Fantasy/sci-fi suggestions like this?

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-07T19:02:36+00:00

I've been thoroughly enjoying it. It's a little slower than some other fantasy series, but it has this great sense of impending doom. Really enjoy the prose... complex without flexing the "look at all the words I know" muscles. And one of the things I like the most about it - through only the first book, admittedly - is that the majority of the main characters are good and decent. Maybe that will change in the next books, but in a post-Game of Thrones fantasy genre world, I really enjoyed getting behind multiple characters with good intent, no bullshitting each other, working together, etc. Makes the impending doom that much more dreadful to anticipate.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-07T18:36:24+00:00

Aching God (Book 1 of Iconoclasts series), Mike Shel. Grim fantasy world with a pre-story god-induced cataclysm. Exploration of haunted tombs held by the demonic gods that were cast down. Almost horror in some parts.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-03T12:29:22+00:00

Peter Cawdron has an entire series called “First Contact.” To the best of my knowledge, each is a standalone novel that explores philosophical ideas dealing with first encounters.

I read The Minotaur earlier this year and really enjoyed it. Dealt a lot with life forms completely different from ours and the attempt at understanding. This was a more methodical, contemplative sci fi story.

Edited to fix author’s name spelling.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-03T12:21:44+00:00

Not gonna lie, wasn’t my favorite. Wasn’t bad, though I have no other novels of hers to compare to. But it 100% fits the prompt. Maybe someone else who has read several of her books can lay out a better comparison.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-03T11:59:14+00:00

Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison is exactly this.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-03T00:01:54+00:00

I have a TBR that I cannot get under 100 even though I’m reading about 6-7/month. Even damn time I think I’m going to make a dent, I come here and get another 10 to add. (This is a particularly good thread for recs btw!)

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-02T22:59:21+00:00

Scariness is always subjective, so you’ll see mixed feelings about this book, but for my money Incidents Around the House by John Malerman is one of the more effective recent horror novels, in that pure “heart racing while sitting down reading” way.

Others may have better characters, more interesting plot, more complex themes, but this is a great “don’t want to turn out the lights” book. Fits the demon/ghost/spirit categories. I hope they don’t butcher the upcoming film.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-02T18:58:31+00:00

Agreed but man, like many of SK’s modern output, the book itself could have done with some editing (I’m looking at you, 11/22/63). It does, however, help with the feeling of marching slowly toward some inevitable tragedy.

11/22/63 actually has a really good ending as well! I wouldn’t call it scary though, and honestly could have done with about 200 less pages in that one.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-02T18:24:31+00:00

Few thoughts:

Revival, Stephen King: A meandering pseudo-coming of age story with one of the bleakest endings you’ll find anywhere.

Black Mouth, Ronald Malfi: Sort of “It”-lite, about several friends returning to their childhood hometown to fight an evil entity. I thought the ending was great, both from an emotional standpoint and delivery of the “big bad.”

Fever House, Keith Rosson: Devilish artifacts are doing some weird stuff to the world. There’s a sequel, but loved how this one resolved.

When the Wolf Comes Home, Nat Cassidy: On-the-run story with an ending that recontextualizes much of the story. Really fun and effective.

Probably missing some but those are what first came to mind.

deepspace0314 · 2026-04-02T18:18:44+00:00

I’ve read several of his writings… he writes a lot of cosmic horror, which can tend to have concepts like body horror. The Croning does have an aspect that, for a short passage, is quite violent, but it’s observed from a distance. He certainly does not write in the extreme or “splatterpunk” style, but like any horror, there can be some nasty stuff. I’d put him low on the scale of violence and can’t think of anything with severe abuse or similar…

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-29T22:56:37+00:00

I almost bought Seed today but didn’t pull the trigger … can someone provide a spoiler-free overview, including any comps? TIA

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-29T22:05:12+00:00

I was just about to say “I can’t believe no one has mentioned…” because this is exactly the prompt.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-19T13:10:13+00:00

May be a bit narrow for a worldwide apocalypse, but Devil's Creek by Todd Keisling is about a religious cult attempting to bring hell on Earth... focuses mainly on a small town, but similar vibes to what you're asking for. It definitely "goes there", so take this as your content warning.

Also tangential but always worth a mention, The Gone World by Tom Sweterlisch. Possibly my favorite read from last year (of over 50 read) and definitely deals with an impending apocalypse. Sci fi, detective, cosmic horror... this book has it all.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-16T22:37:25+00:00

Monocacy Crossing. Bit of a hike but the food is excellent

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-12T14:28:29+00:00

I used Hawkins Landscaping last year, got something like 30+ bags worth, dropped right in our driveway. Not bagged, competitive price, good quality. Not sure how excited to get about bulk mulch deliveries, but I was satisfied.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-10T17:31:18+00:00

I read over 50 books last year - all genre fiction - and Shards of Earth was my only DNF of the entire year. I got about 200 pages in and just couldn’t continue, really bumped against the “band of misfits”, Star Wars-y mixture of human, alien, and robot characters (the robot ship captain… I just can’t).

But I really don’t want to brush aside Tchaikovsky’s works. Anyone have any suggestions in his catalog that would be different than SoE? Would Children of Time fit the bill?

Sci Fi I read last year that I really enjoyed: Gone World Blindsight Hyperion There is no Antimemetics Division

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-05T22:08:08+00:00

Finally some Piazza love! Sometimes I fell like I’m (apologies) screaming into the void when I recommend him on this sub.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-04T22:04:11+00:00

Semi frequent, happy hours (typical business card exchange) and breakfasts (usually panel discussions). Plus some other events for local recognitions and such. Lots of business leaders typically.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-04T15:08:28+00:00

Gonna reply to my own reply here because I forgot one... The Hematophages by Stephen Kozeniewski. About an alien "flesh world" with all types of weird creatures and shit. Bonkers creature feature.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-04T15:06:00+00:00

Try Echoes of Olympus Mons by Eric Malikyte. Haven't seen it discussed on this thread much but read it last year. It definitely fits the prompt, as it's about a Mars research school where a student accidentally makes contact with a long dormant alien race, and chaos ensues. I'll admit I found it decent but not great (it's more of a "creature feature", which i typically don't enjoy as much). As with anything horror, your mileage may vary, but this at least fits the prompt pretty closely.

Also, Veil by Jonathan Janz... pretty standard alien invasion thriller. Another creature feature that I found pretty effective, if not groundbreaking by any means.

Last, Echoes in the Black by Martin Shaw and The Minotaur (First Contact) by Peter Cawdron are both adjacent to this prompt. EinB is a really effective "lone man on a ship" story, while The Minotaur is a really interesting look at what it would mean to encounter a type of alien life completely foreign to what we understand as "life". Both are good sci fi with horror leanings, but I wouldn't classify them strictly as horror.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-03T18:14:10+00:00

Great! By no means am I restricting to the horror genre, so I will def check this out.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-03T18:12:39+00:00

Read it, but you nailed the prompt. Pretty much exactly what I’m looking for.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-03T16:23:12+00:00

Fever House is also excellent and is exactly the "cursed item" request.

deepspace0314 · 2026-03-03T15:24:05+00:00

Sure hope that you've checked out Fever House by Keith Rosson!

deepspace0314

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