Came here to say this, it’s possible the best book about leadership I’ve ever read. And there ain’t one leader-hero: an integral part of Hazel’s leadership is recognizing and utilizing the strengths of his comrades.
There are some intense scenes (The story of a destroyed warren probably most so) but the "horrifying, traumatising" aspects of the book are vastly overrated.
It's a fantastic book and I highly recommend it. Bigwig is one of my all-time favourite characters across all literature.
Yes, it’s one of the reccomended places to start the series. The two books before are about the main characters parents, you can go back and read those later if you like this book.
And make sure you read "Borders of Infinity", especially the novella 'The mountains of mourning'.
The whole Vorkosigan series is worth reading (and re-reading)
I would say this is like Ender's Game plus comedy. Miles is a fail-upward type. He's not a genius as in he pre-calculates everything; he's just really, *really* good at winging it and fooling people into thinking he's good at stuff, until he gets a handle on things and actually *is* good at stuff.
Vimes is rarely the smartest guy in the room, but he’s as decent as they come. And then you get Vetinari who is the actual leader of the city, and a truly complicated fellow, though I de oats humanist.
I'd recommend the Moist trilogy as well.
He's an extremely intelligent unlikely protagonist and ends up a leader of sorts in three different ventures.
Of course, as always, it's Vetinari who's really pulling the strings
I love seeing Discworld books recommended. I’m moving soon and had to downsize my book collection severely, but can’t seem to give away more than a few pratchett books. I just know I’ll keep coming back to them when I need a certain brand of soul stirring fortification built into an entertaining story.
Ender’s Game is some of the most intelligent and well-thought out pop fiction I’ve ever read. Ender’s perspectives and reasoning are so freaking introspective and smart. Shame it was adapted into a goofy action movie (with a good cast); I think it deserves the prestige Dune treatment but it doesn’t have the same following.
Card himself is a little…out there. Great case for separating the art from the artist.
I need to reread it; picked it up when I was younger, thinking it was light sci-fi action, and (for me) I’d put it up there with The Grapes of Wrath for truly illustrating a character’s compassion, understanding, and need to make difficult choices. It’s a stunning book, and I don’t remember overt misogyny but I do remember a strangeness about the women characters in Speaker for the Dead (a book I appreciated more than enjoyed). Tried Xenocide and couldn’t get into it, maybe will try again.
If you liked Ender’s Game but not so much the subsequent books, you should try the Shadow-Verse series. It’s Ender’s game, but from Bean’s PoV. The subsequent books after follow directly after the Formic war on earth instead of some crazy offworld mumbo jumbo with AI girlfirends and stuff.
If you read the rest of the series, you’ll find that 1) the rest of the series doesn’t read like pop fiction at all, and 2) yeah, he’s out there all right, but he makes you think and that’s why I end up coming back to the books again and again just to get in philosophical arguments with the characters because they MAKE ME THINK
The Codex Alera series (the first one is called Furies of Calderon) by Jim Butcher. (Fantasy)
The Red Rising books (sci fi)
I would love to see a head to head of Ender vs. Tavi vs. Darrow. It would be legendary (and they’d probably end up friends by the end because what better way to beat the enemy than by becoming friends with the enemy?)
If you're open to YA, Tamora Pierce's 'Protector of the Small' series is a coming of age about a young woman developing into an excellent commander rather than a big shiny hero, and I really love it.
The Goblin Emperor. Maia has to learn it as he goes, but he has a talent for understanding conflicts and finding clever solutions, and outsmarting people trying to take advantage of him
I own the books, tried to read it once a few years ago and it just has such a slow start i couldnt commit to it and dropped it. I get that its supposed to be more political than action but yeah…
Honestly it's not really political either. It has all the cues of being a political intrigue novel, but ends up being a pleasant drama with some *very* basic scheming thrown in briefly. I don't think the description above is really accurate; there's not a lot of clever maneuvering.
I'm saying that because I quite liked it for what it was, but first I had to get over some disappointment that it didn't deliver what it seemed to promise.
To me it's fantasy in the style of Jane Austen, if that makes any sense. The plot (what there is of it) is window-dressing. The real point is the characters and the human insight.
Tonya Huff’s “Valor Confederation” series. Military sci fi. Protagonist is female Sergeant who is hyper competent.
Honor Harrington series by David Weber. More military sci fi, another woman in leadership.
“Time Enough for Love” by Heinlein. The 2,000 year old man tells stories of his life.
If you can handle VERY white male-centric 40s pulp, The Lensman series by EE “Doc” Smith. The whole series is good, but you can just read the last 4, Galactic Patrol, Gray Lensman, Second Stage Lensmen, and Children of the Lens. (Yes, I’m aware the Galactic Patrol would happily exterminate my non-conforming ass like an annoying bug, it is still fun.)
Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden series. Modern urban magic and a talking skull.
Watership Down. Nuff said.
Honor Harrington was my first thought. It's unadulterated good-leadership porn. The true antagonist isn't the Space Opera Communist Republic; it's the culture of disregard for correct military procedure.
I read this book in high school and it was one of the reasons I chose to become a medical provider. Reread it as an adult and it was even better than I remembered.
When I need to ground myself and appreciate the simple pleasures in my incredibly privileged life, I read it again. That or the Little House series.
Apologies if I've already suggested these to you, but if you like Little House, you might also like The Birchbark House series. They share the same focus on day-to-day life, seasonal change, strong families, historical diseases, young protagonists, and westward migration. But the Birchbark House series has Ojibwe progagonists.
I’ll look into it. Thanks!
I work in psych and I often talk to my patients (and try to take my own advice) about spending time outdoors in the sunshine for even a few minutes each day, spending time looking at and interacting with nature, even just a houseplant, and doing something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and meaning. It doesn’t replace medication entirely, but it goes a long way towards maintaining our mental health.
As humans we didn’t evolve indoors looking at screens. We evolved outdoors, following the cycle of the sun and seasons. We grew our own food and had a far deeper connection to our place in nature.
It’s easy to take our conveniences for granted. When I start to grumble about traffic or the internet being slow or whatever, I read those books and appreciate how easy my life is in comparison. How much bigger and smaller the world is for me. It puts it all in perspective.
I'm rather biased towards fantasy:
Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Kelsier from Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
A Song of Ice & Fire series by George R. R. Martin
The Greatcoats Quartet by Sebastien De Castell
Night Angel series by Brent Weeks
These last 3 aren't really "leaders" but I think they still classify.
Jack Reacher series by Lee Child
Spellslinger series by Sebastien De Castell
The Earthsea Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin
Red Rising Series by Pierce Brown.
I cannot reccomend this series enough. The main character exists when the entire universe has been developed and has also been thrown into a high-Roman Empire hierarchy with a caste system. The entire universe is ruled by one color (everyone is assigned colors and roles by planet they are born on, and job they hold as a result of that birth). For instance, everyone born on Mars exists to mine Mars for resources. They bring in other colors for maintenance, entertainment etc. food is shipped in. The MC suffers loss, undergoes recruitment by a revel group, becomes their champion and then leads the revolution. Everything he does he must learn, and so he immerses himself so deeply that he is able to do everything and think more abstractly and strategically than the whole of the universal population, but he had to learn and grow as he goes. He learns history, strategy, inter- and intra-personal relationships, and has to deal with love, life, loyalty, regret, loss, death, friendship, heartbreak, distrust, scheming politics, traitors etc. the 7th, and final, book releases in the next year or so.
Came to say Darrow. The ultimate leader, a book series has never made me punch the air or scream in joy or victory like RR. Some epic scenes in RR, and only gets better as the series progresses. GS is the most epic for me but all are excellent. Yeah, space romans.
Seriously my favorite fiction series of all time. Literally reignited my passion for reading after burning out during a 10 year stint in the book industry.
Seconding this. It's all about leadership being smarter rather than stronger, and it's really well done. It's Star Wars, but it focuses less on the force and lightsabers, more on learning about your enemy in order to gain the upper hand.
There are 3 Thrawn trilogies now, the original Heir to the Empire trilogy, the new canon Thrawn trilogy, and the recent Ascendency trilogy.
I scrolled through every comment on this thread and didn't see it listed. But I really enjoyed 16 ways to Defend a Walled City by KJ Parker. Follows a reluctant military leader under siege.
Timmy from the 2 Necromancers series. He is usually planning things out in advance. There are frequent references to investments he has made and easy he made them. Besides the necromancy, his training of his apprentice Katie frequently involves education on mundane things like investments, business, and trading. The evil king in the story frequently comments of his tactical genius and has managed several large scale battles in the latter books. The first book in the series is 2 Necromancers, A Bureaucrate, and an Elf.
BRAXTON’S TURN and BRAXTON’S PLAN from the the Braxton’s America series. The protagonist, in his unique and quirky way, puts the country on his back and takes it to a better place.
I was scrolling to see if anyone was going to recommend this. Seems like most books on here are fiction, but this work of nonfiction reads like a novel. It’s about Shackleton’s failed attempt to reach the South Pole, and the adventures of survival to get him and his crew back to safety. Awesome book, amazing story.
