Book picks similar to
Countdown by Michael Atamanov
litrpg
science-fiction
sci-fi
fantasy
Force Cultivation
Yuri Ajin - 2021
He was young, handsome, and rich. Recognized world champions were no match for him. He had her, the love of his life...He lived for her and for battle...However, in a moment, it was all gone.He lost his life and his name. His dreams were taken away from him. The one he had been in love with since childhood had betrayed him and plunged a knife into his heart...In another world, very different and distant, a boy lying in a muddy ditch suddenly opens his eyes. A new life has been awakened in his empty body.What will he do with an offer for a second chance at life?What path will Kai follow in a world where power and skill reign supreme?In a world where your worth is determined by your martial arts.Rebirth. Ascension. Revenge.As one of the hit novels of the new wave of Russian LitRPG novels, Heavenly Throne follows one of the greatest underground fighters of the 2010s, who has found himself in a world much different than his own. He had thought that he had nothing more to lose, but fate is a fickle and cruel mistress.Now, he must fight for his place in this new world as he advances on the path of martial arts and force cultivation.The winner of the Russian National Wuxia Contest, Heavenly Throne provides readers with a refreshing take on cultivation stories.
Mutineer
Mike Shepherd - 2004
Her father is the Prime Minister of her home planet. Her mother the consummate politician's wife. She's been raised only to be beautiful and marry well. But the heritage of the military Longknifes courses through Kris's blood-and, against her parents' objections, she enlists in the marines.
The Incarnator
Roman Prokofiev - 2020
The eruptions of hostile energy from behind the Edge distorted the laws of the physical world, creating new life forms which now threaten to take over the planet. The last remaining vestiges of humankind, too desperate for their own survival, have nothing to offer against their advance.So it’s time to activate Incarnation: the last instruction issued by Project Stellar. In a situation when there’re not enough living beings to protect planet Earth, the dead fighters will have to rejoin the defenders’ ranks.
Seveneves
Neal Stephenson - 2015
In a feverish race against the inevitable, nations around the globe band together to devise an ambitious plan to ensure the survival of humanity far beyond our atmosphere, in outer space.But the complexities and unpredictability of human nature coupled with unforeseen challenges and dangers threaten the intrepid pioneers, until only a handful of survivors remain . . .Five thousand years later, their progeny—seven distinct races now three billion strong—embark on yet another audacious journey into the unknown . . . to an alien world utterly transformed by cataclysm and time: Earth.A writer of dazzling genius and imaginative vision, Neal Stephenson combines science, philosophy, technology, psychology, and literature in a magnificent work of speculative fiction that offers a portrait of a future that is both extraordinary and eerily recognizable. As he did in Anathem, Cryptonomicon, the Baroque Cycle, and Reamde, Stephenson explores some of our biggest ideas and perplexing challenges in a breathtaking saga that is daring, engrossing, and altogether brilliant.
Dark Horse
Michelle Diener - 2015
Sazo's an artificial intelligence. He's saved her from captivity and torture, but he's also put her in the middle of a conflict, leaving Rose with her loyalties divided.Captain Dav Jallan doesn't know why he and his crew have stumbled across an almost legendary Class 5 battleship, but he's not going to complain. The only problem is, all its crew are dead, all except for one strange, new alien being.She calls herself Rose. She seems small and harmless, but less and less about her story is adding up, and Dav has a bad feeling his crew, and maybe even the four planets, are in jeopardy. The Class 5's owners, the Tecran, look set to start a war to get it back and Dav suspects Rose isn't the only alien being who survived what happened on the Class 5. And whatever else is out there is playing its own games.In this race for the truth, he's going to have to go against his leaders and trust the dark horse.Winner of a SFR Galaxy Award 2016 and the Prism Award 2016 for Best Futuristic.
The Legacy Builder
Ember Lane - 2018
Barakdor, a world sliding helplessly to war. Lincoln wanted to be a warrior, a rogue or a mage, but he'd made a promise to himself, so he chose builder. He wasn’t supposed to play the game on his own, but now he wanted to build a legacy for Joan, a sanctuary in a virtual world. It was supposed to be a place where folk could come to get away from the terrors that the land held, a utopia he would create with his bare hands. It was supposed to be Joan’s legacy. But as the growling thunderheads of war gather, he begins to think it might be a last refuge. He begins to think it might be the land’s only hope. Fantasy collides with LitRPG in this first novel from The Land of Barakdor. Scroll up and get your copy.
Ancillary Justice
Ann Leckie - 2013
On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest.Once, she was the Justice of Toren - a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy.Now, an act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with one fragile human body, unanswered questions, and a burning desire for vengeance.
Consider Phlebas
Iain M. Banks - 1987
Billions had died, billions more were doomed. Moons, planets, the very stars themselves, faced destruction, cold-blooded, brutal, and worse, random. The Idirans fought for their Faith; the Culture for its moral right to exist. Principles were at stake. There could be no surrender.Within the cosmic conflict, an individual crusade. Deep within a fabled labyrinth on a barren world, a Planet of the Dead proscribed to mortals, lay a fugitive Mind. Both the Culture and the Idirans sought it. It was the fate of Horza, the Changer, and his motley crew of unpredictable mercenaries, human and machine, actually to find it, and with it their own destruction.
