Hey hey party people! I am a little behind the power curve this summer with my kiddos being home full time buuut here is the book club pick for this month! Reading schedule to be posted shortly.

People skip Tower of Dawn? Truly, they skip this book?

Could never in one million years be me. Never ever. First of all, the book is so much fun I forgot fantasy can be so vibrant and delightful. Second of all, it's got essential information in it to the series. Like. Critical reveals happen in this book. People skip this?! Grow up.

Chaol apologist until I die. I loved his arc in this. Coming to terms with his injury and his own limitations in a physical way was so great to see for him. He blamed himself, but really he could never have known. Aelin and Dorian were around the king, too. They didn't notice how evil he was - and he was Dorian's dad! We never talk about that! Everyone shouts at Chaol for following orders (doing his job! Which most normal people would do in his situation!) and that he didn't notice the king was hella evil, but they forget that was Dorian's actual father. Dorian saw him more than Chaol ever did and in way more contexts.

He had been That Way for all of Dorian's life, so Dorian wouldn't have known better, but he had also been that way for all of Chaol's life, too. People ignore the fact that Dorian and Chaol are the same age! Chaol is held to a much higher standard than anyone else in the King's orbit, which is so ironic to me it makes me actually laugh about it. That's his trauma - he holds himself to a much higher standard than everyone around him, his dad held him to a much higher standard than everyone around him. Readers who hate Chaol are doing to him exactly what his dad and he himself does that traumatizes him in a specific way!

Okay, back to Tower of Dawn because I could go on about Chaol for hours. I love him, he's the best, beloved household name here.

I love Yrene. Love, love, love the addition of her to the story. She is fierce and strong and perceptive and kind. She understands kindness versus niceness so clearly. Nothing about Chaol gives her pause and she sees him immediately as he is when she meets him. She doesn't care about his limitations, she just cares about him getting better.

I loved their mirror arcs in this, too. Yrene processing her hate and rage, Chaol processing his self loathing and disappointment. It was so great to see them together. And the yearning really got me.

This was the book I felt SJM had the most fun writing. It's buoyant, but fast-paced and gives you so much without burning you out. Nesryn and Sartaq are so fun together, too. Nesryn learning to be put first and her whole calling back to her homeland? I loved that. As someone who feels lost and struggles to articulate that I don't feel "home" anywhere, that really resonated with me. I'm always looking for wherever it is I am "meant" to put my roots down. I get her in a very personal way and loved her learning she was always meant to be back in Antica.

The story in this was delightful. A friend described it as "very Temple of Doom" and I felt that so hard. The library scene was stressful, the hidden-in-plain-sight twist was fantastic, and the red herrings were actually subtle and well done. That surprised me. I think this was SJM's strongest-written story. The romance felt authentic and organic, it's very much what two people in this situation would probably experience.

Sometimes, I will admit, I feel a little caught off guard or like the romance develops too quickly for me to not be skeptical about a couple or two. This one? I liked this one. I am very cautious about love and attraction, so I find that a slower-paced romance lands much more realistically for me. The story itself was very well put together and its message and themes felt distinct from the main arc. It did drag and repeat itself or get into loops a few times, but I didn't mind that too much. When it slowed down, I just relaxed into the story and focused on the characters' behaviors more. I think we could've axed like... 50-100 pages and had a much tighter story but I'm not an editor so take that with a grain of salt.

I walked away calling this an "asterisk book". This is Throne of Glass and this is HUGE for the main story, but it's its own thing. Does that make any sense at all? I hope so.

Her reveal, though. That big one? The Maeve of it all? That was wild. It actually made me feel a little bad for coming for Aelin's neck honestly. Yes, I want her to experience consequences to force her into processing her trauma, but I meant a wrist slap! I didn't mean this! I regret putting that into the universe, guys. I'm sorry.

I needed the world without Aelin for a while, that's what I learned from this. It was such a spark to me, Tower of Dawn. I had so much fun. This one was the breather and the new life into the main story I really needed to no longer feel like I was oversaturated. EOS and TOD? Tied for favorite to me. Which is hilarious because they're the tandem books.

This has been one of the most fun, enjoyable, rewarding community experiences reading a series I've had in a really long time. If anything, I'm loving this series because of how active and engaged I've gotten to be with the TOG community during my read through. That, alone, has made this experience so special so far.

I'm not ready to be done. I'm not ready to leave the world. But we've got a future Queen to save, so we do what we must.

It's time for a giveaway! I have a stunning, special edition of Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid done by Acrylicpics Bookish Nook.

