Kaffe · doomscrolling books
An endless feed of books: each card has a short positive and negative take paraphrasing a public review, with its source, and the public lists that recommend it. Make a free account and the feed is ranked by your own ratings and your friends' favourites.
Pierce Brown
+ Cinematic, fast action blending Roman myth and science fiction, building to a gripping final act.
− Some reviewers found it derivative of The Hunger Games, with little originality or plausibility. (Wikipedia (reception))
On the list After Stormlight · On the list Books like Fourth Wing
Scott Lynch, audiobook read by Michael Page
+ A witty, tragicomic caper with a resilient thief and a richly detailed city.
− The realistic backdrop makes the melodramatic plot feel less real. (Publishers Weekly)
On the list Grimdark · On the list Books like Mistborn
Matt Dinniman, audiobook read by Jeff Hays
+ A wild, funny, action-packed ride with heart that never gets boring; the audiobook narration wins praise.
− One reviewer found some jokes miss and the story repetitive. (Wikipedia (reception))
On the list Best fantasy audiobooks · On the list Books like Cradle
Christopher Ruocchio, audiobook read by Samuel Roukin
+ Rich, detailed space opera with a strong character focus, for fans of slow-building stories.
− Heavy description and flashbacks sap momentum, and there is little action. (Publishers Weekly)
On the list After Stormlight · On the list Books like Dune
Frank Herbert
+ Once Paul reaches the desert it shines: rich Fremen culture, Bene Gesserit schemes, prescience and sandworms, still strikingly original.
− Clunky villain dialogue early on, a final act where opponents oddly fold, and Paul reads as teenage wish fulfilment. (Black Gate)
On the list Books like Sun Eater · Recommended by Elon Musk
Ted Chiang
+ Thought-provoking what-if stories with high existential stakes that brilliantly put the science back in science fiction.
− Offers little in the way of rounded characters or dynamic action. (Booklist)
On the list Short stories · Recommended by Patrick Collison
Christopher Buehlman
+ Packed with magic, mayhem and mischief, with an artfully drawn world and characters.
− The trust between the two leads grows implausibly fast; dense going at times. (Publishers Weekly)
On the list Books like The Name of the Wind · On the list Books like The Witcher
James Islington
+ Ambitious dark academia with a cool magic system, morally grey characters who all have agency, and a wild ending.
− Leans on school tropes, training montages and philosophising; not for readers who dislike those. (Grimdark Magazine)
On the list After Stormlight · On the list Books like The Name of the Wind
Adrian Tchaikovsky, audiobook read by Mel Hudson
+ Old-school SF on an epic time scale, with likeable, memorable aliens and a genuinely exciting final quarter.
− Builds slowly at first, and not one for arachnophobes. (SFFWorld)
On the list Sci-fi starter · On the list Books like Project Hail Mary
James S. A. Corey, audiobook read by Jefferson Mays
+ Accessible, action-packed space opera with a lived-in solar system, convincing politics and a noir detective.
− Cartoonish corporate villains and weak female characters. (SFFWorld)
On the list Sci-fi starter · On the list Best sci-fi audiobooks
Joe Abercrombie, audiobook read by Steven Pacey
+ Black humour and reluctant, morally grey heroes.
− PW found the plot workmanlike, the writing repetitive and the torture excessive. (Publishers Weekly)
On the list Grimdark · On the list Books like Game of Thrones
Ann Leckie
+ Assured, gripping and stylish space opera, both fun and conceptually ambitious.
− Not entry-level; one critic found the characters weak and the ideas simple. (Wikipedia (reception))
On the list Books like The Expanse · On the list Books like The Murderbot Diaries
Trevor Noah
+ Flashes of brilliant storytelling and sharp insight into growing up under apartheid.
− Somewhat disjointed, and the jokes sometimes jar with the grim material. (Kirkus Reviews)
On the list Best audiobooks for road trips · Recommended by Bill Gates
Jorge Luis Borges
+ Dense, meticulous and still mind-blowing: entire worlds, religions and histories built rigorously inside short stories.
− Impressive more on an intellectual than an emotional level, and closer to thought experiment than fantasy. (A Sky of Books and Movies)
On the list Short stories · Recommended by Naval Ravikant
Dan Simmons
+ Acclaimed worldbuilding and characters; the pilgrims' six tales weave into one rich, cohesive novel.
− Some readers dislike that most of it is flashbacks, leaving little room for the main plot. (Wikipedia (reception))
On the list Sci-fi starter · On the list Books like Dune
Andy Weir
+ Sharp, funny and thrilling, with ingenious survival problems and just enough geekery.
− The jokey tone can undercut tension, and it feels set in the present day. (Kirkus Reviews)
On the list Best audiobooks for road trips · On the list Books like Project Hail Mary
Iain M. Banks
+ Seen as solidly crafted and often engrossing, a technically tighter book than Consider Phlebas.
− Critics call it fairly predictable, less imaginative than its predecessor, with some slow patches. (Wikipedia (reception))
On the list Sci-fi starter · Recommended by Stewart Brand
Will Wight
+ Masterfully paced, with an intricate magic system and a rich non-Western setting; hard to put down.
− Feels like the prologue to a bigger story, with a couple of brief info dumps. (r/Fantasy (Reddit))
On the list After Stormlight · On the list Books like Dungeon Crawler Carl
Dennis E. Taylor
+ An entertaining premise with enjoyable explorations of space tech and astrophysics.
− Juvenile execution: cheesy dialogue, too many pop-culture references, no character growth and no subtlety or surprises. (Yevgeniy Brikman)
On the list Books like Project Hail Mary · On the list Books like The Murderbot Diaries
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