Recs if you like Exit Strategy...

Shorter books (under 200 pages) that are part of at least one quest. Many are also in the public domain, making them easily accessible when you want to grind for that next badge.

Novellas, shorter books, and stories that are a decent bite of literature and a full meal despite being compact. Like a burrito on a commute to work. AKA my full novella master list.

Animals, Aliens, Robots, and Monsters! Books to get you out of your human skin and into something with different instincts and senses

science fiction about people living and working on space ships or space stations, in the near or far future.

“from the ground, we stand. from our ships, we live. by the stars, we hope.”

ᯓ★

Audiobooks that are less than 10 hours long and are safe for work AKA not aiming to get you (too) horned up at your desk (no guarantees that you won't cry or get the creeps though). Recommendations welcome!

alternatively: robots and androids murderbot would begrudgingly and unintentionally befriend.

OR

robots and androids who teach us a little more about humanity, friendship, and the human condition. and also sarcasm and sardonic humour, on occasion.

Sci fi and fantasy that's clever, funny, high-stakes, and fast-paced.

3…2…1…. blastoff on a short novella sized sci-fi adventure. Perfect for a palette cleanser or when you are in the mood for a quick read that is out of this world.

Recommendations welcome!

On the quest to collect badges, sometimes you just need a shorter read for a palate cleanse. I made this list as a resource for quicker reads in between heavy hitters - all books listed below are 1) included in at least one PageBound quest and 2) are 200 pages or less. Any and all leads are welcome!

Please note: This will not include books only found in readalongs or limited quests, as I want this list to reflect books that satisfy always-available quests.

Sentient constructs who didn’t ask to be born but now have to grapple with ethics, personhood, and the inconvenient need to fight monsters—both literal and systemic. A collection of books that explores the many shades of “otherness” in human lives through robotic ones.

I love any and all sentient machines and you will too.

my favourite melodramatic space adventures!

Books where the robot or android or AI (not stupid real life AI) learns how to be human or human-adjacent. That MUST be part of their arc, even if it’s multi-book. (For example, The Monk and the Robot wouldn’t count because Mosscap is so well adjusted already).

also known as mercyfic on ao3. books I liked that had this element (even if only briefly)

Martha wells murder bot

every month, são paulo's public library creates a 10 book list based on a different country, here are the books of 2026 (january = france, february = england, march = italy, april = south korea, may = portugal, june = russia, july = usa, august = nigeria)

Sci-fi and spec-fic that explores the world through an alien lens.

a list of drm-free ebooks that you can enjoy anywhere. i love the convenience of ebooks but loathe the practice of adding drm to them. suggestions are welcome! (please add a link)

A list of the books in the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells