{"id":21,"date":"2026-03-15T21:16:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-15T21:16:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/?page_id=21"},"modified":"2026-03-15T21:16:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T21:16:12","slug":"candidate-books","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/?page_id=21","title":{"rendered":"Candidate Books"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The following books are being considered for our reading list:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contemporary<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  1. Splinter in the Sky<\/em><\/a> by Kemi Ashing-Giwa<\/a> (383 pp)
    Space opera where tea expert becomes spy to win her nation\u2019s independence.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Karen Memory<\/em><\/a> by Elizabeth Bear<\/a> (351 pp)
    In steampunk Old West, young woman faces mind-controlling machine and ruthless killer.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Acts of God<\/em><\/a> by Kanan Gill<\/a> (410 pp)
    PI faces worldwide existential cataclysms caused by godlike scientist from future. Humorous and philosophical.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. The Hospital at the End of the World<\/em><\/a> by Justin C. Key<\/a> (398 pp)
    In near-future New Orleans, medical student seeks answers about father’s death and emerging plague. Could global AI be involved?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. The House Witch<\/em><\/a> by Delembach<\/a> (472 pp)
    The chef for the King and Queen of Daxaria is secretly a witch. WIth his cat familiar, he faces courtly intrigue, political machinations, magical hijinks, and will-they-or-won\u2019t-they romance.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. The Dream Hotel<\/em><\/a> by Laila Lalami<\/a> (336 pp)
    Woman is detained for a potential future crime predicted by an algorithm analyzing her dreams in future surveillance state. A Jenna Bush pick!<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Artificial Truth<\/em><\/a> by J. M. Lee<\/a> (220 pp)
    Korean sf set in future VR city, where widow of city’s creator is haunted by AI versions of himself.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. All That We See or Seem<\/a> <\/em>by Ken Liu<\/a> (416 pp)
    \u201cOrphan Hacker\u201d Julia Z uses AI skills to rescue a kidnapped dream artist who weaves memories into VR.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. A Memory Called Empire<\/em><\/a> by Arkady Martine<\/a> (472 pp)
    Ambassador Mahit Dzmare investigates her predecessor\u2019s murder and navigates alien culture in the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. Red Star Hustle \/ Apprehension<\/em><\/a> (Saga Double) by Sam J Miller<\/a> & Mary Robinette Kowal<\/a> (416 pp)
    Two stories: Escort is framed for client’s murder and must evade bounty hunter, falling in love with monarch’s clone along the way. Interplanetary family vacation goes awry when terrorists kidnap a child, resulting in combat vet grandmother ‘s rescue mission.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  11. There Is No Antimemetics Division<\/em><\/a> by QNTM<\/a> (267 pp)
    Malevolent and undetatable entities called antimemes prey on human memories and identity. The Antimemetics Division fights an enemy they can’t remember exists.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  12. The Midnight Shift<\/em><\/a> by Cheon Seon-Ran<\/a> (298 pp)
    Female Korean police investigator investigates mysterious deaths at a hospotal. Are vampires involved?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  13. When the Moon Hits Your Eye<\/em><\/a> by John Scalzi<\/a> (321 pp)
    When the moon mysteriously transforms into cheese, people across society – from astronauts to presidents – react and adapt during a lunar cycle, facing absurdity, faith, and uncertainty.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Older Titles<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    1. The Artificial Man and Other Stories<\/em><\/a> by Clare Winger Harris<\/a> (338 pp)
      1920s-30s stories by female sf writer: huge insects, Martian plot for Earth water, and time travel.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Wizard of the Pigeons<\/em><\/a> by Megan Lindholm<\/a> (225 pp)
      Bird-friendly wizard with gift of knowledge tries to save Seattle.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      The following books are being considered for our reading list: Contemporary Older Titles<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-21","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21"}],"version-history":[{"count":676,"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3004,"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/21\/revisions\/3004"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fact.org\/reading\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}