Russian fantasy. Stalinist house elves, magical quests, secrecy and bureaucracy, and games of lust and power.
Der Spiegel im Spiegel
by
Michael Ende
· published 1983
· added on 2021-10-31
Downbelow Station
by
C.J. Cherryh
· published 1981
· added on 2018-08-28
Dragonsbane
by
Barbara Hambly
· published 1985
· added on 2018-09-03
Dreamsnake
by
Vonda N. McIntyre
· published 1978
· added on 2018-09-03
Dying Inside
by
Robert Silverberg
· published 1972
· added on 2021-10-31
Echopraxia
by
Peter Watts
· published 2014
· added on 2019-01-14
Benthor. Doubling down on the vampire from Blindsight, horrifying thought. Need to re-visit Blindsight first.
Embers of War
by
Gareth L. Powell
· published 2018
· added on 2019-02-04
sentient ships
Empire of Sand
by
Tasha Suri
· published 2018
· added on 2018-12-04
Multiple recs. Indian-flavoured fantasy. Magical heroine whose strength is in compassion.
Eon
by
Greg Bear
· published 1985
· added on 2018-08-28
Europe in Autumn
by
Dave Hutchinson
· published 2014
· added on 2018-11-02
Scifi spy thriller.
Exit West
by
Mohsin Hamid
· published 2017
· added on 2018-08-15
Fated
by
Benedict Jacka
· published 2012
· added on 2018-10-07
Alex Verus. Urban Fantasy, running a magic shop in London. Generic but not bad.
Foundation
by
Isaac Asimov
· published 1951
· added on 2018-02-18
From Under the Mountain
by
C.M. Spivey
· published 2016
· added on 2018-09-28
From Unseen Fire
by
Cass Morris
· published 2018
· added on 2018-09-28
Gateway
by
Frederik Pohl
· published 1977
· added on 2018-08-25
Gemsigns
by
Stephanie Saulter
· published 2013
· added on 2019-03-09
Social science fiction.
Heart of Iron
by
Ekaterina Sedia
· published 2011
· added on 2020-08-13
Russian steampunk-ish
Hero Forged
by
Josh Erikson
· published 2018
· added on 2019-04-01
Via reddit. Urban fantasy con artist.
Heroes Die
by
Matthew Woodring Stover
· published 1998
· added on 2018-09-15
His Majesty’s Dragon
by
Naomi Novik
· published 2006
· added on 2018-07-21
Homeland
by
R.A. Salvatore
· published 1990
· added on 2018-09-15
House of Suns
by
Alastair Reynolds
· published 2008
· added on 2018-09-06
I Am Legend
by
Richard Matheson
· published 1954
· added on 2018-08-27
Inda
by
Sherwood Smith
· published 2006
· added on 2018-09-15
Ink and Bone
by
Rachel Caine
· published 2015
· added on 2018-08-21
Interview with the Vampire
by
Anne Rice
· published 1976
· added on 2018-10-12
consider linking https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-25-mn-2255-story.html and https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a36386485/tom-cruise-interview-with-a-vampire-anne-rice-sabotage/
and her war on fanfic
Jade City
by
Fonda Lee
· published 2017
· added on 2018-09-21
Jhereg
by
Steven Brust
· published 1983
· added on 2018-09-15
by
Neil Gaiman
· published 1993
· added on 2015-07-02
The Collapsing Empire
by
John Scalzi
· published 2017
· added on 2018-08-07
The Crystal Cave
by
Mary Stewart
· published 1970
· added on 2018-10-12
Very Arthurian, much Saga.
The Cyberiad
by
Stanisław Lem
· published 1965
· added on 2018-10-16
The Darkness That Comes Before
by
R. Scott Bakker
· published 2003
· added on 2015-04-17
The Day of the Triffids
by
John Wyndham
· published 1951
· added on 2019-01-17
Also mentioned in Among Others. Dark & classic. Liked by Kathy and Tim.
The Devil You Know
by
Mike Carey
· published 2006
· added on 2020-07-26
For when I’m in the mood of standard-fare Urban Fantasy again. Freelance exorcist in London, cf
The Dragon’s Path
by
Daniel Abraham
· published 2011
· added on 2020-07-26
Supersedes my previous reading list entry for Long Price Quartet because I listened to people talk about it. Thank you,
book discord. This one sounded better, as per,
ff.