To enter the giveaway, be a "Kist Reads" Follower, Sicko, Mega Sicko or Sicko Society tier in the US or Canada and leave a comment on this post (it can be an emoji or whatever, it's just so we can expedite the winner selection & shipping). And yes, I cover the shipping costs. In return all I ask is that you consider upgrading your sub while you're here to support the publishing imprint, but that isn't required.

Terms & conditions* at the bottom. Here it is:

I'll randomly draw the winner by 7/7 and reach out via email if you've won. Good luck!

*No purchase necessary. Open to legal residents of the United States and Canada, 18 years of age or older. Void where prohibited by law.

How to enter:
Open to all “Kist Reads” Bindery members – any tier (including free “Follower” members). Comment to enter (limit 1 entry per person).

Prize Value: $34.95

Timing: Runs 7/3/26 - 7/7/26

Winner Selection & Notification:
Winner will be selected at random and notified via email within 3 days of the giveaway’s end. The winner must respond within 3 days to claim their prize.

Canadian Requirement:
If the selected winner is a Canadian resident, they must correctly answer a time-limited skill-testing question to claim the prize.

Other Details:
By entering, you agree to these rules and all applicable federal, state/provincial, and local laws. No cash substitute. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, or misdirected entries or for delivery issues. Any applicable taxes, duties, or customs fees are the responsibility of the winner.

Sponsor:
Kist Reads, Sun City Center, FL
Kistreadsbooks@gmail.com

Now that I'm doing weekly reading roundups on Mondays, it doesn't really make sense to do a fave of the week on Fridays. I don't know exactly what I'm gonna do yet (I KNOW it doesn't have to be the same every week. But my brain does not! It likes routines!), but today I've got my June wrap up and a look forward at some books I hope to pick up in July. (Books marked with a * were gifted to me and books marked with a ^ I was paid to read.)

For June reads, it's no surprise that all my faves (starred) were books I read for Pride Reading Bingo. Queer books forever!

THE QUARTER QUEEN^

WHY ARE PEOPLE INTO THAT?

LONDON FALLING*

⭐️ SEVEN DEVILS

ESCALA'S WISH^

⭐️ THE MAIDENHEADS*

DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL (reread)

⭐️ SEASONS OF GLASS AND IRON*

DIVERGENT (reread)

POOL HOUSE*

LOVE IS AN EX-COUNTRY

RAISING ARTEMIS^

THE FOREST ON THE EDGE OF TIME*

⭐ ONE OF THE BOYS*

DEATH OF THE AUTHOR*

⭐ SHAPES OF LOVE*

Here's what's on deck for July. (Ish...you know how that mood reading life goes.)

MOSS'D IN SPACE* - This is the July Found Family Book Club pick!

CHAOS* - This space romance series is a fave of mine and I've been saving this latest installment for when I needed a treat.

MAKE ME BETTER* - Gailey is a fave author and normally I would have gobbled this up by now but for some reason I thought it was a fall release and therefore I didn't prioritize the ARC. Whoops!

BLACK SALT QUEEN* - I've been meaning to read this fantasy about royalty, romance, and betrayal for awhile and the sequel recently came out so I better get to it!

I LOVE YOU DON'T DIE* - I'd intended to read this for Pride Bingo and didn't get there. I adored Song's debut CHLORINE and am looking forward to more of that.

THIS PRINCESS KILLS MONSTERS* - Another Pride Bingo fail. I've been very into cozy, comedic fantasy lately so I'm ready to wrap myself up in this one.

OUT OF STEP, INTO YOU* - The last of my Pride Bingo intendeds. I thought Burch's debut YA novel a few years ago was seriously underrated, so watch out for me yelling about this one soon.

Books I'm carrying over from June: My current reads are Love In A F-cked Up World by Dean Spade and Coldwire* by Chloe Gong.

Other miscellaneous July reads: I run an in-person book club that reads spicy books and I our July pick is The Pairing by Casey McQuiston, which will be a reread for me. I also read the first chapter of Murder In The Dressing Room* by Holly Star yesterday. There will be other audiobooks because I can't commute without them, but I haven't picked any yet.

Is that a packed enough TBR for you or what!

Hey Cozy Family!

Did you know that I also run an online book club via Discord?!

We read a series together (book 1 = month 1, book 2 = month 2, etc) and then break up the series with a standalone before jumping back into another series together. We generally stick to duologies or trilogies, otherwise it takes too long and is a bigger commitment for everyone to take on as a club, especially if someone wasn't a fan of the 1st book.

