“We earth men have a talent for ruining big, beautiful things.”
Diving into the world of science fiction can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re unsure where to start. With sprawling space operas, futuristic dystopias and mind-bending time travel tales, the genre truly offers something for everyone. But where exactly does a beginner begin? Whether you’re a newcomer to science fiction or looking for some approachable reads to ease into the genre, we here at What We Reading have compiled our best sci-fi books for beginners to help you take your first step into the stars. These beginner-friendly science fiction books are perfect for readers who want to explore thrilling ideas and imaginative worlds, without getting bogged down in any convoluted plots or dense jargon. From classic sci-fi books that helped shape the genre to modern gems that make the genre accessible to new audiences, these are the sci-fi starter books that are the perfect gateway to a new literary frontier!
The Martian Chronicles – Ray Bradbury
First up on our collection of the best sci-fi books for beginners is Ray Bradbury’s iconic work, The Martian Chronicles. The Martian Chronicles tells the story of humanity’s repeated efforts to colonise the red planet in our solar system. The first few men who attempted the endeavour succumbed to a disease they called The Great Loneliness on the back of seeing their home planet dwindle to the size of a small fist. The ones that managed to survive were soon locked up by the shape-changing Martian natives.
Nevertheless, more rockets arrived from Earth, piercing the hallucinations projected by the Martians. People brought their prejudices, fantasies, desires and tainted dreams along with them. The Martian Chronicles is a poetic exploration of humanity’s colonisation of Mars and the consequences that result from it.
Check Out These Classic Ray Bradbury Books
Illuminae (The Illuminae Files #1) – Amie Kaufman And Jay Kristoff
The year is 2575, and two rival mega-corporations are waging a war over a planet that is little more than a speck in the furthest reaches of the universe. Kady and Ezra were avoiding talking to one another but suddenly find themselves being forced to evacuate their planet together with a hostile warship in hot pursuit.
But their problems are just starting. A plague has broken out and is mutating with terrifying results; the fleet’s AI may actually be their enemy, and no one in charge is close to explaining what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a deep web of data to uncover the truth, she soon realises the only person she can trust is the ex-boyfriend she vowed to never speak to again. Told through an array of emails, maps, files, reports and interviews, Illuminae is a gripping space opera perfect for any science fiction beginner readers!
Dark Matter – Blake Crouch
Jason Dessen is walking home through the chilly streets of Chicago one night when he is knocked unconscious by a masked kidnapper. The last words he recalls hearing are: ‘Are you happy with your life?’
When he awakens, he finds himself trapped and surrounded by men in hazmat suits. In this world he has woken up in, his wife is not his wife, his son has never been born and, instead of the humble college physics professor he had been before, he is a celebrated genius who has achieved something truly remarkable. But, which of these two realities is the one he truly belongs in? Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter is a pulsating, mind-bending thriller about choices, the lives we dream of and the possibilities of alternate realities, making it undoubtedly one of the best sci-fi books for people just getting into the genre.
Check Out These Great Modern Sci-Fi Reads
Project Hail Mary – Andy Weir
Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-ditch mission. If he fails, humanity and the Earth itself will be wiped out. The more pressing issue? He doesn’t know that. He can’t even remember his own name, let alone what his mission is or how he might go about completing it. All he knows is that he has been asleep for a very long time. And that he’s been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with just two corpses for company.
His crewmates are dead, his memories fuzzy at best, Ryland is hurtling through space on his tiny ship with an impossible task lying ahead of him. Yet, it is up to him to work out an impossible scientific mystery and tackle an extinction-level threat to our species. Andy Weir’s Project Hail Mary is one of the most humourous and heartfelt modern sci-fi books for first-time readers looking for a gripping science-based adventure.
Check Out The Best Books Like Project Hail Mary
Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) – Philip K. Dick
One of the most groundbreaking and influential sci-fi stories of all time, Philip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep is set in a post-apocalyptic future where Earth has been ravaged by war, leaving most of the planet barren and most of the humans colonising on other worlds. Rick Deckard is a bounty hunter who is tasked with ‘retiring’ rogue androids – artificial beings who all look exactly like humans.
As Rick tracks down these advanced androids, he is forced to grapple with profound questions about what it means to be human, and whether empathy truly sets humans apart. With its gripping narrative and philosophical undertones, this beginner-friendly science fiction book asks readers to meditate on artificial intelligence and morality in a way that is timely, thought-provoking and accessible.
Redshirts – John Scalzi
Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid, the grandest ship of the Universal Union in the year 2456. It’s a high-profile posting, and Andrew is thrilled even more to be assigned to the ship’s Xenobiology laboratory. Life could hardly be better. That is until Andrew begins to pick up on the fact that every away mission seems to lead to a deadly confrontation with alien forces, the ship’s captain, lieutenant and chief science officer somehow always survive these confrontations, and how at least one low-ranked crew member is sadly always slain.
Unsurprisingly, a great deal of energy is spent below deck avoiding these expeditions. Then Andrew stumbles upon information that completely upends his and his colleagues’ understanding of what the Intrepid truly is. Featuring meta-commentary, humour and plenty of parodies of classic tropes, John Scalzi’s Redshirts is one of the best sci-fi books for beginners that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Scythe (Arc Of A Scythe #1) – Neal Shusterman
Scythe by Neal Shusterman is a thought-provoking sci-fi novel that’s another perfect read for newcomers to the genre. Set in a utopian future where disease, ageing and even death itself have been conquered, humanity is overseen by an omniscient AI known as the Thunderhead. To control population growth, a select group of people, dubbed the Scythes, are tasked with taking lives.
Teenagers Citra and Rown are selected to apprentice under a Scythe, learning all about the art of killing and the moral complexities that come with it. As they navigate their training, they uncover corruption within the Scythedom, leading them to a series of impossible choices. With its intricate world-building and ethical dilemmas, Scythe is one of the best sci-fi books for beginners looking to explore futuristic concepts and chilling dystopian societies.
The Long Way To A Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) – Becky Chambers
Rosemary Harper isn’t expecting much when she joins the crew onboard the ageing Wayfarer. Whilst the ship has certainly seen better days, it also offers her the chance to see the galaxy and put some much-needed distance between her and her past. Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy thanks to its cast of diverse crewmates including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks, and noble captain Ashby.
The crew are soon offered the job of a lifetime. Tunnelling wormholes through space to a distant planet is life-threatening, but it is also lucrative enough to keep them all comfortably for years to come. However in the far reaches of deep space, the Wayfarer crew are soon forced to confront a series of unexpected mishaps and exhilarating adventures that force them to depend on one another for survival in Becky Chambers’ heartwarming sci-fi read, The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet.
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