Guild Master
Ivan Kal - 2018
Morgan used to be a pretty normal guy. He went to college by day and played online games by night, leading his guild into new conquests—until he got hit by a car, and a dude wearing a wetsuit appeared in front of him. The man offered him a new chance at life in a world that he had created, a world with similar rules to the games that Morgan loved to play. There is the promise of great rewards and power, he says, if Morgan manages to complete the Tower of Power. Stupid name, I know. Morgan didn’t usually trust strangers who seem to have god complexes, but he was in a pinch. There’s a crazy-looking dude saying that he is technically not a god on one end of the tunnel, and a blinding light on the other end—and he was really not digging the light. So he accepted the offer from the surfer god-not-god. Getting dropped into a strange new world with no idea what the rules are was not something that Morgan was a fan of; and in this strange world, it seems like everything is out to eat his face. It was a good thing, then, that he stumbled onto two half-elf twins willing to help him get the hang of this strange new world. Now, all he needs to do is survive long enough to reach this Tower. WARNING: This book contains RPG mechanics and tables, profanity, and a main character who thinks that he is funny.
11/22/63
Stephen King - 2011
What if you could change it back? Stephen King’s heart-stoppingly dramatic new novel is about a man who travels back in time to prevent the JFK assassination—a thousand page tour de force. Following his massively successful novel Under the Dome, King sweeps readers back in time to another moment—a real life moment—when everything went wrong: the JFK assassination. And he introduces readers to a character who has the power to change the course of history.Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. He receives an essay from one of the students—a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk. Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. He enlists Jake on an insane—and insanely possible—mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination.So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson and his new world of Elvis and JFK, of big American cars and sock hops, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake’s life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time.
Revelation Space
Alastair Reynolds - 2000
Now one scientist, Dan Sylveste, will stop at nothing to solve the Amarantin riddle before ancient history repeats itself. With no other resources at his disposal, Sylveste forges a dangerous alliance with the cyborg crew of the starship Nostalgia for Infinity. But as he closes in on the secret, a killer closes in on him. Because the Amarantin were destroyed for a reason — and if that reason is uncovered, the universe—and reality itself — could be irrecoverably altered….
CivCEO
Andrew Karevik - 2019
The days of running his financial empire have finally come to an end. All because of a stupid heart attack. Now what is there for him to do but to curl up in a corner and die? While Charles is attending a fundraiser, however, something happens and he’s transported into a strange medieval world where magic is real and legendary heroes coexist with mythical monsters. As it turns out, he’s been snatched by a goddess who was in need of a Champion to grow her village. But the goddess made a mistake. He wasn’t the one she was targeting with her spell. Long story short, she departs without even a word of excuse, leaving Charles stuck with no means of going back home. Not one to feel sorry for himself, Charles embraces this new opportunity, especially since the goddess’ magic returned him to his prime during the transfer. On his way, Charles meets the inhabitants of Tine, a modest village that’s been awaiting a sign from the gods for centuries. And after discussing the situation with the Mayor, he decides to help them out by assuming the role of their Champion. Relying on a lifetime of business expertise and the Topsight—an ability that allows him to see and manage the entire village from above—he will have to start back from the bottom and find how to bring this measly Level 1 village to prosperity. One thing is for certain, it will be a long road. As Charles starts looking for any opportunity to generate gold, the problems begin to pile up. Soon, Charles not only has to deal with bandits and other rulers looking to make a profit out of him, he also has to face internal crises that threaten to escalate into a full-blown uprising. Because, as he’ll quickly learn, the Mayor had somehow "forgotten" to tell the villagers of their deal, and now they’re mad at him for usurping the position of Champion without the approval of the gods. And so, they give him an ultimatum: he has one month to prove himself and improve Tine, otherwise it’s the hangman’s noose. Follow Charles as he takes on the challenge of a lifetime. Follow him as he builds roads and shops, hires heroes, develops alliances with neighboring villages…but also fights terrible foes while struggling to maintain the Happiness and Satisfaction levels of his village in the positives.
A Virtual Dream
Brent Roth - 2015
He dreamed of a life where maintaining his health was no longer a daily struggle, and then when he had lost all hope, he had discovered a new virtual reality game on the horizon. A VR-MMORPG that offered him everything he lacked in real life, everything that had eluded him. A world where he could find adventure, companionship, and success all wrapped up in the singular package of The Dragon's Wrath. The game offered him a chance, a chance for salvation… a glimmer of hope. It was better than a dream, it was a virtual dream.
Towers of Heaven
Cameron Milan - 2019
Each one stands hundreds of stories tall, and are invulnerable to all attacks. At the base of each tower is a portal, welcoming in all who dare enter it. All sorts of magical monsters can be found inside the towers. Even treasure, magic and superhuman strength can be acquired. The problem is that the towers aren't a friendly place. Even worse, the towers sometimes release waves of monsters to attack Earth. In the year 2083, there are only a hundred survivors. In one last attempt, they challenge the final floor without regard for their lives. By some miracle, they manage to beat the floor at the cost of their lives, leaving only one survivor. As a reward for clearing the tower, he is granted one wish. He decides to go back in time to before the towers arrived. His goal is simple: prevent humanity from being wiped out.
The Last Watch
J.S. Dewes - 2021
The Last Watch, where a handful of soldiers stand between humanity and annihilation.The Divide.It’s the edge of the universe.Now it’s collapsing—and taking everyone and everything with it.The only ones who can stop it are the Sentinels—the recruits, exiles, and court-martialed dregs of the military.At the Divide, Adequin Rake, commanding the Argus, has no resources, no comms—nothing, except for the soldiers that no one wanted.They're humanity's only chance.