18 books like Last and First Men

What to read after Last and First Men — books similar to it, matched on shared themes.

Star Maker Olaf Stapledon · 1937 · ★ 3.9 After reading "Last and First Men", I approached Olaf's next masterpiece, "Star Maker" ( first published in 1937), with some disbelief as to how on earth he could possibly better the span, pathos and magnanimity he had already laid out. A quick scan of the appendices yielded the impression that this book would embrace not just the tiny fragment of history that was mankind's stay in the universe,… Shares: English Science fiction, English literature, Science Fiction

In the wet Nevil Shute · 1953 · 368p · ≈ 12h · Moderate Originally published in 1953, In the Wet is Nevil Shute's speculative glance into the future of the British Empire. An elderly clergyman stationed in the Australian bush is called to the bedside of a dying derelict. In his delirium Stevie tells a story of England in 1983 through the medium of a squadron air pilot in the service of Queen Elizabeth II. Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The silver metal lover Tanith Lee · 1981 · ★ 3.9 · 216p · ≈ 7h · Moderate Jane feels adrift in the upper class of her dystopian society until she meets a robot built for pleasure she suspects is more than the sum of his parts. Can a girl truly love a machine? And can the machine love her back? Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

Tales of space and time H. G. Wells · 1899 · ★ 3.7 · 205p · ≈ 6h · Challenging Tales of Space and Time collects together two novellas and three short stories by the great science fiction writer H. G. Wells. First published in 1899, this absorbing and stimulating read contains:The Crystal Egg (short story)The Star (short story)A Story of the Stone Age (novella)A Story of the Days To Come" (novella)The Man Who Could Work Miracles (short story) Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The Poison Belt Arthur Conan Doyle · 1913 · ★ 3.9 · 83p · ≈ 2h · Challenging Being an account of another adventure of Prof. George E. Challenger, Lord John Roxton, Prof. Summerlee and Mr E. D. M alone, the discoverers of "The Lost World". Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

A Plague of Angels (Plague of Angels, #1) Sheri S. Tepper · 1993 · ★ 3.8 · 559p · ≈ 18h · Moderate Atop a twisting,  canyon-climbing road, a witch lurks in a fortress  built strong to keep out dragons and ogres. In  another part of the countryside, a young orphan is  maturing into a beautiful woman in the enchanted  village that is her home. Somewhere nearby, a young man  is seeking adventure after running away from… Shares: Prophecies, Science Fiction

In Space No One Can Hear You Scream Hank Davis · 2013 · ★ 3.4 · 325p · ≈ 10h · Moderate "Trade Paperback Halloween-themed science fiction anthology. Featuring a mix of classic science fiction reprints where the scary stuff happens in space. THE UNIVERSE MAY NOT BE A NICE NEIGHBORHOOD. "The oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown," the grand master of horror, H.P. Lovecraft, once wrote. And the greatest unknown is the vast universe, shrouded in eternal cosmic night.… Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

Behold the Man Michael Moorcock · 1968 · ★ 3.7 · 144p · ≈ 4h · Moderate Karl Glogauer is a disaffected modern professional casting about for meaning in a series of half-hearted relationships, a dead-end job, and a personal struggle. His questions of faith surrounding his father's run-of-the-mill Christianity and his mother's suppressed Judaism lead him to a bizarre obsession with the idea of the messiah. After the collapse of his latest affair and his introduction to… Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The food of the gods and how it came to earth H. G. Wells · 1900 · ★ 3.4 · 222p · ≈ 7h · Challenging The Food of the Gods and How It Came to Earth is a science fiction novel by H. G. Wells that was first published in 1904. Wells called it "a fantasia on the change of scale in human affairs. . . . I had hit upon [the idea] while working out the possibilities of the near future in a book of speculations called Anticipations (1901)". The novel, which has had various B-movie adaptations, is about a… Shares: English Science fiction, English literature, Science Fiction

Billion-dollar brain Len Deighton · 1966 · ★ 3.7 · 254p · ≈ 8h · Moderate The classic spy thriller of lethal computer-age intrigue and a maniac's private cold war, featuring the same anonymous narrator and milieu of The IPCRESS File.The fourth of Deighton's novels to be narrated by the unnamed employee of WOOC(P) is the thrilling story of an anti-communist espionage network owned by a Texan billionaire, General Midwinter, run from a vast computer complex known as the… Shares: English Science fiction, English literature

A Modern Utopia H. G. Wells · 1900 · ★ 3.4 · 344p · ≈ 11h · Challenging Imagine a life without worries. You live in a perfect environment untouched by pollution. You have a job to do and play an important role in society. The politicians are watching out for your best interest. And, you get along with your neighbors. Wells’ utopia may not only be unattainable, it may be detrimental to humanity’s progress. Decide for yourself as you read this classic quest for social… Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The Light of Other Days Stephen Baxter · 2000 · ★ 4.0 · 313p · ≈ 10h · Moderate From Arthur C. Clarke, the brilliant mind that brought us 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Stephen Baxter, one of the most cogent SF writers of his generation, comes a novel of a day, not so far in the future, when the barriers of time and distance have suddenly turned to glass. When a brilliant, driven industrialist harnesses cutting-edge physics to enable people everywhere, at trivial cost, to see… Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

On the Beach Nevil Shute · 1957 · ★ 4.0 · 347p · ≈ 11h · Moderate A novel about the survivors of an atomic war, who face an inevitable end as radiation poisoning moves toward Australia from the North. Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The Gods of Mars Edgar Rice Burroughs · 1918 · ★ 3.9 · 94p · ≈ 3h · Challenging After the long exile on Earth, John Carter finally returned to his beloved Mars. But beautiful Dejah Thoris, the woman he loved, had vanished. Now he was trapped in the legendary Eden of Mars--an Eden from which none ever escaped alive. Shares: English Science fiction, Science Fiction

The Island of Dr. Moreau H. G. Wells · 1896 · ★ 3.7 · 168p · ≈ 5h · Challenging Ranked among the classic novels of the English language and the inspiration for several unforgettable movies, this early work of H. G. Wells was greeted in 1896 by howls of protest from reviewers, who found it horrifying and blasphemous. They wanted to know more about the wondrous possibilities of science shown in his first book, The Time Machine, not its potential for misuse and terror. In The… Shares: English Science fiction, English literature, Science Fiction

Salvation Lost Peter F. Hamilton · 2019 · ★ 4.3 · 736p · ≈ 24h · Moderate Duplicate of https://openlibrary.org/works/OL20840033W/Salvation_Lost?edition= Shares: English literature, Science Fiction

The Human Neal L. Asher · 2020 · ★ 4.3 · 480p · ≈ 16h · Moderate A Jain warship has risen from an ancient prison, wielding lethal technology. The ship's goal is to catch its old adversary, the Client, and to destroy all who stand in its path. Humanity and the prador thought the Jain were long extinct. But their nemesis is back, and Orlandine must prepare humanity's defence. She'll need the Client's knowledge to do this - but is the enemy of your enemy a friend? Shares: English literature, Science Fiction

Jack Four Neal Asher · 2021 · ★ 4.2 · 400p · ≈ 13h · Moderate Jack Four is one of twenty human clones, sold to the alien prador's king for warfare. However, no clone should possess the secrets in Jack's head - and they could help him escape. The prador king has been horribly mutated by the Spatterjay virus. But the prador will use any weapon against humanity, so they've infected a human. Now this experiment has broken free to rampage through the king's… Shares: English literature, Science Fiction

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