Here are 77 books that The Heart Goes Last fans have personally recommended if you like The Heart Goes Last. Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Machines Like Me

Peter McAllister Author Of The Code: If Your AI Loses Its Mind, Can It Take Meds?

From my list on where we expect AI to behave as our tool, but.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am an engineer, scientist, turned technology manager who works in the field of Artificial Intelligence, and have gotten lost in Sci-Fi since I could first read. Now I want to share the stories that keep me awake at night.

Peter's book list on where we expect AI to behave as our tool, but

Peter McAllister Why Peter loves this book

Adam is a limited edition robot who can pass for human (something I can’t do on a bad day). It takes a while for Adam to learn to be part of that world, but as time passes, he moves from being the slave of his owner Charlie to being better than him in every way (just ask his girlfriend!). I kept thinking of what would it be like to have a better version of me hanging around the house. It took slaves a long time to be recognized as people, how long for the robots?

By Ian McEwan ,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked Machines Like Me as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From the Booker Prize winner and bestselling author of Atonement—”a sharply intelligent novel of ideas” (The New York Times) that asks whether a machine can understand the human heart, or whether we are the ones who lack understanding.

Set in an uncanny alternative 1982 London—where Britain has lost the Falklands War, Margaret Thatcher battles Tony Benn for power, and Alan Turing achieves a breakthrough in artificial intelligence—Machines Like Me powerfully portrays two lovers who will be tested beyond their understanding. Charlie, drifting through life and dodging full-time employment, is in love with Miranda, a bright student who lives with a…


If you love The Heart Goes Last...

Book cover of Temple of Dreams: A Novel of Now and Then

Temple of Dreams by Carolyn Mathews,

Homeless following the death of his adoptive parents in a car crash and the subsequent loss of their farm tenancy, Seb decides to enrol as a residential student at the Asklepios Foundation, a College of Natural Medicine, boasting a sanctuary modelled on an ancient Greek healing temple. Spending a night…

Book cover of War with Russia: An Urgent Warning from Senior Military Command

Chris Wimpress Author Of Weeks in Naviras

From my list on speculative fiction that blew my mind.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was a political journalist in London for the BBC and HuffPost for many years, so thinking about our current politics, and where we are headed kind of fixates me! From the day I read 1984 as a twelve-year-old, I’ve been obsessed with how novels set in the near future or an alternate past can be intensely political, and instructive. I enjoy sci-fi, but it’s the extrapolation of our world into a similar yet different one that can tell us so much about our own society. 

Chris' book list on speculative fiction that blew my mind

Chris Wimpress Why Chris loves this book

Published in 2016, the provocative title of this novel seemed outlandish at the time, but regrettably, some of what it predicted has now come to pass. As you’d expect from a novel written by such a senior Army officer, this is a military novel delivered with technical accuracy and an eye on strategy, but also contains some interesting political elements – and how military chiefs interact with them. The politicians have often been renamed, but it’s not too hard to draw a dotted line to the real world. Owing to the author’s closeness to the events he describes, sometimes this doesn’t feel like a novel at all, more like a work of military history viewed from an unknown future, particularly when viewed through the lens of the horrors we’ve seen in Ukraine. 

By General Sir Richard Shirreff ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked War with Russia as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Sunday Times Top Ten Bestseller

'You fail to read this book at your peril' - Admiral James G Stavridis, US Navy, former Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

Closely modelled on his NATO experience of war gaming future conflicts, 2017 War With Russia is a chilling account of where we are heading if we fail to recognise the threat posed by the Russian president.

Written by the recently retired Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe and endorsed by senior military figures, this book shows how war with Russia could erupt with the bloodiest and most appalling consequences if the necessary steps are not…


Book cover of Notes from the Burning Age

Chris Wimpress Author Of Weeks in Naviras

From my list on speculative fiction that blew my mind.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was a political journalist in London for the BBC and HuffPost for many years, so thinking about our current politics, and where we are headed kind of fixates me! From the day I read 1984 as a twelve-year-old, I’ve been obsessed with how novels set in the near future or an alternate past can be intensely political, and instructive. I enjoy sci-fi, but it’s the extrapolation of our world into a similar yet different one that can tell us so much about our own society. 

Chris' book list on speculative fiction that blew my mind

Chris Wimpress Why Chris loves this book

Post-apocalyptic novels based on eco-disaster aren’t new, but Claire North goes a step further and imagines what kind of society might emerge from the ashes of our current one, should things go really wrong. Her world-building is frenetic and detailed, but never loses the reader in its creation. What I love about North’s writing is her often lyrical style and vivid descriptions, there’s plenty of that in this novel. Above all this is an oddly spiritual novel, asking what role religion might play in a world where the old gods appear to have deserted humankind. 

