Recommendations based on Infernoby Larry Niven

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

  1. Ringworld

    by Larry Niven
    A sci-fi adventure to an artificial ring-shaped world, full of unexpected challenges.

    On planet Earth in 2850 AD , Louis Gridley Wu is celebrating his 200th birthday. Despite his age, Louis is in perfect physical condition due to the longevity drug boosterspice . He meets Nessus , a ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Footfall

    by Larry Niven
    Aliens invade Earth, and humanity must fight back to save their planet from destruction.

    The alien Fithp resemble baby elephants with multiple prehensile trunks. They possess more advanced technology than humans but have developed none of it on their own. In the distant past on their ... (Wikipedia)

  3. The Mote in God's Eye

    by Larry Niven
    A journey of first contact between the human race and an alien species.

    In the year AD 3017, humanity is slowly recovering from an interstellar civil war that tore apart the first Empire of Man. The Second Empire is busy establishing control over the remnants of its ... (Wikipedia)

  4. Nine Princes in Amber

    by Roger Zelazny
    A man discovers he is a member of a royal family from another world and embarks on a quest to reclaim his rightful place.

    Carl Corey wakes in a medical clinic, with little to no knowledge of who he is or how he got there. He suspects he is being over-medicated, so he overpowers the nurse and doctor and escapes his room. ... (Wikipedia)

  5. Lord of Light

    by Roger Zelazny
    A cosmic struggle between ancient Hindu gods and a man, who uses technology to gain freedom.

    Lord of Light is set on a planet colonized by some of the remnants of "vanished Urath", or Earth. The crew and colonists from the spaceship Star of India found themselves on a strange planet ... (Wikipedia)

  6. 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)

  7. Crown of Shadows

    by C.S. Friedman
    A dark fantasy novel about a powerful sorceress who must confront her own inner demons to save her world from destruction.

    Damien and Tarrant return to the west and Jaggonath, where they agree to work together long enough to kill Calesta. Damien discovers that the Patriarch of the Church, who is firmly against sorcery, ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Wielding a Red Sword

    by Piers Anthony
    A young man must wield a magical red sword to save his world from destruction, but at a great personal cost.

    Mym , an Indian prince, defies his father's plans for an arranged marriage, instead joining a travelling circus . He meets Orb, who teaches him to manage a stutter through song. He is soon ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Foundation

    by Isaac Asimov
    Exploring the possibilities of a galactic empire in a future driven by science and technology.

    For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future – to a dark age ... (Goodreads)

  10. The Doll's House

    by Neil Gaiman
    A dark fantasy exploring the cruelty and power of fairy tales, and the consequences of secrets.

    As part of a manhood ritual, an old man in the desert tells a younger man an ancient story, detailing the tragic love between Dream and Queen Nada. Fearing the consequences of loving an immortal, ... (Wikipedia)

  11. The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

    by Robert A. Heinlein
    Revolutionary group fight for freedom from an oppressive lunar colony.

    In 2075, the Moon (Luna) is used as a penal colony by Earth's government, with three million inhabitants (called "Loonies") living in underground cities. Most Loonies are criminals, political exiles, ... (Wikipedia)

  12. Transmetropolitan, Vol. 2: Lust for Life

    by Warren Ellis
    An anti-hero journalist fights to uncover corruption in a futuristic dystopia.

    Outlaw journalist Spider Jerusalem has become a household name in the future City he calls home. This latest collection of twisted tales showcases Spider's horrific yet funny screeds on subjects as ... (Goodreads)

  13. 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)

  14. Inferno

    by Dante Alighieri
    An epic journey through the nine circles of Hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.

    Of the great poets, Dante is one of the most elusive and therefore one of the most difficult to adequately render into English verse. In the Inferno, Dante not only judges sin but strives to ... (Goodreads)

  15. The Hand of Oberon

    by Roger Zelazny
    Epic quest of a mortal against the immortal gods to save a magical kingdom from destruction.

    Corwin, Random and Ganelon go down to the Primal Pattern and see that it is damaged, with a dark stain obscuring the pattern from the center to one edge, in the shape of the corrupted Vale of ... (Wikipedia)

  16. Transmetropolitan, Vol. 1: Back on the Street

    by Warren Ellis
    A journalist navigates a dystopian world, exposing corruption and social injustices.

    After years of self-imposed exile from a civilization rife with degradation and indecency, cynical journalist Spider Jerusalem is forced to return to a job that he hates and a city that he loathes. ... (Goodreads)

  17. A Canticle for Leibowitz

    by Walter M. Miller Jr.
    A post-apocalyptic tale of a world struggling to rebuild after a devastating nuclear war.