I really enjoyed the first few books of the Seafort Saga, starting with Midshipman's Hope. Nick Seafort has to make a lot of hard choices in this Naval Sci-fi and it can get grim in places because there are real consequences, but he's a very good leader and has a strong moral backbone.
Business fables are a guilty pleasure of mine, so:
“The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” and “The Three Signs of a Miserable Job” by Patrick Lencioni are favorites.
Don’t expect great works if literature. The narratives are there to teach you about leadership. But if you want competent people repeatedly diffusing small problems while leading people to tackle big ones, they’ll scratch that itch.
I recently re-read Ready Player One. It's a neat premise but I felt like the writing wasn't great. At times I found it hard to believe that any editor had ever let it get published.
Also, In Search of the Miraculous by Ouspensy but in a different way.
Claudius is awesome because he uses his stuttering as a way to make everyone think he is an imbecile and not worth assassinating to ascend to the Emperor's throne that he eventually sits in briefly and very inadvertently.
The Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell.
The protagonist gets thrust into command of a huge fleet. He works hard and competently to lead it in a dire situation.
If you like historical fiction that digs a bit deeper, the Thomas Cromwell of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy is s brilliant courtier and tactician who plays too long at the table of Henry VIII so ultimately loses, but has an amazing run. (Not sure if this is a great rec for OP specifically, but it does fit the bill.)
I had something of an argument with my husband about that title. He's obsessed with what we call competency porn, but he's like "usually (x) porn means that it's neglecting everything else good in the medium in service of this one thing." I claim that yeah, that usually is how it goes :P
Neglecting people with emotional weakness, communication issues, and other such common flaws that are considered "incompetence" is a level of unrealism that many people just don't like, or that by itself makes a shallow book.
How about where the main protagonist is also a horrible person?
In that case, I can’t recommend the Tom Ripley series enough. Also, if you’re into anime, deathnote gets an honorable mention here.
If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend Ender's Shadow. It's about Bean from Ender's Game, who turns out to be a completely different kind of genius and leader. While I was reading the parts that overlap with Ender's Game, I often had both books open at the same time, flipping around to see if the same conversation happened in Ender's Game and what it was like from Ender's perspective. Extremely well done and will give the same type of enjoyment.
Shackletons Way
True story of Earnest Shackleton and his Expedition to the south pole. Ship got wrecked and thanks to his incredible leadership most of the crew survived.
Book tells the story with in-between chapters on leadership.
Vorkosigan Saga. It's a 20+ book, multi generational scifi series but don't feel too overwhelmed. You can jump in (almost) anywhere and still scratch this itch. I usually recommend Vor Game first because it's a short story collection and I think that helps you get a feeling for the world.
Gentlemen Joel and the Red Queen is the only book in the series that I don't believe fits; but I found it disappointing for a few different reasons so I might be projecting based on my other hang ups.
Edit: Damnit, someone else recommended this 5hs ago and I didn't see it
Currently reading “The Stars Now Unclaimed” by Drew Williams. The protagonist is a female ex-soldier who makes some pretty ruthless decisions, but they’re in-keeping with her character history and the universe that the book is set in. Thoroughly enjoying it so far.
It’s also set in space.
I believe this series is overlooked so much, but "The Keys of the Kingdom" by Garth Nix (starts with Mister Monday and end on Lord Sunday).
Just a heads up: The main character, Arthur, does not intend on being a leader at all and considers himself average.
I recommend the book series because it develops and shows the intelligence and greatness of a leader built over time in a natural way. The books aren't very large, but the impact is massive, in my personal opinion.
The Killer Angels: A Novel of the Civil War, by Michael Shaara (1975)- Pulitzer Prize winning historical novel about the Battle of Gettysburg for which the protagonist, to the extent the book has one, is Col. Joshua Chamberlain, the Union officer in command of a unit that fought in what may have been the crux of the battle.
I also do movies. Twelve O’Clock High is exactly what you’re after.
Shogun-James clavell (and Rat King),
Red rising series- pierce brown, and
The Fountainhead-Ayn Rand. One that is kind of more a study of evil leadership but has some takeaways for good is Seawolf by Jack London.
Not one book but the Stormlight Archives series is centered around leadership, doubt, perseverance and justice. Many characters fill the role of good leaders and the reader watches their progression to bettering not only themselves but those that follow them and their larger communities.
The character of Croaker in The Black Company series by Glen Cook is one of the most... *influential* people in fiction I've ever read. He does move into true leadership roles eventually, but for much of the series he leads from behind, giving the company a sense of direction, not orders. It's one of my favorite series, and he's a big part of the reason why.
First, I ADORE Ender's Game. As a stand alone book, it's my favorite.
