula K Le Guin's real life experiences that inspired the book, and how it transcends sci fi and becomes 'literary' fiction that everyone can and should enjoy. As always, we also recommend and discuss some similar stories if you're looking for more great books to read: The Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie Any of Ted Chiang's short story collections City and the City - China

In A Fire Upon the Deep, A colony of humans sets up in the transcendence, the part of the galaxy where computers work so well AI can ascend and become godlike. The humans start tinkering with an old artifact, and naturally, they awaken an ancient power. The reborn AI sets off on a reign of destruction, and soon is killing even other deities. A single ship escapes with the secret to save the universe and jets off through the beyond to the very edge of the slowness, the sector of the galaxy where the

Hyperion by Dan Simmons is one of the best sci fi books of all time, and won the Hugo and the Locus awards in 1990. We give it a 4.5 / 5. The book is a space epic in the form of Chaucer’s Canterbury tales. Hyperion is a colony world at the edge of Hegemony space, and home to some of the greatest mysteries of the galaxy. A network of giant labyrinths crisscrosses underground across the whole planet, the Time Tombs are surrounded by an anti-entropic field that makes time run backwards, and a fearsome,

This series is beloved by its fans, but doesn't get enough recognition in the wider world. These are incredible, character-driven stories that are a breeze to read but beneath the surface have so much to say about what's most important in life and the meaning and definition of personal identity. That makes them the perfect intro to sci fi for anyone new to the genre, and a refreshing read for any longtime sci fi fan. 4.25 / 5 stars. The Vorkosigan Saga is a series of 16 books by Lois McMaster

A Canticle for Leibowitz is set in the aftermath of a horrible nuclear war. The survivors blamed science, and killed intellectuals and burned all the books they could get their hands on. A monastery in the desert of the western US is one of the few places on earth to preserve any knowledge, and the book follows the monks of the monastery in three sections over the following thousand years.The monks are witty, wry, and funny as hell, and they make the book into an incredibly fun read.It's an amazing

This is a no-spoiler review. In advance of the new Dune movie, we thought it would be fun to revisit Dune and remember what made it great (and the things that aren't so great).The names are incredible - who can forget the Fremen, the Gom Jabbar, or the Reverend Mother? The writing, on the other hand - we wish we could forget the constant repetition, horrific dialogue, and ending that comes so fast it's over before you know it was even really happening.If you haven't the read Dune and want to decide