Every year in the build up to Christmas I get a bunch of ‘gift guide’ emails from publishers and bookshops – I’m sure you’ll know the type, they usually consist of a list of the most recent releases, largely in hardback. These emails can be useful, no doubt, but they don’t always feel very heavily curated. Or at least, if they do have specific sections for genre or purpose, these are often buried down the bottom and easily missed. With that in mind, I thought I’d have some fun and put together my own gift guide based on the best books I’ve read in 2020, so if you’re on the lookout for any last-minute present ideas (or you just fancy a few more books for yourself – nothing wrong with that) then this might help.
I’ve split the guide into 10 sections, with two recommendations in each along with links to my reviews. These are all based on books I’ve read this year, which means unlike most of the gift guide emails you’ll get, they aren’t all brand new books (although most of them are fairly new). I’m not suggesting these are the only books you should buy (go out and look for lots of recommendations, ideally), but I personally enjoyed all of them, and can wholeheartedly recommend each and every one! So without further ado, let’s get straight into it.
Couldn’t travel in 2020? Try these…
It’s been a tough year in many respects, and the difficulty in getting away for holiday has been particularly noticeable. Just because you can’t physically travel at the moment, however, doesn’t mean you can’t explore different places through the magic of reading! Here are a couple of great books that will help you do the next best thing.
Notes From Small Planets by Nate Crowley: explore eight fictional worlds in this brilliantly constructed guide book that mixes madcap humour with cutting social commentary. Although tongue in cheek, Crowley’s genuine love of SFF tropes shines through, and while the jokes are the main attraction, it works remarkably well as an actual travel guide. Check out the review, and an interview with Nate Crowley.
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia: take a trip to Jazz Age Mexico, joining young Casiopea Tun and Hun-Kamé – the dethroned Maya god of the dead – on an adventure taking in gods, demons, folklore, magic and mythology, from quiet rural Yucatán to Mexico City and beyond. Check out the review.
Something big
Sure, size shouldn’t matter when it comes to books, but sometimes it’s good to have a real doorstop of a book to get your teeth into. These two chunky reads should keep you busy for a fair amount of time.
XX by Rian Hughes: mixing mind-blowing science fiction with jaw-dropping visual design, this high concept tale of high-tech first contact, augmented reality and the philosophy of ideas is as bold, adventurous and brain-meltingly awesome as you can imagine. It’s one of those rare books that makes reading feel like a genuinely unique experience. Check out the review.
Legacy of Ash by Matthew Ward: putting the EPIC back in epic fantasy, this 240k word behemoth is packed to the gills with fantastic, morally grey characters, compelling world building and a tangible sense of history. It works remarkably well as a standalone, but chances are you’ll want to jump straight into Legacy of Steel once you’ve caught your breath. Check out the review, and an interview with Matthew Ward about book two.
Something small
Doorstop books not your thing? How about something short and sweet, like a novella? Here are a couple of recommendations for fantastic quick reads that pack a lot into a short word count.
Flyaway by Kathleen Jenkins: a beautiful, atmospheric folk horror story set in sun-baked Australia, drawing on sinister folklore, the magic of nature, and the powerful contrast between the glare of the sunshine and the darkness lurking beneath the trees. It rewards a patient reader with a subtly sinister, otherworldly tale that lingers long in the memory. Check out the review.
All Systems Red by Martha Wells: introducing Murderbot, the most compelling and endearingly human android killing machine you could imagine. This is the start of their ongoing adventure, but chances are you’ll want to read the whole set of them, and follow Murderbot as it figures itself out, and tries to avoid any awkward emotions. Check out the review.
Badass SF women
If you like a bit of science fiction action complete with ass-kicking female protagonists, 2020 has actually been a pretty good year. I could have picked so many books for this category, so just for this one I’ve also included a few links to additional stories that I can heartily recommend alongside these two.
Seven Devils by Elizabeth May and Laura Lam: an action-packed, swashbuckling SF adventure, this throws together five diverse (and absolutely brilliant) female characters and forces them to work as a team to fight back against an all-powerful empire. Fun action, strong voices, and a hugely entertaining plot combine to make this a total delight. Check out the review.
Domino Strays by Tristan Palmgren: whether you’re familiar with her from the Marvel comics (or Deadpool 2) or not, this tale of mercenary Domino and her luck-based superpowers is both a total action blast and a surprisingly thought-provoking exploration of childhood trauma and the dangers of cults. That might sound like a strange combination but it really works! Check out the review, and an interview with Tristan Palmgren.
Also check out Goldilocks by Laura Lam, Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muiri, Wrath of N’Kai by Josh Reynolds, and Soulless Fury by Will McDermott.
Like your sci-fi to be grand and operatic?
Personally I love a bit of Space Opera, and if like me you enjoy this sort of expansive, character-driven, often deeply thought-provoking storytelling, I’ve got a couple of fantastic recommendations for you!
Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott: billed as ‘gender swapped Alexander the Great in space’, this is packed full of smart storytelling, compelling characters, interplanetary politics and an absolute boat-load of fantastic world building. Don’t worry if you’re not that well up on your Greek history – you’ll still enjoy this for its great (largely female) characters and breathless action. Check out the review.
A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine: to quote from my review, this is “an immersive, slow-burning space opera weaving themes of cultural identity, legacy, memory and linguistics into a tight story of courtly intrigue.” It’s bold and ambitious, balancing complexity in its world building with a compelling plot, brilliant characters and a real emotional impact. Check out the review.