I've just put up a poll to choose what our next standalone book will be in August! If you want to join and vote, please click on the 'chat' button next to the Discord symbol at the top of my Bindery page. We use a separate app, literally called Bookclub App, to organise polls for book selections and meeting dates. The link for the app (which is completely free) is in the Discord server. Please do give me a shout if you can't locate it (though it should hopefully be very easy to find) and I can always send it to you directly.

For the August standalone, we are looking at summery vibes for our fantasy book. So there is a few pirates and mermaids and general ocean themed fantasy standalones on the list this time.

Please do come join us and vote for which book you might like to read in August!!

Until next time,

Charlotte x

So how do I choose books to promote or stock?

This was the focus chosen by members for this exclusive post, and honestly, the answer is: it’s a lot.

There are endless books. I’m sent titles from publishers big and small, indie presses, and self-published authors. I’m also seeing books from authors, bookstagrammers, readers, publicists, publisher imprints, and my own very haunted internet digging. For example, Tor Nightfire is an imprint of Macmillan, so even one publisher can have multiple imprints with their own titles, vibe, and focus.

A lot of bookstores have websites where you can search almost any book, kind of like Amazon. I decided not to do that with Death by TBR Books. That does mean the website won’t have every book. It also means the books listed there are chosen on purpose.

Death by TBR Books is curated. I wanted the freedom to focus on books I actually want to recommend, books I’m excited about, books I think horror readers will want to know about, and books recommended by people I trust. Sometimes that means a big publisher release. Sometimes that means a small press book. Sometimes it means a self-published author I think deserves more attention. Sometimes it means a book I haven’t stopped thinking about.

It’s not a perfect system, and I know there are always books missing. That’s the hard part of being curated instead of being a giant search engine. But it’s also the point.

I don’t want Death by TBR Books to just be a place where any title technically exists. I want it to feel like someone is actually behind it, choosing, reading, listening, paying attention, and trying to get the right books in front of the right readers. A virtual bookshop experience if you will. :)

And if there’s a horror book you think should be listed, especially from a small press or indie author, you can always send it my way.

Hi, friends!

It's time to start filling next month's newsletter with all of your cozy creations! Our July theme is:

☀️ Cozy Summer ☀️

I am of the mind that summer doesn't have to be busy to be memorable! I want this month's newsletter to be a little celebration of all the simple things that make summer feel cozy to you.

If you'd like to contribute, I'd love to include your photos, recipes, artwork, book recommendations, or anything else inspired by the theme. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Your favorite summer recipe or treat

• Your current vacation read or a summer book recommendation

• Your garden, porch, patio, or favorite outdoor reading spot

• A picnic, beach day, or cozy summer outing

• Summer-inspired artwork, crafts, or photography

Ready to submit? CLICK HERE to send in your photos, writing, recipes, book recs, artwork, or anything else by July 26, and I'll do my best to include it.

I can't wait to see what cozy summer looks like through your eyes!

Meg

Check out the fun line up we have for July at Stardust Books! We often partner with Smelter Town Brewery, which is two doors down! It’s my home away from home… maybe I shouldn’t admit that! lol But it’s a great place to hang with friends, chat about books and grab a beer.

Friends! Enemies! Everyone in between!

I hope you're all doing as best as you can be and taking care of yourselves. It's time to vote for the August book club!

Sunny’s Book Club is a monthly book club highlighting both new releases and backlist titles we love. A virtual discussion is hosted over Zoom on the last Sunday of the month.

A new physical book will be shipped to you (or available for in store pickup) the month prior to when this month’s book club will take place. The August pick will ship the last week of July to ensure you have the entire month to read the book.

The link for sign up is not a subscription service, you opt in on a monthly basis dependent on your interest in that months chosen title. We do however have a recurring book club subscription if you are interested here.

A gripping blend of historical fiction and Southern gothic psychological horror, Our Sister's Keeper is a fierce exploration of Black sisterhood, rage, and resistance.

Mississippi, 1927. The groanings are coming.

No town is perfect, but East Cobb comes close. It's a wealthy all-Black Free Town--untouched by white oppression--where ambitious Thea Elliot and her husband plan to make good on their big dreams. Little do they know that the idyllic town teems with ghoulish, walking nightmares . . . that only the women can see.

Marah knows the groanings well. She is one of the carriers--women with the ability to pull traumatic memories from men. Populated by men entirely freed of their pain, East Cobb has flourished, even as the remnants of their memories haunt the town's women. When an unexpected death drives Marah to discover more about her own power, Thea's and Marah's worlds collide. The sisters must confront the rotten core at the heart of East Cobb's prosperity and choose what--and who--will survive the reckoning.