The Dragonbone Chair
by
Tad Williams
· published 1988
· added on 2018-09-15
The Dying Earth
by
Jack Vance
· published 1950
· added on 2018-09-12
I really enjoyed Have Space Suit–Will Travel, and I
hope that this more well-known Heinlein book will be similarly good. (Better? More adult? We’ll see …)
The Mote in God’s Eye
by
Larry Niven
· published 1974
· added on 2018-09-12
The Night Circus
by
Erin Morgenstern
· published 2011
· added on 2018-03-19
The Ninth Rain
by
Jen Williams
· published 2017
· added on 2018-11-03
Fantasy, epic, “very good Wellsian concept of creepy alien invasion, older lesbian heroine, moral complexity, well
written”.
The Novice
by
Taran Matharu
· published 2015
· added on 2018-09-21
The Only Harmless Great Thing
by
Brooke Bolander
· published 2018
· added on 2018-11-22
nebula, whimsical history patterning
The Poppy War
by
R.F. Kuang
· published 2018
· added on 2018-08-27
The Prince of Cats
by
Daniel E. Olesen
· published 2018
· added on 2018-11-28
Middle East fantasy
The Psychology of Time Travel
by
Kate Mascarenhas
· published 2018
· added on 2019-03-09
time travel possibly done well? Never going to give up hope.
The Rapture of the Nerds
by
Cory Doctorow
· published 2012
· added on 2016-05-07
The Raven Boys
by
Maggie Stiefvater
· published 2012
· added on 2018-09-15
The Red Knight
by
Miles Cameron
· published 2012
· added on 2017-11-15
The Ruin of Angels
by
Max Gladstone
· published 2017
· added on 2022-02-03
by
Joseph Roth
· published 1932
· added on 2015-04-08
The Wandering Jew
by
Stefan Heym
· published 1981
· added on 2021-10-31
Unser Herr Böckelmann
by
Walter Kempowski, Roswitha Quadflieg
· published 1979
· added on 2021-10-31
Wider den Gehorsam
by
Arno Gruen
· published 2014
· added on 2019-10-22
nonfiction.
Historical Fiction
Show all 82 books
A Burnable Book
by
Bruce Holsinger
· published 2014
· added on 2021-11-02
Via The Light Ages:
For an atmospheric novelistic portrayal of the medieval city, authored by an academic historian, try Bruce Holsinger, A Burnable Book (London, 2014).
A Morbid Taste for Bones
by
John Escott, Ellis Peters
· published 2007
· added on 2021-10-31
A Natural History of Dragons
by
Marie Brennan
· published 2013
· added on 2018-09-15
Russian fantasy. Stalinist house elves, magical quests, secrecy and bureaucracy, and games of lust and power.
From Unseen Fire
by
Cass Morris
· published 2018
· added on 2018-09-28
Gay New York
by
George Chauncey
· published 1994
· added on 2021-10-31
Heart of Iron
by
Ekaterina Sedia
· published 2011
· added on 2020-08-13
Russian steampunk-ish
His Majesty’s Dragon
by
Naomi Novik
· published 2006
· added on 2018-07-21
How to Be a Victorian
by
Ruth Goodman
· published 2013
· added on 2021-10-31
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
by
Hampton Sides
· published 2014
· added on 2016-05-11
Ink and Bone
by
Rachel Caine
· published 2015
· added on 2018-08-21
Interview with the Vampire
by
Anne Rice
· published 1976
· added on 2018-10-12
consider linking https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-25-mn-2255-story.html and https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a36386485/tom-cruise-interview-with-a-vampire-anne-rice-sabotage/
and her war on fanfic
Jane Eyre
by
Charlotte Brontë
· published 1847
· added on 2015-04-17
Jeder stirbt für sich allein
by
Hans Fallada
· published 1947
· added on 2018-07-24
Ka: Dar Oakley in the Ruin of Ymr
by
John Crowley
· published 2017
· added on 2018-09-04
Kindred
by
Rebecca Wragg Sykes
· published 2020
· added on 2021-10-31
popular history, people history. make people understand where we come from
others did it badly, then so can i!
not a good history of england, but an okay rant by a good writer, or a good rant by an okay writer.
