I really enjoyed these books, and other books by the same author, Becky Chambers. They were maybe my favorite books I’ve read in the last year. I enjoyed the focus on the society and culture they were set in, how it felt grounded in familiar material realities, even if it was very different from our society. It was also cool to see an author treat a utopian setting as the backdrop for a very zoomed in and personal story. I liked the casual inclusion of lots of queer characters, the way the author wrote about spirituality and nature, and I really liked the characters.
If it helps, I can also mention some other books I’ve read lately and enjoyed a lot.
A Memory Called Empire/A Desolation Called Peace: I really enjoyed the descriptions of Teixcalaani and Stationer culture and the ways that they were materially grounded. It was fun to have a queernormative world and so many good characters. The descriptions of the city were so beautiful, and the plot was so well woven.
The Raven Tower: I’m just getting towards the end of this book, and I’ve been very taken in by it. The sections about the various gods and the ways they interact with society might be my favorite parts.
Station Eleven: I seem to have a bit of a thing for daily life in imagined worlds, but I also really appreciated the way that it felt like an elegy for our present, and the unexpected connections across time.
Anything and everything by Ursula Le Guin, but especially The Left Hand of Darkness.
Thank you so much, I look forward to reading your recommendations. Bonus points if anything you suggest has a great trans character; it’s always nice to feel like you belong in the books you read.
by Right_Hand_of_Light