Literary Fiction – Free & Bargain Priced!
Sci Fi stories have a unique place in the world of fiction. They contain all the imaginative elements that all fiction contains, and requires – but they have one element that none others have. And that one element elevates them, in some people’s minds, to a higher status of creativity – to the status of prediction, of prophecy, and of creative theoretical science itself. The best science fiction books do more than simply spin a yarn (although there are very many great story tellers in the sci fi book world) – they stretch, imaginatively, into scientific knowledge as it stands today and imagines where that knowledge may take us tomorrow. And then they make it human – and, therefore, ‘real’.
What will I find in a ‘Literary Fiction’ Book?
Fantasy Novels contain unrealistic settings, or magic, and are often set in a medieval universe, or involve mythical or magical beings as a primary element of the plot, theme, or setting. Magic is a mainstay of fantasy, in the setting or plot, or being practiced by the characters. Fantasy stories are closely related to fairy stories and couldn’t happen in real life.
Some examples of books you’ll find in this category, are: J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings; T.H. White’s The Once and Future King; George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones…
Back in 1953, in what was still the early days of the Science Fiction genre, the great sci fi author Isaac Asimov defined it as “that branch of literature which is concerned with the impact of scientific advance upon human beings”. It is a branch of literature which has grown exponentially, hand-in-hand with the growth of human advances in science and technology and, by the 1970s its purpose, as evidenced in the new style of writing that had developed, had matured into one which wasn’t only concerned with science, but with consequences of scientific and technological advancement. Sci fi author Pamela Sargent then defined it as “the literature of ideas.”
But even that definition doesn’t go far enough. ‘Ideas’ and ‘consequences of ideas’ are now, almost too-limited a way of looking at what science fiction has become. Not only do authors project the advancement of science into the future and calculate the consequences – they assess, in advance, the moral consequences of these advances. They seek to pre-empt the kind of philosophical, moral and ethical issues that might ensue, and consider how to react. Or how our philosophical reasoning might also advance, along with technologies. As such, the best science fiction books are works of the philosophy of technology, and ethics. As new scientists, studying at university, have their work and theories swayed by the latest sci fi novel they read – so, philosophers may find themselves re-reading the self-same novels to obtain a head-start on the new frontiers of philosophy.
But not all science fiction is heavy with tech and theses on the human condition! There is something for everyone in this wide and deep genre of ideas. For pure action and adventure enthusiasts, thriller aficionados, and those wishing to, simply, be entertained – there are books and authors a plenty to go around. And you can start by looking in our list of books below…
One of the Great Classics of Literary Fiction Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
A Modern Classic of Literary Fiction: Black Swan by David Mitchell
These are our most recent Literary Fiction books, at cut-priced deals – scroll down the page for more…
Our Latest Literary Fiction Book Deals!
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David Mitchell and Neil Gaiman talk books!
Two bestselling contemporary authors, Neil Gaiman and David Mitchell, on stage together For their ever first meeting. Topics from the audience vary from philosophy and politics, to which tree they most identify with. If you like either author, or simply enjoy hearing authors discuss books, buckle in for an hour and a quarter of priceless discussion and readings. (Chaired by Erica Wagner, literary editor of The Times.)
Want to find even more Bestselling books? Take a look at our other non-fiction and reference categories:
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White Noise
A brilliant satire of mass culture and the numbing effects of technology, White Noise tells the story of Jack Gladney, a teacher of Hitler studies at a liberal arts college in Middle America. Jack and his fourth wife, Babette, bound by their love, fear of death, and...
The Collected Stories of Richard Yates
A literary event of the highest order, The Collected Stories of Richard Yates brings together Yates's peerless short fiction in a single volume for the first time. Richard Yates was acclaimed as one of the most powerful, compassionate, and technically accomplished...
Two Rivers
“Ripe with surprising twists and heart-breakingly real characters . . . a remarkable and complex look at race and forgiveness in small-town America.” —Michelle Richmond, New York Times–bestselling author In Two Rivers, Vermont, Harper Montgomery is living a life...
