Best Craig Alanson Books

The best books by Craig Alanson — 25 titles spanning Sci-Fi, Fantasy, averaging 4.54 BLT stars.

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Craig Alanson built his reputation on one deceptively simple premise: what if humanity's greatest weapon in an interstellar war was a wisecracking, sarcastic AI with zero respect for authority? The Expeditionary Force series, starting with Columbus Day, runs on that friction — earnest military sci-fi constantly undercut by comic timing that actually lands. Alanson's writing is fast-moving and banter-heavy, built around dialogue rhythms that translate beautifully to audio, which is why R.C. Bray's narration of the series became something of a phenomenon. The plots escalate with satisfying momentum — each installment in the Expeditionary Force sequence raises the stakes while keeping the irreverent tone intact. Readers who find military sci-fi too grim or too dry will find Alanson a revelation. He's not reinventing the genre, but he's clearly having more fun with it than almost anyone else.

Craig Alanson's highest-rated book in our collection is Critical Mass (4.71 BLT stars). Browse the full list below.

Where to Start with Craig Alanson

  1. 1
    Critical Mass cover

    Critical Mass

    Expeditionary Force • Book 10

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.71 BLT Score (9.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.52 Goodreads (9.1K)
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  2. 2
    Fallout cover

    Fallout

    Expeditionary Force • Book 13

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.69 BLT Score (7.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.52 Goodreads (7.2K)
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  3. 3
    Match Game cover

    Match Game

    Expeditionary Force • Book 14

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.64 BLT Score (6.6K ratings)
    ★ 4.5 Goodreads (6.6K)
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  4. 4
    Brushfire cover

    Brushfire

    Expeditionary Force • Book 11

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.64 BLT Score (8.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.44 Goodreads (8.1K)
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  5. 5
    Zero Hour cover

    Zero Hour

    Expeditionary Force • Book 5

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.63 BLT Score (14.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.37 Goodreads (14.8K)
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  6. 6
    Armageddon cover

    Armageddon

    Expeditionary Force • Book 8

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.62 BLT Score (10.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.42 Goodreads (10.5K)
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  7. 7
    Failure Mode cover

    Failure Mode

    Expeditionary Force • Book 15

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.62 BLT Score (6.4K ratings)
    ★ 4.48 Goodreads (6.4K)
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  8. 8
    Breakaway cover

    Breakaway

    Expeditionary Force • Book 12

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.61 BLT Score (7.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.48 Goodreads (7.8K)
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  9. 9
    Black Ops cover

    Black Ops

    Expeditionary Force • Book 4

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.61 BLT Score (16.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.34 Goodreads (16.5K)
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  10. 10
    Renegades cover

    Renegades

    Expeditionary Force • Book 7

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.61 BLT Score (12.0K ratings)
    ★ 4.37 Goodreads (12.0K)
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  11. 11
    Valkyrie cover

    Valkyrie

    Expeditionary Force • Book 9

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.60 BLT Score (10.0K ratings)
    ★ 4.43 Goodreads (10.0K)
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  12. 12
    Task Force Hammer cover

    Task Force Hammer

    Expeditionary Force • Book 17

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.58 BLT Score (4.0K ratings)
    ★ 4.47 Goodreads (4.0K)
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  13. 13
    Paradise cover

    Paradise

    Expeditionary Force • Book 3

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.56 BLT Score (18.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.25 Goodreads (18.7K)
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  14. 14
    Columbus Day cover

    Columbus Day

    Expeditionary Force • Book 1

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.53 BLT Score (34.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.25 Goodreads (34.1K)
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  15. 15
    Mavericks cover

    Mavericks

    Expeditionary Force • Book 6

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.53 BLT Score (14.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.28 Goodreads (14.1K)
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  16. 16
    Gateway cover

    Gateway

    Expeditionary Force • Book 18

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.52 BLT Score (3.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.42 Goodreads (3.3K)
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  17. 17
    SpecOps cover

    SpecOps

    Expeditionary Force • Book 2

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.50 BLT Score (22.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.24 Goodreads (22.5K)
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  18. 18
    Aftermath cover

    Aftermath

    Expeditionary Force • Book 16

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.50 BLT Score (5.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (5.1K)
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  19. 19
    Deathtrap cover

    Deathtrap

    Mavericks • Book 1

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.46 BLT Score (3.9K ratings)
    ★ 4.31 Goodreads (3.9K)
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  20. 20
    Ground State cover

    Ground State

    Expeditionary Force • Book 19

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.43 BLT Score (528 ratings)
    ★ 4.7 Goodreads (528)
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  21. 21
    Freefall cover

    Freefall

    Mavericks • Book 2

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.43 BLT Score (2.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.3 Goodreads (2.7K)
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  22. 22
    Desperate Measures (Convergence Book 5) cover

    Desperate Measures (Convergence Book 5)

    Convergence • Book 5

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.38 BLT Score (757 ratings)
    ★ 4.47 Goodreads (757)
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  23. 23
    Trouble on Paradise cover

    Trouble on Paradise

    Expeditionary Force #3.5 • Book 3

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.37 BLT Score (8.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.17 Goodreads (8.1K)
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  24. 24
    First Strike cover

    First Strike

    Convergence • Book 3

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.37 BLT Score (1.6K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (1.6K)
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  25. 25
    Recon cover

    Recon

    Convergence • Book 4

    by Craig Alanson

    ★ 4.36 BLT Score (1.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.32 Goodreads (1.3K)
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How We Rank Audiobooks

Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.

Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.

We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.

Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.

Read our full ranking methodology →