Photo of John Varley
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John Varley

2 series 8 books in order 1 standalone book

John Varley (1947-2025) was an American science fiction writer who won Hugo and Nebula awards for his novellas "The Persistence of Vision", "PRESS ENTER", and "The Pusher". His works in our catalog include the Gaea trilogy (Titan, Wizard, and Demon) and Eight Worlds books such as Steel Beach and The Golden Globe.

Born
1947
Known for
Eight Worlds, Gaea trilogy

Series by John Varley

Eight Worlds

5 books in order · 1992–2018

  1. Cover of Steel beach

    Steel beach

    1992 · John Varley

    Steel beach is a 1992 book by John Varley. It is part of the series Eight Worlds. Catalog genres: Science Fiction, Literary Fiction, Reference. The…

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  2. Cover of The Ophiuchi Hotline

    The Ophiuchi Hotline

    1993

    The invaders arrived in 2050, peacefully dismantling all evidence of technology without killing anyone, then departed, leaving behind plowed ground…

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  3. Cover of The golden globe

    The golden globe

    1998 · John Varley

    All the Universe Is a Stage is a 1998 novel by John Varley. The story follows Sparky Valentine, an actor who travels from planet to planet with a…

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  5. Cover of Irontown blues

    Irontown blues

    2018 · John Varley

    From a master of science fiction comes a brand-new noir novel set in the Eight Worlds universe, where a detective hunts for the biohackers who have…

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Gaea trilogy

3 books in order · 1979–1984

  1. Cover of Titan

    Titan

    1979 · John Varley

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  2. Cover of Wizard

    Wizard

    1980 · John Varley

    Wizard is a 1980 science fiction novel by American writer John Varley. It is the second book in his Gaea Trilogy. The novel was nominated for the…

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  3. Cover of Demon

    Demon

    1984 · John Varley

    Demon (1984) is a novel by John Varley that serves as the dazzling climax to the story of Gaea, an alien who is herself a living world, and Cirocco…

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Standalone books

  1. Cover of Millennium
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Frequently asked questions

How many books has John Varley written?

We list 8 books by John Varley across 2 series, published between 1979–2018 — each shown in full reading order.

What order should I read John Varley's books?

Read each series in publication order. A good place to start is “Irontown blues.” Open any series above for its complete numbered reading order.

Where can I buy John Varley's books?

Every title links to Amazon from its series page — see our affiliate disclosure in the footer for how that supports the site.

Reading order compiled from author/publisher guidance and verified bibliographic data. Spotted a wrong order, a missing book, or any other mistake? and we'll correct it.

Some summaries adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.