Starship Troopers is an amazing sci-fi written by Robert A. Heinlein. When I personally read it, I thought the world building was spectacular. Not only this story provides interesting takes on life, theology, and politics, but it also provokes our thoughts and leaves us pondering.
Readings such a thought-provoking book is surely a delight. Hence, here are eleven more sci-fi books that will do the same job as Starship Trooper. If you liked Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein, then check out the following titles.
Sci-Fi Books Like Starship Troopers
01# Armor
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- Author: John Steakley
- Genre: Science Fiction, Military Science Fiction
John Steakley’s Armor has all the elements that fans have seen and loved in Starship Troopers. This book has space marines with special armors that turn them into powerful atomic beings. These marines are always locked up for endless battles.
The main character of this book is Felix. He is a scout who ends up as the sole survivor of this mission. Just like Starship Wars, this novel is brutally honest with its portrayal of war and its political hypocrisy.
Hence, if you liked Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein, then you will also like John Steakly’s Armor.
02# One Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses
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- Author: Lucy Corin
- Genre: Apocalyptic Fiction
Did not get enough of the apocalyptic events of Starship Troopers? Here is the perfect substitute for you. In this collection of short stories, author Lucy Corin imagines a hundred different ways that could possibly end the world.
With some stories being a few pages and some being just a few lines, this collection will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat. Some stories show what can bring forth the actual destruction of the world. While some just focus on personal losses.
That is, the ways of the ending of the world can have multiple faces as described in history. If you liked the Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein, then you should read One Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses by Lucy Corin next.
03# Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
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- Author: Douglas Adams
- Genre: Science Fiction, Humor, Mystery, Comedy, Fantasy Fiction
If you are looking for a book that carries similar whimsical prose Starship Troopers, then not trying Douglas Adam’s Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency will be a huge miss.
The plot of the book is as bizarre as of Starship Troopers. It centers around a murders that involves a 200 year old ghost, a dead cat, and the Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge. This is where Dirk Gently enters, who plays the role of chief investigator of this complicated case.
The story telling of this book gets weirder as every page and it will definitely keep you hooked. So, if you liked the Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein, then you should give Douglas Adam’s Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency a good try.
04# The Diamond Age
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- Author: Neal Stephenson
- Genre: Science Fiction, Nanopunk
The Diamond Age is a beautiful story telling by Neal Stephenson. This book is one of a kind because it will make you nostalgic for a place that somehow exists in the future. The stunning multi fractioned city of Shanghai resembles the action packed city of Starship Troopers.
Stephenson’s vivid description of the city lights and the dim valleys makes the book an adventure to read. Also the combination of futuristic technology with a Victorian society is portrayed exceptionally well.
If you liked the soft science fiction book Starship Troopers, then you will also love The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson.
05# Xenocide
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- Author: Orson Scott Card
- Genre: Science Fiction, Nanopunk
Xenocide, published in 1991, is a science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. It is also the third book in the Ender’s Game series. This book is set on Lusitania where human beings, creatures called “pequeninos”, and the Hive Queen can live side by side.
However, in Lusitania also resides a deadly virus that kills everyone except the pequeninos. These creatures require the virus to mature into adulthood. However, as the majority of Lusitania is affected by the virus, they decide to destroy the place. Hence, Xenocide is inevitable.
If you liked the science fiction book Starship Troppers, then you will also love Xenocide by Orson Scott Card.
06# Angelmaker
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- Author: Nick Harkaway
- Genre: Science Fiction, Thriller, Humor, Spy Fiction, Adventure Fiction, Suspense, Fantasy Fiction
If you liked Starship Troopers, then you will also feel interested to read this one by Nick Harkaway. It is because, this story also has a similar concept of good vs. evil that leads to great plot twists and actions.
As cherry on top, there are references to doomsday weapons, witty banter, and gruesome monsters all over this story. Also, if you are a fan of Jujutsu, then all thanks to Harkway’s writing style, you will be able to visualize them vividly as you read the story.