So, with that said, I'm going to recommend my favorite trilogy (which ends up being a double trilogy or hexology), called "The Apprentice Adept" trilogy. The first book is "Split Infinity" and I think you'll find Stile, the hero, a capable, smart, benevolent leader.
Hi everyone. Thanks for all the suggestion. I'm already reading one of the suggested books. And added the others to wishlist 🙇🏻♂️ thanks alot for the suggestions
Red Rising Series by Pierce Brown.
I cannot reccomend this series enough. The main character exists when the entire universe has been developed and has also been thrown into a high-Roman Empire hierarchy with a caste system. The entire universe is ruled by one color (everyone is assigned colors and roles by planet they are born on, and job they hold as a result of that birth). For instance, everyone born on Mars exists to mine Mars for resources. They bring in other colors for maintenance, entertainment etc. food is shipped in. The MC suffers loss, undergoes recruitment by a revel group, becomes their champion and then leads the revolution. Everything he does he must learn, and so he immerses himself so deeply that he is able to do everything and think more abstractly and strategically than the whole of the universal population, but he had to learn and grow as he goes. He learns history, strategy, inter- and intra-personal relationships, and has to deal with love, life, loyalty, regret, loss, death, friendship, heartbreak, distrust, scheming politics, traitors etc. the 7th, and final, book releases in the next year or so.
Ender from Enders Game. I like this book because it's shows a great leader but also the consequences of your actions and compassion. I actually learned few leadership skills from this book. How to admit your wrong and just listening to others ideas. Great book 9.5/10.
Watership Down
Came here to say this, it’s possible the best book about leadership I’ve ever read. And there ain’t one leader-hero: an integral part of Hazel’s leadership is recognizing and utilizing the strengths of his comrades.
Just finished that book and it was sooooo good.
Ok. Now I need to read the book and watch the movie. Numerous times I've seen Reddit posts describe the film as a traumatizing childhood experience.
Those kids are weak. It has some blood and things, but "traumatizing"?! Nah. No more so than Hanzel and Gretel. Watership Down is amazing.
There are some intense scenes (The story of a destroyed warren probably most so) but the "horrifying, traumatising" aspects of the book are vastly overrated. It's a fantastic book and I highly recommend it. Bigwig is one of my all-time favourite characters across all literature.
I saw it in 3rd grade, it had the opposite effect. I was obsessed with both the book and the movie!
This book isn’t recommended enough here.
You beat me to this rec! But yes! Hazel-ra <3
This ^
Yes!
The Warrior’s Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61906.The_Warrior_s_Apprentice
Can you read this without having read any of the rest of the series?
Yes, it’s one of the reccomended places to start the series. The two books before are about the main characters parents, you can go back and read those later if you like this book.
And make sure you read "Borders of Infinity", especially the novella 'The mountains of mourning'. The whole Vorkosigan series is worth reading (and re-reading)
Cool. Thanks!
I would say this is like Ender's Game plus comedy. Miles is a fail-upward type. He's not a genius as in he pre-calculates everything; he's just really, *really* good at winging it and fooling people into thinking he's good at stuff, until he gets a handle on things and actually *is* good at stuff.
Beat me to this recommendation! A great novel to start the series.
Sam Vimes Commander of the City Watch in the Discworld books The absolute epitome of a good and decent man. Start with the book ‘Guards, Gusrds!’
True. He really values every assett
Vimes is rarely the smartest guy in the room, but he’s as decent as they come. And then you get Vetinari who is the actual leader of the city, and a truly complicated fellow, though I de oats humanist.
I'd recommend the Moist trilogy as well. He's an extremely intelligent unlikely protagonist and ends up a leader of sorts in three different ventures. Of course, as always, it's Vetinari who's really pulling the strings
I love seeing Discworld books recommended. I’m moving soon and had to downsize my book collection severely, but can’t seem to give away more than a few pratchett books. I just know I’ll keep coming back to them when I need a certain brand of soul stirring fortification built into an entertaining story.
Being that I'm reading these and then rereading them with my kid, I can honestly say they actually improve on reread.
Ender’s Game is some of the most intelligent and well-thought out pop fiction I’ve ever read. Ender’s perspectives and reasoning are so freaking introspective and smart. Shame it was adapted into a goofy action movie (with a good cast); I think it deserves the prestige Dune treatment but it doesn’t have the same following. Card himself is a little…out there. Great case for separating the art from the artist.
Oh and the whole weirdness with women is not just a weird gut feeling you get, OSC does hate women
I need to reread it; picked it up when I was younger, thinking it was light sci-fi action, and (for me) I’d put it up there with The Grapes of Wrath for truly illustrating a character’s compassion, understanding, and need to make difficult choices. It’s a stunning book, and I don’t remember overt misogyny but I do remember a strangeness about the women characters in Speaker for the Dead (a book I appreciated more than enjoyed). Tried Xenocide and couldn’t get into it, maybe will try again.
