Hugo Award winner
Hugo Award nomineeThese are my personal awards to my favourite novels or novellas of each year. Most books that I rate 3 or less don’t appear; any that you see rated 3 are really 3+. Because this is only an award of esteem, and nothing more tangible, these awards are not permanent and can be changed at any time.
I’ve decided to include novellas as well as novels here, because the two categories overlap: some books sold as novellas are longer than some books sold as novels.
I measure story length in Kindle locations, omitting text at beginning and end that is not part of the story (but including footnotes, if any). One Kindle location contains about 20 words, but this is not an accurate way to calculate word count.
| Hugo Award winner |
Hugo Award nominee |
| Year | Award | My rating | Length | Title | Series | Author | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Candidate | 5 | 1918 | Demon Daughter | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy |
| Candidate | 4 | 5524 | Red Side Story | Shades of Grey | Jasper Fforde | Bizarre sf | |
| 2023 | Winner | 3 | 6496 | Witch King |
– | Martha Wells | Fantasy |
| Also ran | 3 | 3017 | System Collapse | Murderbot | Martha Wells | Far-future sf | |
| 2022 | Winner | 4 | 4608 | Amongst Our Weapons | Peter Grant | Ben Aaronovitch | Fantasy, crime |
| 2021 | Winner | 5 | 4428 | The Galaxy, and the Ground Within |
Wayfarers | Becky Chambers | Gentle far-future sf, no violence |
| Also ran | 4 | 4030 | The Assassins of Thasalon | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy, crime | |
| Also ran | 4 | 6991 | A Desolation Called Peace |
Teixcalaan | Arkady Martine | Far-future sf | |
| Also ran | 4 | 6165 | A Master of Djinn |
Dead Djinn | P. Djèlí Clark | Alternative past history, fantasy | |
| 2020 | Winner | 5 | 5400 | Network Effect |
Murderbot | Martha Wells | Far-future sf |
| Also ran | 5 | 1575 | Masquerade in Lodi | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy | |
| 2019 | Winner | 4 | 6129 | A Memory Called Empire |
Teixcalaan | Arkady Martine | Far-future sf |
| 2018 | Winner | 4 | 1704 | Exit Strategy | Murderbot | Martha Wells | Far-future sf |
| 2017 | Joint winner | 5 | 2125 | The Prisoner of Limnos | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy |
| Joint winner | 5 | 1410 | All Systems Red |
Murderbot | Martha Wells | Far-future sf | |
| 2016 | Winner | 5 | 4722 | The Hanging Tree | Peter Grant | Ben Aaronovitch | Fantasy, crime |
| Also ran | 5 | 2140 | Penric’s Mission | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy | |
| 2015 | Winner | 5 | 1612 | Penric’s Demon |
World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy |
| 2014 | Joint winner | 4 | 4498 | Foxglove Summer | Peter Grant | Ben Aaronovitch | Fantasy, crime |
| Joint winner | 4 | 6256 | The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet | Wayfarers | Becky Chambers | Far-future sf | |
| 2013 | No award | ||||||
| 2012 | Winner | 5 | 4804 | Whispers Under Ground | Peter Grant | Ben Aaronovitch | Fantasy, crime |
| Also ran | 4 | 7710 | Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance |
Vorkosigan | Lois McMaster Bujold | Far-future sf | |
| 2011 | Winner | 4 | 4810 | Rivers of London | Peter Grant | Ben Aaronovitch | Fantasy, crime |
| 2010 | No award | ||||||
| 2009 | Winner | 4 | 6182 | Shades of Grey: The Road to High Saffron | Shades of Grey | Jasper Fforde | Bizarre sf |
| 2008 | Winner | 4 | 6170 | In the Courts of the Crimson Kings | Lords of Creation | S. M. Stirling | Alternative history, sf |
| Also ran | 4 | 6355 | When the Tide Rises | RCN | David Drake | Far-future military sf | |
| 2007 | No award | ||||||
| 2006 | Winner | 3 | 6113 | Rainbows End |
– | Vernor Vinge | Near-future sf |
| 2005 | Winner | 5 | 8177 | The Hallowed Hunt | World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy |
| 2004 | Winner | 5 | 5831 | Going Postal | Discworld | Terry Pratchett | Fantasy, postal service |
| Also ran | 4 | 9037 | Weapons of Choice | Axis of Time | John Birmingham | Time-travel military sf, Second World War | |
