Universe

Books like Liaden: 9 series to read next

Liaden is science fiction and space opera, set in far future and other star systems, adventurous in register. The 9 series below are ranked by how much of that they share — each card says which parts.

Liaden is 133 books across 7 series, 1988–2026.

“Reckon carefully: in the Liaden Universe every kindness is a debt entered on the ledger, and every debt is balanced — sooner, or graciously.”
from the catalogue description

The Liaden page →Narrow this list →

CoDominium
Old Man's War
Known Space
Alliance-Union
Humanx Commonwealth
Vatta
The Final Architecture
Dune
Polity

CoDominiumUniverse

universe98 books1971

Science fiction and military science fiction, set in far future and other star systems.

“The body of work runs along a few hard threads rather than one line.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Old Man's WarSeries

seriesJohn Scalzi16 books2005

About war.

“Sign a document at 65, saying you intend to join up 10 years later.”
from the catalogue description
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Start with Old Man's War →

Known SpaceUniverse

universe142 books1964

Science fiction, about aliens, set in far future and space.

“Give a clever species a few centuries and a working fusion drive, and it will fill the sky with problems.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Alliance-UnionUniverse

universe173 books1976

Science fiction, set in far future.

“Around that spine cluster the merchanter novels of trader Families, the Faded Sun trilogy of human envoys among the martial alien Mri, and the Chanur books, narrated from the hierarchical, whiskered viewpoint of the hani.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Humanx CommonwealthUniverse

universe39 books1972

Science fiction, adventurous in tone, about aliens, set in far future and other star systems.

“Two species that ought, by every buried instinct, to recoil from one another instead clasp hand to truhand and build a galaxy together.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

VattaUniverse

universe10 books2003

Science fiction and space opera, adventurous and tense in tone, set in far future and space.

“Get kicked out of the Academy and the family still hands you a ship.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

The Final ArchitectureSeries

seriesAdrian Tchaikovsky6 books2021

About war.

“Eighty years ago, Earth was destroyed by an alien 'Architect'.”
from the catalogue description of Shards of Earth
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Start with Shards of Earth →

DuneUniverse

universe78 books1963

Science fiction and space opera, about political intrigue, set in far future and other star systems.

“The desert planet, where empire runs on a single substance: the spice melange, which folds space, prolongs life, and unlocks prescience, and which exists nowhere else in the known universe.”
from the catalogue description

Start with Dune →

PolityUniverse

universe72 books1992

Science fiction and space opera, set in far future and other star systems.

“The Quiet War is already over by the time you arrive.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Why these

No sales rank, no star ratings, no readers also bought.

Shared terms are not a promise that a book feels the same. Two series can be far-future political intrigue and read nothing alike — what the ranking can say is what they are about, and each card says which parts it shares.

Questions readers ask

What should I read after Liaden?: CoDominium — the closest match to Liaden on what it is about, not on what sells.
How big is Liaden?: Liaden is 133 books across 7 series, 1988–2026.

Books like Liaden: 9 series to read next

Read next in Liaden

Why these

Questions readers ask

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