Recommendations based on Ghost Fleet: A Novel of the Next World Warby P.W. Singer

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Seveneves

    by Neal Stephenson
    Humanity's struggle for survival after an apocalyptic event threatens to extinguish life on Earth.

    In the near future, an unknown agent causes the Moon to shatter. As the pieces begin to collide with one another, astronomer and science popularizer "Doc" Dubois Harris calculates that Moon fragments ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Starship Troopers

    by Robert A. Heinlein
    A futuristic military drama, exploring the consequences of war and human nature.

    The novel opens with Rico aboard the corvette transport Rodger Young (named after Medal of Honor recipient Rodger Wilton Young ), , serving with the platoon known as "Rasczak's Roughnecks". The ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Gates of Fire

    by Steven Pressfield
    Epic tale of ancient Spartan warriors on a mission of heroism and sacrifice.

    The novel is narrated by Xeones, a perioikos and one of only three Greek survivors of the Battle of Thermopylae . His story is dictated to King Xerxes and transcribed by his court historian , ... (Wikipedia)

  4. The Three-Body Problem

    by Liu Cixin
    A science fiction novel exploring the consequences of first contact with an alien civilization.

    The story takes place in flash-forwards, flashbacks, and the present time. Below is a chronological plotline. During the Cultural Revolution , Ye Wenjie, an astrophysics graduate from Tsinghua ... (Wikipedia)

  5. The Nowhere Man

    by Gregg Andrew Hurwitz
    A man goes on a mission of revenge after the disappearance of his family, discovering secrets of a global conspiracy.

    The novel begins with a case of cyberbullying a humble family girl who ends up being a victim of a network of human traffic. Evan Smoak saves the girl but realizes that another young woman has been ... (Wikipedia)

  6. Artemis

    by Andy Weir
    A young woman's daring heist to save her city on the moon.

    Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional ... (Goodreads)

  7. Armor

    by John Steakley
    A soldier's journey through a war-torn land to protect those he loves from a tyrannical enemy.

    Armor is the story of humanity's war against an alien race whose foot soldiers are three-meter-tall insects, referred to in the book as "ants". , It is also the story of a research colony on the ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Lieutenant Hornblower

    by C.S. Forester
    An adventurous naval officer navigates the dangerous high seas of the Napoleonic Wars.

    William Bush , who becomes Hornblower's faithful companion and best friend, is introduced boarding HMS, Renown, as the third lieutenant . Hornblower is the fifth and most junior lieutenant. It is ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Beat to Quarters

    by C.S. Forester
    Naval officer's daring mission to track down a powerful enemy warship.

    In June 1808, Hornblower is in command of the 36-gun frigate HMS Lydia , with orders to sail to the Pacific coast of Nicaragua (near modern Choluteca, Choluteca ) and supply a local landowner, Don ... (Wikipedia)

  10. Mr. Midshipman Hornblower

    by C.S. Forester
    Follow the adventures of Horatio Hornblower, a young midshipman in the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars.

    This novel is episodic, with named chapters (that begin with Hornblower) that often focus on a self-contained incident. In this story, a gawky and seasick Hornblower comes aboard his first ship. He ... (Wikipedia)

  11. The Water Knife

    by Paolo Bacigalupi
    In a future where water is scarce, three individuals fight for control of the dwindling resource in the American Southwest.

    In a future hammered by climate change and drought, mountain snows have turned to rain, and rain evaporates before it hits the ground. In a fragmenting United States, the cities of Phoenix and Las ... (Goodreads)

  12. Aurora

    by Kim Stanley Robinson
    A future mission to colonize another planet, and the ethical, social, and psychological challenges it presents.

    A generation ship is launched from Saturn in 2545 at 10% c (i.e. traveling at 108,000,000 km/hr or 10% the speed of light). It includes twenty-four self-contained biomes and an average population of ... (Wikipedia)

  13. The Hunt for Red October

    by Tom Clancy
    A thrilling adventure of a submarine captain's race against the clock in a thrilling game of cat and mouse.

    During the Cold War ,(the story must be set in 1982, according to the days assigned to the dates in the novel, e.g. Dec. 17 was a Friday only in 1982,1976 and 1971 ) Marko Ramius, a Soviet Navy ... (Wikipedia)

  14. The Cartel

    by Don Winslow
    An explosive battle of power and greed between Mexico's drug cartels and the US government.

    From the internationally best-selling author of the acclaimed novel The Power of the Dog comes The Cartel, a gripping, true-to-life, ripped-from-the-headlines epic story of power, corruption, ... (Goodreads)

  15. American War

    by Omar El Akkad
    A vivid account of a second American Civil War and its devastating consequences.

    In 2074, after the passage of a bill that bans the use of fossil fuels anywhere in the United States, Mississippi , Alabama , Georgia , South Carolina and Texas secede from the Union, starting the ... (Wikipedia)

  16. Matterhorn

    by Karl Marlantes
    A Vietnam War novel about the journey of a Marine lieutenant and his platoon in the jungles of Vietnam.

