Dust
(Libby/OverDrive eBook, Kindle)

These SF series unfold in post-apocalyptic futures where humanity huddles in locked-down, dystopian communities to avoid deadly external toxins. Compelling, well-realized characters endure grim, bizarre daily lives while discovering forbidden secrets from the past. Pure's tone is slightly more optimistic. -- Kim Burton

These series have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the genre "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "nanotechnology," and "post-apocalypse"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These series have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the themes "rise of the machines" and "climate change apocalypse"; the genres "science fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "nanotechnology," "artificial intelligence," and "imaginary wars and battles"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These series have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "science fiction"; and the subjects "dystopias," "revolutions," and "insurgency."

These series have the appeal factors world-building, and they have the theme "band of survivors"; the genres "science fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "nanotechnology," and "post-apocalypse"; and characters that are "sympathetic characters."

These series have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the genre "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias" and "post-apocalypse"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These series have the appeal factors action-packed, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "science fiction"; and the subjects "dystopias," "revolutions," and "revolutionaries."

These series have the appeal factors world-building, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; and the subjects "dystopias," "underground areas," and "civilization, subterranean."

These series have the appeal factors action-packed and world-building, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "science fiction"; the subject "dystopias"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

Readers need not have a science background to appreciate the compelling, fast-paced, richly detailed science fiction stories of Michael Crichton and Hugh Howey. Both authors make imaginative scenarios centering on futuristic technologies seem completely plausible. Crichton's stories take place on familiar territory while Howey's are set in different worlds. -- Alicia Cavitt

Hugh Howey and Isaac Asimov write fast-paced, plot-driven, and thought-provoking science fiction. Their imaginative world-building incorporates advancements in artificial intelligence and technology and shows humans of the far future inhabiting colonies in space or living in subterranean structures on Earth. -- Alicia Cavitt

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors cinematic, world-building, and multiple perspectives, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "deserts"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors evocative, world-building, and richly detailed, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; and the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "near future."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building, and they have the genres "dystopian fiction" and "apocalyptic fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building and intricately plotted, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building, leisurely paced, and intricately plotted, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors evocative, world-building, and multiple perspectives, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world"; and characters that are "well-developed characters."

These authors' works have the appeal factors world-building, strong sense of place, and atmospheric, and they have the genres "science fiction" and "dystopian fiction"; and the subjects "dystopias," "post-apocalypse," and "end of the world."