Hugo Award Winners 2025

 Where and When: Seattle Worldcon 2025, Seattle : August 16, 2025

Eligibility Year: 2024
Associated Awards: Astounding Award for Best New Writer., Lodestar Award (also listed below)

Novel

• Winner: The Tainted Cup, Robert Jackson Bennett (Del Rey; Hodderscope UK)
• Alien Clay, Adrian Tchaikovsky (Orbit US; Tor UK)
• The Ministry of Time, Kaliane Bradley (Avid Reader; Sceptre)
• Service Model, Adrian Tchaikovsky (Tordotcom; Tor UK)
• Someone You Can Build a Nest In, John Wiswell (DAW; Arcadia UK)
• A Sorceress Comes to Call, T. Kingfisher (Tor; Titan UK)

Novella

• Winner: The Tusks of Extinction, Ray Nayler (Tordotcom)
• The Brides of High Hill, Nghi Vo (Tordotcom)
• The Butcher of the Forest, Premee Mohamed (Tordotcom; Titan UK)
• Navigational Enganglements, Aliette de Bodard (Tordotcom)
• The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain, Sofia Samatar (Tordotcom)
• What Feasts at Night, T. Kingfisher (Nightfire)

Novelette

• Winner: “The Four Sisters Overlooking the Sea”, Naomi Kritzer (Asimov's Sep/Oct 2024)
• “The Brotherhood of Montague St. Video”, Thomas Ha (Clarkesworld May 2024)
• “By Salt, by Sea, by Light of Stars”, Premee Mohamed (Strange Horizons 9 Jun 2024)
• “Lake of Souls”, Ann Leckie (Lake of Souls)
• “Loneliness Universe”, Eugenia Triantafyllou (Uncanny May/Jun 2024)
• “Signs of Life”, Sarah Pinsker (Uncanny Jul/Aug 2024)

Short Story

• Winner: “Stitched to Skin Like Family Is”, Nghi Vo (Uncanny Jan/Feb 2024)
• “Five Views of the Planet Tartarus”, Rachael K. Jones (Lightspeed Jan 2024)
• “Marginalia”, Mary Robinette Kowal (Uncanny Jan/Feb 2024)
• “Three Faces of a Beheading”, Arkady Martine (Uncanny May/Jun 2024)
• “We Will Teach You How to Read | We Will Teach You How to Read”, Caroline M. Yoachim (Lightspeed May 2024)
• “Why Don't We Just Kill the Kid in the Omelas Hole”, Isabel J. Kim (Clarkesworld Feb 2024)

Series

• Winner: Between Earth and Sky, Rebecca Roanhorse (Saga)
• The Burning Kingdoms, Tasha Suri (Orbit)
• InCryptid, Seanan McGuire (DAW; Tor)
• Southern Reach, Jeff VanderMeer (Farrar, Straus, Giroux; Fourth Estate)
• The Stormlight Archive, Brandon Sanderson (Tor; Gollancz)
• The Tyrant Philosophers, Adrian Tchaikovsky (Head of Zeus)

Related Work

• Winner: Speculative Whiteness: Science Fiction and the Alt-Right, Jordan S. Carroll (University of Minnesota Press)
• “The 2023 Hugo Awards: A Report on Censorship and Exclusion”, Chris M. Barkley & Jason Sanford (Genre Grapevine; File 770 14 Feb 2024)
• “Charting the Cliff: An Investigation into the 2023 Hugo Nomination Statistics”, Camestros Felapton & Heather Rose Jones (File 770 22 Feb 2024)
• r/Fantasy�s 2024 Bingo Reading Challenge, r Fantasy Bingo team (r/Fantasy on Reddit) (Alexandra Forrest (happy_book_bee), Amanda E. (Lyrrael), Arka (RuinEleint), Ashley Rollins (oboist73), Christine Sandquist (eriophora), David H. (FarragutCircle), Diana H. (HeLiBeB), Dianthaa, Dylan H. (RAAAImmaSunGod), Dylan Kilby (an_altar_of_plagues), )
• The Spectacular Failure of the Star Wars Hotel, Jenny Nicholson (YouTube)
• Track Changes, Abigail Nussbaum (Briardene)

Graphic Story Or Comic

• Winner: Star Trek: Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way, written by Ryan North, art by Chris Fenoglio (IDW Publishing)
• The Deep Dark, Molly Knox Ostertag (Graphix)
• The Hunger and the Dusk: Vol 1, written by G. Willow Wilson, art by Chris Wildgoose (IDW Publishing)
• Monstress, Vol. 9: The Possessed, written by Marjorie Liu, art by Sana Takeda (Image)
• My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Book Two, Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics)
• We Called Them Giants, written by Kieron Gillen, art by Stephanie Hans, letter by Clayton Cowles (Image)