So, if you liked Robert A. Heinlein’s mystery and sci-fi themes in Starship Troopers, then you will also like Nick Harkaway’s Angelmaker.
07# The Automatic Detective
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- Author: A Lee Martinez
- Genre: Science Fiction, Mystery
If you would like to check out a blend of mystery with a semi science fiction, just like Starship Troopers, then this book is just for you. It is also worth giving a read because a mixture of science fiction and humor is quite rare and A Lee Martinez does a great job at it.
This book has striking similarities with Robert A. Heinlein’s mystery and sci-fi Starship Troopers. Both of these books have great narratives that will keep you hooked till the end. Also, the character build up is also very strong that does not seem forceful. Lastly, both have complex and farfetched plots.
Hence, if you liked Robert A. Heinlein’s mystery and sci-fi Starship Troopers, then you will also like A Lee Martinez’s The Automatic Detective.
08# Machine of Death
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- Authors: Matthew Bennardo, Ryan North, David Malki, Camille Alexa, Yahtzee Croshaw, Randall Munroe, Brian Quinlan.
- Genre: Science Fiction, Short Story Collection
Based on a quirky comic, this book is a collection of around hundreds of short stories. The basic premise of the book is this: like a fortune teller, a machine lets you know how you will embrace death.
What makes this book wholesome is that, each story begins with a cute drawing that somehow relates to the actual story. Also, the reaction of the characters when they find out the way they will die is also very eerie.
Overall a very dark and gloomy book, Machine of Death is a great pick if you are looking for similar books like Starship Troopers.
09# 1984
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- Author: George Orwell
- Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian Fiction, Social Science Fiction, Political Fiction.
George Orwell’s 1984 is a legendary classic political fiction. This masterpiece deserves the top place in this list. It is because it has the most common themes with Starship Troopers.
1984 takes place in a dystopian London (renamed as Oceania). The citizens of this place are under constant monitoring of the totalitarian government. This means, the common people hardly have any freedom.
The main character of this book is Winston, who gradually begins to question the role of “Big Brother” of Oceania. And it is with his imprisonment, we learn about the actual cruelty of the Big Brother.
This novel explores themes like – influence of individualism, adventures, risk taking, free will, etc. If you liked Starship Troopers, then you will also like this political fiction by George Orwell.
10# Never Let Me Go
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- Author: Kazuo Ishiguro
- Genre: Science Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Thriller, Psychological Fiction
Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go is quite a popular book to miss out on, if you are looking for books similar to Starship Troopers. In this story, there are no such things as cancer or deadly diseases. Here, human beings are living the longest life away from the threats of illness.
The main protagonist of the book is Kathy H. Throughout the book we follow her coming out of her age in her school. However, it soon becomes apparent that something more bizarre is hiding underneath the simple coming of age story.
Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go is not as hardcore sci-fi as the rest of the books in this list. Yet, it is very much similar to Starship Troopers when it comes to teaching an important lesson about humanity and time.
11# The Awakening: Fate in Motion
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- Author: Suzanne Boisvert
- Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy
Science fiction and fantasy when combined together can produce amazing work of art. Suzanne Boisvert’s The Awakening is such an example. The book is eerie with a lurking darkness throughout the book. You feel the presence of something ominous but do not know what.
The book surrounds the presence of an evil force that was banished from the earth years ago. But now, it is on its way to get back and destroy everything. The name of this evil force is Sar. He wants to get back to reclaim his lost love as well as take revenge for his banishment.
This book is a great read with plenty of plot twists and world building that are much likeable. If you liked the Starship Troopers, then you will also like The Awakening by Suzanne Boisvert.
Final Thoughts:
Even if fictional, reading military fictions can prove to be really pivotal for the betterment of the world. That is because, they will show us several possibilities of ways that could harm our world. So, reading these books and understanding the writing can help you in ways that you perhaps cannot imagine.
Hence, reading books like Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein is highly recommended as they all talk about situations that could harm our current discipline. So, which book from this list will you read first?
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