50 Sci-Fi/Fantasy Novels That Everyone Should Read

This is one of the 759 lists we use to generate our main The Greatest Books list.

About this list

Flavor Wire, 90 Books

Explore the realms of magic and the future with Flavor Wire's "50 Sci-Fi/Fantasy Novels That Everyone Should Read." This expertly curated list offers a gateway for those new to the genre and a treasure trove for avid fans. Highlighting only the most compelling narratives, the list includes a single work or series per author, focuses on novels with adult appeal, and excludes short stories. It's a diverse collection designed to spark imagination and discussion among readers of all levels. Dive into these essential reads and expand your literary horizons.

This list was originally published in 2013 and was added to this site over 2 years ago.

View: List Grid Table
Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
1421 Ubik Philip K. Dick 1969 American English
2606 Ender's Game Orson Scott Card 1985 American English
17 The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien 1959 English English
132 The Handmaid's Tale Margaret Atwood 1985 Canadian English
3145 Dhalgren Samuel R. Delany 1975 American English
1289 A Game of Thrones George R. R. Martin 1996 American English
14984 A Clash Of Kings George R. R. Martin 1998 American English
6104 A Storm Of Swords George R. R. Martin 2000 American English
14984 A Feast For Crows George R. R. Martin 2005 American English
14984 A Dance With Dragons George R. R. Martin 2011 American English
39 Frankenstein Mary Shelley 1818 British English
629 Titus Groan Mervyn Peake 1946 British English
526 Gormenghast Mervyn Peake 1950 British English
1953 Titus Alone Mervyn Peake 1959 British English
3887 The Moon is a Harsh Mistress Robert A. Heinlein 1966 American English
513 Kindred Octavia E. Butler 1979 American English
363 The Left Hand Of Darkness Ursula K. Le Guin 1969 American English
3159 Nine Princes In Amber Roger Zelazny 1970 American English
1585 Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke 2004 British English
84 Slaughterhouse-Five Kurt Vonnegut 1969 American English
5028 The City & the City China Miéville 2009 British English
286 The Once and Future King T. H. White 1958 British English
1395 The Mists of Avalon Marion Zimmer Bradley 1983 American English
5010 Zone One Colson Whitehead 2011 American English
236 Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone J. K. Rowling 1997 British English
2144 Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets J. K. Rowling 1998 British English
1017 Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban J. K. Rowling 1999 British English
1842 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J. K. Rowling 2000 British English
1910 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix J. K. Rowling 2003 British English
1755 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince J. K. Rowling 2005 British English
2232 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows J. K. Rowling 2007 British English
293 A Wrinkle In Time Madeleine L'Engle 1962 American English
17130 A Wind In The Door Madeleine L'Engle 1973 American English
2828 A Swiftly Tilting Planet Madeleine L'Engle 1978 American English
17130 Many Waters Madeleine L'Engle 1986 American English
381 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe C. S. Lewis 1950 British English
2687 Prince Caspian C. S. Lewis 1951 British English
1833 The Voyage of the Dawn Treader C. S. Lewis 1952 British English
2796 The Silver Chair C. S. Lewis 1953 British English
2823 The Horse and His Boy C. S. Lewis 1954 British English
2841 The Magician's Nephew C. S. Lewis 1955 British English
2476 The Last Battle C. S. Lewis 1956 British English
399 His Dark Materials Philip Pullman 1995 British English
2975 The Female Man Joanna Russ 1975 American English
673 Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Jules Verne 1870 French French
5757 Brown Girl In The Ring Nalo Hopkinson 1998 Canadian English
327 Solaris Stanislaw Lem 1961 Polish Polish
190 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Douglas Adams 1979 British English
100 Dune Frank Herbert 1965 American English
6 Nineteen Eighty Four George Orwell 1949 British English
1597 Snow Crash Neal Stephenson 1992 American English
2414 The Stars My Destination Alfred Bester 1956 American English
893 Neuromancer William Gibson 1984 American, Canadian English
2192 American Gods Neil Gaiman 2001 British English
361 Foundation Isaac Asimov 1951 American English
13764 Foundation And Empire Isaac Asimov 1952 American English
13766 Second Foundation Isaac Asimov 1953 American English
11174 Foundation's Edge Isaac Asimov 1982 American English
14984 Foundation And Earth Isaac Asimov 1986 American English
12062 Prelude To Foundation Isaac Asimov 1988 American English
14984 Forward The Foundation Isaac Asimov 1993 American English
1626 The Colour of Magic Terry Pratchett 1983 British English
35 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Lewis Carroll 1865 British English
7684 Among Others Jo Walton 2011 British English
50 Brave New World Aldous Huxley 1932 British English
1793 The Last Unicorn Peter S. Beagle 1968 American English
1609 The Drowned World J. G. Ballard 1962 British English
2701 Witch World Andre Norton 1963 American English
1338 Something Wicked This Way Comes Ray Bradbury 1962 American English
294 The Time Machine H. G. Wells 1895 British English
266 Never Let Me Go Kazuo Ishiguro 2005 British English
1173 Little, Big John Crowley 1981 American English
3086 Dragonflight Anne McCaffrey 1968 American English
14206 Dragonquest Anne McCaffrey 1971 American English
14232 The White Dragon Anne McCaffrey 1978 American English
17130 Moreta Anne McCaffrey 1983 American English
17130 Nerilka's Story Anne McCaffrey 1986 Irish English
17130 Dragonsdawn Anne McCaffrey 1988 American English
17130 Renegades Of Pern Anne McCaffrey 1989 American English
17130 All The Weyrs Of Pern Anne McCaffrey 1991 American English
17130 The Chronicles Of Pern Anne McCaffrey 1993 Irish English
13284 How To Live Safely In A Science Fictional Universe Charles Yu 2010 American English
10128 Dealing With Dragons Patricia C. Wrede 1990 American English
17130 Searching For Dragons Patricia C. Wrede 1991 American English
17130 Calling On Dragons Patricia C. Wrede 1993 American English
17130 Talking To Dragons Patricia C. Wrede 1985 American English
2086 Howl's Moving Castle Diana Wynne Jones 1986 British English
17130 Castle In The Air Diana Wynne Jones 1990 British English
17130 House Of Many Ways Diana Wynne Jones 2008 British English
1799 The Giver Lois Lowry 1993 American English