Fiction
Books
If you’re going to only read on Stephenson book, make it this one. Especially relevant now in the age of LLMs.
The first one is great, skip the second unless you’re a superfan.
My first Stephenson novel, and likely his second best after The Diamond Age
Historical fiction that tickles my wannabe language nerd heart.
Whipped through these two, but the third book is famously taking forever to come out.
I’m a sucker for time travel stories, this one works
An interesting premise, well executed
Takes forever to get good, and then it’s great.
Fun nerdy read with enough semi-realistic science to make it plausible.
Can be a little tricky to keep the Chinese names straight, but some really interesting ideas. Each book is quite different.
After the disappointing Artemis, Andy Weir is back with a read that recaptures the nerdy fun of The Martian
Not for everyone, but I enjoyed this more than I expected. Nominally about time travel, but the evolution and permutations of adult friendships resonated with me.
Enjoyed this take on future tech and its implications on economic systems.
Space antics with realistic physics. Quality dips midway through, but first few books are great. I haven’t watched the show yet.
Great novella, you can find it online to read for free.
Neat premise, surprisingly still holds up given it’s age
If you’ve watched more than a season of Star Trek (any version), then you’ll probably enjoy this
Even though it’s a completely different culture, I identified a lot of the depictions of the immigrant experience in the book.
Read while traveling in India. Depressing, but well-written.
Fun, modern take on the backstory of characters from Greek Mythology
Modern retelling of David Copperfield set in Appalachia
Portuguese translation
Read right these right before the show came out, still waiting for the next book, though I’ve mostly lost interest after how the show ended.
Considered an absolute masterpiece, these were crazy dense and I wasn’t in a time of my life where I had the spare brainpower to fully appreciate.
This took a long while to read. Drags a bit in the middle, but finishes strong.
Could have been edited down a bit, but overall was a fun series to read
If a book about capitalism within a fantasy world sounds like a good time, then this book is for you.
Series starts strong, though the most recent books were just OK. Waiting on the final five books to be written.
I read the Portuguese (Portugal) translations of these
Quick series with some interesting ideas (human hive minds, vampires in space).
The first book is definitely worth reading, the rest are quite different.
Final book jumps quite a bit ahead in time, can be skipped
If you like Stephenson’s other books, you’ll probably like this as well.
Plot-driven and entertaining, I enjoyed them at the time. There are additional books out now, but haven’t felt the need to continue.
There are five more books in the series that I haven’t gotten around to
Haven’t gotten around to book 3 yet
Bob’s consciousness is uploaded into a spaceship’s, which heads out to explore the universe. Breezy reading, with style reminiscent of The Martian at times.
The two books are interesting takes on foreign intelligence. The third book is skippable.
First book in the new series by the authors of The Expanse, shows promise.
A parallel world where Neanderthals won instead of us.
Popcorn read that is pretty much what you expect from the title. Enjoyable read, but I’m surprised it was nominated for the Hugo.
Read the Spanish translation because I was traveling and ran out of books
Silly fun
Came very highly recommended, many likened it to Ready Player One, which isn’t a great comparison. Though both books lean heavily into nostalgic video games, this book is really about relationships, romantic and platonic. Not a bad read, but didn’t live up to the hype for me.
I should probably re-read this one.
The movie translated this very well, no particular reason to read it if you’ve seen it
Not great, but not as bad as I thought it would be.
Loved The Martian, but this felt like it was trying too hard.
Some interesting ideas, but not my favorite of his
Stephenson’s books always take a while to get going, and this is just Book 1 so still too early to really judge
I haven’t played the games or watched the show, but the books are enjoyable enough if you like the genre.
Light and easy popcorn fantasy
Classic Stephenson: Interesting ideas, but drags at times.
This won the Hugo in 2023. It’s … fine. Easy read but not particularly memorable.
The evolution and biology of a vastly different form of life living on a neutron star. Some interesting ideas, but should have been half the length. Written in the 80s and showing it’s age.
Another plot-driven sci-fi popcorn read with a familiar story line
Very different vibe than the film
Some interesting ideas, but a bit of a slog
A bit too cutesy for my taste, but came highly recommended so might still read the others in the series.
There are over 15 books in this series, not ready to dedicate that much time here
I know a lot of people that love this 10-book series, but I wasn’t a fan of the first, though the second was better
Like a lot of highly-influential books, ends up feeling dated and overhyped because it’s innovative ideas have been copied and improved upon by others.
A forgettable failed attempt to re-capture the spirit of Ready Player One
Easy reading, but gets repetitive after a while
Didn’t speak to me, but perhaps I was too young
The Simpsons’ comic book guy vibe, but for an entire book. Got old quickly.
No idea how anyone ever though this was a true story.
I have no idea how this has a 4.2 on Goodreads or how I managed to finish it.
Barely finished this, not sure how I was convinced it was worth reading (it is not).
Had to force myself to finish this, I don’t know why this was nominated for a Hugo. There are some interesting ideas, but in the end this is a detective story where the main character is an unlikable Space Karen that uses her money to bully everyone around her.
Interesting premise, but not a fan of the writing style and drags a bit. I enjoyed Hominids more.
Not for me
I do not get the hype