15 great fantasy and science fiction books from 2020 you may have missed

4. Nophek Gloss by Essa Hansen

What’s that you say? You like your sci-fi to be imaginative, with mind-blowing ways of looking at the universe, countless different kinds of aliens and infinite possibilities?

Reader, Nophek Gloss is a book for you. Here’s the back-of-the-book description:

"Caiden’s planet is destroyed. His family gone. And, his only hope for survival is a crew of misfit aliens and a mysterious ship that seems to have a soul and a universe of its own. Together they will show him that the universe is much bigger, much more advanced, and much more mysterious than Caiden had ever imagined. But the universe hides dangers as well, and soon Caiden has his own plans. He vows to do anything it takes to get revenge on the slavers who murdered his people and took away his home. To destroy their regime, he must infiltrate and dismantle them from the inside, or die trying."

Nophek Gloss is the first book of author Essa Hansen’s The Graven trilogy, and it doesn’t take very long for things to kick off. Within the first few chapters, the story’s young protagonist Caiden is put through an incredibly traumatic experience that soon sets him on a path of revenge. I won’t say much here for the sake of spoilers, but it involves huge, bestial creatures called Nophek that have a gemstone in their brains which can be harvested and used for fuel. It’s one of the most valued substances in the universe.

That’s the tiniest glimpse of the glorious weirdness that is Nophek Gloss. It’s not a hard science fiction book, per se, though there’s plenty of science included. Instead, Nophek Gloss has the kind of boundless imagination you’d hope to find in a space opera, where you never know what fascinating turn lies ahead, making it the kind of book that can easily keep a reader guessing. It also features a strong found family element as Caiden gets to know the various alien and human members of his crew, including the traumas that have set each of them on this journey. And it tackles ideas like gender identity superbly well and thoughtfully, as well as including neurodivergent characters. It’s a super unique read; there’s just nothing else out there quite like it.

The next book in The Graven trilogy, Azura Ghost, is due out on February 1st, 2022.