What is a Charming Sci-Fi novel?
Featured book: Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers
Welcome to Sleuth Hero Alien! In these weekly posts I share:
What’s making my reading life enjoyable this week
Deep dive topics on cozy mysteries, cozy fantasies, and charming sci-fi
A cozy book recommendation
What’s making my reading life enjoyable this week
After a couple weeks of not landing on a book I was in the mood for, I’m finally hooked. The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman is an Arthurian retelling which has me excited to read every day. I was hesitant to pick this one up, because I wasn’t a fan of his series, The Magicians. This new story, however, is fun, charming, and adventurous. I can’t put it down.
*Note: this one is not a cozy. Although it has mostly charming vibes, there are also some violent scenes that might be disturbing for readers. Check the content warnings on Story Graph.
What is a charming sci-fi novel?
When I originally conceived of Sleuth Hero Alien, I knew I wanted to write about cozy mysteries and cozy fantasies. These are my favorite kinds of books, and I have so much to say about them!
But as I dreamed and schemed about this blog, other books kept popping into my head. Like Becky Chambers’ amazing sci-fi Monk & Robot duology and Claudia Gray’s compelling Star Wars novel, Bloodline. I knew I wanted to talk about these books, too! So, I decided to include sci-fi on the list of books I would discuss here.
What I didn’t know was how to describe the kind of sci-fi novels I love. They aren’t exactly cozy, because they don’t always have the cozy vibe with small towns, soft fabrics, and tea. But they always leave me with a good, optimistic feeling.
I went down the thesaurus rabbit hole, and eventually I landed on the word I was looking for: charming.
One of the best examples of a charming sci-fi is The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. In this story, we follow a cast of mostly love-able characters as they travel to a distant part of the galaxy to do a job.
Along the way, they have both low and high stakes adventures, while dealing with technological, societal, and relational issues. This story will bring you to alien ports, distant outposts, and into the heart of communal living.
And that’s a charming sci-fi.
It’s a story set in a world that is different from our real world, but the differences come from science & technology instead of magic.
There are love-able, often charming characters who you root for along the way.
There will be problems to solve and adventures to go on, but there won’t be graphic descriptions of horrible things.
There is a foundation of optimism. As opposed to dystopian fiction, charming sci-fi is set in a world moving towards a brighter future.
Here are a few I love:
The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis. Francie definitely does not believe in aliens, until she’s abducted by one in Roswell, NM. And then she’s taken on a bonkers road trip around the desert. I was charmed by fast-paced silliness, found-family vibes, RVs, weddings, and adorable aliens.
Star Wars: Lost Stars by Claudia Gray. In this story, we follow two young imperial officers as they experience the highlights of Star Wars movies IV, V, and VI (the ones with young Mark Hamill). The characters eventually go their separate ways, and there are discussions about life, love, and fighting fascism. Though things get hard sometimes in this story, I was charmed by the long term friendship and behind-the-scenes view of these much loved movies.
The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older. It’s the distant future, and Jupiter has been colonized by humanity. For the setting, imagine a sci-fi version of 1800’s London, with fog, tea, and scones. The story is a Holmesian mystery, where we follow a detective and her ex-girlfriend as they solve a murder. I was charmed by the moody vibes, quiet romance, and interesting technology.
The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz. It’s 50,000 years from now, and Destry works on Sask-E, a planet in the middle of being terraformed. Everything is going as planned, until a secret is discovered she can’t ignore. This story tends towards harder ecological sci-fi, but it made it on the list because of the love-able characters and optimistic view of long-term activism. I was charmed by the talking moose, sentient train, and underground communities.
Have a charming sci-fi recommendation? Let us know in the comments!
Cozy book recommendation: Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers
During the Pandemic, Becky Chambers released this quiet, beautiful novella. It’s about a monk on a distant planet, who realizes they’re done with their vocation, so they decide to leave the city to become a tea monk. Through a series of decisions and serendipities, the monk eventually encounters a robot in the wild, and the real adventure begins.
I love how this novel is set in a world with a culture who has thought through their impact on each other and the planet. And even in this seeming utopia, there is still so much to discuss about who we are, what we’re doing here, and what we need.
If you read this one, you can expect to be charmed by:
A long walk in nature
Philosophical discussions about life
Tea
Hi! I’m Emma Veritas. I’m a voracious reader and writer. As a reader, I enjoy all things cozy. I love dropping into the world of a small town with love-able characters, plus murder or dragons or aliens! As a writer, I share my reflections on the reading life at Sleuth Hero Alien, and I share my reflections on the writing life at enchantedwriting.com. When I’m not blogging, you can find me playing with writing fiction in my notebooks, hanging out with my pet bunny, and drinking lots of hot chocolate.