We are diving deep into the trenches of the best military science fiction books of all time. From infantry in power armor to epic space operas, we break down the absolute essentials of the genre and a bunch of underrated gems. Plus, we're joined by an absolute legend of the genre at the end of the episode!
We cover the legendary classics like Robert A. Heinlein’s Starship Troopers, Joe Haldeman’s The Forever War, and Orson Scott Card's Ender’s Game, while exploring modern masterpieces like John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War, Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice, and the later books of The Expanse series. Whether you are a fan of high-stakes space battles or deep philosophical military themes, this ultimate sci-fi reading list has something for you.
We also raid the deeper cuts of the genre, discussing everything from John Steakley’s Armor, L.E. Modesitt Jr.’s The Parafaith War, and Hiroshi Sakurazaka's All You Need Is Kill, to the cult hit Honor Harrington series by David Weber, Joshua Dalzelle's Black Fleet Trilogy, Craig Alanson’s Expeditionary Force, Iain M. Banks' Culture series, and Lois McMaster Bujold’s beloved Vorkosigan Saga.
Plus, stick around until the very end of the episode for a massive surprise guest! We had the absolute honor of sitting down with a literal titan of the military science fiction world.
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No spoilers anywhere in this episode.
This episode is sponsored by Thanks For Meeting Me Here by Jill Bronfman
All the books we recommend, plus timestamps: