Why am I passionate about this?

My day job has always involved working with nonprofits, and my favorites are activist organizations. The grassroots organizers I’ve worked with are some of the most impressive people I know. Despite what science fiction stories often tell us, change doesn’t come from blowing up the Death Star, but from hard work and relentless optimism. At a time when corporations are growing ever more powerful, ChatGPT wants to take our jobs, and politics can be dismally depressing, I hope these books remind you that power is never absolute, and the future is what we make of it.


I wrote

Warped State

By Jo Miles,

Book cover of Warped State

What is my book about?

A heart-filled space opera about the evils of unchecked corporate power and how fighting for change always matters, Warped State…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Blighted Stars

Jo Miles Why did I love this book?

The son of the head of an all-powerful corporation and a radical activist disguised as his bodyguard have to work together to stop corporate wrongs that are worse than either of them suspect.

It’s a perfect enemies-to-lovers setup, and I adore the chemistry between these two, who both want to save the galaxy but have conflicting ideas about how.

Along with delving into the complexities of some unique and fascinating corporate-controlled technology—like body-replacement tech that can help a transgender person be themselves, or trap a dissident in limbo forever—O’Keefe shows the darkest sides of corporate power abuse, and debate over what it takes to challenge such power in this thriller/horror/adventure. I couldn’t put it down.

By Megan E. O'Keefe,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Stranded on a dead planet with her mortal enemy, a spy must survive and uncover a conspiracy in the first book of an epic space opera trilogy by an award‑winning author.

She's a revolutionary. Humanity is running out of options. Habitable planets are being destroyed as quickly as they're found and Naira Sharp thinks she knows the reason why. The all-powerful Mercator family has been controlling the exploration of the universe for decades, and exploiting any materials they find along the way under the guise of helping humanity's expansion. But Naira knows the truth, and she plans to bring the…


Book cover of The Mountain in the Sea

Jo Miles Why did I love this book?

This is one of those books that I almost wish I’d written, except no one but Nayler could have done it justice.

It starts with a discovery of potentially sentient octopuses, the scientist studying them, and the global corporation that controls her access and funding. From there, the story gets dizzying in scope: it spans countries and social classes, somehow managing to be a thriller while delving deep into zoology, climatology, neurology, the consequences of war and colonization, and the nature of consciousness itself—while still showing the wonder of this new-found species.

Everyone’s fate, terrifyingly, lies in the hands of this corporation that has its own motivations for studying the octopuses, unless they (and the octopuses themselves) can stop it.

By Ray Nayler,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked The Mountain in the Sea as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'I loved this novel's brain and heart'
DAVID MITCHELL, AUTHOR OF CLOUD ATLAS

'A first-rate speculative thriller, by turns fascinating, brutal, powerful, and redemptive'
JEFF VANDERMEER, AUTHOR OF ANNIHILATION

There are creatures in the water of Con Dao.
To the locals, they're monsters.
To the corporate owners of the island, an opportunity.
To the team of three sent to study them, a revelation.

Their minds are unlike ours.
Their bodies are malleable, transformable, shifting.
They can communicate.
And they want us to leave.

When pioneering marine biologist Dr. Ha Nguyen is offered the chance to travel to the remote Con…


Book cover of Octavia's Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements

Jo Miles Why did I love this book?

This one’s a bit different: a collection of short stories written by activists and community organizers.

I’ve always believed that activism is much like science fiction: both are all about seeing the world as it is and imagining how it could be different, and these stories are like a masterclass in imagining social change: some heartwarming, some chilling, all unique. Short fiction is a perfect medium to get bite-sized pieces of many different imagined futures.

By Adrienne Maree Brown (editor), Walidah Imarisha (editor),

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Octavia's Brood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Whenever we envision a world without war, prisons, or capitalism, we are producing speculative fiction. Organizers and activists envision, and try to create, such worlds all the time. Walidah Imarisha and adrienne maree brown have brought 20 of them together in the first anthology of short stories to explore the connections between radical speculative fiction and movements for social change. These visionary tales span genres—sci-fi, fantasy, horror, magical realism—but all are united by an attempt to inject a healthy dose of imagination and innovation into our political practice and to try on new ways of understanding ourselves, the world around…


Book cover of All Systems Red

Jo Miles Why did I love this book?

