29 Books like The Humans

Service Model

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

A robot valet kills his master, then crosses a dead civilization to find out why.

4.03

23k+

🎭 Philosophical Satire 🤖 Robot Self-Discovery 📋 Bureaucratic Absurdity 🫖 Loyal Servant Narrator 😐 Deadpan Narrator

Service Model 90%

A robot valet kills his master, then crosses a dead civilization to find out why.

by Adrian Tchaikovsky 2024

4.03

23k+ ratings

🎭 Philosophical Satire 🤖 Robot Self-Discovery 📋 Bureaucratic Absurdity 🫖 Loyal Servant Narrator 😐 Deadpan Narrator

Sin noticias de Gurb

by Eduardo Mendoza • 2001

An alien searches Barcelona for his lost partner, recording every human absurdity in his diary.

3.75

24k+

👽 Alien Observer 🎭 Absurdist Satire 🐟 Fish Out Of Water 📖 Diary Format 🌆 Barcelona

Sin noticias de Gurb 91%

An alien searches Barcelona for his lost partner, recording every human absurdity in his diary.

by Eduardo Mendoza 2001

3.75

24k+ ratings

👽 Alien Observer 🎭 Absurdist Satire 🐟 Fish Out Of Water 📖 Diary Format 🌆 Barcelona

Beautyland

by Marie-Helene Bertino • 2024

An alien observer's human life of love and loss is upended by the summons to return home.

4.05

43k+

👽 Alien Passing As Human 🛰️ Introspective Sci-Fi 👩‍👧 Single Mother Daughter 🐕 Loss Of A Pet 🌃 New York City Life

Beautyland 91%

An alien observer's human life of love and loss is upended by the summons to return home.

by Marie-Helene Bertino 2024

4.05

43k+ ratings

👽 Alien Passing As Human 🛰️ Introspective Sci-Fi 👩‍👧 Single Mother Daughter 🐕 Loss Of A Pet 🌃 New York City Life

Consider Phlebas

by Iain M. Banks • 1987

To save a crumbling empire, a shapeshifter must steal a runaway supermind from a dead world.

3.85

102k+

🦎 Shapeshifter Protagonist 🚀 Mercenary Crew 🛐 Alien Religion 🌍 Doomed Megastructure 🧠 Sentient Starship

Consider Phlebas 90%

To save a crumbling empire, a shapeshifter must steal a runaway supermind from a dead world.

by Iain M. Banks 1987

3.85

102k+ ratings

🦎 Shapeshifter Protagonist 🚀 Mercenary Crew 🛐 Alien Religion 🌍 Doomed Megastructure 🧠 Sentient Starship

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

by Becky Chambers • 2014

Running from her past, a clerk joins a wormhole ship crewed by chaotic, lovable misfits.

4.17

188k+

🛸 Found Family ☕ Cozy Sci-Fi 🚀 Ragtag Crew 🤝 Interspecies Bonds 💘 Slow Burn Romance

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet Summary

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet 90%

Running from her past, a clerk joins a wormhole ship crewed by chaotic, lovable misfits.

by Becky Chambers 2014

4.17

188k+ ratings

🛸 Found Family ☕ Cozy Sci-Fi 🚀 Ragtag Crew 🤝 Interspecies Bonds 💘 Slow Burn Romance

The Road to Roswell

by Connie Willis • 2023

A maid of honor's alien abduction in Roswell is a rescue mission, not an invasion.

3.71

9k+

🛸 Comic Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🖤 Interspecies Friendship 🎭 Oddball Ensemble 💕 Forced Proximity

The Road to Roswell 89%

A maid of honor's alien abduction in Roswell is a rescue mission, not an invasion.

by Connie Willis 2023

3.71

9k+ ratings

🛸 Comic Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🖤 Interspecies Friendship 🎭 Oddball Ensemble 💕 Forced Proximity

We Are Legion (We Are Bob)

by Dennis E. Taylor • 2016

A dead engineer wakes as an AI and is hurled into space inside a self-replicating probe.

4.25

133k+

🧠 Digital Consciousness 🚀 Von Neumann Probe 👥 Multiple Selves ⚖️ Prime Directive 🌍 Humanity's Last Hope

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) 89%

A dead engineer wakes as an AI and is hurled into space inside a self-replicating probe.

by Dennis E. Taylor 2016

4.25

133k+ ratings

🧠 Digital Consciousness 🚀 Von Neumann Probe 👥 Multiple Selves ⚖️ Prime Directive 🌍 Humanity's Last Hope

Anathem

by Neal Stephenson • 2008

A cloistered scholar stumbles onto his order's secret: an alien ship from a parallel universe.

