Answer Details

For a friend who enjoys highly-reviewed and recently published science fiction, here are some of the best-regarded novels from 2024 and 2025. Highly-reviewed and award-winning novels (2024–2025) The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera (2024): Winner of the 2024 Nebula Award for Best Novel, this debut features a protagonist raised to kill his estranged, god-like father, but who tries to forge his own path. The story is inspired by South Asian mythology and blends fantasy with speculative fiction. Annie Bot by Sierra Greer (2024): A winner of the prestigious 2025 Arthur C. Clarke Award, this novel explores the life of a domestic android. It has been described as a book that is both a social commentary and a powerful exploration of character. In Ascension by Martin MacInnes (2024): A Booker Prize longlisted and Arthur C. Clarke Award winner, this literary sci-fi novel follows a deep-sea biologist whose work leads her to join an interstellar mission. Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky (2024): From a prolific sci-fi author, this novel follows a subservient robot that begins to think for itself. It won the BSFA award and is an entertaining read for fans of robot-focused stories. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (2024): A hit debut that was a Good Morning America book club pick and a Los Angeles Times best book. It follows a civil servant who is tasked with assisting a time traveler from the 19th century. The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler (2024): Shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, this novel is about a biologist who makes a groundbreaking discovery: a species of intelligent, tool-using octopuses. Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh (2024): This Hugo Award-winning debut is a space opera about a young woman raised to be a warrior against the alien species that destroyed Earth. The story has been praised for its complex exploration of identity and gender. Other popular recent novels The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville (2025): This action-packed story follows a warrior cursed with a long life who can rip off people's arms but struggles with loneliness. The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey (2024): From the authors of The Expanse, this is the first book in the new Captive's War series, offering a fresh take on galactic conflicts. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (2021): While a few years older, this novel about a school teacher waking up alone in space with the fate of humanity on his shoulders is still a bestseller and is widely recommended.