The best new science-fiction novels published in July 2026

I am on holiday later this month, so I’m pleased to find there’s a really wide range of intriguing new science fiction to take with me. I’m particularly keen to get cracking on a tale by Sheila Armstrong about strange ancient things found in a bog, but I’m also excited to read a new book by one of my favourite authors, Paul Tremblay (even if it does sound very disturbing). And I’m looking forward to the high-concept thrillers and classic space-set sci-fi on offer, too – not forgetting the first new Red Dwarf novel released in 30 years. Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun sun.

This sounds a little Severance-like and ideal summer reading for those of us who enjoy a good high-concept thriller. It’s set in a near future where you can outsource your emotional pain thanks to a biotech company, Eudaimonia. Sounds good, right? You can get rid of your unwanted negative emotions. But the price is paid by a “Carrier” – a woman who is paid to take on your pain. When Viv goes to work for Eudaimonia, she discovers even darker secrets.

I’m super excited about this one. I’ve loved Paul Tremblay ever since I read the absolutely terrifying Shirley Jackson-inflected A Head Full of Ghosts. This time Tremblay has written a piece of AI horror, set in a near future where former professional gamer Julia is offered a temporary job escorting a man in a vegetative state from California to the East Coast. Why is the man in this state? Because he has an AI mind implanted in his head – and he is trapped in a strange and morphing hellscape he can’t escape. Loved the great riff on Philip K. Dick in the title.

Earth 7 by Deb Olin Unferth

Set at “the end of the world as we know it”, as its publisher writes, this follows two women who fall in love – one of them raised in a research pod deep in the ocean, and the other who works in a luxury resort as a bartender (but who may also be a robot). Together, they try to “salvage some trace of planet Earth” as it slowly disappears.

Ellis feels something is missing from his seemingly perfect life, so he sets out for the hedonistic world of Planet Happy. Nara is the attendant tasked with ensuring that Ellis will indeed find happiness on his trip, but activists disrupt the visit, and they set out on an adventure together.

I have this on my bedside table ready to read when I get a minute – it’s the book I’m most looking forward to in July. It follows a dog’s uncovering of a strange antler in a restored bog, which leads to the discovery that the peat is an ancient dying ground of the Great Irish Elk. These aren’t the first things to be found in the bog. Archaeologists have already discovered prehistoric settlements and the mutilated body of a woman, 2,000 years old. And the deep time of the bog seems to have a sinister influence over the lives of those who have been touched by it.

Azad is a fugitive, hunted by the Vitruvian Authorities after he exposed his home planet’s dark secrets. If he really wants to spark rebellion, Azad needs the help of a space pirate with her own agenda – and they must revisit the past.

Red Dwarf: Titan by Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall

The first new Red Dwarf novel in 30 years is a prequel, written by co-creator Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall, creator of the sitcom 2point4Children. It sees the mining ship Red Dwarf orbiting Saturn’s moon Titan, with the crew – including Lister and Rimmer – all planning their latest shore leave. (Lister, interestingly, is planning to find a cat to smuggle back on board…). But everyone’s plans go awry when a cryptic message from the future arrives.

Thorns by Gregory Bastianelli

A blend of science fiction and horror, this follows a doctor, Monica Cucinotta, working in an Italian hospital on the frontlines of a deadly virus which causes thorns to erupt on the bodies of its victims. When she is infected , she has to leave the hospital and travel across a devastated world to get back to her loved ones.

This sounds terrifying – and pleasingly Handmaid’s Tale-ish. It’s set in a version of Great Britain ruled by the Hope Party, where a series of new laws have made a swathe of changes, including a rewilding of the countryside, and a prioritisation of children’s rights. But fertility is constantly monitored, and abortion and contraception are banned. Kate is is too scared to say anything against these new norms, but is forced to take action when her daughter becomes pregnant.

I like the look of this piece of cosy science fiction, in which Torian acquires an ancient and abandoned starship covered in moss. But when Torian sets out on board, keen to get away from her overbearing ex-captain (and ex) Amelia, she discovers that the moss is in fact Moss, the ship’s organic computer, and it has a mind of its own.

This sounds rather silly but also fun. It follows game developer Hal, who has been working for years on “the most anticipated video game of all time”, in which players enter a fully immersive virtual reality where they can live their fantasies. Hal needs to do a final test off the record to see if he can genuinely achieve total immersion, so tries it out on his family – only to discover they can’t escape from the game. So, he goes in to save them and bring them back to reality.

Air by Christian Kracht, translated by Daniel Bowles

Kracht has previously been shortlisted for the International Booker prize; now, his publisher is comparing his latest to Ursula K. Le Guin and Jorge Luis Borges. It tells the story of a designer, Paul, who is walking through the corridors of a server farm in Norway – until he vanishes in a blackout. Meanwhile, in another time and place, a man wakes up in a forest, and a young girl helps him to an icy settlement. This sounds really intriguing.

Fervor by Meg Smitherman

A gothic sci-fi novella in which interplanetary transporter Midonia is given the job of flying Sister Irena to a planet where the people worship a deity known as Anguish. But when their ship is grounded by a solar flare, Midonia is stuck on the planet, where a strange voice starts invading her mind at night.

We’re promised both romance and sci-fi in this tale about junior supply officer Levar, who is called upon to serve as a diplomat in peace talks because he once dated an Imperial baroness. Then he discovers that a former lover, Astrid, is actually the Demon Emperor, and their feelings for each other are still very much present.

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