Series

Books like RCN: 9 series to read next

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

RCN is 15 books, 1998–2019.

“David Drake's RCN series follows Daniel Leary, an officer in the Republic of Cinnabar Navy, and Adele Mundy, a librarian who moonlights as a spy, across a run of standalone-but-connected novels beginning with With the Lightnings.”
from the catalogue description

The RCN page →Narrow this list →

Vatta
Honorverse
Janissaries
Old Man's War
Sten
Familias Regnant
CoDominium
Conquerors
Alliance-Union

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 →

HonorverseUniverse

universe83 books1993

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

“At the center stands one officer, Honor Harrington — captain, then something far larger — and the six-limbed empathic treecat who rides her shoulder.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

JanissariesSeries

seriesJerry Pournelle, Roland J. Green, David Weber & Phillip Pournelle4 books1979

Science fiction and military science fiction, adventurous and tense in tone, about war and political intrigue, set in far future and other star systems.

“Janissaries are an American series of military and political-based science fiction novels are set in an interstellar confederation of races, in which humans are a slave race entrusted with military affairs and law enforcement.”
from the catalogue description
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Start with Janissaries →

Old Man's WarSeries

seriesJohn Scalzi16 books2005

Science fiction and military science fiction, adventurous in tone, about war, set in far future and space.

“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 →

StenSeries

seriesAllan Cole & Chris Bunch11 books1982

Science fiction and space opera, adventurous in tone, about war and political intrigue, set in far future and space.

“The Sten Chronicles, also called The Sten Adventures, are a series of eight military science fiction and space opera novels by Chris Bunch and Allan Cole published from 1982 to 1993.”
from the catalogue description
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Start with Sten →

Familias RegnantUniverse

universe7 books1993

Science fiction and space opera, tense and adventurous in tone, about war and political intrigue, set in far future and space.

“A cashiered officer takes the only berth left to her — captain of a rich old woman's pleasure yacht — and finds that private luxury, in the Familias Regnant, is never far from treason, piracy, and a war the Fleet would rather not name.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

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 →

ConquerorsSeries

seriesTimothy Zahn3 books1994

First contact, about aliens.

“Zahn alternates perspective between the human and alien chains of command, using the shifting viewpoints to slowly unpick why the conflict started in the first place.”
from the catalogue description

Start with Conquerors' Pride →

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 →

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 RCN?: Vatta — the closest match to RCN on what it is about, not on what sells.
Where do I start with RCN?: With the Lightnings. It is the entry the catalogue recommends for RCN.
How big is RCN?: RCN is 15 books, 1998–2019.
Is RCN finished?: Yes — 15 books, 1998–2019.

Books like RCN: 9 series to read next

Read next in RCN

Why these

Questions readers ask

Other series like this one