If you liked Ender’s Game but not so much the subsequent books, you should try the Shadow-Verse series. It’s Ender’s game, but from Bean’s PoV. The subsequent books after follow directly after the Formic war on earth instead of some crazy offworld mumbo jumbo with AI girlfirends and stuff.
I love that Bean seems smarter than Ender once you get to know him. So good.
Seconding Shadowverse. Ender's Game from Bean's perspective is fantastic.
If you read the rest of the series, you’ll find that 1) the rest of the series doesn’t read like pop fiction at all, and 2) yeah, he’s out there all right, but he makes you think and that’s why I end up coming back to the books again and again just to get in philosophical arguments with the characters because they MAKE ME THINK
Yeah, Enders Shadow is a cool read right after Enders Game. The books complement each other
Yeah, but that’s not what I’m talking about. Speaker For the Dead is heavy.
Master and Commander
And if you like it, the other 19-1/2 that make up the series.
The Codex Alera series (the first one is called Furies of Calderon) by Jim Butcher. (Fantasy) The Red Rising books (sci fi) I would love to see a head to head of Ender vs. Tavi vs. Darrow. It would be legendary (and they’d probably end up friends by the end because what better way to beat the enemy than by becoming friends with the enemy?)
Red Rising trilogy is captivating.
Any of Bernard Cornwall’s novels - sharpe series, kingdom series are fantastic
This is what came to my mind.
archers tale also
If you're open to YA, Tamora Pierce's 'Protector of the Small' series is a coming of age about a young woman developing into an excellent commander rather than a big shiny hero, and I really love it.
I love her books so much!!!
Name of the Wind
Any of the Jack Reacher books by Lee Childs.
The Goblin Emperor. Maia has to learn it as he goes, but he has a talent for understanding conflicts and finding clever solutions, and outsmarting people trying to take advantage of him
Man that sounds good
I own the books, tried to read it once a few years ago and it just has such a slow start i couldnt commit to it and dropped it. I get that its supposed to be more political than action but yeah…
Honestly it's not really political either. It has all the cues of being a political intrigue novel, but ends up being a pleasant drama with some *very* basic scheming thrown in briefly. I don't think the description above is really accurate; there's not a lot of clever maneuvering. I'm saying that because I quite liked it for what it was, but first I had to get over some disappointment that it didn't deliver what it seemed to promise.
To me it's fantasy in the style of Jane Austen, if that makes any sense. The plot (what there is of it) is window-dressing. The real point is the characters and the human insight.
Tonya Huff’s “Valor Confederation” series. Military sci fi. Protagonist is female Sergeant who is hyper competent. Honor Harrington series by David Weber. More military sci fi, another woman in leadership. “Time Enough for Love” by Heinlein. The 2,000 year old man tells stories of his life. If you can handle VERY white male-centric 40s pulp, The Lensman series by EE “Doc” Smith. The whole series is good, but you can just read the last 4, Galactic Patrol, Gray Lensman, Second Stage Lensmen, and Children of the Lens. (Yes, I’m aware the Galactic Patrol would happily exterminate my non-conforming ass like an annoying bug, it is still fun.) Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden series. Modern urban magic and a talking skull. Watership Down. Nuff said.
Honor Harrington was my first thought. It's unadulterated good-leadership porn. The true antagonist isn't the Space Opera Communist Republic; it's the culture of disregard for correct military procedure.
Literally anything by Heinlein - he specialises in the ultra competent man.
{{Alas Babylon by Pat Frank}} features a competent leader navigating through a post nuclear world.
Great suggestion. One of my favorite post-apocalyptic novels because it's strangely optimistic and not as grim as most.
I read this book in high school and it was one of the reasons I chose to become a medical provider. Reread it as an adult and it was even better than I remembered. When I need to ground myself and appreciate the simple pleasures in my incredibly privileged life, I read it again. That or the Little House series.
Apologies if I've already suggested these to you, but if you like Little House, you might also like The Birchbark House series. They share the same focus on day-to-day life, seasonal change, strong families, historical diseases, young protagonists, and westward migration. But the Birchbark House series has Ojibwe progagonists.
I’ll look into it. Thanks! I work in psych and I often talk to my patients (and try to take my own advice) about spending time outdoors in the sunshine for even a few minutes each day, spending time looking at and interacting with nature, even just a houseplant, and doing something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and meaning. It doesn’t replace medication entirely, but it goes a long way towards maintaining our mental health. As humans we didn’t evolve indoors looking at screens. We evolved outdoors, following the cycle of the sun and seasons. We grew our own food and had a far deeper connection to our place in nature. It’s easy to take our conveniences for granted. When I start to grumble about traffic or the internet being slow or whatever, I read those books and appreciate how easy my life is in comparison. How much bigger and smaller the world is for me. It puts it all in perspective.
