When today’s top science-fiction and fantasy authors look for inspiration, they turn to the classics. We continue reading those same books (year after year) because they stand the test of time. For a limited time, you can download these beloved science fiction and fantasy books for free!
Herland
Three students of sociology journey into an uncharted region of South America to put to rest the rumors that an all-female civilization lives there. Impossible, they tell themselves: How would such a society reproduce? And even if they magically overcame that obstacle, women certainly could not survive in the middle of the jungle without men to protect them and tell them what to do.
Not only does an all-female village exist, it is one of the most advanced civilizations on record. The women are strong and kind, pragmatic and creative, wise and happy. They have two thousand years’ worth of remarkable history. As the three explorers learn how Herland came to be, they start to question everything they thought they knew about “the fairer sex.”
With its groundbreaking blend of science fiction and feminism, Herland paved the way for authors such as Margaret Atwood and Octavia E. Butler.
Journey to the Center of the Earth
A dirty slip of parchment falls from the pages of an ancient manuscript. Deciphered by the indefatigable Otto Liedenbrock, professor of geology, and his reluctant nephew, Axel, the parchment’s coded message is a wild assertion made by a medieval alchemist: Inside a volcano in Iceland is a passageway to the center of the earth. Impossible, says Axel—the temperature of the earth’s core is far too high for any human being to go near it. That is one theory, the professor replies. Two days later, they embark on a journey so fantastic it will alter the very meaning of history.
First published in 1864, Journey to the Center of the Earth is a cornerstone of science fiction and one of the greatest stories ever told. This ebook edition contains the classic Ward Lock & Co. translation of 1877, one of the first English-language versions faithful to the original French.
The Worm Ouroboros
With the arrival of a Witchland envoy making demands of Demonland’s chief lords, peace between the two lands is irrevocably shattered. The chief lords Juss and Spitfire send their brother Goldry to defeat the witch king. Though he is initially victorious, Goldry ultimately gets captured, leaving it up to his brothers to rescue him. So begins a fantasy adventure whose influence has endured for nearly a century.
The Worm Ouroboros is an undisputed classic of fantasy literature, and has been an avowed influence on the likes of J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, and Ursula K. Le Guin. Entirely immersive and written in near-Elizabethan tongue, the novel takes readers on an unforgettable ride across the plane of Mercury, flanked by soaring hippogriffs, with an unforgettable finish that impresses as much now as it did nearly a century ago.
Ghost Stories of an Antiquary
Set at the end of the twenty-first century, The Last Man is a moving and fantastical account of the apocalypse. Faced with a populace clamoring for more democratic rule, the last king of England relinquishes his throne. Suddenly a mysterious plague sweeps the globe, drawing ever nearer to England. As war, disease, and death ravage humanity, ideals of fairness and love are quickly supplanted by the imperative of survival.
With semibiographical characters drawn from Shelley’s own inner circle of friends and colleagues, this book is at once a look at the end of mankind and a critique of Romanticism. The Last Man’s themes of destruction resonate as much now as they did nearly two hundred years ago.