| 2003 | Winner | 5 | 7245 | Paladin of Souls |
World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy |
| Also ran | 4 | 11077 | Conquistador | – | S. M. Stirling | Parallel-worlds sf | |
| 2002 | Winner | 5 | 8537 | The Peshawar Lancers | – | S. M. Stirling | Alternative history, sf |
| Also ran | 4 | 5508 | Night Watch | Discworld | Terry Pratchett | Fantasy, time travel, crime, politics | |
| 2001 | Joint winner | 4 | 5360 | The Eyre Affair | Thursday Next | Jasper Fforde | Bizarre fantasy, alternative history, crime |
| Joint winner | 4 | 7639 | The Curse of Chalion |
World of the Five Gods | Lois McMaster Bujold | Fantasy | |
| 2000 | Winner | 4 | 11955 | On the Oceans of Eternity | Nantucket | S. M. Stirling | Time-travel sf |
| 1999 | Joint winner | 5 | 9259 | A Civil Campaign |
Vorkosigan | Lois McMaster Bujold | Far-future sf, romantic comedy |
| Joint winner | 5 | 9944 | Against the Tide of Years | Nantucket | S. M. Stirling | Time-travel sf | |
| Also ran | 4 | Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban |
Harry Potter | J. K. Rowling | Schoolboy fantasy | ||
| Also ran | 3 | 11839 | A Deepness in the Sky |
Zones of Thought | Vernor Vinge | Far-future sf | |
| 1998 | Joint winner | 5 | 5726 | Komarr | Vorkosigan | Lois McMaster Bujold | Far-future sf, crime, romance |
| Joint winner | 5 | 10820 | Island in the Sea of Time | Nantucket | S. M. Stirling | Time-travel sf | |
| Also ran | 4 | 5974 | With the Lightnings | RCN | David Drake | Far-future military sf | |
| 1997 | Winner | 4 | Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone | Harry Potter | J. K. Rowling | Schoolboy fantasy | |
| 1996 | Winner | 4 | 6660 | Memory |
Vorkosigan | Lois McMaster Bujold | Far-future sf, crime |
| Also ran | 3 | 5157 | Hogfather | Discworld | Terry Pratchett | Fantasy | |
| 1995 | No award | ||||||
| 1994 | No award | ||||||
| 1993 | Winner | 4 | 5124 | Men at Arms | Discworld | Terry Pratchett | Fantasy, crime |
| 1992 | Winner | 3 | 9246 | A Fire Upon the Deep |
Zones of Thought | Vernor Vinge | Far-future sf |
| Also ran | 3 | 9985 | The Guns of the South | – | Harry Turtledove | Time-travel military sf, American Civil War | |
| 1991 | Winner | 4 | 6812 | ME | ME | Thomas T. Thomas | Near-future sf |
| Also ran | 3 | The Wizardry Cursed | Wizardry | Rick Cook | Parallel-worlds fantasy | ||
| 1990 | Winner | 4 | 2625 | Wings | Nomes | Terry Pratchett | Humorous sf |
| Also ran | 4 | 5093 | Good Omens | – | Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett | Fantasy | |
| Also ran | 3 | 4363 | The Wizardry Compiled | Wizardry | Rick Cook | Parallel-worlds fantasy | |
| 1989 | Joint winner | 4 | 2670 | Truckers | Nomes | Terry Pratchett | Humorous sf |
| Joint winner | 4 | 3038 | A Study in Sorcery | Lord Darcy | Michael Kurland | Alternative history, fantasy, crime | |
| Also ran | 3 | 4469 | Wizard’s Bane | Wizardry | Rick Cook | Parallel-worlds fantasy | |
| Also ran | 3 | 3774 | The Silver Pigs | Marcus Didius Falco | Lindsey Davis | Historical, Roman Empire, crime | |
| 1988 | Joint winner | 4 | 4644 | Wyrd Sisters | Discworld | Terry Pratchett | Humorous fantasy |
| Joint winner | 4 | 4183 | Ten Little Wizards | Lord Darcy | Michael Kurland | Alternative history, fantasy, crime | |
| Joint winner | 4 | 4576 | Perchance: A Tale of the Paraverse | – | Michael Kurland | Parallel-worlds sf | |
| Also ran | 4 | 1091 | The Blabber | Zones of Thought | Vernor Vinge | Far-future sf | |
| 1987 | Winner | 5 | 3672 | Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency | Dirk Gently | Douglas Adams | Sf and fantasy, time travel |
| Also ran | 4 | 2226 | The Forest of Time |
– | Michael F. Flynn | Parallel-worlds sf | |
| 1986 | Winner | 5 | 4385 | Marooned in Realtime |
Bobble | Vernor Vinge | Far-future sf |
| Also ran | 4 | 3064 | Ethan of Athos | Vorkosigan | Lois McMaster Bujold | Far-future sf | |
| 1985 | Joint winner | 4 | The Proteus Operation | – | James P. Hogan | Time-travel sf, Second World War | |