If you like science fiction and haven’t read the Murderbot books, well, you should go do that. Like right now.

They’re a delight: clever and funny and full of action. The main appeal is Murderbot, the snarky, anti-social, security cyborg who would rather shoot things than admit to having an emotion.

For purposes of this list, the book is full of interstellar corporate states vying for power, committing violence, spying on outsiders and their own people, and turning people like Murderbot into tools. There are aspiring utopian societies here, too, which value things like privacy and rights. That leads to interesting and nuanced conflicts—even if Murderbot would rather punch the problems than talk about them.

By Martha Wells,

Why should I read it?

29 authors picked All Systems Red as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

All Systems Red by Martha Wells begins The Murderbot Diaries, a new science fiction action and adventure series that tackles questions of the ethics of sentient robotics. It appeals to fans of Westworld, Ex Machina, Ann Leckie's Imperial Raadch series, or lain M. Banks' Culture novels. The main character is a deadly security droid that has bucked its restrictive programming and is balanced between contemplative self discovery and an idle instinct to kill all humans. In a corporate dominated s pa cef a ring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by…


Book cover of Greenpeace Captain: My Adventures in Protecting the Future of Our Planet

Jo Miles Why did I love this book?

I picked up this book as research but I kept reading because it was fascinating.

I admire Greenpeace a great deal, and their style of direct action—they’re known for activists tying themselves to oil rigs or swarms of kayaks blockading ports to make a point—is a touchpoint for the activist organization in my series.

Willcox’s memoir about captaining one of Greenpeace’s famous ships often reads like a thriller, complete with chase scenes trying to escape the Russian military, and some of the anecdotes fall into the “truth stranger than fiction” category.

A very cool look at some impressive real-life activism that’s not wonky or preachy.

By Peter Willcox, Ronald Weiss,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

A Man. A Mission.
GREENPEACE CAPTAIN


PETER WILLCOX has been a Captain for Greenpeace for over 30 years. He would never call himself a hero, but he is recognized on every ocean and continent for devoting his entire life to saving the planet. He has led the most compelling and dangerous Greenpeace actions to bring international attention to the destruction of our environment. From the globally televised imprisonment of his crew, the "Arctic 30," by Russian Commandos to international conspiracies involving diamond smuggling, gun-trading and Al-Qaeda, Willcox has braved the unimaginable and triumphed.

This is his story--which begins when he…


Explore my book 😀

Warped State

By Jo Miles,

Book cover of Warped State

What is my book about?

A heart-filled space opera about the evils of unchecked corporate power and how fighting for change always matters, Warped State will delight fans of Ann Leckie, Malka Older, and Martha Wells.

Jasper Wilder is an activist, not a spy, but he’ll become one if that's what it takes to stop a deadly research project by the mega-corporation that devastated his home planet. Then he meets Havoc, an idealistic local activist who will be blamed if Jasper goes through with his plans to destroy the experiment. He's prepared to risk his own life, but will he also sacrifice the person he's coming to care about?

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Book cover of Glimmer of the Other

Heather G. Harris Author Of Glimmer of the Other

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Heather's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

Delve into this internationally best-selling series, now complete! A fast paced laugh-out-loud mix of Urban Fantasy and Mystery.

I can tell when you’re lying. Every. Single. Time. I’m Jinx, a PI hired to find a missing university student, I hope to find her propped up at a bar–yet my gut tells me there’s more to this case than a party girl gone wild. Firstly, she’s a bookish soul who’s as likely to go off the rails as Mother Theresa. Secondly, I’m not the only one on her trail; she’s also being tracked by the implacable and oh-so-sexy Inspector Stone. Stone…

By Heather G. Harris,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Glimmer of the Other as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

I can tell when you’re lying. Every. Single. Time.

I’m Jinx. As a private investigator, being a walking, talking lie detector is a useful skill – but let’s face it, it’s not normal. You’d think it would make my job way too easy, but even with my weird skills, I still haven’t been able to track down my parent’s killers.

When I’m hired to find a missing university student, I hope to find her propped up at a bar – yet my gut tells me there’s more to this case than a party girl gone wild. Firstly, she’s a bookish…


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