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We all tend to have our favorite genres of books. If we try something new, sometimes all it takes is one bad book to make us uninterested in anything else from that category. Science fiction books can present a challenge for readers who don't fancy spending their time reading about aliens or time travel or other otherworldly phenomena.

However, don’t rule out the entire sci-fi genre. There are a plenty of books that engage with sci-fi ideas without being overwhelming. They may happen to be set in space or make use of other sci-fi tropes, but then they develop in ways that evokes other genres.

Here are five books that are great if you want to test the waters of sci-fi even though the genre initially puts you off. You will not be disappointed.

The Martian by Andy Weir | Image: Ballantine Books The Martian by Andy Weir

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A popular theme in fantasy, romance, and even mystery genres is that of a narrative centered around books. Literature is often used as a way to escape everyday life, and transport oneself into an entirely new world—and several books build upon this experience, bringing the world of books, libraries, and reading to life in magical ways. These types of novels often highlight the transcendent way books can bring people together, give them hope, and help readers travel to entirely new worlds.

Several of these books have gone on to become some of the most popular Booktok books, including Book Lovers by Emily Henry and The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown. Others have gone on to become New York Times bestsellers, but a few remain to be hidden gems beloved by the reading community. Books written about books is no new concept, but some particularly great choices offer readers...

2025 is set to be a thrilling year for fans of book-to-film adaptations, with a wide array of novels making their way to the big screen. From family-friendly adventures to gripping dramas, these films promise to bring favorite stories to life with star-studded casts and visionary directors. Audiences can revisit familiar characters like Paddington in Paddington in Peru and Toothless in the live-action How to Train Your Dragon, or explore compelling new narratives like The Housemaid and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Each adaptation will offer its own unique take on the source material in 2025's promising book adaptations lineup.

Next years lineup spans genres from romance and fantasy to thriller and comedy, ensuring there is something for everyone. Fans of magical storytelling will be enchanted by Wildwood and The Twits, while thought-provoking dramas like The Midnight Library and Frankenstein delve into deeper themes. Whether youre looking for heartwarming family tales,...

European production and distribution group StudioCanal has launched a new label, StudioCanal Stories, focused on book-to-screen adaptations. The outfit will be the first of its kind in France and follows StudioCanal’s creation of a dedicated literary adaptation division in 2022.

Unveiling the new label Monday, StudioCanal pointed to the success of book adaptations, citing figures from a study last year by France’s Centre National du Livre (Cnl) that found 42 percent of the top 100 most successful films at the U.S. box office were literary adaptations. The figure for France was 44 percent and, according to the study, the production of literary adaptations for French film and TV has jumped nearly 30 percent over the period from 2015 to 2021.

StudioCanal is bringing two of its latest adaptations: Gilles Lellouche’s Beating Hearts, an adaptation of Neville Thompson’s 2000 novel Jackie Loves Johnser Ok?; and Michel Hazanavicius’ The Most Precious of Cargoes to competition...

Director David Findlay’s ability to create short films and music videos that not only look gorgeous but query the human condition on a deep level is why we can’t get enough of him here at Dn. His latest work, a music video for musician/skateboarder Austyn Gillette, is Leaning into your Palms. This isn’t your typical music video however with Gillette performing his song to camera, instead he and Findlay weave a narrative about two siblings, a brother and a sister, who share a moment of reflection through time. It’s really compelling and through some clever camera tricks Findlay is able to pull off some mesmerising shots. In our interview below Dn chats with Findlay about these shots in addition to his collaborative process with Gillette and the joy of working with Titane’s Agathe Rousselle to create his ruminative music video.

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Benedict Cumberbatch is set to star in a TV adaptation of Matt Haig’s best-selling novel How to Stop Time, playing the lead role of Tom Hazard.

Tomas Alfredson, who directed Cumberbatch in 2011’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, is attached to helm the six-part series. DC Moore (Sky and AMC’s upcoming Mary & George, starring Julianne Moore) is attached to write, adapting Haig’s novel for the screen.

The genre-bending novel, part love story, part spy thriller, follows Tom (Cumberbatch), a seemingly ordinary man who suffers from a very rare condition called anageria, which has kept him alive for centuries. Throughout history, Tom and men and women like him, have been feared, misunderstood and persecuted. Their lives are one of perpetual loss, as they see family, friends, lovers and children die before them. To survive, those with anageria have formed a secret society to protect their own, but also...

Studiocanal and SunnyMarch are to soon enter production on the Beneditch Cumberbatch-starring How to Stop Time, which has been rejigged from a feature to a TV series.

Studiocanal optioned the Matt Haig novel six years ago and was initially developing as a feature with Cumberbatch’s SunnyMarch, which it part owns. After a hefty hiatus, Studiocanal CEO Anna Marsh revealed at Mip TV today that the project will now be a six-part TV series, with Cumberbatch and SunnyMarch still attached.

DC Moore (Sky/AMC’s Mary & George) and Tomas Alfredson (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) will write and direct respectively and filming will begin in London and across Europe next year.

The genre-bending book is a high-stakes superhero thriller about men and women who suffer from a rare condition that makes them live for hundreds and hundreds of years. Born in 15th century France, Cumberbatch’s Tom Hazard has time...