| Joint winner | 4 | 3348 | The Zenda Vendetta | Time Wars | Simon Hawke | Time-travel to a fictional past | |
| 1984 | Winner | 5 | 4672 | The Peace War |
Bobble | Vernor Vinge | Near-future sf |
| Also ran | 4 | 3783 | The Ivanhoe Gambit | Time Wars | Simon Hawke | Time-travel to a fictional past | |
| Also ran | 4 | 3219 | The Timekeeper Conspiracy | Time Wars | Simon Hawke | Time-travel to a fictional past | |
| Also ran | 4 | 4706 | The Practice Effect | – | David Brin | Sf/fantasy | |
| 1983 | Winner | 4 | 6718 | The Anubis Gates | – | Tim Powers | Time-travel fantasy |
| 1982 | Winner | 3 | Coils | – | Roger Zelazny and Fred Saberhagen | Near-future sf/fantasy | |
| 1981 | Winner | 3 | 3895 | The Ceres Solution | – | Bob Shaw | Near-future sf |
| 1980 | Winner | 3 | 5557 | Thrice Upon a Time | – | James P. Hogan | Near-future sf |
| 1979 | Winner | 4 | 3528 | Roadmarks | – | Roger Zelazny | Time-travel sf |
| Also ran | 3 | 2285 | The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy | Hitchhiker’s Guide | Douglas Adams | Near-future sf | |
| 1978 | No award | ||||||
| 1977 | Winner | 4 | 5098 | The Dosadi Experiment | ConSentiency | Frank Herbert | Far-future sf |
| 1976 | Winner | 4 | 3155 | Doorways in the Sand |
– | Roger Zelazny | Near-future sf |
| Also ran | 3 | 2342 | The Witling | – | Vernor Vinge | Far-future sf, teleportation | |
| 1975 | Winner | 4 | 3910 | Crocodile on the Sandbank | Amelia Peabody | Elizabeth Peters | Historical, 19th century Egypt, crime, humorous |
| Also ran | 3 | The Shockwave Rider | – | John Brunner | Near-future sf | ||
| Also ran | 3 | Showboat World | Big Planet | Jack Vance | Far-future sf, humorous adventure | ||
| 1974 | Winner | 5 | 8613 | The Mote in God’s Eye |
Moties | Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle | Far-future sf, first contact |
| Also ran | 4 | 2704 | Worlds Apart | – | Richard Cowper | Parallel-worlds fantasy | |
| Also ran | 3 | Ice and Iron | – | Wilson Tucker | Near-future sf | ||
| 1973 | Winner | 4 | Protector |
Known Space | Larry Niven | Far-future sf, first contact | |
| Also ran | 3 | 2920 | Today We Choose Faces | – | Roger Zelazny | Far-future sf | |
| 1972 | Winner | 4 | 3185 | The Patterns of Chaos | – | Colin Kapp | Far-future sf, first contact |
| Also ran | 4 | Arigato | – | Richard Condon | Historical, 20th century, crime | ||
| 1971 | No award | ||||||
| 1970 | Joint winner | 4 | 5021 | Ringworld |
Known Space | Larry Niven | Far-future sf |
| Joint winner | 4 | 5114 | The Flying Sorcerers | – | David Gerrold and Larry Niven | Humorous far-future sf | |
| Also ran | 3 | The Year of the Quiet Sun |
– | Wilson Tucker | Near-future sf, time travel | ||
| 1969 | Joint winner | 4 | 1646 | Masque World | Anthony Villiers | Alexei Panshin | Light-hearted far-future sf |
| Joint winner | 4 | 3943 | The Unicorn Girl | – | Michael Kurland | Light-hearted parallel-worlds sf | |
| Also ran | 3 | The Left Hand of Darkness |
– | Ursula K. Le Guin | Far-future sf | ||
| 1968 | Joint winner | 5 | 1912 | Star Well | Anthony Villiers | Alexei Panshin | Light-hearted far-future sf |
| Joint winner | 5 | 1677 | The Thurb Revolution | Anthony Villiers | Alexei Panshin | Light-hearted far-future sf | |
| Also ran | 4 | 3784 | A Gift from Earth | Known Space | Larry Niven | Far-future sf | |
| Also ran | 3 | 9741 | Stand on Zanzibar |
– | John Brunner | Near-future sf | |
| 1967 | Winner | 4 | 5845 | Lord of Light |
– | Roger Zelazny | Far-future sf/fantasy |
| 1966 | Joint winner | 5 | 3515 | Babel-17 |
– | Samuel R. Delany | Far-future sf |
| Joint winner | 5 | 3729 | Too Many Magicians |
Lord Darcy | Randall Garrett | Alternative history, fantasy, crime | |
| Joint winner | 5 | 2728 | World of Ptavvs | Known Space | Larry Niven | Future sf, first contact | |
| Also ran | 3 | 5860 | The Moon is a Harsh Mistress |
– | Robert Heinlein | Future sf | |
| Also ran | 3 | 5566 | The Witches of Karres |
– | James H. Schmitz | Light-hearted far-future sf/fantasy | |
| 1965 | Winner | 5 | 4017 | The Mind Readers | Albert Campion | Margery Allingham | Near-future sf, telepathy, crime |