4.17

76k+

🏛️ Monastic Sci-Fi 🔬 Hard Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🌌 Parallel Universes 🧠 Cerebral Sci-Fi

Anathem 89%

A cloistered scholar stumbles onto his order's secret: an alien ship from a parallel universe.

by Neal Stephenson 2008

4.17

76k+ ratings

🏛️ Monastic Sci-Fi 🔬 Hard Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🌌 Parallel Universes 🧠 Cerebral Sci-Fi

How Not to Die Alone

by Richard Roper • 2019

He arranges funerals for the forgotten dead. He invented a family. Now there's Peggy.

3.68

23k+

🌤️ Uplit 🎭 Fabricated Identity 🔥 Slow Burn Romance 🫂 Found Family 🚶 Loner Protagonist

How Not to Die Alone 89%

He arranges funerals for the forgotten dead. He invented a family. Now there's Peggy.

by Richard Roper 2019

3.68

23k+ ratings

🌤️ Uplit 🎭 Fabricated Identity 🔥 Slow Burn Romance 🫂 Found Family 🚶 Loner Protagonist

Child of Another Kind

by Steven Decker • 2023

A mother dies for her telepathic daughter and meets the aliens who created the girl.

4.28

6k+

🔮 Mind Reading 👩‍👧 Mother-Daughter Bond 🌌 Speculative Afterlife 🔬 Government Captive 🤔 Philosophical Sci-Fi

Child of Another Kind 89%

A mother dies for her telepathic daughter and meets the aliens who created the girl.

by Steven Decker 2023

4.28

6k+ ratings

🔮 Mind Reading 👩‍👧 Mother-Daughter Bond 🌌 Speculative Afterlife 🔬 Government Captive 🤔 Philosophical Sci-Fi

The Sparrow

by Mary Doria Russell • 1996

They went to meet God's other children. One priest returned, broken, and will not say why.

4.13

83k+

🛐 Jesuits In Space 🪐 First Contact Gone Wrong 👽 Alien Anthropology ⛪ Missionary Hubris 🌌 Elegiac Sci-Fi

The Sparrow 89%

They went to meet God's other children. One priest returned, broken, and will not say why.

by Mary Doria Russell 1996

4.13

83k+ ratings

🛐 Jesuits In Space 🪐 First Contact Gone Wrong 👽 Alien Anthropology ⛪ Missionary Hubris 🌌 Elegiac Sci-Fi

The Android's Dream

by John Scalzi • 2006

A diplomatic fart kills a negotiator. Peace requires one extinct sheep: a woman who never knew.

3.99

24k+

🛸 Comic Space Opera 🦸 Reluctant Hero 🤖 AI Companion 🤪 Absurdist Humor 🌌 Interstellar Politics

The Android's Dream 91%

A diplomatic fart kills a negotiator. Peace requires one extinct sheep: a woman who never knew.

by John Scalzi 2006

3.99

24k+ ratings

🛸 Comic Space Opera 🦸 Reluctant Hero 🤖 AI Companion 🤪 Absurdist Humor 🌌 Interstellar Politics

Mickey7

by Edward Ashton • 2022

An expendable colonist survives a mission and returns to find his duplicate already living his life.

3.78

58k+

🧠 Consciousness Transfer 👥 Accidental Duplicate 👽 Sentient Aliens 🤝 First Contact 🪐 Colony Sci-Fi

Mickey7 90%

An expendable colonist survives a mission and returns to find his duplicate already living his life.

by Edward Ashton 2022

3.78

58k+ ratings

🧠 Consciousness Transfer 👥 Accidental Duplicate 👽 Sentient Aliens 🤝 First Contact 🪐 Colony Sci-Fi

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

by Douglas Adams

Earth demolished for a space bypass, Arthur Dent hitchhikes a galaxy run by bureaucrats.

4.22

2.0M+

🌀 Absurdist Sci-Fi 🐟 Fish Out Of Water 🤖 Depressed Robot 🌌 Cosmic Insignificance 🎲 Accidental Hero

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Summary

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 89%

Earth demolished for a space bypass, Arthur Dent hitchhikes a galaxy run by bureaucrats.

by Douglas Adams 1979

4.22

2.0M+ ratings

🌀 Absurdist Sci-Fi 🐟 Fish Out Of Water 🤖 Depressed Robot 🌌 Cosmic Insignificance 🎲 Accidental Hero

Meeting Mungo Thunk

by Keith A. Pearson • 2018

Jilted and broke, a window cleaner rents to a lodger whose logic feels almost supernatural.