Alif the Unseen
by
G. Willow Wilson
· published 2012
· added on 2018-08-28
Arzt in den Höllen
by
Fritz Lettow
· published 2013
· added on 2021-10-31
Atomic Accidents
by
James Mahaffey
· published 2014
· added on 2019-11-15
Nonfiction. David: ‘There’s also the chapter with the very reassuring title “The Military Almost Never Lost a Nuclear Weapon”’
Britain after Rome
by
Robin Fleming
· published 2010
· added on 2021-12-11
Carrying the Fire
by
Michael Collins
· published 1974
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, space variety: Michael Collins autobiography
Catherine the Great
by
Robert K. Massie
· published 2011
· added on 2021-10-31
Consider the Fork
by
Bee Wilson
· published 2012
· added on 2018-09-30
Nonfiction, history
Defying Hitler
by
Sebastian Haffner
· published 2000
· added on 2018-08-19
Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism
by
Peter Marshall
· published 1992
· added on 2017-11-20
Energy and Civilization: A History
by
Vaclav Smil
· published 2017
· added on 2018-08-07
Gay New York
by
George Chauncey
· published 1994
· added on 2021-10-31
Growing Old in the Middle Ages
by
Shulamith Shahar
· published 1997
· added on 2021-10-31
How Buildings Learn
by
Stewart Brand
· published 1994
· added on 2021-02-17
How to Be a Victorian
by
Ruth Goodman
· published 2013
· added on 2021-10-31
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
by
Hampton Sides
· published 2014
· added on 2016-05-11
Jeder stirbt für sich allein
by
Hans Fallada
· published 1947
· added on 2018-07-24
Kindred
by
Rebecca Wragg Sykes
· published 2020
· added on 2021-10-31
popular history, people history. make people understand where we come from
others did it badly, then so can i!
not a good history of england, but an okay rant by a good writer, or a good rant by an okay writer.
Ad Infinitum
by
Nicholas Ostler
· published 2007
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction: history of the Latin language, extremely well-informed.
Anarchy in Action
by
Colin Ward
· published 1973
· added on 2017-11-20
Britain after Rome
by
Robin Fleming
· published 2010
· added on 2021-12-11
Carrying the Fire
by
Michael Collins
· published 1974
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, space variety: Michael Collins autobiography
Conflict Is Not Abuse
by
Sarah Schulman
· published 2016
· added on 2020-08-13
I’ve been actively avoiding this book for months, might as well add it to the list.
Designing Visual Interfaces
by
Kevin E. Mullet, Darrell Sano
· published 1994
· added on 2020-08-13
Eat and Run
by
Scott Jurek, Steve Friedman
· published 2012
· added on 2021-10-31
Energy and Civilization: A History
by
Vaclav Smil
· published 2017
· added on 2018-08-07
Exuberant Animal
by
Frank Forencich
· published 2006
· added on 2021-01-28
Recommended by multiple Davids. Currently only available from the US, check occasionally.
Games People Play
by
Eric Berne
· published 1964
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, psychology
Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action
by
Elinor Ostrom
· published 1990
· added on 2018-06-10
Growing Old in the Middle Ages
by
Shulamith Shahar
· published 1997
· added on 2021-10-31
Hidden Figures
by
Margot Lee Shetterly
· published 2016
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, space history
How to Cheat at Everything
by
Simon Lovell
· published 2006
· added on 2021-02-17
How to Make People Like You in 90 Seconds or Less
by
Nicholas Boothman
· published 1999
· added on 2021-02-17
How to Talk to Anyone
by
Leil Lowndes
· published 1998
· added on 2021-02-17
Kindred
by
Rebecca Wragg Sykes
· published 2020
· added on 2021-10-31
Lateral Thinking
by
Edward de Bono
· published 1970
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction
Loving What Is
by
Byron Katie, Stephen Mitchell
· published 2002
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, reflection, personal development
Money
by
Felix Martin
· published 2013
· added on 2021-01-28
by
Olaf Stapledon
· published 1937
· added on 2018-08-28
The Art of War
by
Sun Tzu
· published -500
· added on 2018-08-13
The Darkness That Comes Before
by
R. Scott Bakker
· published 2003
· added on 2015-04-17
The Demon-Haunted World
by
Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan
· published 1996
· added on 2021-10-31
The Golden Age
by
John C. Wright
· published 2002
· added on 2018-09-03
The Luck Factor
by
Richard Wiseman
· published 2003
· added on 2021-10-31
The Master and his Emissary
by
Iain McGilchrist
· published 2009
· added on 2021-10-31
The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect
by
Roger Williams
· published 2006
· added on 2018-09-03
The Origins of Unfairness: Social Categories and Cultural Evolution
by
Cailin O'Connor
· published 2019
· added on 2020-02-18
Nonfiction. Recommended by David: “I’ve previously not-really-joked that you can’t understand gender until you’ve read Thomas Schelling’s book about the game theory of nuclear war, “The Strategy of Conflict”. That joke is now deprecated in favour of a recommendation to read this book.”
