I’ve seen this asked a lot but it’s always asked as “with little or none”. I want none. I hate it. I don’t like it. It makes every character get stupid, or justifies them acting stupid, or creates boxes for the characters that they have to be in.
I’ve been suggested The Black Magician, and like a lot of books, I find it actually does have romance. The male characters entire motivation is him pining for the female character, often at length. I don’t even want it to be a background element.
I enjoy all kinds of books, though books with elements of sci-fi or paranormal things are my preference. I loved Annihilation (did not love the sequels), and Yukikaze. There was also a Squirrel Girl novel recently that I loved. I really prefer when a book has a main character who’s a good person.
I will accept non fiction under the same circumstances too. I recently read Rabid: A Cultural History of the World’s Most Diabolical Virus, and it was pretty decent.
I tend to be put off by books with a lot of sexism, or bigotry in general. Especially if it’s on the part of the author.
A final note: I do not like Discworld (of which several have romance anyways). I’ve also read Malazan, and The Black Company, and Mistborn (which also has romance). These are some of the books I tend to see come up the most so I wanted to get them out of the way.
If you know any titles I’ll be greatly appreciative. I read manga and comics too, so I’m happy for those suggestions as well I guess. (Super Sad that Witch Hat Atelier introduced a romance but nothing’s perfect, I guess.)
by RiskItForTheBriskit
12 Comments
Martha Wells’ *Murderbot Diaries* series of sci-fi novellas checks your boxes. It follows a cyborg that hires out to protect humans at the edge of the galaxy.
The first one is **All Systems Red**
Try Piranesi. Sort of fantasy sort of sci-fi about a guy living in a giant stone building in an alternate reality with no knowledge of who he is or how he got there. There’s no romance in the book at all. I just read it over the weekend. I don’t even like fantasy or sci-fi but I ate that shit up.
I don’t recall Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton having any romance in it.
It’s not sci-fi or fantasy, but Run by Ann Patchett is absolutely gorgeous and has no romance at all.
The Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie. Sentient ships longing for crew and officers and loving their officers who treat the ships well is part of the plot, but it’s not at all romantic love or romance.
“A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking” by T Kingfisher is fun fantasy aimed at younger people without romance. Also some of T Kingfisher’s speculative horror like “The Hollow Places”, “The Twisted Ones”, and “What Moves the Dead” doesn’t feature any romance. Might be more your speed if you like speculative horror like Annihilation.
“Psalm for the Wild Built” by Becky Chambers, solarpunk novella with no romance. In the second book in this series one of the main characters has a one night stand but there’s still no romance.
The Dreamhealers Series by MCA Hogarth is focused on the relationship between the main characters, but it’s a committed platonic relationship. Not sure if it’s for your or not, it’s very domestic sci fi, but if you want to see a twist with a focus on friendship as the main focus then maybe it’s for you. It takes place in an anthro sci fi universe. The author’s other books are romance so you’ll want to avoid them.
Maldoror by The Count of Lautrimont
The Hearing Trumpet by Leonora Carringotn
The Wall by Marlen Haushofer
Humankind: A Hopeful History by Rutger Bregman (non-fiction)
Project Hail Mary. Good Sci-fi. Interesting plot. No romance.
The Spaceship Next Door by Gene Doucette
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
The Martian by Andy Weir
Roadside Picnic by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
The Body Scout by Lincoln Michel
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Fifteen Dogs by Andre Alexis
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Foundation by Isaac Asimov
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You could also try Agatha Christie’s mystery novels. Her two main detectives, Herule Poirot and Miss Marple don’t have romantic interests. While the secondary characters have romantic relationships they don’t have narrative weight beyond being points of connection between two characters just as any other type of relationship does.
If you’re ever in the mood to read a book where the romance plot is intentionally causing negative drama and angst, I recommend Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte or Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. They’re often miscategorized as romances when they are gothic thrillers.
*The Steerswoman* by Rosemary Kirstein. One of the very best female friendships in SFF.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is the first book that came to mind. There is 0 romance in that book. Just a ton of seamen.
Enders Game. It’s the least problematic book by that Author in part because there’s no romance in it.