I love this novel. I read it in school many years ago and have lived it since.
So thrilled to know that others know of this book. Read, and re-read at least 5 times
Came here to recommend this one
Pillars of the Earth
Tai Pan, Noble House
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlen
I'm rather biased towards fantasy: Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch Kelsier from Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo A Song of Ice & Fire series by George R. R. Martin The Greatcoats Quartet by Sebastien De Castell Night Angel series by Brent Weeks These last 3 aren't really "leaders" but I think they still classify. Jack Reacher series by Lee Child Spellslinger series by Sebastien De Castell The Earthsea Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin
Lies of Locke Lamora is so good.
Dungeon Crawler Carl
The Ocean and the Stars, Mark Helprin
So the bobiverse series is pretty great for this especially by the 3rd and 4th books
Endurance which is the true story of Shackelton, a model leader.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
This series should be required reading.
If you're into Star Wars then Thrawn works if you're okay calling him a protagonist in the canon novels.
Red Rising Series by Pierce Brown. I cannot reccomend this series enough. The main character exists when the entire universe has been developed and has also been thrown into a high-Roman Empire hierarchy with a caste system. The entire universe is ruled by one color (everyone is assigned colors and roles by planet they are born on, and job they hold as a result of that birth). For instance, everyone born on Mars exists to mine Mars for resources. They bring in other colors for maintenance, entertainment etc. food is shipped in. The MC suffers loss, undergoes recruitment by a revel group, becomes their champion and then leads the revolution. Everything he does he must learn, and so he immerses himself so deeply that he is able to do everything and think more abstractly and strategically than the whole of the universal population, but he had to learn and grow as he goes. He learns history, strategy, inter- and intra-personal relationships, and has to deal with love, life, loyalty, regret, loss, death, friendship, heartbreak, distrust, scheming politics, traitors etc. the 7th, and final, book releases in the next year or so.
Came to say Darrow. The ultimate leader, a book series has never made me punch the air or scream in joy or victory like RR. Some epic scenes in RR, and only gets better as the series progresses. GS is the most epic for me but all are excellent. Yeah, space romans.
Have you read Lightbringer yet? I think it's the finest yet!
Yes
I was about to comment this but you beat me to it. Great series.
Seriously my favorite fiction series of all time. Literally reignited my passion for reading after burning out during a 10 year stint in the book industry.
The thrawn series of books written by Timothy Zahn should scratch the itch
Oh shoot, I forgot to mention it's star wars. There's legends (retconned) and there's the modern stuff.
Seconding this. It's all about leadership being smarter rather than stronger, and it's really well done. It's Star Wars, but it focuses less on the force and lightsabers, more on learning about your enemy in order to gain the upper hand. There are 3 Thrawn trilogies now, the original Heir to the Empire trilogy, the new canon Thrawn trilogy, and the recent Ascendency trilogy.
This guy said what I was too tired to articulate myself.
Vatta's War series
I second this, it's a good series. Also Indranan War trilogy by K. B. Wagers.
Endurance
Red rising. One of the best series I’ve read! He’s so charismatic you may want to get behind him as well
Red Rising
The red rising series.
Red Rising series (haven’t finished third book yet but is a great series so far)
Red Rising
I scrolled through every comment on this thread and didn't see it listed. But I really enjoyed 16 ways to Defend a Walled City by KJ Parker. Follows a reluctant military leader under siege.
Dune.
No, OP said GOOD leader, not tragic leader
Timmy from the 2 Necromancers series. He is usually planning things out in advance. There are frequent references to investments he has made and easy he made them. Besides the necromancy, his training of his apprentice Katie frequently involves education on mundane things like investments, business, and trading. The evil king in the story frequently comments of his tactical genius and has managed several large scale battles in the latter books. The first book in the series is 2 Necromancers, A Bureaucrate, and an Elf.
BRAXTON’S TURN and BRAXTON’S PLAN from the the Braxton’s America series. The protagonist, in his unique and quirky way, puts the country on his back and takes it to a better place.
A Day of Fallen Night fits. There are multiple characters that we see the perspective of, each is intelligent and a good leader.
Endurance by Alfred Lansing
I was scrolling to see if anyone was going to recommend this. Seems like most books on here are fiction, but this work of nonfiction reads like a novel. It’s about Shackleton’s failed attempt to reach the South Pole, and the adventures of survival to get him and his crew back to safety. Awesome book, amazing story.
