Recommendations based on The System of the Worldby Neal Stephenson

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Confusion

    by Neal Stephenson
    An epic tale of navigating a political and economic crisis in an alternate version of 18th century Europe.

    Though the first publication of the Series in three volumes combined the two novels Bonanza and The Juncto , here the plots will be dealt with as separate entities, true to the author's original ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Quicksilver

    by Neal Stephenson
    Epic fantasy adventure set in a world of magic, politics and alchemy.

    The first book is a series of flashbacks from 1713 to the earlier life of Daniel Waterhouse. It begins as Enoch Root arrives in Boston in October 1713 to deliver a letter to Daniel containing a ... (Wikipedia)

  3. Cryptonomicon

    by Neal Stephenson
    A thrilling journey through the past and present, combining tech, history and adventure.

    The action takes place in two periods—World War II and the late 1990s, during the Internet boom and Asian financial crisis . In 1942, Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse, a young United States Navy code ... (Wikipedia)

  4. Neuromancer

    by William Gibson
    A hacker's journey through a dystopian cyberpunk world, searching for a way to survive.

    Henry Dorsett Case is a low-level hustler in the dystopian underworld of Chiba City , Japan. Once a talented computer hacker , Case was caught stealing from his employer. As punishment for his theft, ... (Wikipedia)

  5. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

    by Susanna Clarke
    A whimsical tale of two magicians mastering the mysteries of English magic.

    The novel opens in 1806 in northern England with The Learned Society of York Magicians, whose members are "theoretical magicians" who believe that magic died out several hundred years earlier. The ... (Wikipedia)

  6. All Tomorrow's Parties

    by William Gibson
    A journey through a dystopian future, exploring themes of technology and identity.

    The book has three separate but overlapping stories, with the repeated appearance of shared characters. The San Francisco/Oakland Bay Bridge, the overarching setting of the trilogy, functions as a ... (Wikipedia)

  7. Idoru

    by William Gibson
    A thrilling cyberpunk adventure of a man searching for a mysterious virtual celebrity.

    In the post Tokyo/San Francisco earthquake world of the early 21st century, Colin Laney is referred to agents of mega-rock star Rez (of the musical group Lo/Rez) for a job using his peculiar talent ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Red Mars

    by Kim Stanley Robinson
    Colonists brave the harsh landscapes of Mars, striving to make the planet their new home.

    Red Mars starts in 2026 with the first colonial voyage to Mars aboard the Ares , the largest interplanetary spacecraft ever built and home to a crew who are to be the first hundred Martian colonists. ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Hyperion

    by Dan Simmons
    Epic science-fiction story of a journey to the distant planet Hyperion.

    In the 29th century, the Hegemony of Man comprises hundreds of planets connected by farcaster portals. The Hegemony maintains an uneasy alliance with the TechnoCore , a civilisation of AIs . Modified ... (Wikipedia)

  10. Green Mars

    by Kim Stanley Robinson
    Colonization of Mars, as humans seek to terraform and inhabit the red planet.

    Red Mars starts in 2026 with the first colonial voyage to Mars aboard the Ares , the largest interplanetary spacecraft ever built and home to a crew who are to be the first hundred Martian colonists. ... (Wikipedia)

  11. The Name of the Rose

    by Umberto Eco
    A Franciscan friar investigates a series of murders in a medieval monastery, uncovering a sinister plot.

    In 1327, Franciscan friar William of Baskerville and Adso of Melk , a Benedictine novice travelling under his protection, arrive at a Benedictine monastery in Northern Italy to attend a theological ... (Wikipedia)

  12. Foundation

    by Isaac Asimov
    Exploring the possibilities of a galactic empire in a future driven by science and technology.

    For twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. But only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future – to a dark age ... (Goodreads)

  13. Absolution Gap

    by Alastair Reynolds
    A sci-fi adventure featuring a crew of misfits on a mission to save their home world from destruction.

    The plot of the novel takes place in four separate time periods. The bulk of the novel is contained in the 2675 and 2727 sections. Queen Jasmina of the lighthugger Gnostic Ascension wakes Quaiche, a ... (Wikipedia)

  14. Foucault's Pendulum

    by Umberto Eco
    A humorous and wild historical conspiracy thriller set across Europe.

    A man named Casaubon , is hiding in the Musée des Arts et Métiers after closing. He believes that a secret society has kidnapped his friend Jacopo Belbo and are now after him, and will meet in the ... (Wikipedia)

  15. Before They Are Hanged

    by Joe Abercrombie
    Epic fantasy adventure of a group of unlikely heroes in a fight for survival.

    Superior Glokta has a problem. How do you defend a city surrounded by enemies and riddled with traitors, when your allies can by no means be trusted, and your predecessor vanished without a trace? ... (Goodreads)

  16. Judas Unchained

    by Peter F. Hamilton
    The thrilling conclusion to the Commonwealth Saga. Humanity faces its greatest threat as ancient alien technology is unleashed.