A year in the life of a family as they strike out into the unknown (aka Vermont), leaving all the comforts of home behind—a rollicking, lyrical novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist Daniel Mason, the bestselling author of North Woods and one of America’s greatest living writers.

Miles Krzelewski is a devoted husband, a doting father beloved for his outlandish bedtime stories, and the proud owner of a truffle-hunting dog in a land with no truffles. He is also a bit lost, twelve years late with his PhD on Russian folktales and increasingly haunted by a sense that he’s become a disappointment to his family. So when his wife, Kate, accepts a visiting professorship at a prestigious college in the faraway forests of Vermont, he decides that this will be the year to finally move forward with his life.

But Miles is a man of many enthusiasms, one who possesses, in Kate’s words, a great capacity “to fall in with anyone, anywhere.” And no sooner does he arrive than he finds himself entangled with a cast of characters as colorful as those of any of his folktales, from a ghostly tree surgeon to a scythe-mad biochemist, from a Shakespearean temptress to a photographer of snowflakes obsessed with chronicling, on thousands of index cards, the world’s delusions in an Inventory of Wrong Ideas.

The new friends, the enchanted woods, the histories: sure, no PhD, but all good fun. Until Miles stumbles upon a bizarre—perhaps ridiculous—local legend, which, he soon suspects, might not be just a legend after all.

Joyous, absurd, and life-affirming, Country People is a luminous exploration of marriage and parenthood, the nature of belief and the power of stories, and the ways in which we find connection in an increasingly fragmented world.

A complex mother-daughter relationship is taken to a new level in this fresh and propulsive novel of family curses, blood-thirsty ghouls, and budding romance set against the Mojave Desert and Las Vegas.

Ellis Karsten spends nights working triage in the ER and days having the same conversation with her mom. The early onset dementia is exhausting, but the real challenge is their curse—Ellis’s family must feed daily on blood, or risk becoming mindless, skinless killing machines. When Ellis’s uncle, who supplies their blood, vanishes, she takes it upon herself to find a new source, aided by a prickly paramedic who’s equal parts unpredictable and intoxicating. But as Ellis fights to balance her bloodthirsty nature with a new relationship, her mom’s impossible demands transform into panicked warnings that a fabled monster, “The Flayed Man,” is stalking them.

As she traverses the desert in search of blood, Ellis risks her safety and her family’s secret, until it becomes clear that her mom is right: something ancient and hungry is hunting them, and it has come for her mom. Blood hunger begins to overtake Ellis, transforming her body into something ghoulish and frightening—exactly what The Flayed Man wants. In the end, she must decide who to trust, what she’s willing to sacrifice, and whether she is worthy of a life, and love, beyond her curse—or if she’s going to succumb to instinct and ravage the world.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic and Velvet Was the Night comes a sizzling noir about desire, danger, and greed, in which seduction is the ultimate con.

Handsome con artist Ulises has long charmed lonely women via letters in order to steal their money, but money is hard to come by in 1940s Mexico. Ulises knows his looks won’t last forever, and he’s desperate to get his hands on a real fortune.

He thinks he’s found it when he captivates his newest correspondent, Perla, the owner of a small-town boardinghouse in picturesque Veracruz. But when he meets her, he finds something he didn’t expect. The woman has a niece, Inés, who is as observant as she is desperate to escape her aunt’s household.

When Inés discovers Ulises’s true intentions, she wants in on the scheme. They’ll convince her aunt that Ulises is a great catch, Perla will marry him, and her money will vanish. Easy, fast, and clean. But Perla is not the desperate, silly spinster Ulises imagines. She harbors secrets. And although Ulises does not believe in true romance, Inés is more alluring than he bargained for. Suddenly, a simple plan may become perilously complicated.

Venture into the streets of a small town where a patina of convention and good manners conceals a cauldron of avarice and lust.

Four very compelling choices! Happy voting and remember we are reading Sourland by Ariel Delgado Dixon in July. You never have to buy the book from Sunny's to pariticpate in book club, we just love it when you do.

Love what we do? Become a paid subscriber for less than a cup of coffee a month. Your ongoing support helps us plan ahead, fund causes we care about, and create meaningful programming for our community.

Hello Star and Galaxy members! Since it seems like the last post didn't notify all of you, I've decided to make this a double feature!