Catherine House
“[A] delicious literary Gothic debut.” –THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, EDITORS' CHOICE “Moody and evocative as a fever dream, Catherine House is the sort of book that wraps itself around your brain, drawing you closer with each hypnotic step.” – THE WASHINGTON POST A...
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
A PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick The beloved American classic about a young girl's coming-of-age at the turn of the twentieth century. From the moment she entered the world, Francie Nolan needed to be made of stern stuff, for the often harsh life of Williamsburg...
The Disaster Tourist
This stunning “dystopian feminist eco-thriller” from an award-winning South Korean author “takes on climate change, sexual assault, greed, and dark tourism” (Ms. Magazine). Welcome to the desert island of Mui, where a paid vacation to paradise is nothing short of a...
A Thousand Acres
PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A "powerful and poignant" twentieth-century reimagining of Shakespeare’s King Lear (The New York Times Book Review) that takes on themes of truth, justice, love, and pride—and centers on a wealthy Iowa farmer who decides...
Severance
Maybe it’s the end of the world, but not for Candace Chen, a millennial, first-generation American and office drone meandering her way into adulthood in Ling Ma’s offbeat, wryly funny, apocalyptic satire, Severance. "A stunning, audacious book with a fresh take on...
East of Eden
A masterpiece of Biblical scope, and the magnum opus of one of America’s most enduring authors, in a commemorative hardcover edition In his journal, Nobel Prize winner John Steinbeck called East of Eden "the first book," and indeed it has the primordial power and...
A Thread Unbroken
Chai and Josi share a bond that transcends ordinary friendship. While Chai has always been Josi’s protector—ever since they were toddlers, growing up together in a small Chinese village—she finds herself helpless when they are both abducted from their families and...
The Last Detail
Unlike other branches of the armed services, the Navy draws it police force from the ranks, as temporary duty called Shore Patrol. In this funny, bawdy, moving novel set during the height of the Vietnam War, two career sailors in transit in Norfolk, Virginia—Billy...
The Famished Road
Winner of the Man Booker Prize: “Okri shares with Garc í a M á rquez a vision of the world as one of infinite possibility. . . . A masterpiece” ( The Boston Sunday Globe ). Azaro is a spirit child, an abiku, existing, according to the African tradition, between life...
The Days of Abandonment
From the New York Times–bestselling author of My Brilliant Friend, this novel of a deserted wife’s descent into despair—and rage—is “a masterpiece” (The Philadelphia Inquirer). The Days of Abandonment is the gripping story of an Italian woman’s experiences after...
The History of the Siege of Lisbon
A proofreader realizes his power to edit the truth on a whim, in a “brilliantly original” novel by a Nobel Prize winner (Los Angeles Times Book Review). Raimundo Silva is a middle-aged, celibate clerk, proofing manuscripts for a respectable publishing house. Fluent...
The All of It
JeannetteHaien’s award-winning first novel relates the seemingly simple tale of a parishioner confiding in her priest, but the tangled confession brings secrets to light that provoke a moral quandary for not only the clergyman, but the reader as well. Set in a small...
Desperate Characters
One of the New York Times' 25 Most Significant New York City Novels From the Last 100 Years "A towering landmark of postwar Realism…A sustained work of prose so lucid and fine it seems less written than carved." —David Foster Wallace Otto and Sophie Bentwood live in a...
The Water-Method Man
“John Irving, it is abundantly clear, is a true artist.”—Los Angeles Times Fred "Bogus" Trumper has troubles. A divorced, broke graduate student of Old Norse in 1970s New York, Trumper is a wayward knight-errant in the battle of the sexes and the pursuit of...
The Other Mother
An "extraordinary" page-turning generational saga about a young man's search for a parent he never knew, and a moving portrait of motherhood, race, and the truths we hide in the name of family (Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple) Jenry...
Little Women
The beautiful 150th anniversary edition of Louisa May Alcott's classic tale of the four March sisters, featuring new illustrations and an introduction by New York Times bestselling author J. Courtney Sullivan For generations, children around the world have come of age...
