Similarly to my original Intro to Indie posts (which you can check out here: Fantasy, Horror, Sci-fi) this is an idea I’ve been brewing for months. Not just where to start with sci-fi or underrated sci-fis, but sci-fi from authors you may have never heard of, authors that may not look, sound, or think like you, authors that are marginalized or even ‘own voice’ writers. These are the authors I aim to highlight in this second string of posts.
Much like last time, I asked my bookstagram, my twitter, this blog, my discord channels, and gathered a list of ten science fiction books from different people. I also allowed authors to suggest themselves this time, as long as the picks weren’t coming from me! I’m just putting the list together. Regardless of if they are independent/small press releases or self published, the point was to pull people away from traditional publishers to try something new, both in terms of indie reads and representation. These authors have stood by their stories, perhaps even surviving the trenches that is traditional querying, and worked tirelessly to make them the best they can. Every word of their efforts is worth checking out.
If you think I’m missing some important ones, just comment below!
Below I will include the cover, purchase links, sub-genres, the kind of rep, and synopsis of each. Please remember these are all endorsed by avid readers too!
Synopsis (Action & Adventure Fantasy Sci-fi) Ace Rep
Those who cross into Rheta from other worlds don’t usually arrive alive. Berro collects the crosser bodies for a prestigious secret project headed by his academic mentor, and he’s proud of his role, but when a living, breathing woman arrives in the forest through a crack in reality, the project and Berro’s ordered life are thrown into disarray.
On Rheta, nature is thriving and conflict is a distant memory. Chaos and cruelty are things belonging to other worlds, other times, and most Rhetari have lapsed into blissful complacency. But Berro is at the epicentre of an event that calls the delicate balance into question. As the crossing project unravels, he confronts the ugly truths about the civilisation he lives in, the work he’s committed to, and the broken parts of himself.
Synopsis (Medical & Thriller Sci-fi) Epilepsy & Disability Rep
Allen’s son is in danger. A rare form of epilepsy is damaging his brain and Allen’s insurance is cutting him off. To cover the costs, Allen returns to being a high-tech mercenary. Not exactly ideal for a father who enjoys carbs far more than stomach crunches. After his first mission back, Allen soothes his wounds before getting a message from Eamon Tor, America’s first trillionaire. Tor tells Allen about Eden Therapy. It treats terrible diseases but can also drive patients insane. Still, it’s exciting news—especially with the offer of complete care for Allen’s son as a reward. But Tor has a surprise. It’s a choice that puts Allen’s conscience, marriage, and abilities to the test, and sends his ragtag team on a dangerous operation halfway around the world.
Synopsis (Metaphysical & Horror Sci-fi) LGBTQ & Mental Health Rep
You are the voice for those who have none.
You are the heartbeat of a million dreams.
Mars has a shadow, a mirror world torn from the chaos of an eons-old rivalry between gods and titans. An elite few protect this secret to preserve the peace. But when a girl comes along with the power to reunite Mars, worlds collide in cosmic war.
Slade Hawk is a monster. That’s what they tell her, at least. Hunted since birth, she’s lived her life in dumpsters, subways, and in-between places. She’s a ghost to most, a forgettable blur. Some call her a wolf, a leader of the pack, the bridge between worlds, but she can barely survive each day.
She is one of the evolved humans, a starchild who can shift between matter and energy at will—though her power stretches farther and reaches darker. Earth fears her people and exiles them to Mars. They want her dead, want Mars to burn, and fear can shape fate, can erase the brightest stars. Slade must overcome horrific odds to conquer Earth’s cruelty and free Mars from war.
Are you a moment?
Or are you infinity?
Will anyone remember your name?
• • •
From Halo:
The Heartbeat of a Million Dreams is about a queer and neurodivergent superhero on a sci-fi and sapphic journey. This story is not nearly as dark as my other work—there is hope and maybe even a happy ending (don’t tell Kyder and Rune). If you see the world through a different lens, this one’s for you. It is my wish that you find yourself in something between these pages, for wherever you are on the human spectrum. Let’s escape to Mars.
Synopsis (Weather Apocalypse & Dystopian Novella Sci-fi) Jewish & Trans Rep
When an unprecedented hurricane devastates the city of Houston, Noah Mishner finds shelter in the Dallas Mavericks’ basketball arena. Though he finds community among other queer refugees, Noah fears his trans and Jewish identities put him at risk with certain “capital-T” Texans. His fears take form when he starts seeing visions of his great-grandfather Abe, who fled Nazi Germany as a boy. As the climate crisis intensifies and conditions in the shelter deteriorate, Abe’s ghost grows more powerful. Ultimately, Noah must decide whether he can trust his ancestor - and whether he’s willing to sacrifice his identity and community in order to survive.
Depart, Depart! grapples with intersections of social justice and climate change, asking readers to consider how they’ll react when the world changes in an instant. Who will we turn to? What will we take with us, and what will we have to leave behind? In our rapidly changing world, these are questions we grapple with. Focusing on finding and supporting community after disaster, Depart, Depart! is a story for these uncertain times.
Synopsis (Superhero Space Opera Sci-fi) Indian Rep
A superhero space opera for grownups.
For fans of Invincible and Marvel Cinematic Universe films.
If Thor and Harry Dresden combined in a transporter accident.
The il’Drach have conquered half a galaxy behind the civilization-ending Powers of their mixed-species children.
Half-human Rohan, exhausted by a decade fighting for their Empire, has paid a secret and terrible price for his freedom.