Below you'll find the form link to opt-in for the JUNE + JULY Mail Club and provide your mailing address <3

This month's mail club will be a double feature for June and July that includes a letter from Jananie, a set of journal prompts, a print of the cover for our next Boundless Press title, BEFORE I BOW (an exclusive reveal just for you!!!), and a sneak peek at Jananie's book, PUBLISHERS SUPPER. Galaxy Members will receive an additional surprise item. Mail will be sent via stamped lettermail around July 15th. It will take up to 3 weeks to arrive.

FORM LINK

*this perk is available to International (i.e. non US or Canada) members BUT keep in mind that lettermail can get severely delayed and replacements will not be sent due to the monthly nature of the content

PREVIOUS MAIL CLUB DIGITAL VERSIONS:

December 2025
January 2026
February 2026
March 2026
April 2026
May 2026

Since this month started on a Wednesday, it's been a whole week without new releases for July! But a lot of books I've really been looking forward to come out this month, and I've gotten my grubby little golem hands on a few ARCs, so I can tell you that some of them lived up to the hype!

The Delivery: A Novella by Gregg Hurwitz (Thomas & Mercer- Amazon's Mystery Imprint, July 1) - An AI butler is designed to anticipate what a family wants. But when inexplicable tragedies strike in the neighborhood, the family realizes that their AI companion is executing their darkest desires, and they must stop him.

The Bird Tribe: The Dreambird Chronicles, Book 3 (Tor, July 7) - I'll tell you about the first book to avoid spoilers! In this post apocalyptic Unites States, a new slave trade is started in the ashes. Ji-ji was bred and raised under this subjugation and must win an annual competition in which the first prize is freedom.

Fabulous Bodies by Chuck Tingle (Tor Nightfire, July 7) - Chuck Tingle always rocks my socks off, and I'm not even a gruesome horror girlie, his writing is just GRIPPING. In his latest book, a social media influencer by day and grave robber at night meets her match when her Elton John-like idol dies and she is hired to steal his body...only he's not all the way dead, and he has a mission, and he is forcing her to help him complete it. If you were a Goosebumps kid, I promise you that you're a Chuck Tingle adult. And if you've already read anything by Chuck? Well, you won't be dissapointed.

Formula Zero by Meredith Lanzen (Penguin Random House, July 7) - A formula one romcom but make it in space, with childhood friends turned competitors, back in each others orbits.

The Memory Bookshop by Song Yu-jeong, Translated by Shanna Tan (Harper Collins, July 7) I will never list an author without their translator after reading Babel! That shit is important! If you're grieving, you might come across the Memory Bookshop, or at least, it might find you. After losing her mother, Jiwon is offered the chance to travel back in time 3 chapters of her life if she gives up time in her future. Jiwon must decide if the past can be rewritten or if the magic is in the life she has yet to live.

Icefall: The Rise of Nine by Michael Newman and Jon Land (Permuted Press - Indie, July 14) - A team of superbeings placed on Earth a million years ago by intergalactic colonizers that seeded our planet to create human life are awakened from their long slumber to protect Earth from a predatory alien threat. Sounds very Transformers meets superhero.

Misery's Wife by Joan Tierney (Macmillan, July 14) - A queer cli-fi fantasy retelling about a young trans woman who must save her closest sister from the King of Misery. On the way she receives help from her other sisters, who have married the King of the Air and the King of the Sea. And perhaps on the way she may find a love of her own.

Not With a Bang by Temi Oh (Simon & Schuester, July 14) - A doomsday tale of a family who must fight their way back together amidst an extinction level event. But this isn't a surface level tale. This family is already in crisis as the father's doomsday prepping causes his daughters mental health disasters and the mother's health declines.

Null Entity, The Volatile Memory Duology Book 2 by Seth Haddon (Tordotcom, July 21) - I read the Volatile Memory novella last year and it was so unique. The premise is that an AI lives in masks that scavengers need to survive. But a mask one finds has the last scavenger's personality still in it, which is not supposed to be possible, but this mask is special. She forms a relationship with the person in the mask and must escape from everyone else who wants the mask. I have this sequel sitting in my TBR for up next.

Affairs of State by Calvin James (Titan Books, July 28) - The MC is named Levar Boylan so I'm already in because I know Calvin James is as obsessed with Levar Burton as me. High stakes cut throat politics in the stars. Levar, a junior supply officer is pulled to the front lines to serve a diplomat during peace talks, but the Emperor they are negotiating with is his ex, and of course, there are still sparks.

Biological War by Annie Jacobsen (Dutton, July 28) - A lab accident, a bio-attack, a global pandemic, and the collapse of human society. This book isn't really fiction though, it's an examination of how the government, mediacl world, and military would react to this very possible scenario.