By Claire North ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Notes from the Burning Age as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The new federal guidelines to help employers understand how the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to employees with an emotional disorder make it imperative that occupational psychologists and front line managers identify those workers who have an emotional disorder and distinguish them from those workers who are lazy or have a bad attitude. Kantor provides vital clinical information that assists professional consultants and supervisors alike in complying with the new guidelines while distinguishing true disability from behavioral problems which call for administrative action. Avoiding stress-heavy theory and one-size-fits-all approaches to treating occupational disorders, Kantor provides a comprehensive view of factors…


If you love Margaret Atwood...

Book cover of We Have Always Been Here

We Have Always Been Here by Lena Nguyen,

Misanthropic psychologist Dr. Grace Park is placed on the Deucalion, a survey ship headed to an icy planet in an unexplored galaxy. Her purpose is to observe the thirteen human crew members aboard the ship—all specialists in their own fields—as they assess the colonization potential of the planet, Eos. But…

Book cover of The History of Bees

Chris Wimpress Author Of Weeks in Naviras

From my list on speculative fiction that blew my mind.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was a political journalist in London for the BBC and HuffPost for many years, so thinking about our current politics, and where we are headed kind of fixates me! From the day I read 1984 as a twelve-year-old, I’ve been obsessed with how novels set in the near future or an alternate past can be intensely political, and instructive. I enjoy sci-fi, but it’s the extrapolation of our world into a similar yet different one that can tell us so much about our own society. 

Chris' book list on speculative fiction that blew my mind

Chris Wimpress Why Chris loves this book

I’m personally fascinated by bees (there are a few of them that turn up in my own book), so a speculative novel where they play a starring role was always going to be a must-read for me. Lunde’s novel spans 150 years and reminds us that for all our ingenuity and invention, humans are nowhere near as smart as the natural world, and we mess about with it at our peril. For bee aficionados, there’s a great deal of knowledge in these pages. There’s also thoughtful, reasoned speculation about what the 21st Century will mean for China’s place in the world, and a seamless interweaving of narratives. It’s an often sad novel that reminds us that we’re not as powerful as we think we are. 

By Maja Lunde ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The History of Bees as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“Imagine The Leftovers, but with honey” (Elle), and in the spirit of Station Eleven and Never Let Me Go, this “spectacular and deeply moving” (Lisa See, New York Times bestselling author) novel follows three generations of beekeepers from the past, present, and future, weaving a spellbinding story of their relationship to the bees—and to their children and one another—against the backdrop of an urgent, global crisis.

England, 1852. William is a biologist and seed merchant, who sets out to build a new type of beehive—one that will give both him and his children honor and fame.

United States, 2007. George…


Book cover of Fortune's Pawn

Maud Woolf Author Of Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock

From my list on science fiction novels about deadly women.

Why am I passionate about this?

Writing science fiction was the natural result of a lifetime of reading it for pleasure and studying whenever I could as part of my English Lit course at University. When I started writing, it was really important to me as a woman (especially a gay woman) to write female characters that weren’t just strong and likable; I wanted them to be interesting, unpalatable, and tough. Above all, not easy to dismiss. All of the women in the books I’ve listed fulfill at least some of these categories, which is the core of why these novels hold such a special place in my heart. 

Maud's book list on science fiction novels about deadly women

Maud Woolf Why Maud loves this book

This was a book that really surprised me. A very no-nonsense macho family member recommended it to me on a holiday, and I remember raising my eyebrows reading the back cover and finding out it heavily featured an interspecies romance.

The minute I started reading, I got so wrapped up in the adrenaline and action that I actually went on to recommend it to my sci-fi-loving dad, who read it in a day and went on to borrow the rest of the series. The heroine, a power armor-wearing mercenary, is incredibly competent and badass but avoids falling into either Mary Sue or Damsel in Distress territory as the plot proceeds.

Additionally, while I kept going for the action-romance, the worldbuilding was surprisingly interesting and in-depth. Whenever I’m reluctantly charmed by something, I find it hard not to gush about it; it’s just such a fun experience as a reader to…

By Rachel Bach ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Fortune's Pawn as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A promising young mercenary's future gets thrown into jeopardy after a fateful encounter with an alien in the start to a propulsive space opera series perfect for fans of Firefly and Killjoys.

"Devi is hands-down one of the best sci-fi heroines I've read in a long time." RT Book Reviews
Devi Morris isn't your average mercenary. She has plans. Big ones. And a ton of ambition. It's a combination that's going to get her killed one day -- but not just yet.

