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!
The Wonder
Born to a famous cricket player, Victor Stott is a giant-headed, awkward boy who never cries or says a word. At first, he is branded an idiot, but as he grows up it becomes apparent that Victor possesses a superior intelligence. He can master any language, memorize entire libraries—perhaps even control people with his mind. As word of his otherworldly gifts spreads, so too do fears of what he might be capable of.
First published in 1911 and considered to be the first novel about a superman, The Wonder is a masterpiece of speculative fiction and a compelling portrait of what it means to be extraordinary.
A Honeymoon in Space
Lenox, the Earl of Redgrave, has made the greatest scientific discovery in the history of the world: a flying ship with the power to break free of Earth’s gravity and take to the stars. But before he uses it to expand humanity’s understanding of the universe, he has some personal business to attend to—namely, wooing an old flame.
The lady in question is Zaidie, the daughter of Lenox’s colleague Professor Rennick. With Zaidie about to be forced into a loveless marriage, Lenox knows he must do something drastic. He steals her away and takes her out of this world—literally. Griffith’s accounts of other planets are spectacularly engaging—from subterranean civilizations on the moon to the warlike Martians to the musical inhabitants of Venus. This remarkable adventure makes for a memorable honeymoon indeed.
The Necromancers
Following the death of his fiancée, Laurie Baxter becomes consumed by an obsession with the supernatural. Attempting to reach his deceased bride, he attends rituals and séances, delving ever deeper into the dark embrace of the occult. But instead of reconnecting with his lost love, Laurie is brought into contact with forces far more sinister.
Written by a Catholic priest, The Necromancers is a chilling warning against dabbling in the dark arts.
The War in the Air
In 1907, young Bert Smallways, a brilliant mechanist and accidental aeronaut, finds himself a reluctant stowaway upon the very same airship that will begin the Great War. Soon, Smallways is swept away aboard the Vaterland, the flagship piloted by a belligerent German prince, whose mastery of technology heralds a new age of war that takes to the sky.
Filled with petrol-powered war machines, ironclads, bombardments, and espionage, The War in the Air prophesied methods of warfare that would only develop later in the twentieth century. A cornerstone of early science fiction, this exciting tale is H. G. Wells at his best.
