79 books like Starter Villain

By John Scalzi,

Here are 79 books that Starter Villain fans have personally recommended if you like Starter Villain. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of System Collapse

Karen Haber Author Of That Unfortunate Problem with Grandmother's Head and Other Stories

From my list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading.

Why am I passionate about this?

I began reading science fiction when I was 8 years old and "borrowed" my father’s library books until, in defense, he got me my own library card. Not only have I spent decades reading SF, I’ve written it as well. As a veteran reader and writer with plenty of kill marks on my fuselage, I'm literally married to the SF mob (Grandmaster Robert Silverberg, is my spouse). I can both walk the walk and talk the talk. And after writing 9 SF novels including a Star Trek Book and reading uncounted SF and F tales, I still think science fiction and fantasy can be a literature of ideas illuminating the human condition.

Karen's book list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading

Karen Haber Why did Karen love this book?

Oh, the delicious snark of it all. Murderbot may—or may not—have a human heart, but what it does have is attitude with a capital A.

System Collapse focuses on the further adventures of the cyberbot security unit that has hacked itself free from dangerous behavioral controls and named itself Murderbot. The gender-free bot is suffering from PTSD resulting in memory lapses and odd behavior that endangers not only Murderbot but the humans they're protecting from being killed/enslaved by evil Corporate raiders and/or contaminated by deadly alien biotech.

Some of the funniest moments come when human characters try to get touchy-feely with Murderbot, much to their horror. Honestly, Murderbot would rather just watch soap operas with buddy/significant other, ART, the AI ship they live on. It helps to have read the previous 6 books to know who all the characters are and their histories.

By Martha Wells,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked System Collapse as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The million-copy, New York Times bestselling Murderbot series is back in another full-length novel adventure!

Am I making it worse? I think I'm making it worse.

Everyone's favorite lethal SecUnit is back.

Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly-colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there’s an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can’t have the planet, they’re sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free…


Book cover of All My Sins Remembered

Karen Haber Author Of That Unfortunate Problem with Grandmother's Head and Other Stories

From my list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading.

Why am I passionate about this?

I began reading science fiction when I was 8 years old and "borrowed" my father’s library books until, in defense, he got me my own library card. Not only have I spent decades reading SF, I’ve written it as well. As a veteran reader and writer with plenty of kill marks on my fuselage, I'm literally married to the SF mob (Grandmaster Robert Silverberg, is my spouse). I can both walk the walk and talk the talk. And after writing 9 SF novels including a Star Trek Book and reading uncounted SF and F tales, I still think science fiction and fantasy can be a literature of ideas illuminating the human condition.

Karen's book list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading

Karen Haber Why did Karen love this book?

All My Sins Remembered is a deeply felt, moving story of what happens to Otto McGavin, a well-meaning Anglo-Buddhist who joins the intergalactic Confederacion at age 22 to travel off Earth and help protect the rights of humans and nonhumans, is trained to become an agent of the Confederacion, and loses his soul in the process.

First published in 1977, this is a searing near-future tale that should be required reading for anyone considering a career in the Secret Service.

Grandmaster science fiction writer Joe Haldeman is renowned in the field for his decades of brilliant stories and books. Awarded the Hugo and Nebula, he is the author of the Forever War trilogy, The Hemingway Hoax, 1968, and many others.

His work often features scathing treatments of warfare and the brutal idiocy of military bureaucracy, based on his firsthand experience as a soldier in the Vietnam War.

By Joe Haldeman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked All My Sins Remembered as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

1977 Avon Books MASS MARKET PAPERBACK, 4th printing. Joe Haldeman (The Forever War). Once Otto McGavin was a kind and gentle soul; then he was recruited by the all-powerful Confederación. An ultra secretive, government-linked organization, the Confederación’s stated mission of protecting threatened life, both human and alien, throughout the galaxy greatly appeals to the Anglo-Buddhist McGavin as he eagerly prepares to embark on a career of diplomacy and selfless works. But Otto’s new masters have other plans for the idealistic young recruit. Through a process of immersion therapy and hypnosis, and by encasing him in temporary bodies of plastic flesh,…


Spoliation

By Ian J. Miller,

Book cover of Spoliation

Ian J. Miller Author Of A Face on Cydonia

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Research scientist Composer Retired Theoretician

Ian's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

To hide a corporation’s failure to properly service a space ship, Captain Jonas Stryker is prosecuted but saved from imprisonment by a dying man, who hires Stryker to collect asteroids for their mineral content. Stryker soon finds he must stop a shadowy corporate group called The Board, who employ space piracy, terrorism, and even weaponised asteroids to overthrow the Federation government.