Yes. Definitely in my top 10 books!
I really enjoyed the first few books of the Seafort Saga, starting with Midshipman's Hope. Nick Seafort has to make a lot of hard choices in this Naval Sci-fi and it can get grim in places because there are real consequences, but he's a very good leader and has a strong moral backbone.
Business fables are a guilty pleasure of mine, so: “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” and “The Three Signs of a Miserable Job” by Patrick Lencioni are favorites. Don’t expect great works if literature. The narratives are there to teach you about leadership. But if you want competent people repeatedly diffusing small problems while leading people to tackle big ones, they’ll scratch that itch.
The Last Ship by William Brinkley.
Magician
School’s Out Forever by Scott K Andrews
Paradise by Judith mcnaught
The Last Kingdom
Ready player one he's smart, but also really dumb in ready player 2, but he works through it
I recently re-read Ready Player One. It's a neat premise but I felt like the writing wasn't great. At times I found it hard to believe that any editor had ever let it get published.
Tons of Jack Vance stuff, to name my favs: Planet of Adventure. The Blue World. I mean, most of his catalogue, really.
I Claudius by Robert Graves; Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis Thanks for the prompt OP
Also, In Search of the Miraculous by Ouspensy but in a different way. Claudius is awesome because he uses his stuttering as a way to make everyone think he is an imbecile and not worth assassinating to ascend to the Emperor's throne that he eventually sits in briefly and very inadvertently.
The Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell. The protagonist gets thrust into command of a huge fleet. He works hard and competently to lead it in a dire situation.
'The Making of the Atomic Bomb', Richard Rhodes, 'American Prometheus', Kai Bird.
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson
If you like historical fiction that digs a bit deeper, the Thomas Cromwell of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall trilogy is s brilliant courtier and tactician who plays too long at the table of Henry VIII so ultimately loses, but has an amazing run. (Not sure if this is a great rec for OP specifically, but it does fit the bill.)
The Expanse Series
I’m currently loving the Stormlight Archives by Brandon Sanderson. Kaladin and Dalinar are some of my favorite characters of all time.
The Unwind Dystology by Neal Shusterman. Great action and great characters - especially the main character/ leader.
you may like mistborn by Brandon Sanderson
Codex of Alera
Lies of Locke Lamora. It’s a heist book in a super in-depth world that’s akin to Game Of Thrones
People often refer to what you are seeking as “competency porn”.
I had something of an argument with my husband about that title. He's obsessed with what we call competency porn, but he's like "usually (x) porn means that it's neglecting everything else good in the medium in service of this one thing." I claim that yeah, that usually is how it goes :P Neglecting people with emotional weakness, communication issues, and other such common flaws that are considered "incompetence" is a level of unrealism that many people just don't like, or that by itself makes a shallow book.
Code geass
The Will of the Many Kingkiller Chronicles
The Red Knight by Miles Cameron
I’ll add The Giver and Jurassic Park (Grant character).
How about where the main protagonist is also a horrible person? In that case, I can’t recommend the Tom Ripley series enough. Also, if you’re into anime, deathnote gets an honorable mention here.
Gardens of the Moon, Captain Ganoes Paran is a top 10 grimdark fantasy character of all time.
If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend Ender's Shadow. It's about Bean from Ender's Game, who turns out to be a completely different kind of genius and leader. While I was reading the parts that overlap with Ender's Game, I often had both books open at the same time, flipping around to see if the same conversation happened in Ender's Game and what it was like from Ender's perspective. Extremely well done and will give the same type of enjoyment.
Beasts of Immortality. Andra Hudson is a smart and fair leader. She's a badass too.
Torth Majority, 1000%
Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
Shackletons Way True story of Earnest Shackleton and his Expedition to the south pole. Ship got wrecked and thanks to his incredible leadership most of the crew survived. Book tells the story with in-between chapters on leadership.
Does Moneyball count?
Vorkosigan Saga. It's a 20+ book, multi generational scifi series but don't feel too overwhelmed. You can jump in (almost) anywhere and still scratch this itch. I usually recommend Vor Game first because it's a short story collection and I think that helps you get a feeling for the world. Gentlemen Joel and the Red Queen is the only book in the series that I don't believe fits; but I found it disappointing for a few different reasons so I might be projecting based on my other hang ups. Edit: Damnit, someone else recommended this 5hs ago and I didn't see it
Lies of Locke Lamora
Currently reading “The Stars Now Unclaimed” by Drew Williams. The protagonist is a female ex-soldier who makes some pretty ruthless decisions, but they’re in-keeping with her character history and the universe that the book is set in. Thoroughly enjoying it so far. It’s also set in space.
