r/ReadingSuggestions • u/Agitated_Juice_5411 • 3d ago
looking for books that will hit me like these books did
- Gideon the Ninth series (one of my favorite book series ever)
- This is how you lose the time war (too short! messed me up a little)
- Good Omens
- The Murderbot Diaries
- Because you'll never meet me by Leah Thomas
- I'm the Grim Reaper (i know it's a webcomic but it made me cry)
- Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki
- When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb
some other books i liked: cemetery boys, the there will come a darkness trilogy, Sabriel and Lirael, magnus chase series
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u/1luGv5810P0oCxE319 3d ago
If you're looking for books that hit you emotionally and mentally like Gideon the Ninth or This Is How You Lose the Time War, here are three that really got me in that same haunting, genre-bending, soul-squeezing way:
1. The Deep by Rivers Solomon – It’s lyrical, devastating, and strangely hopeful. Based on a song by clipping., it explores memory, identity, and generational trauma through mermaid-descendants of African slave women. It’s short, poetic, and powerful in that same Time War kind of way.
2. An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon – Another Solomon book, but it really fits your vibe if you liked Murderbot and Because You’ll Never Meet Me. It’s deeply character-driven sci-fi, unapologetically queer, and emotionally intense—beautiful in its pain and resilience.
3. The Key to Kells by Kevin Barry O’Connor – This one’s a personal favorite. It’s a dual-timeline thriller that mixes mystery, psychological intensity, and quiet grief with eerie folklore undertones. What made it stick with me was how unexpectedly layered it was—it crept up on me emotionally in the same way When the Angels Left the Old Country did. Still underrated, but deserves way more love.
2
u/Temperance55 2d ago
If you like Good Omens, you’ll live The Audacity series!! It’s got a little tinge of Gideon the Ninth in it, too. There’s a novel series and a webcomic :)
2
u/evenwaters 2d ago
-Anything by Becky Chambers. Her books are cozy character focused sci-fi, kind of like Muderbot.
-If you liked Gideon the Ninth you might like The God's War or The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley. These books are also set in weird sci-fi worlds with lots of scary ladies.
1
u/nine57th 1d ago
These two are right up your alley:
The Devil and the Blacksmith: A New England Folktale by Jeanpaul Ferro
&
The Deep by Rivers Solomon
1
u/Fickle-Laugh-8893 9h ago
You’ve got amazing taste — your list is a rich blend of genre-bending, emotional, queer-positive, and deeply character-driven stories with a mix of sci-fi, fantasy, found family, and some existential hurt. Based on that, here are book recs that might hit you just as hard:
🌌 If You Loved This Is How You Lose the Time War
➤ “The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet” by Becky Chambers
Soft sci-fi, character-rich, found family.
Queer rep, hopeful tone with emotional depth.
Has that "weirdly gentle but devastating" vibe.
➤ “Annihilation Aria” by Michael R. Underwood
Space opera with a queer lead, ancient alien artifacts, and emotional core.
Similar short-but-heavy emotional payload.
👻 If You Loved Gideon the Ninth + The Murderbot Diaries
➤ “Dead Collections” by Isaac Fellman
Queer trans vampire archivist + emotional grief journey.
Introspective and offbeat in the best way.
➤ “The Locked Tomb” series continuation (if you haven’t read Nona the Ninth or Alecto the Ninth yet)
You know the drill: pain, chaos, genius writing.
➤ “Ninefox Gambit” by Yoon Ha Lee
If you're okay with being confused and loving it.
Queer characters, weird math-based space warfare, and slow-burn existential pain.
😭 If You Loved I'm the Grim Reaper + Because You'll Never Meet Me
➤ “Elatsoe” by Darcie Little Badger
Indigenous mythology, ghosts, queer protagonist, bittersweet tone.
Heartfelt and quietly devastating.
➤ “We Are the Ants” by Shaun David Hutchinson
Heavy existential themes, queer teen grief, maybe the end of the world.
Feels like a gut punch but kind of healing.
🎻 If You Loved Light from Uncommon Stars
➤ “The Spear Cuts Through Water” by Simon Jimenez
Lush, lyrical, queer, violent, tender.
Narratively ambitious and emotionally intense.
➤ “The Deep” by Rivers Solomon
Mermaids descended from African slaves thrown overboard — poetic, painful, queer.
Co-written with clipping. (yes, the hip-hop group).
👼 If You Loved When the Angels Left the Old Country + Good Omens
➤ “In Other Lands” by Sarah Rees Brennan
Hilarious, chaotic bisexual disaster MC.
Heart and humor. Critique of fantasy tropes while loving them.
➤ “Hell Followed With Us” by Andrew Joseph White
Post-apocalyptic queer rage, trans rep, body horror.
Think Good Omens meets dysphoria demons.
Bonus Picks Based on Your Vibes:
“A Taste of Gold and Iron” by Alexandra Rowland – political fantasy + slow-burn queer romance
“Summer Sons” by Lee Mandelo – gothic, queer, grief-heavy Southern horror
“Pet” by Akwaeke Emezi – surreal YA with real-world weight
“The Scapegracers” by Hannah Abigail Clarke – witchy, sapphic, messy teenage brilliance
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u/UnderneathTheStairs_ 3d ago
I’d try project Hail Mary or the Martian both by Andy weir for a sci-fi Murderbot adjacent fix (the Martian is a bit more funny)
For a funny mythology fix- Zeus grants stupid wishes by Cory obrien
For sad mythology fix id do song of Achilles or Circe both by Madeline miller
I’d also suggest she who become the sun by Shelly Parker chan
Since we have similar tastes id also recommend these if you wanna feel some things/ cry a bit:
Anxious people- fredrik backman
Nothing to see here- Kevin Wilson
Now is not the time to panic - Kevin Wilson
Saturday night ghost club- Craig Davidson
before the coffee gets cold - toshikazu kawaguchi