    The book opens with a short section providing backstory. As part of the first mission to Mars , a team of astronauts exits their spacecraft for the first time, only to see another man standing there, ... (Wikipedia)

  17. The Reality Dysfunction

    by Peter F. Hamilton
    Epic sci-fi adventure through space and time, tackling questions of identity and reality.

    The Reality Dysfunction opens in the year 2581 with a war raging between two worlds, Omuta and Garissa, over three hundred and eighty seven mineral-rich asteroids known as the Dorados. The war ... (Wikipedia)

  18. The Windup Girl

    by Paolo Bacigalupi
    A dystopian future where energy scarcity and biotechnology have caused massive upheaval in society.

    Anderson Lake is an economic hitman for the AgriGen Corporation, working in Thailand. He owns a factory trying to mass-produce a revolutionary new model of kink-spring (the successor, in the absence ... (Wikipedia)

  19. A Fire Upon the Deep

    by Vernor Vinge
    An interstellar adventure of exploration, uncovering a powerful and mysterious force.

    An expedition from Straumli Realm, an ambitious young human civilization in the high Beyond, investigates a five-billion-year-old data archive in the low Transcend that offers the possibility of ... (Wikipedia)

  20. Blue Mars

    by Kim Stanley Robinson
    The final book in the Mars Trilogy, following the terraforming and colonization of Mars. The story explores the political, social, and environmental consequences of human expansion into space.

    Red Mars starts in 2026 with the first colonial voyage to Mars aboard the Ares , the largest interplanetary spacecraft ever built and home to a crew who are to be the first hundred Martian colonists. ... (Wikipedia)

  21. Blindsight

    by Peter Watts
    A sci-fi tale of a journey to the outer reaches of space and a confrontation with alien life.

    In the year 2082, thousands of large, coordinated objects of an unknown origin, dubbed "Fireflies", burn up in the Earth's atmosphere in a precise grid, while momentarily broadcasting across an ... (Wikipedia)

  22. The Neutronium Alchemist

    by Peter F. Hamilton
    A gripping space opera that explores the consequences of humanity's discovery of powerful alien technology.

    The voidhawk Oenone reaches Jupiter and docks with one of the 4,250 habitats orbiting the planet. Whilst medical assistance and trauma counselling begin to help heal Syrinx, the information from ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Cloud Atlas

    by David Mitchell
    A dynamic narrative spanning centuries, exploring the interconnectedness of humanity.

    The book consists of six nested stories; each is read or observed by a main character of the next, thus they progress in time through the central sixth story. The first five stories are each ... (Wikipedia)

  24. Neverwhere

    by Neil Gaiman
    A mysterious journey through a hidden realm of London, filled with danger and unexpected allies.

    Neverwhere is the story of Richard Mayhew and his trials and tribulations in London. At the start of the story, he is a young businessman, recently moved from Scotland and with a normal life ahead. ... (Wikipedia)

  25. Use of Weapons

    by Iain M. Banks
    A space opera of revenge, espionage and loyalty, woven together in a complex web of intrigue.

    The book is made up of two narrative streams, interwoven in alternating chapters. The numbers of the chapters indicate which stream they belong to: one stream is numbered forward in words (One, Two ... (Wikipedia)

  26. Revelation Space

    by Alastair Reynolds
    A space opera that explores the dark side of humanity and the consequences of advanced technology.

    Nine hundred thousand years ago, something annihilated the Amarantin civilization just as it was on the verge of discovering space flight. Now one scientist, Dan Sylveste, will stop at nothing to ... (Goodreads)

  27. Doomsday Book

    by Connie Willis
    A time-traveling historian struggles to contain a deadly pandemic in the Middle Ages.

    For Kivrin, preparing an on-site study of one of the deadliest eras in humanity's history was as simple as receiving inoculations against the diseases of the fourteenth century and inventing an alibi ... (Goodreads)

  28. Midnight's Children

    by Salman Rushdie
    A magical tale of India's history told through the story of a boy born at the stroke of midnight.

    Saleem Sinai is born at the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the very moment of India’s independence. Greeted by fireworks displays, cheering crowds, and Prime Minister Nehru himself, Saleem ... (Goodreads)

  29. Accelerando

    by Charles Stross
    A sci-fi novel exploring the future of humanity as technology evolves.

    The Singularity. It is the era of the posthuman. Artificial intelligences have surpassed the limits of human intellect. Biotechnological beings have rendered people all but extinct. Molecular ... (Goodreads)

  30. The Blade Itself

    by Joe Abercrombie
    Epic fantasy saga of an unlikely band of misfits and their struggle against an oppressive empire.

    Logen Ninefingers, infamous barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught in one feud too many, he’s on the verge of becoming a dead barbarian – leaving nothing behind him but bad songs, dead ... (Goodreads)