Skip to content

Altered Carbon

Books like Altered Carbon

30 fantasy books to read after Altered Carbon, by Morgan, Richard K., the closest match first.

  1. Broken Angels

    Takeshi Kovacs book 2

    1. Broken Angels

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same series
    • Same author

    Written by the author of "Altered Carbon, Broken Angels" features the return of Takeshi Kovaks, an imperfect hero with a violent streak and a thirst for action.

  2. Woken Furies

    Takeshi Kovacs book 3

    2. Woken Furies

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same series
    • Same author

    Mixing classic noir sensibilities with a searing futuristic vision of an age when death is nearly meaningless, Richard K. Morgan returns to his saga of betrayal, mystery, and revenge, as...

  3. Starship Troopers

    3. Starship Troopers

    by Heinlein, Robert A.

    • On the same lists
    Hugo winner 1960

    The world government in this future Earth is run by veterans and citizens must earn the right to vote and hold public office with federal service.

    Book Flap Description  A recruit of the future goes through the toughest boot camp in the universe and into battle with the Terran Mobile Infantry against humankind's most frightening enemy. ...

  4. Ender's Game (1986)

    The Ender Quintet book 1 Start here

    4. Ender's Game (1986)

    by Card, Orson Scott

    • On the same lists

    The first in a famous series that seems to become more literary as its characters age. Follows a child prodigy and in the process makes the reader think about war, the means to war, and even loneliness.

    Earth has survived two invasions by an insect-like alien race, and the International Fleet is training the most gifted children to lead the next defence. Six-year-old Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is...

  5. A Land Fit For Heroes

    5. A Land Fit For Heroes

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same author

    Subversion gone over the edge is how you can describe Richard Morgan's anti-fantasy series A Land Fit For Heroes. Morgan writes some of the blackest grimdark you'll ever read and...

  6. Lord Of The Rings

    6. Lord Of The Rings

    by Tolkien, J.r.r.

    • On the same lists

    In this classic fantasy example, Frodo and his buddies embark on a grand quest with the fate of Middle Earth at stake. During the course of the very long and physical journey, Frodo also embarks on an internal journey.

    I read this when I was 9 - four times that is. Maybe I was just a kid, but I had never seen or imagined anything like this series. You...

  7. Hyperion

    Hyperion Cantos book 1 Start here

    7. Hyperion

    by Simmons, Dan

    • On the same lists
    Hugo winner 1990

    So most of this series is in fact, not Dying Earth but it is a pinnacle of science fiction. The Poet's Tale: Hyperion Cantos in the first novel of Hyperion is a part of the Dying Earth sub-genre and it is the connection the readers have from Earth to the strange new universe of Hyperion.

    A grand intelligent space opera tale that also tells a series of very personal tales. This juxtaposition between epic and the personal gives real life to the story. The whole...

  8. The City & The City

    8. The City & The City

    by Miéville, China

    • On the same lists
    Hugo winner 2010

    A startling premise that was so foreign yet so fascinating. This is a detective novel like you've never read, with such a distinct setting that you'll never forget it. And...

  9. Armor

    9. Armor

    by Steakley, John

    • On the same lists

    Some of best battlefield action scenes I’ve ever read. You literally feel the rush of adrenaline, the shock, confusion, and horror of the battlefield. There is literally never, ever a...

  10. The Road

    10. The Road

    by Mccarthy, Cormac

    • On the same lists

    A father and son walk a burned-out America toward the sea, in McCarthy's bleak and beautiful end-of-the-world novel.

    robably one of the most depressing books I’ve read in my life. Oh yes, it’s well written, brilliant maybe, and all that. However, this book stripped all hope away and...

  11. The Steel Remains

    A Land Fit For Heroes book 1 Start here

    11. The Steel Remains

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same author

    An incredibly dark and gritty epic fantasy that embodies the reaction to shiny fantasy stories. It subverts most traditional fantasy tropes.

    This book is a thoroughly grimdark adventure, following a world-weary PTSD sufferer on his quest to save the world he doesn't much care for. It's messy, gross, intense, brooding and...

  12. The Cold Commands

    A Land Fit For Heroes book 2

    12. The Cold Commands

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same author

    NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Kirkus Reviews • Fantasy Book Critic “Pulpy and hard-core, but with a heart of gold.”—io9 The otherworldly Kiriath once used...

  13. The Cold Command

    A Land Fit For Heroes book 2

    13. The Cold Command

    by Morgan, Richard K.

    • Same author

    Morgan continues the riveting saga of Ringil Eskiath--Gil, for short--a peerless warrior whose love for other men has made him an outcast and pariah. Only a select few have earned...

  14. Dune

    Dune Chronicles book 1 Start here

    14. Dune

    by Herbert, Frank

    • On the same lists
    Hugo winner 1966

    The whole series over time shows the colonization and taming of the wild planet Dune over thousands of years.

    A blend of sci-fi and fantasy, Frank Herbert's Dune created a foundation for many of the themes in modern genre fiction. Its exploration of ecology, pacifism, and mysticism pairs with...

  15. The Fifth Sorceress

    15. The Fifth Sorceress

    by Newcomb, Robert

    • On the same lists

    This one falls under the "Terribly Written Books" categoryOh man, what can I say about this except that it's probably one of the worst written novels in the history of...