4.49

3k+

🧑 Lovable Underachiever 👻 Supernatural Mentor 💔 Second Chance Romance 😂 British Humor 🫂 Odd Couple Friendship

Meeting Mungo Thunk 89%

Jilted and broke, a window cleaner rents to a lodger whose logic feels almost supernatural.

by Keith A. Pearson 2018

4.49

3k+ ratings

🧑 Lovable Underachiever 👻 Supernatural Mentor 💔 Second Chance Romance 😂 British Humor 🫂 Odd Couple Friendship

The Speed of Dark

by Elizabeth Moon • 2002

A pharmaceutical company offers an autistic man normalcy. The treatment could erase who he is.

3.99

12k+

🚀 Near-Future Sf 🧩 Autistic Protagonist 🧠 Neurodiversity 💉 Medical Experimentation ⚖️ Ethics Of Science

The Speed of Dark 89%

A pharmaceutical company offers an autistic man normalcy. The treatment could erase who he is.

by Elizabeth Moon 2002

3.99

12k+ ratings

🚀 Near-Future Sf 🧩 Autistic Protagonist 🧠 Neurodiversity 💉 Medical Experimentation ⚖️ Ethics Of Science

Gateway

by Craig Alanson • 2025

His AI lost inside a star, Bishop faces an ancient enemy opening the galaxy's door.

4.41

4k+

🚀 Military Space Opera 🤖 Snarky AI Companion 🫂 Found Family 😰 Reluctant Leader 😏 Witty Banter

Gateway 89%

His AI lost inside a star, Bishop faces an ancient enemy opening the galaxy's door.

by Craig Alanson 2025

4.41

4k+ ratings

🚀 Military Space Opera 🤖 Snarky AI Companion 🫂 Found Family 😰 Reluctant Leader 😏 Witty Banter

Stranger in a Strange Land

by Robert A. Heinlein • 1961

A human raised on Mars returns to Earth with impossible powers and a gospel of radical love.

3.92

328k+

🪐 Alien Upbringing 🌊 Fish Out Of Water 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family ⛪ Satirical Religion ✨ Counterculture Spirituality

Stranger in a Strange Land 89%

A human raised on Mars returns to Earth with impossible powers and a gospel of radical love.

by Robert A. Heinlein 1961

3.92

328k+ ratings

🪐 Alien Upbringing 🌊 Fish Out Of Water 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family ⛪ Satirical Religion ✨ Counterculture Spirituality

Ellison Wonderland

by Harlan Ellison • 1962

A murder kit, a centaur wish, and a robot's return: stories that warp reality.

3.99

1k+

🌀 Surreal Sci-Fi 🌟 Science Fantasy ↩️ Twist Endings 🤡 Absurdist Dilemmas 🪞 Identity Shift

Ellison Wonderland 89%

A murder kit, a centaur wish, and a robot's return: stories that warp reality.

by Harlan Ellison 1962

3.99

1k+ ratings

🌀 Surreal Sci-Fi 🌟 Science Fantasy ↩️ Twist Endings 🤡 Absurdist Dilemmas 🪞 Identity Shift

Orbital

by Samantha Harvey • 2023

One day in orbit: six astronauts, sixteen sunrises, a typhoon's eye, and a beautiful fragile Earth.

3.49

150k+

🧘 Meditative Fiction 🚀 Introspective Sci-Fi 👥 Crew Dynamics 🌍 Earth From Space 🌪️ Climate Grief

Orbital 88%

One day in orbit: six astronauts, sixteen sunrises, a typhoon's eye, and a beautiful fragile Earth.

by Samantha Harvey 2023

3.49

150k+ ratings

🧘 Meditative Fiction 🚀 Introspective Sci-Fi 👥 Crew Dynamics 🌍 Earth From Space 🌪️ Climate Grief

Project Hail Mary

by Andy Weir

He wakes alone with no memory on an interstellar mission to stop a star-killing plague.

4.51

1.4M+

🔬 Hard Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🧠 Amnesiac Protagonist 🤝 Interspecies Friendship 😬 Reluctant Hero

Project Hail Mary 89%

He wakes alone with no memory on an interstellar mission to stop a star-killing plague.

by Andy Weir 2021

4.51

1.4M+ ratings

🔬 Hard Science Fiction 👽 First Contact 🧠 Amnesiac Protagonist 🤝 Interspecies Friendship 😬 Reluctant Hero

Ender’s Game

by Orson Scott Card • 1985

A child prodigy is drafted to an orbital battle academy where war games determine humanity's fate.

