There comes a time, dear reader, when one finishes a beloved story and finds oneself adrift—rather like a ship without stars to guide it. If you have journeyed through the remarkable Expanse series by James S.A. Corey and now find yourself wandering the corridors of your home, searching for that next grand adventure among the stars, then you have come to the right place.
For I have gathered here a collection of tales most wondrous—books that capture that same breathless feeling of hurtling through the cosmos, of political machinations among distant worlds, and of ordinary souls thrust into extraordinary circumstances. Shall we begin?
A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
Here is a tale that would make even the most seasoned diplomat of The Expanse sit up and take notice. Young Mahit Dzmare arrives at the heart of the magnificent Teixcalaanli Empire as ambassador from her tiny space station, carrying within her mind the memories of her predecessor—who died under most mysterious circumstances.
What follows is a delicious confection of political intrigue, identity questions, and the peculiar agony of loving a culture that wishes to consume your own. Winner of the Hugo Award, this is space opera at its most elegant and thoughtful.
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Oh, what a curious twist of fate drives this tale! When humanity’s grand experiment to seed a distant world goes terribly awry, the intended monkeys never receive their evolutionary gift. Instead, the remarkable nanovirus finds its way to the spiders.
Yes, dear reader—spiders. Across millennia, we watch these eight-legged creatures develop civilization, technology, and philosophy, while the last desperate humans race across space seeking a new home. Winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award, this is a story that will make you see intelligence itself in an entirely new light.
The Forever War by Joe Haldeman
If The Expanse captured your heart with its gritty portrayal of conflict, then you must acquaint yourself with this magnificent tale. Private William Mandella is conscripted into an interstellar war against mysterious aliens, but the true enemy proves to be time itself.
Written by a Vietnam veteran and winner of both the Hugo and Nebula Awards, this story shows what happens when soldiers return home to find centuries have passed. It is military science fiction at its most human and heartbreaking.
Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
Imagine, if you will, being one ship with thousands of bodies—and then having everything torn away until you are but a single fragile soul seeking vengeance against an immortal ruler. This is the remarkable journey of Breq, once the starship Justice of Toren.
The only novel to win the Hugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke Awards simultaneously, this book challenges everything you think you know about identity, empire, and what it means to be a person.
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
In the corporate-dominated future, security units are meant to be tools—obedient, unthinking, disposable. But one particular SecUnit has hacked its own governing module and would very much prefer to watch soap operas than protect humans, thank you very much.
Self-named “Murderbot,” this sardonic, anxious, secretly compassionate construct has captured hearts across the galaxy. Multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards speak to Martha Wells’s achievement in crafting a character both utterly alien and achingly relatable.
Hyperion by Dan Simmons
Seven pilgrims journey to the Time Tombs of Hyperion, each carrying a tale that explains their presence. Structured like Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, this Hugo Award winner weaves together stories of horror, military adventure, tragic romance, and cosmic mystery.
The Shrike awaits—that terrible creature of blades and impossible angles—and in seeking it, these pilgrims will reveal truths about humanity’s future that will leave you breathless.
Consider Phlebas by Iain M. Banks
Welcome to the Culture—a vast civilization of humans and artificial minds living in post-scarcity abundance. But this first novel in Banks’s legendary series follows Horza, a shape-shifting assassin who fights against the Culture in a galaxy-spanning war.
Epic in scope, morally complex, and featuring some of the most imaginative worldbuilding in all of science fiction, this is essential reading for anyone who loves The Expanse’s grand cosmic canvas.
The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold
Miles Vorkosigan was damaged before birth—stunted, fragile-boned, and considered a “mutant” on his militaristic homeworld. What he lacks in physical prowess, he compensates for with brilliant tactical thinking and an absolute refusal to accept limitations.
Across seventeen novels spanning space opera, military adventure, mystery, and romance, Bujold has crafted one of science fiction’s most beloved series. Five Hugo Awards cannot be wrong.
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
Young Darrow believes he toils beneath Mars’s surface so that future generations might walk upon it. The truth proves far more terrible—and ignites within him a fire that will burn across an entire solar system.
If you loved The Expanse’s underdog heroes fighting against impossible odds, Darrow’s journey from lowly Red to revolutionary force will seize your heart and refuse to let go.
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds
Dark, atmospheric, and scientifically rigorous, this novel asks a haunting question: why do all intelligent species seem to vanish? Archaeologist Dan Sylveste digs into the ruins of an ancient civilization, and what he discovers threatens all of humanity.
Reynolds, a former astrophysicist, has crafted a universe where faster-than-light travel is impossible, making the vast gulfs between stars feel genuinely terrifying. This is hard science fiction at its most unsettling.
Wool by Hugh Howey
Not every apocalypse unfolds among the stars. In the Silo, thousands of humans live underground, forbidden to speak of going outside—where death awaits. When mechanic Juliette begins asking dangerous questions, she uncovers conspiracies that shake the very foundations of her world.
Now an Apple TV+ series, this tale of underground survival and governmental secrets shares The Expanse’s gift for political intrigue and ordinary heroes.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers
Not every space adventure requires battles and explosions. The crew of the Wayfarer—a tunneling ship that bores wormholes through space—is the most delightful found family you shall ever meet.
This cozy, character-driven tale proves that sometimes the greatest adventures are the friendships we forge along the way. If you loved the Rocinante crew’s relationships, you will adore this.
Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
On his seventy-fifth birthday, John Perry visited his wife’s grave—and then joined the army. Earth’s Colonial Defense Forces have a remarkable offer for the elderly: trade your worn body for a genetically enhanced one, and fight for humanity among the stars.
Witty, action-packed, and surprisingly moving, this novel asks profound questions about identity while delivering pure military science fiction entertainment.
The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi
The Flow connects humanity’s far-flung colonies—and the Flow is dying. A young empress, an ambitious noble house, and a scientist with terrible news must navigate a universe about to lose everything that holds it together.
Political machinations worthy of The Expanse meet an existential crisis that threatens all of human civilization. This is Scalzi at his most ambitious.
The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin
What happens when humanity discovers it is not alone—and the neighbors are not friendly? This remarkable novel from China’s most celebrated science fiction author begins during the Cultural Revolution and spans centuries of first contact.
Hard science fiction that will bend your mind and chill your heart, this Hugo Award winner presents an alien civilization unlike any you have encountered before.
Finding Your Next Adventure
And so, dear reader, we reach the end of our tour through these magnificent corridors of imagination. Whether you crave political intrigue, military adventure, alien mysteries, or simply the company of memorable characters journeying through the stars, one of these tales awaits you.
The universe, you see, is vast and full of stories. The Expanse opened a door for you; these books invite you to step through many more.
Second star to the right, and straight on till morning.