  16. Snow Crash

    16. Snow Crash

    by Stephenson, Neal

    • On the same lists

    Considered by some as a parody of Cyberpunk. This novel popularized and cemented its use of the term avatar to describe online virtual bodies

    Meet Hiro Protagonist: hacker, samurai swinging swordsman and pizza delivery boy. When his best friend dies of a brain fry and his ex girlfriend asks for his help, Hiro switches...

  17. Night's Dawn Saga (cover not available)

    17. Night's Dawn Saga

    by Iii, David R. George

    • On the same lists

    Book Flap Description  Space is not the only void... In AD 2600 the human race is finally beginning to realize its full potential. Hundreds of colonized planets scattered across the...

  18. Gap (cover not available)

    18. Gap

    by Donaldson, Stephen R.

    • On the same lists

    Book Flap Description  Author of The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant, one of the most acclaimed fantasy series of all time, master storyteller Stephen R. Donaldson retums with this exciting and...

  19. Foundation

    19. Foundation

    by Asimov, Isaac

    • On the same lists

    Some softer elements, like FTL and antigrav cars, but otherwise a rational series.

    Book Flap Description  One of the great masterworks of science fiction, the Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov are unsurpassed for their unique blend of nonstop action, daring ideas, and extensive...

  20. Gor

    20. Gor

    by Norman, John

    • On the same lists

    These belong to the "Controversial Books" category. A few people love them, but most hate the books -- mainly due to the author's strident views towards women.There's supposed to be...

  21. Black Company

    The Chronicles Of The Black Company book 1 Start here

    21. Black Company

    by Cook, Glen

    • On the same lists

    This epic fantasy series is quite a bit different from your standard fantasy fare. If you want an epic military fantasy series where good and bad are not so clearly...

  22. The Long Price Quartet

    22. The Long Price Quartet

    by Abraham, Daniel

    • On the same lists

    This is NOT your standard epic fantasy. But oh man, there's a lot to love about this one. If you want to take a much needed break from the standard...

  23. The Forever War (1976)

    The Forever War book 1 Start here

    23. The Forever War (1976)

    by Haldeman, Joe

    • On the same lists

    In this novel, time travel is a kind of side effect of space travel at near light speeds.

    William Mandella is a physics student drafted into an elite force to fight an alien enemy on the far side of the galaxy. Travel between the front lines takes a...

  24. Otherland

    Otherland book 1 Start here

    24. Otherland

    by Williams, Tad

    • On the same lists

    This one has been around for a long while now and pre-dates the whole LitRPG movement. However, as the premise of the story takes place partly in a massive, realistic...

  25. A Game Of Thrones

    A Song Of Ice And Fire book 1 Start here

    25. A Game Of Thrones

    by Martin, George R. R.

    • On the same lists

    Noble houses scheme for a throne while an ancient winter gathers in the north, the epic that made grimdark mainstream.

    Because, duh, it was going to be on here somewhere. I almost feel as if it isn't worth writing an entry on this one, because everyone knows it so well,...

  26. Perdido Street Station

    New Crobuzon book 1 Start here

    26. Perdido Street Station

    by Miéville, China

    • On the same lists

    The cycle blends multiple genres, including Steampunk, Sci Fi, and Horror. Magic is commonplace and practiced by skilled professionals.

    The famous (or infamous, depending how you view the New Weird movement) novel is generally considered one of the founding pillars of the New Weird genre. This novel meets many...

  27. Heroes Die

    The Acts Of Caine book 1 Start here

    27. Heroes Die

    by Stover, Matthew Woodring

    • On the same lists

    A novel about two worlds that blends Science Fiction and Fantasy. An action packed adventure filled with real danger, sorcery, and a complex social system.

    The Acts of Caine series takes adventure fantasy and drags it sixteen miles through the mud, and then tortures what's left. In a dystopian future, humanity has discovered a way...

  28. 1981: The Shadow Of The Torturer

    The Book Of The New Sun book 1 Start here

    28. 1981: The Shadow Of The Torturer

    by Wolfe, Gene

    • On the same lists

    The sun has dimmed, the Earth is cooler and has been transformed in wondrous ways.

    'The Shadow of the Torturer' is the first book in Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun tetralogy. Narrated by Severian, a member of the Guild of Torturers, the...

  29. Gormenghast

    Ghormenghast book 2

    29. Gormenghast

    by Peake, Mervyn

    • On the same lists

    The first real Fantasy of Manners series and is set in a Byzantium kingdom rife with intrigue, treachery, manipulation and murder.

    A startling work of imagination that will evoke feeling when you read it. Reading Gormenghast is like feasting your eyes on a masterfully drawn painting -- you might not always...

  30. Malazan Book Of The Fallen

    30. Malazan Book Of The Fallen

    by Erikson, Steven

    • On the same lists

    A grand and epic series with a huge cast of characters with epic battles, sieges, mages, and carnage.

    Steven Eriksen has been both lauded and criticized for his extreme detail, and that extends to his magic system. In Malazan, magic comes from warrens, a realm from which mages...

Matches come from series and authors, from the lists the books share, and from the books readers open together. They are rebuilt every night. Back to Altered Carbon.

The shortlist

Liked Altered Carbon? New releases and the lists readers are opening most, by email.