4.31

1.5M+

🎓 Military Academy 👽 Alien War 🧠 Child Prodigy 🎭 Psychological Manipulation ⚔️ Strategic Warfare

Ender’s Game 90%

A child prodigy is drafted to an orbital battle academy where war games determine humanity's fate.

by Orson Scott Card 1985

4.31

1.5M+ ratings

🎓 Military Academy 👽 Alien War 🧠 Child Prodigy 🎭 Psychological Manipulation ⚔️ Strategic Warfare

Space Opera

by Catherynne M. Valente • 2018

A washed-up glam rocker must save Earth from elimination at an intergalactic song contest.

3.45

17k+

🌀 Absurdist Sci-Fi 🏆 Galactic Competition 🎸 Washed-Up Musician 🥁 Band Reunion 💔 Grief And Performance

Space Opera 90%

A washed-up glam rocker must save Earth from elimination at an intergalactic song contest.

by Catherynne M. Valente 2018

3.45

17k+ ratings

🌀 Absurdist Sci-Fi 🏆 Galactic Competition 🎸 Washed-Up Musician 🥁 Band Reunion 💔 Grief And Performance

Children of Time

by Adrian Tchaikovsky • 2015

Earth's last ark reaches a green world where spiders have cities and the monkeys never arrived.

4.30

180k+

🧬 Accelerated Evolution 🖖 First Contact 🕷️ Uplifted Species 🚀 Generation Ship ⏳ Deep Time

Children of Time 88%

Earth's last ark reaches a green world where spiders have cities and the monkeys never arrived.

by Adrian Tchaikovsky 2015

4.30

180k+ ratings

🧬 Accelerated Evolution 🖖 First Contact 🕷️ Uplifted Species 🚀 Generation Ship ⏳ Deep Time

Old Man's War

by John Scalzi • 2005

A seventy-five-year-old widower joins the army for a new body and gets an interstellar war.

4.23

227k+

🪖 Military Sci-Fi 🧬 Consciousness Transfer 👽 Alien Warfare 😏 Wry Humor 💪 Boot Camp Training

Old Man's War 88%

A seventy-five-year-old widower joins the army for a new body and gets an interstellar war.

by John Scalzi 2005

4.23

227k+ ratings

🪖 Military Sci-Fi 🧬 Consciousness Transfer 👽 Alien Warfare 😏 Wry Humor 💪 Boot Camp Training

Logging Off

by Nick Spalding • 2020

A graphic designer's tech addiction literally makes him ill. His cure: 60 days, zero screens.

3.95

9k+

🖥️ Tech Satire 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family 😰 Modern Anxiety 🏘️ Small Town England 📚 Book Club Fiction

Logging Off 88%

A graphic designer's tech addiction literally makes him ill. His cure: 60 days, zero screens.

by Nick Spalding 2020

3.95

9k+ ratings

🖥️ Tech Satire 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Found Family 😰 Modern Anxiety 🏘️ Small Town England 📚 Book Club Fiction

Starter Villain

by John Scalzi • 2023

A broke teacher inherits a supervillain island where dolphins unionize, cats spy, and killers wait.

4.11

100k+

🏢 Corporate Satire 👑 Reluctant Heir 🐬 Sentient Animals 🏝️ Secret Island Base 🕵️ Spy Thriller Lite

Starter Villain 88%

A broke teacher inherits a supervillain island where dolphins unionize, cats spy, and killers wait.

by John Scalzi 2023

4.11

100k+ ratings

🏢 Corporate Satire 👑 Reluctant Heir 🐬 Sentient Animals 🏝️ Secret Island Base 🕵️ Spy Thriller Lite

The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

by Douglas Adams • 1996

Earth demolished for a bypass, Arthur Dent hitchhikes the galaxy with a towel and a guide.

4.38

339k+

🛸 Absurdist Space Comedy 🤔 Existential Humor 🚀 Ragtag Space Crew 🌌 Intergalactic Road Trip 🌀 Cosmic Irony

The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Summary

The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 88%

Earth demolished for a bypass, Arthur Dent hitchhikes the galaxy with a towel and a guide.

by Douglas Adams 1996

4.38

339k+ ratings

🛸 Absurdist Space Comedy 🤔 Existential Humor 🚀 Ragtag Space Crew 🌌 Intergalactic Road Trip 🌀 Cosmic Irony

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor

by Hank Green • 2020

A sentient book sends April's friends searching for her inside the virtual world consuming humanity.

4.23

57k+

🔮 Near-Future Sci-Fi 👽 First Contact Fiction 🛸 Alien Benefactors 🫂 Found Family 💕 Sapphic Romance

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor 88%

A sentient book sends April's friends searching for her inside the virtual world consuming humanity.

by Hank Green 2020

4.23

57k+ ratings

🔮 Near-Future Sci-Fi 👽 First Contact Fiction 🛸 Alien Benefactors 🫂 Found Family 💕 Sapphic Romance

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