Frank Herbert’s Dune is rightly considered one of the most important and influential books of science fiction ever written. Even now, it continues to cast a long shadow, and the new movie version is sure to ignite significant interest in both Herbert’s book and the many other science fiction and fantasy series that strike a similar note.

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Fortunately for fans of Dune, there are a number of novels that explore similar big issues, including the environment, power,  the corrupting and dangerous nature of imperial politics, and the decline and fall of empires.

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

A image from the cover of A Memory Called Empire

One of the key thematic issues of Dune focuses on empires, and how great powers can find themselves reliant on technology or resources. Those are but two of the concepts explored in the novel A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine.

Her book is peak space opera, focusing on a young ambassador who, upon being sent to a sprawling imperial power, finds herself drawn into dramas and politics that she never imagined possible. Along the way, she also has to contend with the possibility that the empire itself may not be as stable as it at first appeared to be.

The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi

An image from the cover of The Collapsing Empire

Similar to both Dune and A Memory Called Empire, John Scalzi’s The Collapsing Empire, the first book in a trilogy, also explores the issue of imperial collapse and what, if anything, can be done to ameliorate its effects. In this case, the organization is called the Interdependency, which relies on an anomaly called the Flow in order to keep the various parts of the sprawling system from collapsing into oblivion.

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Various characters, including those who wield extraordinary political power, find all of their resources put to the test.

Foundation by Isaac Asimov

A scene from the cover of Foundation

Isaac Asimov’s Foundation has recently entered the public consciousness, largely as a result of the Apple TV+ adaptation of his classic story (it's sure to become one of the streamer's best shows).

As with Dune, Foundation concerns a sprawling government, though in this case, the central question is not whether catastrophe and collapse can be averted (they can’t), but instead on what can be done to dull the extreme effects as much as possible. Asimov’s skill at blending together political theory and science fiction is sure to please fans of Dune.

Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson

A scene from the cover of Red Mars

Kim Stanley Robinson has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the most formidable voices working in science fiction, and books such as Red Mars demonstrate why.

Just as Frank Herbert used Dune to explore issues related to the environment and great powers’ overreliance on resources such as oil, Robinson uses the colonization of Mars to pose questions about the nature of human society and whether it is possible to achieve a more utopian existence than what currently exists on Earth.

The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Vintage Lord of the Rings covers

In many ways, Dune is to science fiction what The Lord of the Rings is to fantasy, and for that reason, fans of the former should also enjoy the latter. Dune is constructed around a universe with a deep history, one in which feuds and dynastic dramas can play out over centuries.

That is very much true of Tolkien’s grand work, for the central enemy, Sauron, has been a plague upon Middle-earth and its peoples for thousands of years, and it is ultimately up to those who are seemingly powerless to bring about his downfall.

A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

An A Song of Ice and Fire book set

Dune also explores family dynamics, and how the most ruthless politicians can sometimes sow the seeds of their own defeat. The issue of power--who wields it and who doesn’t, what those in power owe to those who aren’t--are some of the central concerns of George RR Martin’s sprawling epic, A Song of Ice and Fire, which began in A Game of Thrones.

And, just as Dune subjects its characters to violence and chaos, the same thing happens in Martin’s novel (and, notably, in the HBO series it inspired). In addition, both Dune and Game of Thrones have some characters that it's easy to hate.

The Windup Girl by Paolo Baciagalupi

An Image from the cover of The Windup Girl

Science fiction, even more than other genres, pushes at the boundaries of the possible, forcing readers and viewers to think about their world in new and exciting ways. Dune does that through its focusing on the importance of spice, while Paolo Baciagalpui’s book The Windup Girl explores such fraught issues as climate change, the nature of humanity, and who gets to count as human and who does not.

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Set in a future Thailand, the book follows a diverse cast of characters as they attempt to navigate and survive in the dangerous dystopian future.

Ilium by Dan Simmons

An image from the cover of Ilium

Dan Simmons is a science fiction author who has earned a reputation for blending together allusions with top-notch science fiction imagination. Both are on display in his novel Ilium which, like Dune, involves a number of titanic clashes between various factions.

In this case, a powerful group of beings has decided to reenact the events of the Trojan War using human proxies. It’s a unique conceit that allows Simmons to explore how historical and literary events can affect events in the present.

Jaran by Kate Elliott

An image from the cover of Jaran

The Jaran series is one of the more under-appreciated science fiction series out there, and it joins the many other science fiction stories that have yet to find a big audience.

Written by Kate Elliott (who has also written a number of fantasy series), it explores some of the same issues as those examined in Dune, including governing power, the nature of heroism, and rebellion against established political authority. The series takes many of the established tropes associated with science fiction and moves them in new and exciting directions.

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

Part of the cover of The Fifth Season

N.K. Jemisin is one of the most prominent voices in science fiction and fantasy writing today, and The Fifth Season makes it clear why that is the case (even if it's a bit too twisted to be adapted into a movie).

The world that Jemisin has created is one that is rigidly stratified (as is the case with Dune, with its noble families and those caught up in their conflicts) and, also like Dune, it is a world that is afflicted with climate disasters of enormous consequence. Those who enjoyed the way that Dune combined deep character development with meticulous world-building will also find much to enjoy in The Fifth Season.

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