Dramatic Presentation: Long Form

• Winner: Dune: Part Two (screenplay by Denis Villeneuve & Jon Spaihts, directed by Denis Villeneuve (Legendary Pictures / Warner Bros. Pictures))
• Flow (screenplay by Gints Zilbalodis & Matiss Ka�a, directed by Gints Zilbalodis (Dream Well Studio))
• Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (screenplay by George Miller and Nick Lathouris, directed by George Miller (Warner Bros. Pictures))
• I Saw the TV Glow (screenplay by Jane Schoenbrun, directed by Jane Schoenbrun (Fruit Tree / Smudge Films / A24))
• Wicked (screenplay by Winnie Holzman & Dana Fox, directed by Jon M. Chu (Universal Pictures))
• The Wild Robot (screenplay by Chris Sanders & Peter Brown, directed by Chris Sanders (DreamWorks Animation))

Dramatic Presentation: Short Form

• Winner: Star Trek: Lower Decks: “The New Next Generation” (created and written by Mike McMahan, based on Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry, directed by Megan Lloyd (CBS Eye Animation Productions for Paramount+))
• Agatha All Along: “Death's Hand in Mine” (written by Gia King & Cameron Squires, directed by Jac Schaeffer (Marvel; Disney+))
• Doctor Who: “73 Yards” (written by Russell T Davies, directed by Dylan Holmes Williams (BBC; Disney+))
• Doctor Who: “Dot and Bubble” (written by Russell T Davies, directed by Dylan Holmes Williams (BBC; Disney+))
• Fallout: “The Beginning” (written by Gursimran Sandhu, directed by Wayne Che Yip (Amazon Prime Video))
• Star Trek: Lower Decks: “Fissure Quest” (created by Mike McMahan, written by Lauren McGuire, based on Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry, directed by Brandon Williams (CBS Eye Animation Productions for Paramount+))

Editor, Short Form

• Winner: Neil Clarke
• Scott H. Andrews
• Jennifer Brozek
• Jonathan Strahan
• Lynne M. Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas
• Sheila Williams

Editor, Long Form

• Winner: Diana M. Pho
• Carl Engle-Laird
• Ali Fisher
• Lee Harris
• David Thomas Moore
• Stephanie Stein

Professional Artist

• Winner: Alyssa Winans
• Micaela Alcaino
• Audrey Benjaminsen
• Rovina Cai
• Maurizio Manzieri
• Tran Nguyen

Semiprozine

• Winner: Uncanny, Lynne M. Thomas (publisher and editor-in-chief), Michael Damian Thomas (publisher and editor-in-chief), Monte Lin (managing editor), Betsy Aoki (poetry editor), Erika Ensign (podcast producer), Steven Schapansky (podcast producer)
• The Deadlands, Sean Markey (publisher), E. Catherine Tobler (editor), Nicasio Andres Reed (editor), David Gilmore (editor), Laura Blackwell (editor), Annika Barranti Klein (editor), Josephine Stewart (proofreader), Amanda Downum (columnist), Cory Skerry (art and design), Christine M. Scott (art and design), Felicia Mart�nez (social media), Shana Du Bois (assistant)
• Escape Pod, Mur Lafferty (editor), Valerie Valdes (editor), Premee Mohamed (assistant editor), Kevin Wabaunsee (assistant editor), Tina Connolly (host), Alasdair Stuart (host), Summer Brooks (producer), Adam Pracht (producer), the entire Escape Pod team
• FIYAH, DaVaun Sanders (publisher and executive editor), B. Sharise Moore (poetry editor), Christian Ivey (art director), Rebecca McGee (acquiring editor), Kerine Wint (acquiring editor), Egbiameje Omole (acquiring editor), Emmalia Harrington (acquiring editor), Genine Tyson (acquiring editor), Tonya R. Moore (acquiring editor), Nelson Rolon (sponsor coordinator)
• khor�o, Zhui Ning Chang, Aleksandra Hill, Danai Christopoulou, Isabella Kestermann, Kanika Agrawal, Sachiko Ragosta, Lian Xia Rose, Jenelle DeCosta, Melissa Ren, Elaine Ho, Ambi Sun, Cyrus Chin, Nivair H. Gabriel, Jean� Ridges, Lilivette Dom�nguez, Isaree Thatchaichawalit, Jei E. Marcade, M. L. Krishnan, Ysabella Maglanque, Aaron Voigt, Adialyz Del Valle Berrios, Adil Mian, Akilah White, Alexandra Millatmal, Anselma Widha Prihandita, E. Broderick, K. S. Walker, Katarzyna Nowacka, Katie McIvor, Kelsea Yu, Lynn D. Jung, Madeleine Vigneron, Marie Croke, Merulai Femi, Phoebe Low, S. R. Westvik, Sanjna Bhartiya, Sara S. Messenger, Sophia Uy, Tina Zhu, Yuvashri Harish, Zohar Jacobs
• Strange Horizons, Strange Horizons Editorial Collective

Fanzine

• Winner: Black Nerd Problems, William Evans & Omar Holmon, eds.
• Ancillary Review of Books, Jake Casella Brookins, Zachary Gillan, Lane Gillespie, Misha Grifka Wander , Gareth A. Reeves, Bianca Skriny�r, Cynthia Zhang
• The Full Lid, Alasdair Stuart, edited by Marguerite Kenner
• Galactic Journey, Gideon Marcus (founder), Janice L. Newman (editor), Cora Buhlert (associate writer), Jessica Holmes (associate writer), Kerrie Dougherty (associate writer), Kris Vyas-Myall (associate writer), Natalie Devitt (and the rest of the Journey team)
• Unofficial Hugo Book Club Blog, Olav Rokne & Amanda Wakaruk, eds.

Fan Writer

• Winner: Abigail Nussbaum
• Camestros Felapton
• Roseanna Pendlebury
• Jason Sanford
• Alasdair Stuart
• �rjan Westin

Fan Artist

• Winner: Sara Felix
• Iain J. Clark
• Meg Frank
• Michelle Morrell
• Alison Scott
• Espa�a Sheriff

Fancast

• Winner: Eight Days of Diana Wynne Jones, Emily Tesh & Rebecca Fraimow
• The Coode Street Podcast, Jonathan Strahan & Gary K. Wolfe
• Hugo, Girl!, Haley Zapal, Amy Salley, Lori Anderson & Kevin Anderson
• Hugos There, Seth Heasley
• A Meal of Thorns, Jake Casella Brookins
• Worldbuilding for Masochists, Marshall Ryan Maresca, Cass Morris & Natania Barron

Game Or Interactive Work

• Winner: Caves of Qud (co-creators Brian Bucklew & Jason Grinblat; contributors Nick DeCapua, Corey Frang, Craig Hamilton, Autumn McDonell, Bastia Rosen, Caelyn Sandel, Samuel Wilson (Freehold Games); sound design A Shell in the Pit; publisher Kitfox Games)
• 1000xRESIST (developed by sunset visitor ????, published by Fellow Traveller)
• Dragon Age: The Veilguard (produced by BioWare)
• The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (produced by Nintendo)
• Lorelei and the Laser Eyes (produced by Simogo)
• Tactical Breach Wizards (developed by Suspicious Developments)

Poem

• Winner: “A War of Words”, Marie Brennan (Strange Horizons 16 Sep 2024)
• Calypso, Oliver K. Langmead (Titan)
• “Ever Noir”, Mari Ness (Haven Spec Jul 2024)
• “there are no taxis for the dead”, Angela Liu (Uncanny May/Jun 2024)
• “We Drink Lava”, Ai Jiang (Uncanny Mar/Apr 2024)
• “Your Visiting Dragon”, Devan Barlow (Strange Horizons 9 Jun 2024)

— Associated Awards —

Astounding Award for Best New Writer.—

Winner

• Moniquill Blackgoose (second year of eligibility)

Finalists

• Bethany Jacobs (second year of eligibility)
• Hannah Kaner (second year of eligibility)
• Angela Liu (second year of eligibility)
• Jared Pechacek (first year of eligibility)
• Tia Tashiro (second year of eligibility)

Lodestar Award—

Winner

• Sheine Lende, Darcie Little Badger (Levine Querido)

Finalists

• The Feast Makers, H. A. Clarke (Erewhom)
• Heavenly Tyrant, Xiran Jay Zhao (Tundra)
• The Maid and the Crocodile, Jordan Ifueko (Amulet; Hot Key UK)
• Moonstorm, Yoon Ha Lee (Delacorte; Solaris UK)
• So Let Them Burn, Kamilah Cole (Little, Brown; Atom UK)

Best New Science Fiction Books From The New Scientist

 

Comment

The best new science fiction books of September 2025

Authors including literary heavyweight Ian McEwan and big hitters John Scalzi, Yume Kitasei and Cixin Liu have new sci-fi novels out this month

By Alison Flood

1 September 2025

In Mason Coile’s Exiles, a human crew arrive on Mars

Shutterstock/Gorodenkoff​

There are some sci-fi heavy hitters with new novels out this month, from Cixin Liu and Stephen Baxter to John Scalzi. I’m keen to check out Ian McEwan’s venture to a flooded version of 2119 – a drowned-world trope also taken up by Yume Kitasei in the intriguing-sounding Saltcrop. The late Mason Coile’s tale of disaster in a new Martian colony, Exiles, is also tempting me, as is more time travelling noir from the excellent Nicholas Binge.