Now retired, he strives to live a quiet life towing starships for the space station Wistful. His most pressing problems are finding the perfect cup of coffee and talking to a gorgeous shuttle tech without tripping over his own tongue.
A nearby, long-dormant wormhole is opened by a shipful of scared, angry refugees, and the many eyes of the Empire focus uncomfortably on Wistful.
As scientists, spies, and assassins converge, reverting to the monster the Empire created is the surest way to protect his friends. And the surest way to lose them.
Synopsis (Dystopian & Genetic Engineering Sci-fi) Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Rep
Nyle doesn’t want to be there. But something is very wrong in the District of Portland, and the cold call of death forces his arrival. If he can’t lay the dead fast enough, his long life, begun in Anglo-Saxon England, will end.
Portland’s electronic walls do more than keep the mutants out. The government is using them to block Nyle and his kind, the ravens, who roam the world, freeing the dead from their bodies where they remain trapped till a raven’s arrival.
Cait, a Portlander working as a beautician, has her own troubles, dodging the GM (genetic modification) police and struggling with rent. But the dead are invading her dreams. Nyle tells Cait that she’s not genetically modified. She’s a necromancer.
In the District of Portland, the dead are being trapped indefinitely and used as energy sources. Nyle and Cait must stop the technology from spreading before the abuse of the dead becomes a worldwide menace and they themselves end up on a laboratory table or trapped in a machine.
Grave Cold is a biopunk novel about the value of life and the power of taking a stand in a grim near-future world of exploitation and authoritarianism.
Synopsis (Post Apocalyptic & Dystopian Sci-fi) Indo-Caribbean Rep
A novella set in post–climate disaster Alberta; a woman infected with a mysterious parasite must choose whether to pursue a rare opportunity far from home or stay and help rebuild her community
The world is nothing like it once was: climate disasters have wracked the continent, causing food shortages, ending industry, and leaving little behind. Then came Cad, mysterious mind-altering fungi that invade the bodies of the now scattered citizenry. Reid, a young woman who carries this parasite, has been given a chance to get away — to move to one of the last remnants of pre-disaster society — but she can’t bring herself to abandon her mother and the community that relies on her. When she’s offered a coveted place on a dangerous and profitable mission, she jumps at the opportunity to set her family up for life, but how can Reid ask people to put their trust in her when she can’t even trust her own mind?
With keen insight and biting prose, Premee Mohamed delivers a deeply personal tale in this post-apocalyptic hopepunk novella that reflects on the meaning of community and asks what we owe to those who have lifted us up.
Synopsis (Space Opera Sci-fi) Black & African American & Interracial Rep
Still reeling from the events that upended her life, Abriana connects with her Grandparents and their resistance group, the No Kings, for safety.
As she and her friends join their ranks, they train to become the people that can help save Elendil and the entire system from the clutches of Baron and Asher. But as Abriana spends more time with the No Kings, she wonders if there’s a larger conspiracy at play.
The more she learns the more Abriana wonders who else was behind the death of so many people she loved.
Synopsis (Exploration & Space Opera Sci-fi) LGBTQ Rep
A dying universe. A search for answers. An adventure at the end of a trillion lifetimes.
When the Home worlds finally achieved the technology to venture out into the stars, they found a graveyard of dead civilisations. What befell them is unknown. All Home knows is that they are the last ones left – and whatever came for the others will one day come for them.
Scout is an Archivist who scours the dead worlds of the cosmos for their last gifts: interesting technology, cultural rituals – anything left behind that might be useful to Home and their survival. During an excavation on a lifeless planet, Scout unearths something unbelievable: a surviving message from an alien who witnessed the world-ending entity thousands of years ago.
Now Scout, their brother and their sometimes-fearless, space-faring cat, Pumpkin, must race to save what matters most.
Synopsis (Adventure Sci-fi) Asexual/Aromantic Rep
Two species of humans — one technologically advanced and one living in nature — have coexisted peacefully on their home planet for over a century. But when an ancient treaty is breached, devastation follows.
Balika has always felt like an outsider. When tragedy strikes, she is left without a reason to remain with her tribe. Looking for a place where she can belong, she leaves the familiar forest and ventures into the desert to bond with a mythical animal through music. But her forgotten life calls her back when she discovers an unexpected threat to her land.
Sammah works long hours as an experience developer and returns to his tiny apartment alone. He suffers from anxiety and spends most of his time in the virtual world. He opens up to a friendship with a colleague, but just when things start to look up, he gets trapped in a strange and dangerous affair. He might either lose himself, or the only person he truly cares about.
Struggling to make the right choices, they get pulled into a brewing disaster. Their worlds are about to collide, and their paths are fated to cross. Caught on different sides of the conflict, Balika and Sammah take up the fight in their own ways. If they want to save what they love most, they must risk everything. Will that be enough?
Content warnings: violence, death (including death of a loved one, death of a parent, death of a child), bullying, torture, blood, language. Even though the book is ultimately hopeful, it contains some violent scenes that some readers might find difficult. Please be careful if you are sensitive to the above.
Regardless of the kind of reader you are, I truly believe there’s something above for everyone. All hailing from different places and peoples across the world. Now I want it to be known that I am not saying that these should be read solely because of their representation, it’s not my place, all I want is to further help diversify reads! But these are also worthy reads just because.
I’m excited to check out the ones I haven’t read yet. I would love to continue to put these together, so if you’re a fan, be on the lookout–-or contact me with suggestions!
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