My husband reads ALL THE TIME. He loves it. It’s his number one past time and helps him relax. So, of course, I never know what to get him. I’d love to get him something unique that he hasn’t read yet, or something special that is maybe hard to find if anyone has any suggestions? Some of his favorites are Dune, Wheel of Time, Ian Banks novels, Confederacy of Dunces, fantasy, sci-fi, philosophy.
by sweatyskellington
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The Broken Earth trilogy by N.K Jemisin
Oh, I’ve got this! The Camulod Chronicles by Jack Whyte! It’s Arthurian legend, Roman historical fiction, but real-life based, not fantasy. The first book is The Skystone.
The Sot-Weed Factor by John Barth
Bubblegum by Adam Levin
Rather than a book itself, maybe a gift card to a specialty shop like Subterranean Press?
Randal Graham, Beforelife. It’s got an interesting mix of philosophy/ ethics, fantasy, and historical and classical references. I don’t think it ever picked up a big audience so your husband likely missed it. It’s a funny and fun read but has decent heft.
Can pair it with Ada Palmer, Too Like the Lightning for a substantially less optimistic somewhat thematically aligned take.
Xenogenesis series by Octavia Butler. Some of the greatest Sci-Fi I’ve ever read.
He has not read *The Anubis Gates* by Tim Powers and he will like it. As a companion book, if he hasn’t read it, get him *VALIS* by Philip K. Dick. The character David in that book is based on Tim Powers.
Do you have a way of finding out whether he’s read something without spoiling the surprise? I’m betting he’d like *The Lathe of Heaven*, *The Left Hand of Darkness*, and *The Dispossessed* by Ursula K. Le Guin. But it wouldn’t surprise me to find he has already read them.
*The Dueling Machine* by Ben Bova was a favorite of mine when I was 15. Still good cheesy fun for an adult.
*A Canticle for Leibowitz* by Walter M. Miller is another classic that might have slipped by him.
Also try him on *The Name of the Rose* by Umberto Eco. It’s set in a medieval monastery, so no SF, but the philosophy is fascinating. *Foucault’s Pendulum* by the same author is definitely worth it if he likes that one.
Stanislaw Lem combines SF and philosophy in an intriguing way as well. *His Master’s Voice* is a dense, slow read. But it’s not terribly long, so even if you only do a few pages at a time, you feel like you’re making progress. *Solaris* by the same author is also well-regarded, but I haven’t read it.
And speaking of books I haven’t read, *A Voyage to Arcturus* by David Lindsay is also well-regarded. I’m told it combines elements of fantasy, SF, and philosophy.
How about a Suntup edition of one of his favorite books?
[https://suntup.press/](https://suntup.press/)
The Vorkosigan Saga Lois McMaster Bujold,
The Wandering Inn Pirate Aba
Michelle Sagara West Chronicles of Elantra,
Chris Evans Iron Elves,
Elizabeth Moon Paksenarrion Series,
Anne Bishop Tir Alainn series, & Others series,
Jane Lindskold Firekeeper series,
Barb Hendee Noble Dead series,
C.S. Friedman The Coldfire Trilogy,
PC Hodgell Kencyrath series,
Lynn Flewelling Tamir Triad,
The Sharing Knife Lois McMaster Bujold
Jim Butcher Codex Alera series,
A rare or early edition of a favorite book is always nice. Or a book-related gift, like a T-shirt or mug with a quote or book cover on it.
Dungeon crawler carl
Riyria Revelations by Michael Sullivan.