The Strategy of Conflict
by
Thomas C. Schelling
· published 1960
· added on 2020-06-06
David recommends it regularly, and it featured on Scholar’s
Stage in an article on riots. Nonfiction.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life
by
Mark Manson
· published 2016
· added on 2018-03-20
The Tyranny Of Structurelessness
by
Jo Freeman
· published 1970
· added on 2019-11-15
Not sure, thought it came via book Discord. Nonfiction.
Two Cheers for Anarchism
by
James C. Scott
· published 2012
· added on 2020-01-02
Nonfiction.
Voices: The Educational Formation Of Conscience
by
Thomas F. Green
· published 1999
· added on 2020-05-25
Recommended by Lisa and David, “if you’re
interested in the question of how people learn morality at a practical level”. Nonfiction.
Wider den Gehorsam
by
Arno Gruen
· published 2014
· added on 2019-10-22
nonfiction.
太陽と鉄 [Taiyō to tetsu]
by
Yukio Mishima, John Bester
· published 1968
· added on 2021-10-31
Poetry
Show all 1 books
Always Coming Home
by
Ursula K. Le Guin, Todd Barton, Margaret Chodos-Irvine
· published 1985
· added on 2021-10-31
Psychology
Show all 26 books
Conflict Is Not Abuse
by
Sarah Schulman
· published 2016
· added on 2020-08-13
I’ve been actively avoiding this book for months, might as well add it to the list.
Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers
by
Geoffrey A. Moore
· published 1991
· added on 2018-08-13
Dying Inside
by
Robert Silverberg
· published 1972
· added on 2021-10-31
Experiences of Depression
by
Matthew Ratcliffe
· published 2014
· added on 2021-10-31
Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
by
Steven D. Levitt
· published 2005
· added on 2018-08-20
Games People Play
by
Eric Berne
· published 1964
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction, psychology
How to Be an Adult in Relationships
by
David Richo
· published 2002
· added on 2021-10-31
Impro
by
Keith Johnstone, Irving Wardle
· published 1979
· added on 2021-10-31
In an Unspoken Voice
by
Peter A. Levine, Gabor Maté
· published 2010
· added on 2021-10-31
Resilient. How to Grow an Unshakable Core of Calm, Strength, and Happiness
by
Rick Hanson
· published 2018
· added on 2021-10-31
Ritual and its Consequences
by
Adam B. Seligman, Robert P. Weller, Michael Puett
· published 2008
· added on 2020-08-13
Nonfiction. Recommendation by David and joXn.
Shop Class as Soulcraft
by
Matthew B. Crawford
· published 2009
· added on 2021-10-31
Soul Made Flesh: The Discovery of the Brain—and How it Changed the World
by
Carl Zimmer
· published 2003
· added on 2020-03-08
by
John Scalzi
· published 2017
· added on 2018-08-07
The Crystal Cave
by
Mary Stewart
· published 1970
· added on 2018-10-12
Very Arthurian, much Saga.
The Cyberiad
by
Stanisław Lem
· published 1965
· added on 2018-10-16
The Darkness That Comes Before
by
R. Scott Bakker
· published 2003
· added on 2015-04-17
The Day of the Triffids
by
John Wyndham
· published 1951
· added on 2019-01-17
Also mentioned in Among Others. Dark & classic. Liked by Kathy and Tim.
The Dragon’s Path
by
Daniel Abraham
· published 2011
· added on 2020-07-26
Supersedes my previous reading list entry for Long Price Quartet because I listened to people talk about it. Thank you,
book discord. This one sounded better, as per,
ff.
The Dragonbone Chair
by
Tad Williams
· published 1988
· added on 2018-09-15
The Dying Earth
by
Jack Vance
· published 1950
· added on 2018-09-12
I really enjoyed Have Space Suit–Will Travel, and I
hope that this more well-known Heinlein book will be similarly good. (Better? More adult? We’ll see …)
The Mote in God’s Eye
by
Larry Niven
· published 1974
· added on 2018-09-12
The Ninth Rain
by
Jen Williams
· published 2017
· added on 2018-11-03
Fantasy, epic, “very good Wellsian concept of creepy alien invasion, older lesbian heroine, moral complexity, well
written”.
The Only Harmless Great Thing
by
Brooke Bolander
· published 2018
· added on 2018-11-22
nebula, whimsical history patterning
The Prince and the Program (The Mordred Saga, #1)
by
Aldous Mercer
· published 2012
· added on 2022-02-18
The Psychology of Time Travel
by
Kate Mascarenhas
· published 2018
· added on 2019-03-09
time travel possibly done well? Never going to give up hope.
