Science fiction does not need to be difficult to be meaningful. These eight modern books tackle artificial intelligence, alien contact, survival, identity and society while keeping the pace lively, the characters memorable and the humour close at hand.
For readers who enjoy imaginative worlds with the momentum of a great game, this selection moves from starship satire and cosy found-family adventures to necromancers, space contests and alien reality television. For more entertainment and gaming features, visit the RETROCADE Arcade Blog.
Redshirts — John Scalzi (2012)
John Scalzi’s Hugo Award-winning novel follows a group of new ensigns assigned to a starship where away missions have an alarming habit of ending in casualties. The crew begins investigating why their ship’s encounters with hostile aliens seem to follow such a dangerous pattern, leading to increasingly strange discoveries about their reality.
Scalzi is a reliable source of comic science fiction, and Redshirts should appeal to fans of Star Trek: Lower Decks. His work also includes Starter Villain and short fiction adapted into episodes of the Netflix anthology series Love, Death & Robots.
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet — Becky Chambers (2014)
Becky Chambers’ debut began as a self-published novel and centres on Rosemary Harper, a woman from Mars seeking distance from her past. She joins the crew of a ship that creates wormholes through space, then gradually forms strong bonds with the unusual aliens and humans on board.
This is a character-led journey in which the relationships matter as much as the destination. Its warmth, humour and found-family focus make it a natural choice for fans of Firefly and Farscape.
Artificial Condition — Martha Wells (2018)
The second entry in Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries places its self-protective cyborg security unit in another awkward situation. Murderbot would much rather watch soap operas than supervise humans, but investigating its own past becomes harder when it encounters an advanced ship artificial intelligence called Asshole Research Transport.
The contrast between Murderbot’s guarded internal commentary and the AI’s eagerness to share television makes Artificial Condition one of the series’ funniest instalments. The story also continues the series’ interest in autonomy, trust and what it means to be treated as a person.
Space Opera — Catherynne M. Valente (2018)
Humanity’s survival depends on music in Catherynne M. Valente’s flamboyant space adventure. The Metagalactic Grand Prix is an interstellar song contest reminiscent of Eurovision, and Earth must prove that its species is genuinely sentient or face destruction.
That responsibility falls to washed-up musician Decibel Jones and his band, the Absolute Zeroes. With its extravagant humour and glam-rock energy, Space Opera offers a deliberately over-the-top take on the space-opera tradition, with echoes of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
Chilling Effect — Valerie Valdes (2019)
Captain Eva Innocente of the La Sirena Negra is trying to rescue her kidnapped sister, but she has not been honest with her crew about the full stakes. To raise the ransom, the foul-mouthed captain takes on a string of dangerous jobs across a universe packed with oddball characters.
The novel mixes space-opera action with jokes about video games and popular culture. Psychic cats, an alien emperor’s unwanted affection and a desperate rescue mission give Eva plenty to manage as the crew races from one job to the next.
Gideon the Ninth — Tamsyn Muir (2019)
Tamsyn Muir’s first Locked Tomb novel combines a bloody mystery with science-fantasy spectacle and a sharp comic voice. Gideon is ordered to protect the necromancer Harrow while heirs from the empire’s great houses compete in trials designed to prove they deserve immortality.
Gideon’s skull makeup, aviator sunglasses and constant sarcasm keep the deadly proceedings from becoming relentlessly grim. She and Harrow may irritate each other at every turn, but they must cooperate to survive and uncover who is killing the other competitors.
Project Hail Mary — Andy Weir (2021)
In Andy Weir’s follow-up to The Martian, science teacher and biologist Ryland Grace wakes with amnesia aboard a spaceship orbiting a distant star. He soon learns that he is the only surviving member of a mission intended to prevent Earth’s sun from being consumed.
Weir’s talent for explaining hard science combines with dry humour and a strong buddy-adventure structure. Grace’s most important ally is an alien attempting to save its own world, turning a lonely survival mission into an unexpected partnership. A 2026 film adaptation brought the story to the screen, but the novel still contains memorable moments that did not appear in the film.
Dungeon Crawler Carl — Matt Dinniman (2024)
Matt Dinniman’s self-published Dungeon Crawler Carl series received a commercial printing in 2024. It blends science fiction, fantasy and LitRPG conventions as Carl, a Coast Guard veteran, is forced into an alien reality-television competition.
His companion is his ex-girlfriend’s prized show cat, creating an unlikely party whose relationship supplies much of the comedy. Together they face bizarre challenges, gain levels, court the favour of a twisted artificial intelligence and try to attract viewers across the galaxy. Seth MacFarlane is working on an adaptation for Peacock.
More ways to enjoy imaginative worlds
These books share the qualities that make a strong arcade experience: clear stakes, distinctive characters, surprising rules and a constant reason to continue. If you enjoy interactive science fiction and fantasy, explore arcade machines, compact bartop arcades or the latest arcade videos from RETROCADE.
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