Daggermouth by HM Wolfe (Simon & Schuester, July 28) - Set in a corrupt surveillance state ruled by the masked elite, this dystopian romance features a presidential heir entagled in secrets that could topple the regime and a mercenary hired to kill him. I'm holding the ARC to this book and it's next up after I finish Null Entity and Dreamland, Olivie Blake's new genre bending horror that comes out in August.

The Red Woman on Mars by Claire Barner (Diversion Books, indie, July 28) - I'm going to be an asshole here and shit talk another book, Pride & Prejudice in Space, which I hated, in order to talk about how much I'm looking forward to a REAL retelling of Jane Austen's classic. P&P in Space should have been everything I wanted in a book, my favorite classic retold in my favorite genre. But the author only changed the setting and nothing else in the story. She never addressed why women were still essentially chattel property in the space traveling era. She literally just changed everything about locations and used all the same original wording. THIS book is about a climate refugee contracted as a birth mother to genetically modified Mars children. It's almost impossible to get an ARC from an indie publisher but you can bet your sweet ass I'm about to try!

Star Wars: Legacy by Madeline Roux (Penguin Random House, July 28) - Set between Episodes VIII and IX, Rey and Leia embark on a quest to repair Rey’s lightsaber and rekindle the legacy of the Jedi.

See you next month. Or, hear me out, subscribe and hear from me more often if you actually made it to the bottom of this, because presumably that means you like reading...whatever this is.

— Zee

If you liked this and want more of whatever THIS is (unhinged book analysis, barely contained rage at the state of the world, and occasional Tamsyn Muir references and em dashes that I will never apologize for) consider subscribing for $5/month. Every cent goes to people who actually need it, because I have a day job and a cause, not a brand deal. This is my middle finger to Big 5 publishing, dressed up as a book blog. Come hold it up with me.

One of my favorite things about science fiction is how broad the genre really is.

Some books are essentially space operas with incredible adventures and unforgettable characters. Others use futuristic settings to explore philosophy or politics. Some barely explain how anything works at all.

And then there's hard sci-fi.

This is the part of science fiction that looks at the laws of physics and says, "Okay...but what if we actually followed them?"

Hard sci-fi doesn't ask you to suspend disbelief quite as much. Instead, it invites you to believe that everything you're reading could happen if humanity had just a little more time, a little better engineering, or one more scientific breakthrough.

That's what makes the genre so fascinating.

🚀 What Is Hard Sci-Fi?

Hard sci-fi is science fiction that's grounded in real science. Physics, astronomy, biology, chemistry, mathematics, engineering: these are the foundation the entire plot is built on.

That doesn't mean every prediction ends up being correct. Science evolves all the time. What matters is that the author is trying to build a story that plays by the rules of the universe as we currently understand them.

Instead of asking readers to simply accept impossible technology, hard sci-fi asks: "If this were possible...how would it actually work?"

🔬 Why Readers Love It

Hard sci-fi scratches a very specific itch. It's for readers who love solving puzzles alongside the characters and who get excited when an author explains orbital mechanics, genetics, artificial intelligence, or quantum physics without talking down to them.

The science isn't there to slow the story down. The science is the story.

Some of the most satisfying moments in hard sci-fi happen when a seemingly impossible problem is solved not through magic or luck, but through logic, creativity, and a deep understanding of how the universe works.

There's something incredibly rewarding about watching intelligence become the hero.

🌌 Wonder Without Magic

One misconception about hard sci-fi is that it's cold or emotionless. The opposite is often true.

Many of these novels create a profound sense of wonder because the universe itself is already astonishing.

• The scale of space.

• The fragility of human life.

• The complexity of evolution.

• The mathematics hidden inside nature.

Hard sci-fi reminds us that reality is already pretty incredible. Sometimes you don't need to invent impossible worlds; the real one is fascinating enough.

🛰️ Why It Feels Different

Most science fiction begins with a fantastic idea and asks readers to go along for the ride.

Hard sci-fi starts with reality:

• Every challenge has constraints.

• Fuel matters.

• Distance matters.

• Gravity matters.

• Time matters.

• Communication delays matter.

Those limitations create a different kind of tension because there isn't always a convenient piece of technology waiting to save everyone.

The characters have to think their way out. That's one reason engineers, scientists, and readers who love problem-solving are often drawn to the genre.

📖 If You Usually Read Other Genres...

One of the biggest myths about hard sci-fi is that you need a science degree to enjoy it.