Set in Lagrange points, space stations, the Moon and outback Australia, it is a fast-moving story with some speculative future technology. If you were interested in the NASA attempt to alter the orbit of the asteroid Dimorphos, you might…

Spoliation

By Ian J. Miller,

What is this book about?

When a trial to cover-up a corporate failure ends Captain Jonas Stryker's career, he wants revenge against The Board, a ruthless, shadowy organization with limitless funds that employs space piracy, terrorism, and even weaponised asteroids. Posing as a space miner, Stryker learns that The Board wants him killed, while a young female SCIB police agent wants retribution against him for having her career spoiled at his trial. As Stryker avoids attempts to kill him, he becomes the only chance to prevent The Board from overturning the Federation Government and imposing a Fascist-style rule.
A story of greed, corruption and honour,…


Book cover of The Start of the End of it All: Short Fiction

Karen Haber Author Of That Unfortunate Problem with Grandmother's Head and Other Stories

From my list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading.

Why am I passionate about this?

I began reading science fiction when I was 8 years old and "borrowed" my father’s library books until, in defense, he got me my own library card. Not only have I spent decades reading SF, I’ve written it as well. As a veteran reader and writer with plenty of kill marks on my fuselage, I'm literally married to the SF mob (Grandmaster Robert Silverberg, is my spouse). I can both walk the walk and talk the talk. And after writing 9 SF novels including a Star Trek Book and reading uncounted SF and F tales, I still think science fiction and fantasy can be a literature of ideas illuminating the human condition.

Karen's book list on science fiction and fantasy books that keep me reading

Karen Haber Why did Karen love this book?

The title story of this brilliant collection is a very funny alien invasion story told from the point of view of a woman who is convinced that the invasion is all about her. The other stories are similarly quirky and delightful.

The late Carol Emshwiller was a groundbreaking visionary writer who began publishing her funny, intriguing, unusual work after she was 30 and had to pry writing time away from the demands of her growing family.

When necessary, she would empty out the playpen in her living room, get into it with her typewriter, and work on her fiction while her preschool children enjoyed the freedom of the apartment. She was known for avant-garde approach, unreliable narrators, quirky humor, and a liberal, feminist outlook. 

Recipient of the Nebula and the  Philip K. Dick Award. The late Ursula K. LeGuin called her "a major fabulist, a marvelous magical realist, one of…

By Carol Emshwiller,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Start of the End of it All as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Eighteen stories deal with alien worlds, extraterrestrial invaders, crossbreeds, animals, and lonely city-dwellers


Book cover of The Lord of Stariel

Jen Lynning Author Of Deceiving the Cursed Beast

From my list on romantasy magic and manners.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been reading fantasy since before I could read (thanks, Mom and Dad!). I certainly never outgrew my love of fairy tales. But over the years, I discovered I also love historical romance. Then, I stumbled across books that combined the two. They were the best of both worlds. The comfort of a well-fitted waistcoat with the whimsy of an enchanted jewel. Naturally, I gravitated to writing what I loved: books full of magic and manners, castles and balls, romance and intrigue.

Jen's book list on romantasy magic and manners

Jen Lynning Why did Jen love this book?

I fell in love with the world-building in this series. Perhaps because the main setting itself is a character. Having an estate with a mind of its own (or at least a consciousness that doesn’t understand human propriety) makes for extra fun.

The slow-burn romance in the series kept me addicted because of how it highlighted the deliciousness of mixing magic and manners—in this case, the conflict between the fae making their presence known and human society trying to cope. Oh, and did I mention how many times I laughed while reading?

By A.J. Lancaster,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Lord of Stariel as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Lord of Stariel is dead. Long live the Lord of Stariel. Whoever that is.

Everyone knows who the magical estate will choose for its next ruler. Or do they?

Will it be the lord’s eldest son, who he despised?

His favourite nephew, with the strongest magical land-sense?

His scandalous daughter, who ran away from home years ago to study illusion?