| Also ran | 4 | 2893 | Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen | Paratime | H. Beam Piper | Parallel-worlds military sf | |
| 1964 | No award | ||||||
| 1963 | Winner | 4 | 3094 | Way Station |
– | Clifford Simak | Far-future sf |
| 1962 | No award | ||||||
| 1961 | Winner | 5 | 4011 | Time is the Simplest Thing |
– | Clifford Simak | Future sf/fantasy |
| Also ran | 4 | 9194 | Stranger in a Strange Land |
– | Robert Heinlein | Near-future sf/fantasy | |
| Also ran | 4 | 3531 | Down the Hatch | Artful Bodger | John Winton | Historical, 20th century, military comedy | |
| Also ran | 3 | 7576 | Catch-22 | – | Joseph Heller | Historical, 20th century, military tragicomedy | |
| 1960 | No award | ||||||
| 1959 | Winner | 3 | 3672 | The Sirens of Titan |
– | Kurt Vonnegut | Far-future sf |
| 1958 | No award | ||||||
| 1957 | No award | ||||||
| 1956 | Winner | 5 | 3805 | Tiger! Tiger! / The Stars My Destination | – | Alfred Bester | Far-future sf, teleportation |
| 1955 | Winner | 5 | 2642 | The Mouse That Roared | Grand Fenwick | Leonard Wibberley | Near-future sf, satirical comedy |
| Also ran | 4 | 5258 | The Return of the King | Middle Earth | J. R. R. Tolkien | Fantasy | |
| 1954 | Joint winner | 4 | 7221 | The Fellowship of the Ring | Middle Earth | J. R. R. Tolkien | Fantasy |
| Joint winner | 4 | 6092 | The Two Towers | Middle Earth | J. R. R. Tolkien | Fantasy | |
| Joint winner | 4 | 3118 | Mission of Gravity |
Mesklin | Hal Clement | Far-future sf, first contact | |
| 1953 | Joint winner | 4 | 3719 | More Than Human |
– | Theodore Sturgeon | Sf/fantasy, powers of the mind |
| Joint winner | 4 | 3432 | The Caves of Steel |
Robots | Isaac Asimov | Far-future sf, robots | |
| Also ran | 3 | 3203 | Bring the Jubilee | – | Ward Moore | Time-travel sf, alternative history | |
| Also ran | 3 | 3520 | Second Foundation | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | Far-future sf, psychohistory | |
| Also ran | 3 | 4515 | Hornblower and the Atropos | Hornblower | C. S. Forester | Historical, Napoleonic Wars, military | |
| 1952 | Joint winner | 3 | 3631 | Foundation and Empire | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | Far-future sf, psychohistory |
| Joint winner | 3 | 4153 | Lieutenant Hornblower | Hornblower | C. S. Forester | Historical, Napoleonic Wars, military | |
| 1951 | Joint winner | 4 | 3247 | Foundation | Foundation | Isaac Asimov | Far-future sf, psychohistory |
| Joint winner | 4 | 4199 | Time and Again | – | Clifford Simak | Far-future sf, time-travel, androids | |
| 1950 | Winner | 4 | 3775 | Mr Midshipman Hornblower | Hornblower | C. S. Forester | Historical, Napoleonic Wars, military |
| 1946 | Winner | 3 | 3026 | Mistress Masham’s Repose | – | T. H. White | Non-magical fantasy, Lilliputians |
| 1945 | Winner | 5 | 4401 | The Commodore | Hornblower | C. S. Forester | Historical, Napoleonic Wars, military |
| 1943 | Winner | 5 | 4635 | The Picts and the Martyrs | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1941 | Winner | 3 | No Bed for Bacon | – | Caryl Brahms and S. J. Simon | Historical, circa 1600 AD, comedy | |
| 1939 | Winner | 3 | 4581 | Secret Water | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1937 | Winner | 4 | 5046 | We Didn’t Mean To Go To Sea | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1936 | Winner | 3 | 5176 | Pigeon Post | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1933 | Winner | 5 | 3542 | Sweet Danger | Albert Campion | Margery Allingham | Historical, 20th century, crime, adventure |
| Also ran | 5 | 5084 | Winter Holiday | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures | |
| 1931 | Winner | 3 | 5573 | Swallowdale | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1930 | Winner | 3 | 5242 | Swallows and Amazons | Swallows and Amazons | Arthur Ransome | Historical, 20th century, children’s adventures |
| 1926 | Winner | 3 | 4566 | The Jovial Ghosts / Topper | Topper | Thorne Smith | Fantasy, ghosts |
| 1923 | Winner | 4 | 4635 | Leave It to Psmith | Psmith | P. G. Wodehouse | Historical, comedy |