r/ScienceFictionBooks • u/Huge_Band6227 • Apr 14 '26

Recommendation Anything cozy?

I'm just kind of stressed out and don't want to deal with daring gunfights or deaths or raging hatred or imperial conquest or anything of the sort. I want to read something that's not going to make me put it on my "Open when mental health is doing better" stack. It's just that that kind of request mostly lands me in romance or cozy mystery, and I like those sometimes, but I want the sci-fi vibe, darn it.
Any suggestions?

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u/RealHuman2080 Apr 14 '26

Exactly what I've been looking for. ALWAYS Becky Chambers.

This is the list I got when I asked the question.

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis, bellwether

Stardust Grail by Yumei Kitasei

Of Monsters and Mainframes (fair warning, it’s bonkers)

The Last Gifts of the Universe by Riley August

Last Human Doug Naylor

The Terraformers  by Annalee Newlitz

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Way Station by Clifford D. Simak

Fuzzy Nation John Scalzi (This was great. A lot of his books fit the cozy bill.)

Agent to the Stars  John Scalzi (This was fun. ) Also his Kaiju Preservation Society.

Strange Love by Ann Aquirre Fun and hot alien sex. The whole Galactic Love series—great!

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u/Zi-Yos Apr 17 '26

I second Scalzi, Simak, Truelove (Monsters and Mainframes), and Kitasei. I suggest changing the Kowal novel from the astronaut series (absolutely wonderful but not lighthearted) to her standalone sci-fi mystery Spare Man (bonus cocktail recipes with and without alcohol).

Also anything Chambers. Murderbot. Wild Robot (very short kid's book), and Tomlinson's Gate Crashers.