21 Best Science Fiction Books of 2021

ARTWORK by Liu Zishan from 123RF.com20

2021 might not be much better than 2020 was, but as far as book releases go, it’s been a pretty damn amazing year! Rather than pick a top ten for this year’s Best of Science Fiction list, I’ve decided to pick twenty-one favorites, books that made me think, made me laugh, made me gasp, made me cry. I’m grateful to have spent so many hours in the pages of the following books. I’m listing these alphabetically by title, and I’ll link my reviews as well. Enjoy!

Adrift by W. Michael Gear

The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory

The Body Scout by Lincoln Michel

Composite Creatures by Caroline Hardaker

Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill

Dead Space by Kali Wallace

Doors of Sleep by Tim Pratt

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky

The Exiled Fleet by J.S. Dewes

Eye of the Sh*t Storm by Jackson Ford

The Fall of Koli by M.R. Carey

Far From the Light of Heaven by Tade Thompson

The Last Watch by J.S. Dewes

Light Chaser by Peter F. Hamilton & Gareth L. Powell

Nightwatch on the Hinterlands by K. Eason

The Past is Red by Catherynne M. Valente

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Ten Low by Stark Holborn

Twenty-Five to Life by R.W.W. Greene

You Sexy Thing by Cat Rambo


What were some of your favorite SF books of the year?

Posted November 29, 2021 by Tammy in Best Books of the Year, Sci-Fi Month / 29 Comments

Divider

29 responses to “21 Best Science Fiction Books of 2021

  1. What a fantastic list of books! I’ll be adding quite a lot of these to my endless TBR. I see a lot that I hoped to get to, but never did-whoops. I also loved The Last Watch, and The Past is Red is one I’ve been dying to read. I’m happy to see that you got to read so many amazing books this year!

  2. Yes, 2021 was a great year for Sci-fi, at least compared to last year where I was struggling to fill up a top ten post with books I actually liked! This year was much easier, though I think in general I am just reading fewer sci-fi these days. I don’t think I even have 21 on my list, yikes!

  3. I just finished reading Elder Race and that has to be one of my favorites, as well. I love these novellas that are able to deliver a story that seems so much more than you’d think could fit in the format. That being said, I think it’s about time I finally try one of Tchaikovsky’s longer works. 🙂

    • Tammy

      I’m glad you enjoyed Elder Race. And me too! I need to read one of his novels. Hopefully I can find time to read Children of Time soon. It’s his novel I’m most interested in:-)

  4. Well, considering I don’t read a lot of sci-fi I have read and loved four off your list – which was a surprise I confess. Los of lovely books on here.
    Lynn 😀

  5. I’ve read the Gear books that I think were more historical. Hmm, my favorite science fiction of the year? I don’t feel like I’ve read as many in the past year, so let me think. I’d pick Ready Player Two as my favorite of the few that I read this year. But several from your list above are on my TBR. Great post!
    Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…Blog Tour Review with Giveaway: The Romance Novel Formula by A.K. LeighMy Profile

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.