You don't; there are plenty of fantastic entry points depending on what you already love reading.

🚀 Space Opera Readers

Start with: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

If you love stories set in space but want a little more scientific realism, this is one of the best bridges into hard sci-fi. It balances accessible science with humor, heart, and one of my favorite friendships in modern science fiction.

👽 First Contact Readers

Start with: Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

Instead of focusing on alien conflict, Clarke builds suspense through exploration and discovery. The mystery comes from trying to understand something truly unknown.

🌍 Climate Fiction Readers

Start with: The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson

This is less about space travel and more about the future of Earth. Robinson combines climate science, politics, economics, and technology to imagine one possible path forward.

🔍 Thriller Readers

Start with: The Martian by Andy Weir

The tension in this novel is all about surviving Mars using nothing but science, engineering, and stubborn determination.

📚 Beginner Pick

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

This is the book I recommend to almost everyone who's curious about hard sci-fi.

Why it works:

• approachable scientific explanations

• unforgettable characters

• constant problem-solving

• balances big ideas with humor and heart

It proves that scientifically accurate doesn't have to mean difficult.

📚 Advanced Pick

Dragon's Egg by Robert L. Forward

If you want to experience what hard sci-fi can do at its most ambitious, this is a fantastic next step.

Why it works:

• one of the most imaginative uses of real physics I've ever encountered

• explores life evolving under extreme conditions

• rewards readers who love big scientific ideas

• constantly challenges the way we think about intelligence and civilization

This is the kind of book that changes the way you look at the universe.

🌙 Final Thoughts

I think hard sci-fi reminds us that reality is often stranger than fiction.

The universe already contains black holes, neutron stars, quantum mechanics, evolutionary miracles, and galaxies so large our brains struggle to comprehend them.

Hard sci-fi simply asks what happens if we stop treating those ideas like background information and let them become the adventure.

If you've always been curious about science fiction but worried it would feel too technical, I'd encourage you to start with one of the beginner-friendly books.

The fall I moved back to Brooklyn after finishing my MFA program, The Cut published an article that sent a shiver through the city. It recounted how a family in a Jersey suburb received mysterious and sinister letters, so sinister that they abandoned their expensive home and sued the former owners. 

While many readers launched into speculation about who wrote the letters, I was investing my energy elsewhere. Desperate to start my literary career, I spent my days sending my first novel Psycho Loser out to countless agents while juggling two substitute teacher jobs. Although I understood most people’s desire to identify the letter-writer (I love a good whodunnit), what intrigued me was the writer's talents. I mean, look at these lines.

"Do you need to fill the house with the young blood I requested? Better for me. Was your old house too small for the growing family? Or was it greed to bring me your children? Once I know their names I will call to them and draw them too [sic] me." 

Positively gothic! 

"The house is crying from all of the pain it is going through. You have changed it and made it so fancy. You are stealing it’s [sic] history. It cries for the past and what used to be in the time when I roamed it’s [sic] halls.” 

I would have killed to have written these words.

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Sometimes, the possibility of discovering a sparkly new voice feels like the only thing that gets me out of bed in the morning. Now I don't even need to leave bed to get my fix. I hold my phone up to my face, and social media takes care of the rest.

Cathleen Allen a.k.a. timeline.alchemy, a self-proclaimed oracle, materialized on my feed this past fall.

Where do I even start with Allen’s voice? One caption reads: I’m a Connecticut hedge fund wife whose lifestyle was obliterated by sudden onset clairvoyance that started showing me evil spirits behind the veil.

Where else have you seen “hedge fund” in the same sentence as “evil spirits behind the veil"?

Her life didn’t her change. No, her “lifestyle” was “obliterated.” There’s an intensity to her words — “LIFETIMES of horrific karmic abuse” she writes in another reel — that clashes with the serene imagery she chooses to accompany them. Her visual aesthetic is rooted in realism (okay, luxurious realism, but still realism) yet she nonchalantly mentions exorcists and third eye openings. 

This practice of confidently mixing lingo from different worlds is a feature of some of my favorite writers’ voices. George Saunders is the first that comes to mind. This passage from his short story "Sea Oak" about a male stripper in a near-future dystopia is a good example:

Lloyd's finished. We give him a round of applause, and Frendt gives him a Farewell Pen and the contents of his locker in a trash bag and out he goes. Poor Lloyd. He's got a wife and two kids and a sad little duplex on Self-Storage Parkway…

…What a stressful workplace. The minute your Cute Rating drops you're a goner. Guests rank us as Knockout, Honeypie, Adequate, or Stinker. Not that I'm complaining. At least I'm working. At least I'm not a Stinker like Lloyd. I'm a solid Honeypie/Adequate, heading home with forty bucks cash.