The Rapture of the Nerds
by
Cory Doctorow
· published 2012
· added on 2016-05-07
The Red Knight
by
Miles Cameron
· published 2012
· added on 2017-11-15
The Road
by
Cormac McCarthy
· published 2006
· added on 2018-09-30
The Sculpted Ship
by
K.M. O'Brien
· published 2016
· added on 2022-02-22
billed as competence porn
The Shadow of What Was Lost
by
James Islington
· published 2014
· added on 2018-09-15
The Snow Queen
by
Joan D. Vinge
· published 1980
· added on 2018-08-28
The Space Merchants
by
Frederik Pohl, C.M. Kornbluth
· published 1952
· added on 2020-08-13
The Stainless Steel Rat
by
Harry Harrison
· published 1961
· added on 2022-02-22
Always mentioned as competence porn on /r/printSF
The Straight Razor Cure
by
Daniel Polansky
· published 2011
· added on 2021-10-31
The Swarm
by
Frank Schätzing
· published 2004
· added on 2016-12-01
The Tethered Mage
by
Melissa Caruso
· published 2017
· added on 2019-11-15
David, I think? Fantasy, magical armies.
The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic
by
Emily Croy Barker
· published 2013
· added on 2021-10-31
The Thousand Names
by
Django Wexler
· published 2013
· added on 2018-09-12
The Time Machine
by
H.G. Wells
· published 1895
· added on 2018-09-03
by
Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan
· published 1996
· added on 2021-10-31
The Doomsday Machine
by
Daniel Ellsberg
· published 2017
· added on 2021-10-31
The Horse, the Wheel, and Language
by
David W. Anthony
· published 2007
· added on 2021-10-31
The Hot Zone
by
Richard Preston
· published 1994
· added on 2021-10-31
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
by
Rebecca Skloot
· published 2010
· added on 2018-10-06
Nonfiction, history.
The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World
by
Andrea Wulf
· published 2015
· added on 2018-08-19
The Left Hand of The Electron
by
Isaac Asimov
· published 1972
· added on 2021-02-17
The Luck Factor
by
Richard Wiseman
· published 2003
· added on 2021-10-31
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales
by
Oliver Sacks
· published 1985
· added on 2016-05-18
The Master and his Emissary
by
Iain McGilchrist
· published 2009
· added on 2021-10-31
The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect
by
Roger Williams
· published 2006
· added on 2018-09-03
The Origins of Unfairness: Social Categories and Cultural Evolution
by
Cailin O'Connor
· published 2019
· added on 2020-02-18
Nonfiction. Recommended by David: “I’ve previously not-really-joked that you can’t understand gender until you’ve read Thomas Schelling’s book about the game theory of nuclear war, “The Strategy of Conflict”. That joke is now deprecated in favour of a recommendation to read this book.”
The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea
by
Sebastian Junger
· published 1997
· added on 2017-11-21
The Rapture of the Nerds
by
Cory Doctorow
· published 2012
· added on 2016-05-07
The Shock of the Old
by
David Edgerton
· published 2006
· added on 2021-10-31
The Soul of a New Machine
by
Tracy Kidder
· published 1981
· added on 2018-08-26
The Strategy of Conflict
by
Thomas C. Schelling
· published 1960
· added on 2020-06-06
David recommends it regularly, and it featured on Scholar’s
Stage in an article on riots. Nonfiction.
The Woman Who Smashed Codes
by
Jason Fagone
· published 2017
· added on 2020-01-07
History, nonfiction.
Things That Make Us Smart
by
Donald A. Norman
· published 1993
· added on 2019-10-06
by
Laini Taylor
· published 2011
· added on 2016-06-08
Fated
by
Benedict Jacka
· published 2012
· added on 2018-10-07
Alex Verus. Urban Fantasy, running a magic shop in London. Generic but not bad.
Hero Forged
by
Josh Erikson
· published 2018
· added on 2019-04-01
Via reddit. Urban fantasy con artist.
Interview with the Vampire
by
Anne Rice
· published 1976
· added on 2018-10-12
consider linking https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-dec-25-mn-2255-story.html and https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/movies/a36386485/tom-cruise-interview-with-a-vampire-anne-rice-sabotage/
and her war on fanfic
Jade City
by
Fonda Lee
· published 2017
· added on 2018-09-21
Libriomancer
by
Jim C. Hines
· published 2012
· added on 2016-06-08