That is, until she just gets a job on a tiny trade ship with a nasty reputation for…


Book cover of The Raft

Dave-Brendon de Burgh Author Of Betrayal's Shadow

From my list on speculative fiction by South African authors.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was a bookseller specializing in SFF for around 13 years, during which I wrote two novels and many short stories, and I ran a review blog for many years. My love of SFF and Horror began when I was around nine years old, at which time I read Pet Sematary, which opened up the world of ‘grown-up’ books for me. I’m proud to say that I read more speculative fiction than anything else, and I love discovering new voices and visions in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror.  

Dave-Brendon's book list on speculative fiction by South African authors

Dave-Brendon de Burgh Why Dave-Brendon loves this book

While this book is more literary than plot- or character-driven, it deals with the loss of memory and self, and the struggles to reclaim those parts of oneself. It reads like a dream, or a series of dreams – as the reader you’re not entirely sure what is important and what isn’t, but the beautiful prose and interesting situations keep things going.

By Fred Strydom ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Raft as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"The day every person on earth lost his and her memory was not a day at all. In people's minds there was no actual event. . . and thus it could be followed by no period of shock or mourning. There could be no catharsis. Everyone was simply reset to zero."

On Day Zero, the collapse of civilization was as instantaneous as it was inevitable. A mysterious and oppressive movement rose to power in the aftermath, forcing people into isolated communes run like regimes. Kayle Jenner finds himself trapped on a remote beach, and all that remains of his life…


If you love The Heart Goes Last...

Book cover of The Diamondbacks

The Diamondbacks by Sandra K. Barnidge,

In River City, loyalty is everything—and nothing defines it more than warcheck, the elegantly violent game that unites the town.

Terra Laclem, daughter of a retired warcheck legend, is raised to honor family, faith, and tradition. But when her father betrays the ideals he’s always preached, Terra is forced to…

Book cover of Saturn Run

Trevor Williams Author Of Eternal Shadow

From my list on first contact sci-fi but with a twist.

Why am I passionate about this?

My parents always encouraged me to explore the world and express myself. I also grew up in a home where the bookshelves were lined with Stephen King novels, encyclopedias, and VHS tapes containing episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation. So it came as little surprise that my interests in astronomy, orbital mechanics, and fantastical technology concepts (who doesn't like the idea of a ringworld?) dominated my life. I also love history and the drive for exploring the endless possibilities behind the question "what if." Science fiction is, at its core, about exploring the human condition—this is where you’ll find my writing and the adventures I bring to you.

Trevor's book list on first contact sci-fi but with a twist

Trevor Williams Why Trevor loves this book

In the mid-21st century, an alien craft appears just beyond the orbit of Saturn and approaches the planet quickly before coming to a halt within its rings... and departs as fast as it arrived. The event shocks the world into a space race not unlike the Soviets and Americans fighting to be the first to put a man on the moon. As a hard science fiction novel, Saturn Run was an incredible read—an absolute joy. I personally loved every little detail provided of the space-station-turned-spacecraft, from the methods by which heat was radiated away from the ship to how it was designed for a multi-month excursion. Overall, I really enjoyed the story and would highly recommend it if you are a stickler for the kind of technical details that hard sci-fi novels should have.

By John Sandford , Ctein ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Saturn Run as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“Fans of Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers will eat this up.” --Stephen King

For fans of THE MARTIAN, an extraordinary new thriller of the future from #1 New York Times–bestselling and Pulitzer Prize–winning author John Sandford and internationally known photo-artist and science fiction aficionado Ctein. 
 
Over the course of thirty-seven books, John Sandford has proven time and again his unmatchable talents for electrifying plots, rich characters, sly wit, and razor-sharp dialogue. Now, in collaboration with Ctein, he proves it all once more, in a stunning new thriller, a story as audacious as it is deeply satisfying.
 
The year is 2066.…


Book cover of Think of a Number

Sarah Ogilvie Author Of 101: A maths story that will tickle your ribs and blow your mind!

From my list on help you to fall in love with maths.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a former primary teacher, now a gardener and more recently an author of children’s books–maths features heavily in my writing! My love of maths began when I started teaching it and really took off when I explored maths alongside the concept of Growth Mindsets. Through much study I found that the majority of children can access a good level of maths by adopting a Growth Mindset. Maths is a fascinating subject area, full of beauty and patterns, complexity and wonder; hopefully, over the years, I have inspired at least a few children to feel the same.