    After 20th century civilization was destroyed by a global nuclear war , known as the "Flame Deluge", there was a violent backlash against the culture of advanced knowledge and technology that had led ... (Wikipedia)

  18. Startide Rising

    by David Brin
    A group of uplifted dolphins and humans must flee across the galaxy, pursued by enemies seeking their advanced technology.

    In the year 2489 C.E. , , the Terran spaceship Streaker — crewed by 150 uplifted dolphins, seven humans, and one uplifted chimpanzee — discovers a derelict fleet of 50,000 spaceships the size of ... (Wikipedia)

  19. Neuromancer

    by William Gibson
    A hacker's journey through a dystopian cyberpunk world, searching for a way to survive.

    Henry Dorsett Case is a low-level hustler in the dystopian underworld of Chiba City , Japan. Once a talented computer hacker , Case was caught stealing from his employer. As punishment for his theft, ... (Wikipedia)

  20. Surface Detail

    by Iain M. Banks
    A sci-fi space opera exploring the consequences of virtual immortality.

    It begins in the realm of the Real, where matter still matters. It begins with a murder. It will not end until the Culture has gone to war with death itself. Lededje Y'breq is one of the Intagliated, ... (Goodreads)

  21. The Uplift War

    by David Brin
    A story of a species of aliens fighting to survive against a powerful oppressor.

    David Brin's Uplift novels are among the most thrilling and extraordinary science fiction ever written. Sundiver, Startide Rising, and The Uplift War –a New York Times bestseller--together make up ... (Goodreads)

  22. March Upcountry

    by David Weber
    Epic space opera featuring military conflict and political intrigue.

    Prince Roger is ordered by his mother and older half-brother to attend a ceremony in Leviathan. Roger travels on the spaceship Charles DeGlopper with Eleanora O'Casey, Kostas Matsugae, and Captain ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Superman: Red Son

    by Mark Millar
    What if Superman had landed in Soviet Russia instead of the United States? Follow the alternate history of the Man of Steel.

    The Soviet Union reveals Superman to the world in 1953. The news of a superpowered alien under Soviet control causes panic in the United States , shifting the focus of the Cold War arms race from ... (Wikipedia)

  24. D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths

    by Ingri d'Aulaire
    A captivating collection of timeless myths and legends from Ancient Greece.

    Here are the gods, goddesses, and legendary figures of ancient Greece–mighty Zeus, with his fistful of thunderbolts; gray-eyed Athena, goddess of wisdom; Helios, the sun; greedy King Midas--lavishly ... (Goodreads)

  25. Season of Mists

    by Neil Gaiman
    A supernatural journey through various mythologies and realms, a quest to reclaim a lost soul.

    This collection begins with an Endless family meeting, wherein Desire taunts Morpheus about his intolerant treatment of a former lover, the African queen 'Nada' ("Nada" is "Nothing" in Spanish ), ... (Wikipedia)

  26. The Silmarillion

    by J.R.R. Tolkien
    Epic saga of the history of Middle-Earth, a world filled with mythical creatures.

    The Silmarillion is an account of the Elder Days, of the First Age of Tolkien’s world. It is the ancient drama to which the characters in The Lord of the Rings look back, and in whose events some of ... (Goodreads)

  27. Black Sun Rising

    by C.S. Friedman
    An epic fantasy adventure featuring a group of unlikely heroes who must save the world from destruction.

    As they make their way north, they encounter a man by the name of Gerald Tarrant, who marks himself as the servant of the Hunter, a powerful Adept who lives in the middle of a vortex of Fae. He ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Tunnel in the Sky

    by Robert A. Heinlein
    A group of students are stranded on a distant planet during a survival test, facing challenges and forming their own society.

    A classic novel from the mind of the storyteller who captures the imagination of readers from around the world, and across two generations. The final exam for Dr. Matson's Advanced Survival class was ... (Goodreads)

  29. Witches Abroad

    by Terry Pratchett
    A group of witches embark on a magical quest to stop an evil fairy tale.

    Following the death of the witch Desiderata Hollow, Magrat Garlick is sent her magic wand, for Desiderata was not only a witch, but also a fairy godmother . Having given the wand to Magrat, she ... (Wikipedia)

  30. Just So Stories

    by Rudyard Kipling
    A collection of fanciful tales explaining how animals came to be the way they are.

    Librarian's Note: Alternate cover edition can be found here . Twelve stories about animals, insects, and other subjects include How the Camel Got His Hump. The Butterfly That Stamped, and How the ... (Goodreads)