Hetta knows it won’t be her, and she’s glad of it. Returning home for her father’s funeral, all Hetta has to do is survive the family drama and avoid entanglements with irritatingly attractive local men until the Choosing. Then…


Book cover of King Lear

Laurie Frankel Author Of One Two Three

From my list on how sisters are great but also a pain in your ass.

Why am I passionate about this?

I like books about big families, especially unusual ones, but I have only one sister and only one child, so when I set out to write about these families, I read about them first. We place so much importance on how kids are raised, what kind of childhood and home life and family they have growing up, what gifts and what challenges they’re bestowed by genetics, history, identity, society, circumstance. Siblings usually share all or at least most of these markers and yet turn into often wildly different adults. It’s also true that all those fine sibling balances – love/hate, adored/annoyed, admired/appalled, alike/different – are great fun to read and write.

Laurie's book list on how sisters are great but also a pain in your ass

Laurie Frankel Why did Laurie love this book?

When I first sat down to write a novel about three sisters, step one was to reread King Lear which is about exactly that. The three sisters in Lear are quite different from mine. Among other things, they like each other much less. But for that delicate sisterly balance between so-glad-I-have-you-to-share-the-burdens-of-an-aging-parent and I-might-actually-have-to-kill-you, nothing beats King Lear.

By William Shakespeare,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Synopsis coming soon.......


Book cover of Bleak House

Don Trowden Author Of Young Again

From my list on written in the present tense.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve studied the art of fiction for many years and was fortunate to have great teachers along the way who knew how to analyze novels to help anyone interested in writing fiction to better see how they work. I also enjoy editing fiction written by other novelists, as this invariably leads to a better understanding of what is possible through the written word. I worked for many years as a bookseller and within the publishing industry. As a bookseller, I set a goal of reading at least one novel from every author in the classics section, and managed to do that.

Don's book list on written in the present tense

Don Trowden Why did Don love this book?

The omniscient narrator in this classic novel speaks to the reader in a dispassionate present-tense voice that helps reinforce the satirical tone and immediacy of the novel. Dickens, who grew up in a debtor’s prison and included his bleak observations of life in a debtor’s prison in many of his great novels, used his fiction to shine a light on the social injustices of Victorian life. Bleak House shines much of that light on the punitive legal system (sound like today?), which Dickens exposed in some of his other novels as well. In thinking about the many theatrical and film adaptations made of this novel, we can see how much easier that work was due to the present tense writing, which creates the immediacy and suspense found in many great films.

By Charles Dickens,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Bleak House as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Esther, at fourteen, has never known love. Determined to live well, earn some love and overcome the shadow of her birth, she takes her first steps into an unknown world. A family curse, a manipulating lawyer, poverty and secrets threaten to destroy Esther's world. Are the walls of Bleak House strong enough to protect her and her new friends from such powerful forces? The reader will be caught up in an unfolding mystery, full of surprises. Perhaps the biggest mystery of all is: Who is Nemo?


Book cover of The Schirmer Inheritance

Garrett Epps Author Of Democracy Reborn: The Fourteenth Amendment and the Fight for Equal Rights in Post-Civil War America

From my list on legal novels that you can't put down.

Why am I passionate about this?

Garrett Epps is the author of two published novels and five works of non-fiction about the U.S. Constitution. He graduated from Duke Law School in 1991; since then he has taught Constitutional Law at the American University, the University of Baltimore, Boston College, Duke University, and the University of Oregon. For ten years he was Supreme Court Correspondent for The Atlantic, and covered from close up cases involving the Affordable Care Act, same-sex marriage, and the Trump Administration’s immigration policies. He is now Legal Affairs Editor of The Washington Monthly, and at work on a novel about crime and justice during the years of Southern segregation. 

Garrett's book list on legal novels that you can't put down

Garrett Epps Why did Garrett love this book?

A World War II bomber pilot returns home thoroughly determined to have no more excitement in his life. He settles down in a quiet wills-and-trusts practice. In a dusty file about an unclaimed estate, he sees that a missing heir may be living in Europe. Searching for this heir, he is pulled into Cold War politics, kidnaped, and dragged into Communist Albania, where his fate becomes an international incident. The law overtakes George in a thoroughly believable way; it is an example of why readers fear the law, which may at any moment demand that we sacrifice our comfort, our place in society, and even our very lives.