Tobias Wolff explores the obsession with voice in his short story "Bullet to the Brain." The main character, Anders, a book critic, spends his dying moments remembering a turn of phrase he heard as a boy: 

Anders is strangely roused, elated, by those final two words, their pure unexpectedness and their music…

…The bullet is already in the brain; it won’t be outrun forever, or charmed to a halt. In the end, it will do its work and leave the troubled skull behind, dragging its comet’s tail of memory and hope and talent and love into the marble hall of commerce. That can’t be helped. But for now Anders can still make time. Time for the shadows to lengthen on the grass, time for the tethered dog to bark at the flying ball, time for the boy in right field to smack his sweat-blackened mitt and softly chant, They is, they is, they is.

My "They is" might be this line from Denis Johnson's short story "Two Men." The story's narrator, the incorrigible Fuckhead, shares that he made aggressive sexual advances towards a woman right before her husband showed up. Then out he comes this gem: 

The rest of the evening I wondered, every second, if he would come back with some friends and make something painful and degrading happen. 

This line is so special to me. I often post it to my Instagram stories with no context. Because it needs none. It encapsulates what I believe lies at the heart of every worthwhile fictional protagonist: a titillating cocktail of equal parts yearning and fear that life will have its way with them. "Oh, please don't let something painful and degrading happen to me. Not something that would change me forever. Not me. Please no."

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In the process of writing this essay, I’ve tried to formulate a definition for voice. Something like: voice is how the impact of all the forces in your life - where you’re from, who educated you, what traumatized you — trickles out when you attempt to communicate with the world. Voice is psychological leakage.

My professor Steve Erickson told me George Saunders advised that writers should put all of themselves in their first novels. That your manuscript must be “demented by you." I agree. Whatever story pours forth from you should feel like it can’t have been wrought on this earth by anyone else but you. 

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During the pandemic, I started following the account of a college student who worked part-time as a baker and spelled her name Isobel with an o instead of an a. I didn't covet her life, but I found myself enraptured by how she told the story of her daily routine. Her selection of moments from her day turned the mundane poetic. Driving to work before sunrise. Her pensive, unadorned face. Her puffy eyes scanning the road. Her red fingers drumming her steering wheel. Tying her apron behind her back then adjusting her messy bun. Egg yolk bubbling from the breakfast sandwich she made herself after she finished her shift. She never spoke, but her voice was unmistakable to me. Irreplaceable. I couldn't get enough.

This inspired me to approach social media as a new medium of narrative. Since 2020, I've created two interactive narratives. You can find them here and here. I hope more writers start to embrace social media's narrative potential.

But social media is performative and curated!

You mean like a novel?

Yes, but social media purports to capture real life.

Early epistolary novels used improbable framing devices to package their narratives. "Look at this intact stack of letters I stumbled upon! Let’s take a peek and see if there’s anything of interest within?"

Yes, but social media is voyeuristic! It's parasocial! Creepy!

Call it what you will. I hope I never lose my insatiable curiosity about other people. Not just what has happened to them. But how they choose to conceal and reveal this information whenever they open their mouth.

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In his interview for the book The Film That Changed My Life: 30 Directors on Their Epiphanies in the Dark, John Waters shares the line from Wizard of Oz that had a profound impact on him:

When they throw the water on the witch, she says, “Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness?”

That line inspired my life. I sometimes say it to myself before I go to sleep, like a prayer.

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I'm not saying that, as a writer, you should consume social media.

I'm asking, as a writer, how can you resist?

Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again. Here we go again.

Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it. Let's see if this does it.

We are reading Sistah Samurai: A Champloo Novella, Tatiana Obey's Indie Ink Award winning novella and the first entry in The Champloo Mixes series. It is a feudal Japan inspired action fantasy that wears its anime influences proudly, an homage to Afro Samurai and Samurai Champloo, filtered through a voice that is unmistakably Black, unmistakably funny, and unmistakably tired of everybody's foolishness.

It's the first day of July and I know many of you are just getting started so this is a quick check-in on how it's going!

• What was your first impression of the protagonist?

• Which line made you laugh?

• Did the opening immediately hook you?

If you haven't done so already please join our Discord. If you are a BGN Sanctuary member, we are planning a virtual chat with Tatiana Obey herself. This will be scheduled in August.

This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last. This needs to be the last.

And here we go...