A bit of fun
Sometimes all you want from a book is a bit of fun, right? These two books are packed full of entertainment and humour, while still being driven by great characters and wonderful storytelling.
Highfire by Eoin Colfer: from the author of the bestselling Artemis Fowl series comes a fantasy novel definitely not for children, with its foul-mouthed, bad tempered, vodka-swilling dragon and a restless teenage protagonist who does his best to stay on the right side of the law…but somehow can’t seem to make it stick. It’s witty, very sweary, but also surprisingly emotional – and just tremendously entertaining. Check out the review.
The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith: experience a battle between Heaven and Hell(‘s library) as librarian Claire, assistant (and former Muse) Brevity and demon Leto search for a hero who’s run away from his unwritten book. Sounds a bit crazy, but it’s fantastic fun (especially if, like me, you love a good ‘badass librarian’ story). Check out the review.
Anthologies
I love a good short story, and a really great anthology can definitely be more than the sum of its parts. Here are a couple of great examples, anthologies which take stories in unexpected directions and hit you right in the feels.
Neon Leviathan by T. R. Napper: twelve bleak tales of a cyberpunk future, set in Australia and Southeast Asia, in a world where China has become the sole superpower and memories are traded as a commodity. This is haunting, thought-provoking science fiction at its finest – fascinating, heartbreaking, troubling, and always beautifully written. Check out the review, and an interview with T.R. Napper.
From a Certain Point of View: take an iconic movie and ask 40 authors to write short stories showcasing characters, scenes and moments from that movie from different perspectives, and what you get is an anthology that breathes new life (and a surprising amount of emotion) into a story you thought you already knew pretty well. Just be warned: you will inevitably want to re-watch A New Hope at least once while (and/or after) you’re reading this! Check out the review.
Like a bit of Horror with your Science Fiction and Fantasy?
Science fiction, fantasy and horror go together remarkably well, and even if you’re maybe not quite ready for full-on horror stories, a little bit of horror can add a lot! Here are a couple of excellent novels which use horror elements to great effect.
The Reverie by Peter Fehervari: the best Warhammer Horror novel yet, this low-key, deeply thoughtful and thought-provoking story definitely leans towards the creeping dread and discomfort style of horror, with a tale of three travellers searching for their own paths on what appears at first to be an idyllic world, but holds a great many secrets. I don’t have a review for this one yet, but check out one of my interviews with Peter Fehervari.
Curse of Honor by David Annandale: a sinister tale of duty, ambition, misplaced pride and monstrous darkness, this story set in the world of Legend of the Five Rings combines a fantasy adventure in a setting inspired by feudal Japan with haunted, tragic characters and all manner of horrifying supernatural nastiness. Perfect Annandale material, really! Check out the review, and an interview with David Annandale.
Like Warhammer? Try these…
I write a lot about Black Library fiction, but there are all manner of fantasy and science fiction worlds out there which I think Warhammer fans would enjoy exploring just as much as the Imperium or the Mortal Realms. Here are a couple of great examples, from authors who will be familiar to most Black Library fans.
The Doom of Fallowhearth by Robbie MacNiven: set in the low fantasy world of Terrinoth (based on the Descent: Journeys in the Dark game), this is a sort-of dungeon crawl adventure, with an interesting take on the usual set of character archetypes. Once-famous adventurers, past their prime but reuniting for one last mission, these are really entertaining characters, and their shared history contributes to a surprisingly emotional story. Check out the review, and an interview with Robbie MacNiven.
Watchdogs Legion: Day Zero by James Swallow and Josh Reynolds: a bit more grounded and real-world than the usual Warhammer fare, this high-tech modern thriller brilliantly combines Swallow’s tight sense of plotting with Reynolds’ descriptive prose and knack for great dialogue. If you’re a fan of either of these great authors’ Warhammer fiction, this is definitely worth checking out (to be honest, it’s worth reading even if you’ve never read any of their books before)! Check out the review, and an interview with James and Josh.
Want to try Warhammer? Start here
Not everyone who reads Track of Words is going to be familiar with the worlds of Warhammer, so if you’re interested in dipping a toe into Black Library fiction but you’re not sure where to start, here are a couple of recommendations for you.
Profit’s Ruin by CL Werner: Age of Sigmar is a high fantasy setting where virtually anything is possible, so a book about skyfaring Steampunk-ish dwarfs (Duardin, technically) searching for an aerial Sargasso Sea is really just par for the course. Ok, it’s book two in a series but it works perfectly as a standalone, and is quite simply an awful lot of fun! Check out the review, and an interview with CL Werner.
Bloodlines by Chris Wraight: Warhammer 40,000, by contrast, is all about darkness, desperation and futility, and the new Warhammer Crime range is a great way of exploring those themes away from the big battlefields. Wraight’s Bloodlines is a fairly straight-up crime thriller, but it offers one of the best depictions yet of everyday life in the Imperium of Man, and would be a great place to start. Check out the review, and an interview with Chris Wraight.
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So there you go, twenty great books that would make excellent Christmas presents, whether for friends, family or yourself.
If you’re in the UK, you can buy all but one of these fantastic books via my store on Bookshop.org*, and support independent book shops while you’re doing it.
Otherwise, all of these books are available to buy on Amazon*
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