By Eric Ambler,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

"A masterful contribution to the literature of international dirty work." - The New Yorker
George Cary, former WWII bomber pilot and newly minted lawyer, reviews the files on the Schneider Johnson case, to make sure nothing has been overlooked. What George discovers connects a deserter from Napoleon's defeated army to a guerrilla fighter in post-war Greece, and leads him into a dangerous situation where his own survival will depend more on what he learned in the army than anything he learned in law school.


Book cover of Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune: How Younger Sons Made Their Way in Jane Austen's England

Lona Manning Author Of A Contrary Wind

From my list on Regency England beyond balls and bonnets.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a writer of Jane Austen-inspired fiction who fell down a research rabbit hole and perhaps I’ll never climb out. Dr. Johnson said, “The greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading… a man will turn over half a library to make one book.” The five books I’m recommending offer a window into the long 18th century, the era of the Enlightenment, and the dawn of the industrial revolution. In these books I’ve met philosophers, romantics, and reformers who brought literacy to the underclass and emancipation to the enslaved. These books have helped me place the characters of my novels within a fascinating, consequential period of history. 

Lona's book list on Regency England beyond balls and bonnets

Lona Manning Why did Lona love this book?

In Regency England, the first-born son inherited the property, while the younger brothers had to choose between a handful of “genteel” professions such as the army, the navy, and the church. It was these younger sons (such as Jane Austen’s two sailor brothers), who fanned out across the globe and changed the world forever. We learn about their aspirations and frustrations as they struggle to get ahead in a world where promotion was based on patronage, not merit, and corruption was pretty much taken for granted. Muir gives us an appreciation of the hardships of Regency life, even for the privileged classes. I wish that more history was taught this way, with a lens on the economic drivers of human behavior. 

By Rory Muir,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A portrait of Jane Austen's England told through the career paths of younger sons-men of good family but small fortune

In Regency England the eldest son usually inherited almost everything while his younger brothers, left with little inheritance, had to make a crucial decision: what should they do to make an independent living? Rory Muir weaves together the stories of many obscure and well-known young men, shedding light on an overlooked aspect of Regency society. This is the first scholarly yet accessible exploration of the lifestyle and prospects of these younger sons.


Book cover of The Night Country

Emily Kinney Author Of The Island of Lote

From my list on peculiar romance.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love weird situations. I have been writing since I was four years old, and have been patiently waiting for the man who appreciates my wide range of vocal inflections. Books have always been companions for me. It helped me develop empathy for others at a young age. Reading about situations that involve people who are nothing like you helps you think beyond yourself. I think that is partly why I’ve always gravitated towards books with unique plots and characters. There’s something invigorating about a story that breaks the mold and offers something new, even if it’s a little strange. The books I’ve recommended all have heavily influenced me and my writing throughout the years. 

Emily's book list on peculiar romance

Emily Kinney Why did Emily love this book?

So this is actually the sequel to another amazing book called The Hazel Wood, but we get to see more romance blossoming in this one. I adore this author. She has that rare ability to completely suck in a reader and paint the inside of their mind. There’s a delicious bleakness to the writing, the plot relentlessly dark and challenging. It covers so many enduring themes such as sacrifice and normalcy versus the extraordinary. And the romance is so atypical as well. There’s no true linear journey, and their feelings are compromised by these big divisive issues. Such as ending certain worlds to save other worlds.

By Melissa Albert,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Night Country as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 14, 15, 16, and 17.

What is this book about?

An addictive thriller crossed with the darkest of fairytales that's guaranteed to keep you up all night...

THE HIGHLY ANTICIPATED SEQUEL TO INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING NOVEL THE HAZEL WOOD

Alice has fought hard for a normal life. Having escaped the Hinterland - the strange, pitch-dark world she was born into - she has washed up in New York City, determined to build a new future for herself.

But when her fellow survivors start being brutally murdered, Alice must face the fact that the Hinterland cannot be so easily escaped. And that, from the shadows of her past something - or someone…


Book cover of System Collapse
Book cover of The Whole Mess and Other Stories
Book cover of All My Sins Remembered

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5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in inheritances, supervillains, and villains?

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Supervillains 20 books
Villains 14 books