Master and Commander, Jack is extremely competent (at least when he's not on land).
Gregor the Overlander always reminds me of Ender.
I believe this series is overlooked so much, but "The Keys of the Kingdom" by Garth Nix (starts with Mister Monday and end on Lord Sunday). Just a heads up: The main character, Arthur, does not intend on being a leader at all and considers himself average. I recommend the book series because it develops and shows the intelligence and greatness of a leader built over time in a natural way. The books aren't very large, but the impact is massive, in my personal opinion.
The Simenon Maigret books. He’s a particularly good detective but not an unassailable prodigy. And he loves his wife.
Parable of the Sower is a great sci-fi book about about learning to become a leader. And it's also about space.
"Carry on, Mr. Bowditch", though for juvenile audiences it is about an historical autodidact.
The Killer Angels: A Novel of the Civil War, by Michael Shaara (1975)- Pulitzer Prize winning historical novel about the Battle of Gettysburg for which the protagonist, to the extent the book has one, is Col. Joshua Chamberlain, the Union officer in command of a unit that fought in what may have been the crux of the battle. I also do movies. Twelve O’Clock High is exactly what you’re after.
Watership Down.
Shogun-James clavell (and Rat King), Red rising series- pierce brown, and The Fountainhead-Ayn Rand. One that is kind of more a study of evil leadership but has some takeaways for good is Seawolf by Jack London.
The Goblin Emperor!!!
The Vorkosigan Saga by Bujold.
"Alas, Babylon" by Pat Frank might be exactly what you're looking for. Randy Bragg is an amazing leader.
The last lion
Legend of the Galactic Heroes Gantz Red Rising
Try the March Up Country series by John Ringo. It's one of the best series on the making of a good leader
the His Dark Materials trilogy
Six of Crows!
Not one book but the Stormlight Archives series is centered around leadership, doubt, perseverance and justice. Many characters fill the role of good leaders and the reader watches their progression to bettering not only themselves but those that follow them and their larger communities.
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, of the series by Louise Penny. Good leader, good husband, good father.
The Dark Tower series
Return of the King.
animal farm.
The will of the many
Black Company
The Lost Fleet series, Miles in 'Diplomatic Immunity' by Bujold, and Commisar Caine in 'Duty Calls' by Sandy Mitchell. '
Jeremiah Johnson BAM!!
Red Rising by Pierce Brown, especially books 2 and on.
Anyone said I, Lucifer yet?
The discworld series by Terry Pratchett.
Red Rising. Empire of Silence. Dune.
The Forth Wing
The character of Croaker in The Black Company series by Glen Cook is one of the most... *influential* people in fiction I've ever read. He does move into true leadership roles eventually, but for much of the series he leads from behind, giving the company a sense of direction, not orders. It's one of my favorite series, and he's a big part of the reason why.
Band of Brothers by Stephen Ambrose. Non-fiction, but compelling.
First, I ADORE Ender's Game. As a stand alone book, it's my favorite. So, with that said, I'm going to recommend my favorite trilogy (which ends up being a double trilogy or hexology), called "The Apprentice Adept" trilogy. The first book is "Split Infinity" and I think you'll find Stile, the hero, a capable, smart, benevolent leader.
Hi everyone. Thanks for all the suggestion. I'm already reading one of the suggested books. And added the others to wishlist 🙇🏻♂️ thanks alot for the suggestions
Anne Leckie's Imperial Radch trilogy.
Red Rising Series by Pierce Brown. I cannot reccomend this series enough. The main character exists when the entire universe has been developed and has also been thrown into a high-Roman Empire hierarchy with a caste system. The entire universe is ruled by one color (everyone is assigned colors and roles by planet they are born on, and job they hold as a result of that birth). For instance, everyone born on Mars exists to mine Mars for resources. They bring in other colors for maintenance, entertainment etc. food is shipped in. The MC suffers loss, undergoes recruitment by a revel group, becomes their champion and then leads the revolution. Everything he does he must learn, and so he immerses himself so deeply that he is able to do everything and think more abstractly and strategically than the whole of the universal population, but he had to learn and grow as he goes. He learns history, strategy, inter- and intra-personal relationships, and has to deal with love, life, loyalty, regret, loss, death, friendship, heartbreak, distrust, scheming politics, traitors etc. the 7th, and final, book releases in the next year or so.
Herman Hesse’s “the journey to the east”. Has a very unique take on the subject.
Ender from Enders Game. I like this book because it's shows a great leader but also the consequences of your actions and compassion. I actually learned few leadership skills from this book. How to admit your wrong and just listening to others ideas. Great book 9.5/10.