    Featured in PBS's, The Vietnam War, series by Ken Burns & Lynn Novick. The, New York Times, bestselling, "powerhouse" (,TIME, Magazine) debut from Vietnam War veteran, Karl Marlantes. An incredible ... (Barnes & Noble)

  17. The Girl in the Tower

    by Katherine Arden
    A young woman's journey of self-discovery, braving the unknown to reclaim her destiny.

    The Bear and the Nightingale , Katherine Arden’s enchanting first novel, introduced readers to an irresistible heroine. Vasilisa has grown up at the edge of a Russian wilderness, where snowdrifts ... (Goodreads)

  18. Red Storm Rising

    by Tom Clancy
    An all-out war between NATO and the Soviet Union, as seen through the eyes of the soldiers.

    Militants from Azerbaijan destroy an oil production refinery in Nizhnevartovsk , threatening to cripple the Soviet Union's economy due to oil shortages. After much deliberation, the Soviet Politburo ... (Wikipedia)

  19. The Forever War

    by Joe Haldeman
    A soldier's story of the horror of war and its consequences in the far future.

    The monumental Hugo and Nebula award winning SF classic— Featuring a new introduction by John Scalzi,The Earth's leaders have drawn a line in the interstellar sand—despite the fact that the fierce ... (Barnes & Noble)

  20. H.M.S. Surprise

    by Patrick O'Brian
    Captain Aubrey and Dr. Maturin embark on a perilous mission to intercept a French frigate. The third book in the Aubrey-Maturin series.

    A convoy including Aubrey seizes the ships carrying the gold deemed necessary by Spain to agree to join the war on the side of France. On the quibble that Spain had not yet entered the war, the new ... (Wikipedia)

  21. A Memory of Light

    by Robert Jordan
    Epic story of the last great battle of the world, with a hero's journey to save it.

    In the prologue, the armies of the Westlands assemble in preparation for, Tarmon Gai'don, , as do the forces of the Shadow. The Forsaken Demandred stages a raid on the city of Caemlyn, sending ... (Wikipedia)

  22. Death's End

    by Liu Cixin
    Epic space opera of humanity's struggle to survive in a universe of cosmic forces.

    The story begins during the Fall of Constantinople , describing a prostitute who gains the power of retrieving objects and cutting out human organs without penetrating their enclosures. Constantine ... (Wikipedia)

  23. The Bear and the Nightingale

    by Katherine Arden
    A folktale of a brave girl who defies the dark forces threatening her village.

    At the edge of the Russian wilderness, winter lasts most of the year and the snowdrifts grow taller than houses. But Vasilisa doesn't mind—she spends the winter nights huddled around the embers of a ... (Goodreads)

  24. The Shadow Rising

    by Robert Jordan
    Epic fantasy adventure as a group of heroes battle forces of evil to protect the world from destruction.

    Rand al'Thor has just claimed the crystal sword Callandor to prove himself the Dragon Reborn . He is approached by Lanfear , who tells him of the Forsaken's plans. However, the fortress known as the ... (Wikipedia)

  25. The Bourne Ultimatum

    by Robert Ludlum
    Secret agent Jason Bourne on a mission to uncover the truth behind his life and identity.

    The novel follows David Webb, alias Jason Bourne , as he works to find his old enemy, Carlos the Jackal , who is trying to kill him. As the Jackal enters old age and his infamy fades, he decides that ... (Wikipedia)

  26. Rendezvous with Rama

    by Arthur C. Clarke
    A mysterious alien spacecraft discovered in the Solar System, explored by a human team.

    After an asteroid falls in Northeast Italy in 2077, creating a major disaster, the government of Earth sets up the Spaceguard system as an early warning of arrivals from deep space. The "Rama" of the ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Rise and Shine

    by Anna Quindlen
    A popular morning TV show host is fired after an on-air outburst, and her sister takes her in. The two must confront their past and present struggles.

    A superb novel about two sisters, the true meaning of success, and the qualities in life that matter most. From Anna Quindlen, acclaimed author of Blessings, Black and Blue, and One True Thing, a ... (Goodreads)

  28. The Drowned Cities

    by Paolo Bacigalupi
    In a post-apocalyptic world, two orphaned children struggle to survive amidst war and violence.

    Soldier boys emerged from the darkness. Guns gleamed dully. Bullet bandoliers and scars draped their bare chests. Ugly brands scored their faces. She knew why these soldier boys had come. She knew ... (Barnes & Noble)

  29. And the Mountains Echoed

    by Khaled Hosseini
    Interconnected stories of family and love, tracing the consequences of decisions made throughout life.

    The novel opens in the year 1952. Saboor, an impoverished farmer from the fictional village of Shadbagh, decides to sell his three-year-old daughter Pari to a wealthy, childless couple in Kabul. ... (Wikipedia)

  30. The Truth According to Us

    by Annie Barrows
    A story of a family in small-town America and the secrets they keep.

    In the summer of 1938, Layla Beck’s father, a United States senator, cuts off her allowance and demands that she find employment on the Federal Writers’ Project, a New Deal jobs program. Within days, ... (Goodreads)