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The Thief and the Sword

Mike Maihack

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Similar in premise + setting

These books are ranked using the premise + setting labels extracted for The Thief and the Sword. Books rank higher when they are close on every selected axis.

Premise labels used: stolen artifact, prophecy quest, future school, chosen one, time travel, galaxy-saving quest

Setting labels used: far future, space adventure, academy setting

This does not mean the books share the same plot, setting, quality, or difficulty. It means their premise + setting embeddings are close.

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Doorways in the Sand

Roger Zelazny · 1976

A perpetual student is drawn into a bizarre chase for a missing alien artifact amid aliens, cops, and campus intrigue.

Why this is here

Premise labels: missing artifact · interstellar conspiracy · cultural exchange · perpetual student · cat and mouse · wrongly suspected protagonist · artifact chase · stolen treasure · alien intrigue

Setting labels: near future · Earth · university campus · Australia · interstellar · post-contact · galactic federation

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2041

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The Principle of Moments

Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson · 2024 · Order of Legends

A Black queer time-travel space opera where two heroes across centuries race a prophecy to save a tyrannical galaxy.

Why this is here

Premise labels: time travel · chosen one · prophecy · space rescue · forbidden romance · found family · intergalactic rebellion · tyranny · search for sibling · quest

Setting labels: 6066 · 1812 · Regency London · far future · intergalactic · alien planet · desert planet · imperial galaxy · spacefaring · time travel

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2051

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Doctor Who: The Coming of the Terraphiles

Michael Moorcock · 2010 · Doctor Who: New Series Adventures

The Doctor and Amy join a far-future reenactment tournament where a cosmic artifact, pirates, and a traitor threaten reality.

Why this is here

Premise labels: multiverse crisis · artifact quest · tournament quest · future reenactors · space pirates · traitor hunt · save universe

Setting labels: far future · multiverse · terraformed planet · holiday planet · collapsed reality · space opera · alternate reality · British pastiche · ancient Earth reconstruction

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2053

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The Stardust Grail

Yume Kitasei · 2024

A former art thief is pulled into a galaxy-spanning hunt for an artifact that could save one species and doom another.

Why this is here

Premise labels: art thief · artifact recovery · alien civilization · extinction crisis · one last mission · moral dilemma · anti-colonial resistance · interstellar quest · saved-by-artifact

Setting labels: far future · spacefaring civilization · interstellar travel · multiple planets · ancient ruins · museum · academia · Earth in the future · off-world colonies · alien worlds

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2074

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Ashfall Legacy

Pittacus Lore · 2021 · Ashfall

A half-human teen on the run leaves Earth to find his missing alien father and uncovers a universe-shaking secret.

Why this is here

Premise labels: half-alien protagonist · missing father quest · on the run · interstellar journey · family secret · alien heritage · saved-to-save-the-world

Setting labels: space · Earth · alien planet · academy setting

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2078

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Thanos, Vol. 3: Thanos Wins

Donny Cates · 2018 · Thanos (2016)

Thanos reaches the end of time and confronts the consequences of his ultimate victory in a brutal cosmic showdown.

Why this is here

Premise labels: alternate future · end of universe · villain protagonist · power quest · time travel · self-confrontation · cosmic revenge

Setting labels: far future · end of time · cosmic setting · post-apocalyptic future · Marvel Universe · alternate timeline · space opera

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2087

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The Starlight Watchmaker

Wren James, Lauren James · 2025 · The Watchmaker and the Duke

An abandoned android watchmaker and a privileged student uncover a dangerous academy mystery and a surprising friendship.

Why this is here

Premise labels: android protagonist · watchmaker · academy mystery · time-travel device · unlikely friendship · class divide · anti-discrimination

Setting labels: intergalactic academy · alien academy · university campus · distant planet · space setting · offworld society · speculative future

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2113

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The Voyage of the Sable Keech

Neal Asher · 2006 · Spatterjay

On a lethal ocean world, reanimated outcasts, war drones, hive minds, and monsters collide on a resurrection voyage.

Why this is here

Premise labels: resurrection quest · immortal world · ocean voyage · hive mind conflict · alien ecology · ancient war

Setting labels: ocean world · alien planet · far-future · spacefaring setting · Polity Universe

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2134

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The Hyperion Omnibus

Dan Simmons · 2004 · Hyperion Cantos

Seven pilgrims travel to a planet of time-twisting tombs and a terrifying creature as galaxy-scale war closes in.

Why this is here

Premise labels: pilgrimage · galactic war · mysterious creature · time anomaly · interstellar conflict · far future · humanity at risk · mystery quest

Setting labels: far future · interstellar civilization · galactic empire · colonized planets · spacefaring society · time anomaly · future humanity · mysterious planet

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2144

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Phoenix

S.F. Said · 2013

A boy who wakes with strange powers must flee across a war-torn galaxy to uncover his identity and save everything.

Why this is here

Premise labels: hidden powers · chosen one · galactic war · identity quest · on the run · fate of the universe · alien allies · coming of age

Setting labels: distant future · outer space · human colony · galaxy at war · interstellar travel · alien world · science fantasy · fictional universe

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2148

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Red Rising

Pierce Brown · 2014 · Red Rising Saga

A low-caste miner on Mars is remade into the enemy and sent to infiltrate an elite academy.

Why this is here

Premise labels: class revolt · infiltration mission · undercover agent · hidden oppression · revenge quest · academy competition · training ordeal · overthrow ruling class · double life · chosen one

Setting labels: Mars · future society · solar system · underground mines · academy setting · dystopian future · color-coded caste system · terraforming · colonial society · space setting

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2152

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Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue

Hugh Howey · 2009 · The Bern Saga

A teen cadet loses her place in the Navy, then chases a missing starship into a galaxy-spanning adventure.

Why this is here

Premise labels: academy expulsion · lost ship retrieval · space quest · coming-of-age adventure · found crew · family mystery · alien crew · rescue mission

Setting labels: future spacefaring civilization · interplanetary travel · galactic scale · alien worlds · military academy · space navy · far future · space travel normal

Semantic match: ranked by premise + setting

Distance: 0.2160

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