Readers often associate the term “worldbuilding” with the fantasy genre. In fact, I’ve already written a post about fantasy books with delightfully unique worlds. But another genre where worldbuilding is equally as important is science fiction. Just like in fantasy, authors have to build fantastical settings—it’s just that instead of imagined worlds, these are on other planets and/or often far into the future. Sometimes these stories even take place in alternate universes.
But a huge challenge that sci-fi writers must face in their worldbuilding is that, unlike fantasy writers, they must adhere to the rules and science of the real world. They must conceive of technology, culture, and politics that all seem like they could have stemmed from where we are in the here and now. So it’s all the more impressive when an author manages to construct a spectacular, well-thought-out world. Here are seven sci-fi novels with out of this world worldbuilding.
1) Dune by Frank Herbert
Young Paul Atreides, the heir of a noble family, moves to the inhospitable desert planet of Arrakis where his father is expected to rule and the only thing of value is a life-extending and consciousness-enhancing drug called the “spice” melange. After House Atreides is betrayed, it sets Paul on a journey toward a greater destiny than he ever could have imagined.
Whenever people think of worldbuilding and science fiction in the same sentence, it is likely that Dune will be one of the first books to come to mind. You get the feeling reading that there was not a single facet of Herbert’s world that he didn’t thoroughly research. In the story, you see not only a stunning physical environment rendered, but complex politics, religions, and technology.
2) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
In the ruins of what was once North America lies the nation of Panem with its glittering Capitol and twelve outlying districts. In a show of control over its districts, each year the Capitol demands that each district send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to fight to the death in the Hunger Games on live TV. When hunter Katniss Everdeen’s young sister Prim is selected to fight in this year’s games, Katniss volunteers to go in her place.
With each of the books in the trilogy being runaway bestsellers and a string of blockbuster film adaptations, The Hunger Games is one of the most successful sci-fi stories to come out in recent years. It’s not hard to see why—in addition to compelling characters and high stakes, The Hunger Games has a well-constructed and fabulously inventive world. The Hunger Games arena is full of frightening creatures and bits of technology engineered to make victory as difficult as possible.
3) The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
In the near future, the former United States has become the Republic of Gilead. Thanks to social unrest and a sharply declining birthrate, the regime institutes (and goes beyond) the repressive intolerance of the original Puritans. The story is told by Offred, a Handmaid under the new social order, who wryly shares her harrowing experience.
Like The Hunger Games, The Handmaid’s Tale shows an oppressive regime rising from the ashes of a United States that has crumbled. Through Offred’s perspective, we see in flashbacks how society managed to fall apart in such a way, and it all seems so frighteningly possible. The many facets of this horrifyingly sexist society are well-drawn and bring the disturbing story to life.
4) Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
In the year 2045, reality has become pretty depressing. So most of humanity, including Wade Watts, has chosen to spend most of their time in the virtual world of the OASIS. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a set of puzzles based on his obsession with the pop culture of the past. Whoever solves them will win his vast fortune and control of the OASIS. Wade cracks the first clue and suddenly he’s beset by vicious rivals who would kill for the prize. The only way to survive is to win.
The juxtaposition of Wade’s grim reality and the vibrancy and endless wonder of the OASIS make for a captivating world. The many different planets and games in the OASIS show off Cline’s great imagination. The novel’s many pop culture references root the book’s world in our reality and make everything about Cline’s world seem more authentic.
5) Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy grew up together at Hailsham, an exclusive boarding school in the secluded English countryside. Throughout their childhoods, they were often reminded by their teachers of how special they were. Now that Kathy is a young woman years later, Ruth and Tommy have reentered her life. For the first time, she begins to look at their shared pasts and examine what really makes them special, and how that will shape the rest of their time together.
This Nobel Prize winner is a fascinating piece of science fiction precisely because of how ordinary it is. For much of the book, you wouldn’t even realize it is sci-fi, which is what makes the story’s twist that much more intriguing. This novel shows that you don’t have to go crazy with futuristic gadgets and intergalactic politics to create an interesting sci-fi world—and that in fact, restraint can make the sci-fi elements of your world all the more striking.
6) Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Guy Montag is a fireman who is tasked with destroying the most illegal of commodities—printed books, along with the houses in which they are hidden. Montag never questions his actions and returns each day to his wife Mildred who seems to care more about her television “family” than she does about him. When he meets Clarisse, an eccentric young neighbor, Montag begins to realize that there might be more to life than the mindless chatter of television and question everything he’s ever known.
Bradbury created an iconic world with this classic—one where firemen don’t put out fires and instead set books aflame. A world where knowledge is considered criminal shows us the bleak future that with the constant distractions of TV and our phones doesn’t seem that far away. It’s intriguing to watch Montag’s small, depressing world open up as he gets to know Clarisse and learns how wonderful books can be.
7) Haven by Kate Seger
After the apocalypse, Lola Lovecraft is able to escape into Haven, a virtual reality created for the explicit purpose of saving humanity from extinction. But when Lola arrives, Haven doesn’t exactly seem like the utopia she and the others were promised. If she wants to survive in this harsh new world, she’ll have to embark on a quest to find the ghost in the machine and defeat it.
Like Ready Player One, Haven takes place on a virtual plane. This world resembles that of an RPG with Lola having a health bar and various stats. Seeing the rules of an RPG imposed upon the survivors of the end of the world is a very interesting setup. An RPG virtual reality is a fascinating setting to watch this exciting story unfold. A bonus is that you can read this one right here on Fictionate!
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