Sarah's book list on help you to fall in love with maths

Sarah Ogilvie Why Sarah loves this book

I love this book for the same reason that I loved the 1970s TV series of the same name: Johnny Ball loves maths, and his infectious enthusiasm for the subject is enough to make the most reluctant mathematician raise a smile. 

This book delves into the history of maths and ancient peoples from all over the world. It shows how ridiculously complicated our daily lives would be without some way of counting and generally shows maths to be magical, fascinating, and sometimes funny!

By Johnny Ball ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Think of a Number as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 7, 8, 9, and 10.

What is this book about?

Maths isn't just about sums and calculations, number can take you anywhere. With Think of a Number you'll explore a fantastic world of wonder that is full of surprises. Join Johnny Ball on a dazzling adventure to infinity and beyond -crack codes, unravel mazes and discover why finding a prime number could make you a millionaire. Test your friends with magic tricks and mind-reading techniques and find out about the simple puzzles that stumped the world's brainiest mathematicians for centuries. Think maths is boring? Think again!


Book cover of Adventurous Love

Andrea Hintz Author Of Perception and Deception

From my list on when you need mystery and adventure in your life.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an author of spy and treasure-hunting books! As a Christian, I’m always looking for mysteries and adventures of all kinds that leave my heart pounding, but the story itself contains high morals and justice. I love a dash of mystery, a cup of comedy, a sprinkle of romance, and a dollop of drama. These are some of my favorite picks. They’re all incredibly different too, so if you like variety, this is the list to be visiting. The order was automatically randomized—they’re all fantastic! The authors all have true hearts of gold, so definitely go out and support their amazing work today! God bless! 

Andrea's book list on when you need mystery and adventure in your life

Andrea Hintz Why Andrea loves this book

This is a book I would recommend because it's filled with love and hope. I'm a real fan of books that make you feel good by describing great relationships of all kinds. I especially enjoyed the relationship between the two sisters. The story truly teaches about great romance. When a person is having a bad day, this book will suck you in and leave you with a feeling of happiness. 

By Jacquelyn Wiles ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Adventurous Love as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Have you ever met your match? Found the one who changed everything? This love was burning from the start. Every book sold half the proceeds will be donated to charity.


If you love Margaret Atwood...

Book cover of Terra Blanca - Insurrection: Gaia Prequel

Terra Blanca - Insurrection by Zoë Routh,

A test of leadership, loyalty, and legacy. Rylie Addison faces the greatest leadership challenge of her life. As climate change ravages the world, leaving millions displaced, Rylie is handpicked by the enigmatic Maja Garcia of Gaia Enterprises to govern Terra Blanca, an unprecedented man-made island community for climate refugees.

As…

Book cover of Uprooted

Beth Ball Author Of Phoenix Rising

From my list on adult fairy tales that sweep you into a magical world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have always adored fairy tales, most particularly rewritings of fairy tales where the heroines seize a destiny all their own. But beyond feminine agency, I want a story that sweeps me away in every respect: lose me in a forest, turn my head with magic, let me stand and face my inner darkness, and, perhaps most importantly, entrance me with gorgeous language—it has to feel like a fairy tale. As fate would have it, these particular proclivities led me to write fantasy novels in my own right! You won’t find princesses, but you will find magic libraries and stories that dwell on the power of stories themselves!

Beth's book list on adult fairy tales that sweep you into a magical world

Beth Ball Why Beth loves this book

Where can I even begin with the magic and immersion of Naomi Novik’s Uprooted?

Saying an unlikely heroine with an affinity for the forest meets an aloof, powerful wizard thus starting her quest to uncover the potential of her own magic barely scratches the surface of the enchanting world Novik creates. The allure and power of the dark forest that runs tangled roots beneath the story’s unspooling narrative is an unmissable experience.

And Novik’s uniquely beautiful language is perfectly matched by the magic of the fairy tale world itself and the weaving of the spells therein! 

By Naomi Novik ,

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked Uprooted as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A dark enchantment blights the land in the award-winning Uprooted - a enthralling fantasy inspired by fairy tales, by Naomi Novik, author of the Temeraire series.

Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel
Winner of the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel
Winner of the British Fantasy Society Award for Best Novel

Agnieszka loves her village, set deep in a peaceful valley. But the nearby enchanted forest casts a shadow over her home. Many have been lost to the Wood and none return unchanged. The villagers depend on an ageless wizard, the Dragon, to protect them from the forest's…


Book cover of Machines Like Me
Book cover of War with Russia: An Urgent Warning from Senior Military Command
Book cover of Notes from the Burning Age

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