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The Hidden Girl and Other Stories

Ken Liu

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Similar in characterization + relationships

These books are ranked using the characterization + relationships labels extracted for The Hidden Girl and Other Stories. Books rank higher when they are close on every selected axis.

Characterization labels used: female protagonists, young women, mothers, fathers, children, immigrants, refugees, programmers, artists, spies, assassins, scientists, aliens, digital beings, ghosts in the machine

Relationships labels used: parent-child relationships, father-daughter, mother-daughter, family separation, family grief, intergenerational conflict, cultural inheritance, human-alien relations, occupation and coercion, community bonds

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

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If We Cannot Go at the Speed of Light

Kim Cho-yeop · 2026

Seven Korean speculative stories explore space, aliens, and future tech through intimate questions of identity, grief, and connection.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: women protagonists · scientists · astronauts · researchers · ordinary people · marginalized characters · mothers · daughters · single parents · orphans · elderly characters · alien species

Relationships labels: mother-daughter · family separation · human-alien contact · lost loved ones · connection and distance · caregiving · community belonging · romantic longing · generational tension · social exclusion

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1272

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The Future is Female! Women's Science Fiction Stories from the Pulp Era to the New Wave

Lisa Yaszek, Leslie F. Stone, Judith Merril, Leigh Brackett, Kit Reed, Joanna Russ, Ursula K. Le Guin, James Tiptree Jr. · 2018

A chronological anthology of classic sci-fi stories by women, tracing the genre from pulp-era invention to New Wave experimentation.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: female protagonists · strong women · heroines · matriarchs · housewives · mothers · scientists · psychologists · super-intelligent child · alien beings

Relationships labels: family · motherhood · parent-child · gender roles · marriage · marital conflict · power imbalance · colonizer-colonized · rivalry

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1436

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Ansibles, perfiladores y otras máquinas de ingenio

Andrea Chapela · 2020

Ten near-future stories trace how speculative technologies reshape love, memory, grief, and everyday life in Mexico City.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: female protagonists · women-centered · scientists · young women · mothers · daughters · romantic leads · ordinary people · middle-class characters

Relationships labels: romantic relationships · family bonds · mother-daughter · sibling relationships · friendship · long-distance love · couples · love and loss · caregiving · dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1468

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The Rock Eaters: Stories

Brenda Peynado · 2021

A debut collection of strange, allegorical stories where speculative twists expose immigration, class, grief, and otherness.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young women · teen protagonists · collective communities · outsiders · immigrant characters · Latina protagonists · marginalized women · strong-willed characters

Relationships labels: family · parent-child · siblings · friendship · romance · same-sex relationship · community tension · cross-cultural relations · class rivalry · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1702

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Darwin's Children

Greg Bear · 2003 · Darwin's Radio

Genetically changed children face quarantine, fear, and state control as their species nears adolescence.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: scientist protagonists · biologist · archaeologist · teen protagonist · parental protection · rebellious youth · exiled researchers · government officials · bounty hunters · persecuted underclass · posthuman children · likable characters

Relationships labels: parent child · family separation · estranged spouses · protective parents · youth peer bonds · human posthuman conflict · community resistance · state family conflict · authority surveillance · coexistence struggle

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1732

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Cursed Bunny

Bora Chung · 2021

A Korean short story collection fusing horror, fantasy, and sci-fi to expose patriarchy, greed, and other human cruelties.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: women protagonists · single mothers · unmarried women · androids · ghosts · landlords · greedy elites · patriarchal figures · lonely characters · moralized characters

Relationships labels: mother-daughter · parent-child · family curse · romantic love · lovers · mastery and control · betrayal · dependency · community · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1763

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He, She and It

Marge Piercy · 1993

In a corporate-dominated future, a Jewish free town trains a cyborg protector while an old golem story echoes their fate.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: female protagonist · strong women · older woman · grandmother figure · scientist · programmer · cyborg · android · golem · assassin · mother · divorced woman · child custodian · renegade mother · community elder

Relationships labels: mother-daughter · grandmother-grandchild · parent-child · ex-husband custody · romance · forbidden love · human-machine romance · mentor-student · family bonds · community ties · male-female relationships · generational bonds · power imbalance · creator-created

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1771

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The End We Start From

Megan Hunter · 2017

A new mother and her baby flee a flooded near-future London, finding love and survival amid upheaval.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: new mother · pregnant woman · mother protagonist · father figure · newborn · infant growth · survival-focused · unnamed characters · anonymous characters

Relationships labels: mother-child bond · marriage · parent-child · family separation · partner loss · extended family · refugee community · maternal attachment · caregiving

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1785

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Concealed

Christina Diaz Gonzalez · 2021

A girl in witness protection races to save her missing parents and uncover the truth about her hidden past.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: female protagonist · clever protagonist · resourceful protagonist · curious protagonist · smart girl · young teen protagonist · computer whiz · hacker · foster kid · scientist parent · mysterious handler · untrustworthy adult · loyal friend · brave kids

Relationships labels: parent-child · friendship · trust issues · found friendship · family secrecy · surrogate mentoring · caregiver conflict · dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1791

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Under the Eye of the Big Bird

Hiromi Kawakami · 2024

Interlinked future-fables track humanity’s strange, fragmented attempts to survive extinction, love, and change.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: clones · mothers · watchers · hybrid beings · posthuman characters · genetically modified humans · factory-made children · plant-like humans · animal-derived humans · AI entities · mutated humans · unnamed or numbered characters · gendered role systems · recurring characters

Relationships labels: mothering · parenting · community bonds · intercommunity isolation · breeding programs · interbreeding · caretaking · belonging · dependency · love and attachment · family structures · romance · friendship · rivalry · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1794

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vN

Madeline Ashby · 2012 · The Machine Dynasty

A self-replicating android girl goes on the run after a deadly outburst exposes a broken failsafe and a dangerous secret.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young protagonist · synthetic child · android mother · human father · fugitive · naive protagonist · fast-growing child · morally pressured characters · robot companion · authoritarian grandmother · strong female lead · sympathetic protagonist · anthropomorphic AI · parental figures · rogue robot

Relationships labels: mixed family · parent-child · mother-daughter · father-daughter · grandmother-granddaughter · companionship · romantic tension · road-partner bond · caregiving · dependency · power imbalance · human-robot intimacy · friendship · betrayal · surrogate family

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1810

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The Membranes

Chi Ta-wei · 2021

In an undersea future, a celebrated body-care technician’s reunion with her estranged mother unravels her identity and reality.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: female protagonist · isolated protagonist · dermal technician · aesthetician · estranged mother · celebrity worker · morally ambiguous characters · quiet protagonist · questioning self

Relationships labels: mother-daughter · estrangement · parent-child · friendship · dependency · intimacy avoidance · queer relationships · nuclear family critique · social isolation

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1814

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