Science Fiction
Book recommendation guides are useful right up until they become a panic button.
I’ve got What Do I Read Next? on my want-to-read shelf because, honestly, the idea is appealing. A yearly guide covering new fiction across a few genres sounds like exactly the sort of thing you reach for when you’ve finished a book and your brain has turned to static.
But the real test is whether it tells you who it’s for. “What next?” is a different problem depending on whether you want a safe bet, a left-field pick, or something with a bit of bite. Otherwise it’s just a very organised way of making the decision harder.
I’ve got What Do I Read Next? on my want-to-read shelf because, honestly, the idea is appealing. A yearly guide covering new fiction across a few genres sounds like exactly the sort of thing you reach for when you’ve finished a book and your brain has turned to static.
But the real test is whether it tells you who it’s for. “What next?” is a different problem depending on whether you want a safe bet, a left-field pick, or something with a bit of bite. Otherwise it’s just a very organised way of making the decision harder.
The bit that matters to me is whether the guide helps with mood as much as genre. “Science fiction” can mean a lot of very different reading experiences, from idea-heavy and chilly to more character-led and messy. If it just lists titles under a neat label, that’s not much use when you’re standing in a shop trying to avoid another book that looks clever and then turns out to be a slog.