We’re taking a more classic route in the New Scientist Book Club this month, checking out Ursula K. Le Guin’s much-admired 1974 novel The Dispossessed. Come read along with us and see how it compares to the best of today’s science fiction. But back to September 2025…

What We Can Know by Ian McEwan

The literary writer turns to science fiction – and not for the first time (who read 2010’s Solar?). In his new novel, we move from 2014, when a great poem is read aloud and then lost, never to be heard again, to 2119, when the UK’s low-lying areas have been submerged. Scholar Tom Metcalfe looks back at the archives of the early 21st century, marvelling at the possibilities life offered back then. Then he finds a clue that might lead to the “great lost poem”…

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The Collected Stories by Cixin Liu

Here’s a treat for fans of The Three-Body Problem – the collected short stories of Cixin Liu, which touch on first contact, machine intelligences and cosmological horror. There are 32 in total, and we’re promised everything from solar systems being devoured to planets being turned into spaceships.

The 2024 adaptation of 3 Body Problem

ED MILLER/NETFLIX

Hearthspace by Stephen Baxter

The Hearth is the “celestial birthplace” of millions of planets, and humanity arrived there thousands of years ago, spreading itself across these worlds. When an unknown enemy sees the richness of the Hearth and wants to take it for themselves, Commander Ulla Breen must come up with a plan to unite its disparate elements and fight back. Will she also learn why humanity came here in the first place?

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The best new science fiction books of August 2025

From a fresh take on Stephen King’s The Stand to a new novel by Adrian Tchaikovsky set on a poisoned world, August has a bumper crop of new science fiction novels

Saltcrop by Yume Kitasei

In a near-future version of Earth, coastal cities have been flooded by seas filled with mutant fish. We follow sailor Skipper, the youngest of three sisters, who makes a living by skimming plastic from the ocean and reselling it. When she receives a cryptic plea for help from her eldest sister Nora, who is looking for a cure for the world’s failing crops, she and her other sister Carmen set out across the sea – and a dying world – to find her. Kitasei is the author of The Deep Sky and The Stardust Grail, and this sounds great.

Extremity by Nicholas Binge

In this time travelling police procedural, detective Julia Torgrimsen (good name!) is brought out of retirement to investigate the murder of a billionaire she worked with while undercover. But she finds two bodies – both of which are billionaire Bruno Donaldson… We loved Binge’s last sci-fi thriller Dissolution here at New Scientist, so I’m looking forward to this one.

The Shattering Peace by John Scalzi

This is the seventh novel in Scalzi’s Old Man’s War series. There has been peace in interstellar space for a decade, but now the most advanced alien species humanity has ever met is on the verge of war – and Earth is being dragged into the conflict. Gretchen Trujillo, a mid-level bureaucrat, is given a secret mission that could change the future for humans and aliens alike.

Exiles by Mason Coile

I’m very taken by the cover and premise of this new novel from the author of William (which I enjoyed), who sadly died earlier this year. It’s set in 2030, when a human crew arrives to prepare the first colony on Mars, only to find the new base half-destroyed. The three robots sent ahead four years earlier to set it up need to be interrogated – but one of them is missing…

Our favourite science fiction books of all time (the ones we forgot)

Following on from our first list, we asked New Scientist staff to pick even more of their favourite sci-fi books of all time. From Isaac Asimov and Ursula K. Le Guin to Star Wars – the list has it all this time, we hope…

Spread Me by Sarah Gailey

At a remote research station in the desert, Kinsey and her team discover a strange specimen in the sand. When Kinsey breaks quarantine and brings it inside, it soon becomes clear that the thing is looking for a new host.

Tender by Lauren DuPlessis

This sounds to me like it treads the line between horror, science fiction and fantasy – and that’s a line I like to see trodden. Set against a backdrop of eco-anxiety, it follows archaeobotanist Nell as she excavates two bog bodies discovered in a Somerset fen, while her body starts to manifest “her own wildness”.

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