So, I love Speculative Fiction-- mostly horror with side helpings of Splatterpunk, Cyberpunk, and Space Opera--which isn't a secret to most, except for the patrons who assume that librarians only read European canon like Daniel Defoe when Clive Barker is right there! I also adore graphic novels and audiobooks over traditional novels because I love pictures and being read to, which shouldn't be controversial, but apparently is. That being said, I've noticed a trend within myself that regardless of subgenre, dystopian or post-apocalyptic elements shine through with every work I read. According to my reading history, if the main characters aren't navigating fascist regimes while swaggering about, then I don't want it.

Maybe it's me grappling with the world around me, or it's because I'm skeptical of all things labeled perfect. Still, most of the worlds I love exploring the most have very dark implications under the surface. In no particular order, some of my favorite novels with dystopian and apocalyptic elements are as follows!

I read this series around 2008-2009, right after finishing the Xenogenesis Series (aka Lilith's Brood), and read this in tandem with the Patternist series. The central story focuses on teen Lauren Oya Olamina as she navigates to the United States in 2025, in economic freefall and ecological disaster due to global warming. Lauren is lucky to live in a gated community, but as the poor get poorer while the rich hide, the walls that have protected her for most of her life start looking pretty flimsy. On top of this, Lauren feels compelled to create a new religion. One where the central tenet is "change"-- God is Change.

I read this series up to New York to Dallas and realized that I had read it up to that point because I liked the world Nora Roberts created, plus the side characters, but I did not like Eve Dallas nor the copaganda that is blatant in the pages. I also couldn't understand how the novel's central location is New York City, yet of the significant characters, only two are Black and Brown, and zero are women. The few times that we do see Black and Brown folks, especially women, with visibly ethnic and dark skin tones and facial features, they are described as unattractive.

That being said, this series helped me as an adult solidify what I like in Speculative Fiction and Romance novels. It helped me to name what I felt was missing from my reading experience and seek it out. The In Death series also helped me understand that my cringe wasn't from intimate acts happening, but from how poorly other writers wrote them.

How is it dystopian? Everything seems normal. The novels are 20 minutes into the future, so there are a lot of things that are very reminiscent of now. However, when you start peeling back the layers, it gets concerning and a bit unnerving. 

In the world Nora Roberts creates, government intrusion has become accepted. Internet monitoring is so pervasive that people must create special, highly illegal, and costly spaces in their homes to avoid surveillance. Food is heavily regulated, with real meat, chocolate, and coffee available only to the wealthy. All this appears to stems from the aftermath of a third world war-- it's likely a global uprising in which normal people lost-- called the Urban Wars. 

Most of the Bill of Rights has been abolished, and the police can connect individuals to a VR tech to relive traumatic events to determine the truth. Oh, and, there are whole planets that are either Fhloston Paradise (Omg, The Fifth Element is dystopian too!) or a happy mix of the Auxiliary Compliance Outpost from Bitch Planet and Fiorina 161 Class C Work Correctional Unit (C-Max) from Alien 3. So, yeah, it's dystopian.
 

The situation is reminiscent of the In Death series, where a catastrophe leads to the loss of fundamental freedoms that Americans typically enjoy. In this scenario, technology has advanced not for the benefit of humanity, but rather for the convenience of corporations and the politicians who are aligned with them. Basically, this, the In Death series, and Victor Manibo's novel Sleepless deal with Cyberpunk themes of techno-fascism and -fuedalism.
 

Also: Dead Space & Salvation Day by Kali Wallace

In space the government owns you, and finding a job outside of one of these mega-corps is downright impossible and that technology that could and has destroyed literal worlds, lol, those mega-corps will do anything to harness it including creating and sponsoring cults, stealing people, places, and things, and gaslighting you into potentially dangerous interactions with creepy tech and aliens.

Corporations have gained the right to vote. There is a cat flu epidemic affecting the United States, and the country has implemented a global surveillance system. Additionally, a 19-year-old broke YouTuber named Corndog Girl was accidentally elected president because anyone can vote via Twitter, anyone of any age can run for office, and the politicians made a basic error in their efforts to ensure a flawless victory of undermining their voters. While her goals are noble, she is quite literally up against corporations who can buy and sell her with ease.

The basic story is one woman's optimism and drive to move forward even in the face of loss and insurmountable odd. This story is set in the far-flung future. The earth's surface was made untenable for human life due to the sun starting its red giant expansion. The people that survived moved into the oceans. But now, even that is becoming unsustainable. So, what are the leaders doing about this? Well, if you've ever watched Netflix's Don't Look Up, The Constant Gardener or The Whistleblower, then you know what the leaders are doing about this urgent development that's been known about for decades. 

This story offers a detailed look at Dr. Harleen Quinzel, better known as Harley Quinn. In this narrative, she is a full-fledged psychiatrist (not just an intern) who is seeking funding for her research on how people's empathy declines due to the constant stress of living in environments marked by ongoing conflict. Right after her pitch at a conference, Harleen walks outside, only to witness a building explode. Surrounded by fire and chaos, she comes face to face with the Joker, who points a weapon at her and smiles at her terror. As the Joker and Batman engage in a brawl, Dr. Quinzel observes that the sounds of their fight are drowned out by the cheers of the citizens and first responders celebrating Batman's victory over the Joker. We realize that these types of skirmishes are normal for Gotham! This comic was one of the first pieces of media where I sat back and asked myself how a normal person would function in the world of superheroes.

Cloud (Amazon on steriods) and LitenVärld (IKEA, but make it multidimensional) own most things. In fact, if you work for Cloud, you live at Cloud. Cloud puts most company towns to shame. At least, at LitenVärld, you can not only have a home outside of the store's walls, but outside of the universe too! Both books have elements of Capitalism run amok, to the point where one corporation is able to create whole factories that siphon so much from local economies that to leave a Cloud facility would mean going into a world that looks like you've been dropped into an empty world. In Finna, the corporation is able to create trans-dimensional tech, and force their employees with zero training to use said tech to find missing customers to not create a scandal. But, of course, if the employee parishes in their endeavors, then that's okay.