Favorite Books Read in 2022
My favorite books out of the 50 books (~18,000 pages) that I read in 2022:
Sci-Fi
Terra Ignota Quartet (Too Like the Lightning, Seven Surrenders, The Will to Battle, Perhaps the Stars) — A fascinating unlike-anything-else romp through a sci-fi 25th century well-seasoned with 18th-century philosophy tied together with a page-turning plot set in a compelling and meticulously built world. One of those series that sticks with you long after you finish.
Eversion — “A ship is a dream of whispers.” A beautifully crafted tale that unfolds, bit by bit, and reveals more and more as it continues until everything comes together satisfyingly at the end.
Favorite Books Read in 2021
My favorite books out of the 54 books (~23,000 pages) that I read in 2021:
Sci-Fi and Fantasy
Project Hail Mary — A fun sci-fi romp much in the style of the author’s earlier work, The Martian, but nonetheless enjoyable.
Fall or, Dodge in Hell — A sequel of sorts to the author’s earlier work, REAMDE, this book is a fascinating exploration of what it means to create a world, inspired at least partly by Milton’s Paradise Lost, but enjoyable and thought-provoking on its own merits.
Favorite Books Read in 2020
My favorite books out of the 43 books (~17,000 pages) that I read in 2020:
Sci-Fi and Fantasy
The Ministry for the Future — This is a challenging, and, at times, bleak book, but ultimately an incredibly thought-provoking look at a potential future of the world as climate change continues to accelerate. One of those books that sticks with you long after you finish reading it.
Fiction and Classics
Wolf Hall Trilogy (The Mirror & the Light) — A satisfying conclusion to the Wolf Hall trilogy (we all knew how it was going to end, after all, such is the curse and joy of historical fiction). The prose continues to be beyond amazing. It was more than a little surreal reading this soon after it came out, as the COVID-19 pandemic world spread across the world, only to have the book open with Thomas Cromwell grappling with a plague, way back in 1485.
Favorite Books Read in 2019
My favorite books out of the 70 books (~31,000 pages) that I read in 2019:
Sci-Fi and Fantasy
Exhalation — Another collection of wonderfully crafted sci-fi short stories from a master of the genre.
Mars Trilogy (Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars) — I remember trying to read Red Mars as a kid when I was 10 or 11 years old. Needless to say it sailed entirely over my head and abandoned it unfinished. Returning now some decades later, the series as a whole is an incredible exploration of the human aspects of space colonization. The trilogy begins with a narrow focus on the initial set of colonists and their initial travails and then gradually widens the lens to ultimately encompass the entire planet, its transformation, and relationship with Earth.
Favorite Books Read in 2018
My favorite books out of the 103 books (~35,000 pages) that I read in 2018:
Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction
The Baroque Cycle (Quicksilver, The Confusion, System of the World) — Rich, resplendent, and towering, this series of three (or eight, depending on how you count) books soars from the Glorious Revolution to the Court of the Sun King to rambunctious adventures around the globe. Filled with scientific references, historical tidbits, and cameos (as well as larger parts played) by historical figures, this series is a delight.
Favorite Books Read in 2017
My favorite books out of the 102 books (~38,000 pages) that I read in 2017:
Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction
Revelation Space series (Revelation Space, Redemption Ark, Absolution Gap) — Hard scifi space opera. Greatly enjoyable, with memorable characters, backstory, science, history, and of course the requisite galactic-scale threats.
House of Suns — Set outside the Revelation Space universe, Alastair Reynolds manages to craft a compelling tale that spans galaxies and offers new mysteries of its own.
Favorite Books Read in 2016
My favorite books out of the 61 books (~24,000 pages) that I read in 2016:
Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction
Culture series — I read the entire ten book series over the course of 2016. The Culture series is set in the distant future where enlightened AIs run society and humans, freed from a life of labor, have to deal with the rest of the galaxy. What is life like when material want is eradicated? What about encounters with less enlightened aliens? Or perhaps backward planets lagging in development? All this and more is thoughtfully and philosophically dealt with in this amazing series. My favorite out of the ten books was the brilliant Matter, but I’d recommend starting with Player of Games.