Give My Love to the Savages
“A harrowing portrait of race relations in America, as beautiful as it is urgent.”—Entertainment Weekly “Black satire with bite, like Zora Neale Hurston used to do, with a smile and a sharp elbow. A touch of Paul Beatty, a dose of Dolemite, and a serving of Dorothy...
The Sufferings of Young Werther
"A highly readable, sensitive, and lively Werther. Corngold is both faithful to the German and true to the demands of a modern English text" —Jeremy Adler, Times Literary Supplement A masterpiece of European imagination, The Sufferings of Young Werther is the classic...
The Black Prince
Bradley Pearson, an unsuccessful novelist in his late fifties, has finally left his dull office job as an Inspector of Taxes. Bradley hopes to retire to the country, but predatory friends and relations dash his hopes of a peaceful retirement. He is tormented by his...
Innocence
“A delectable comedy of manners” set in 1950s Florence, by the Man Booker Prize–winning author of The Bookshop (The Boston Globe). It’s 1955, and Italy is still struggling a decade after the end of World War II. So are the Ridolfis, a Florentine family of long and...
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
The New York Times bestselling author of The Jane Austen Book Club introduces a middle-class American family that is ordinary in every way but one in this novel that won the PEN/Faulkner Award and was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize. Meet the Cooke family:...
Euphoria
A New York Times BestsellerWinner of the 2014 Kirkus PrizeWinner of the 2014 New England Book Award for FictionA Finalist for the National Book Critics Circle AwardA Best Book of the Year for: New York Times Book Review , Time , NPR, Washington Post , Entertainment...
Filthy Animals
INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE STORY PRIZE SHORTLISTED FOR THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY USA TODAY , NPR, VULTURE , MARIE CLAIRE , THE TIMES OF LONDON , GOOD HOUSEKEEPING , AND PUBLISHERS WEEKLY A group portrait of young adults...
Us
Now a PBS Masterpiece television miniseries starring Tom Hollander and Saskia Reeves “I loved this book. Funny, sad, tender: for anyone who wants to know what happens after the Happy Ever After.” — Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You David Nicholls brings the wit and...
Black Narcissus
Five nuns confront nature—physical and human—in a remote Himalayan convent in the bestselling novel that inspired the new FX miniseries. Under the guidance of Sister Clodagh, the youngest Mother Superior in the history of their order, five European Sisters of the...
News from Heaven
In News from Heaven, Jennifer Haigh—bestselling author of Faith and The Condition—returns to the territory of her acclaimed novel Baker Towers with a collection of short stories set in and around the fictionalized coal-mining town of Bakerton, Pennsylvania. Exploring...
My Evil Mother
A #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestseller. A bittersweet short story about mothers, daughters, and the witches’ brew of love—and control—that binds them, by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments. Life is hard...
What’s Left Unsaid
An enthralling novel of secrets, second chances, and confronting the past by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of When I’m Gone. After a series of devastating losses, Chicago journalist Hannah Williamson has landed in Senatobia, Mississippi, to care for her...
The Lions of Fifth Avenue
A Good Morning America Book Club Pick and a New York Times bestseller ! “A page-turner for booklovers everywhere! . . . A story of family ties, their lost dreams, and the redemption that comes from discovering truth.”—Adriana Trigiani, bestselling author of The...
Carnegie’s Maid
The USA Today Bestseller From the bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room comes a mesmerizing tale of historical fiction that asks what kind of woman could have inspired an American dynasty. Clara Kelley is not who they think she is. She's not the experienced...
The Best Girls
Inspired by a true event, this powerful short story from the author of National Book Award finalist Pachinko explores the meaning of patriarchy and the cost of female silence through the eyes of a dutiful young girl. An excellent student from a poor, traditional...
In the Company of Men
WINNER OF THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE Harper’s Bazaar : Best Book of the Year Boston Globe : Best Book of the Year Ms. Magazine : Best Feminist Book of the Year Words Without Borders: Best Translated Book of the Year Drawing on real accounts of the Ebola...
Ancestor Stones
From the award-winning author: A “wonderfully ambitious” novel of West Africa, told through the struggles and dreams of four extraordinary women (The Guardian). When a cousin offers Abie her family’s plantation in the West African village of Rofathane in Sierra...
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