My Top 10 Favorite Books of 2021

I read a total of 31 novels in 2021, and today I’m going to share my top 10 favorites. In my opinion, every single one of these books is excellent, and I recommend all of them to those who enjoy speculative fiction.

Also, I want to give an honorable mention to the audio book for World War Z. While the book is neither plot- nor character-driven like these other novels, it approaches the zombie apocalypse genre in such an interesting way, and the voice acting in the audio book is superb.

10. The Paths Between The Stars (Many Skies) by Amira K. Makansi: I loved the story and the worldbuilding in this character-driven book about the multiverse. It even had me close my eyes for a moment to see if I could see the paths on my eyelids (no luck for me, but such a clever concept).

9. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir: As I noted in my article, “Weir takes it up a level in Project Hail Mary, as not only is there an individual survival problem to solve, but also a worldwide survival problem. And even better, the thing causing the problem also results in a solution to other problems.”

8. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch: I was introduced to Crouch’s excellent stand-alone books this year, both of which approach time and alternate realities in different ways. I preferred Recursion, but I really enjoyed Dark Matter too.

7. The Burning God (The Poppy War) by RF Kuang: The final book in the Poppy War series ends with a bang. It’s dark, though fortunately not quite as dark as the second book.

6. The Galaxy, and the Ground Within (Wayfarers) by Becky Chambers: Chambers and Tchaikovsky write some of the most compelling alien characters I’ve ever read, and she continues that win streak with the final book in the Wayfarers series.

5. Fires of Vengeance (The Burning) by Evan Winter: Winter wrote my favorite book of last year, and the sequel was just as good as the original. 

4. Recursion by Blake Crouch: As I noted in my article, “A detective with a major loss in his past and a scientist exploring a way to map memories. In the scientist’s plotline, one of my favorite sci-fi tropes is introduced early on: A billionaire investor with a desire to bring a specific technological vision to life. I wonder if any real-life eccentric billionaires are working on sci-fi level machines.”

3. Jade Legacy (Green Bones Saga) by Fonda Lee: This might be the most epic conclusion to a trilogy of all time, as the final book in this magical mafia series covers several decades.

2. The Empire’s Ruin (Ashes of the Unhewn Throne) by Brian Staveley: I love all of the books in Staveley’s Unhewn Throne world, and this one opens the doors to some highly entertaining adventures and mysteries, including some arena fiction. You don’t need to have read any of the other books to try this one.

1. Shards of Earth (The Final Architecture) by Adrian Tchaikovsky: As I noted in my article, “There’s a genetically engineered navigator who can steer through unspace (essentially warp speed). Then there’s the angel. And the collective of tiny metallic insects that form a single person. And the tech genius with multiple physical disabilities that has her steering a giant scorpion mech. Last, there’s the lawyer. Yes, a lawyer! This is a science fiction book in which a protagonist wields the power of the law.” I love this book and greatly look forward to the sequel in May.

What are a few of your favorite books you read in 2021?

Here’s last year’s list.