Sam J. Miller Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Solaris Satellites Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Author Sam J. Miller grew up in Hudson, New York, where his family owned and ran a butcher shop. He is the last in a long line of butchers, as his dad was a butcher and his dad’s dad before him was a butcher. Their butcher shop failed when Sam was only seventeen and the small town they lived in was eaten up by Wal-Mart. Ever since, he has been a vegetarian.

He has worked as a grocery bagger, a film critic, a secretary, a community organizer, a painter’s assistant and model, and played guitar in a punk band. During high school, he was called the Most Valuable Swimmer, as he was the only swimmer that did not get kicked off of the team. Miller has been married to a man, who works as a nurse practitioner, he finds smarter and more handsome than himself.

Miller writes young adult fiction and science fiction. His first novel, “The Art of Starving”, was released in the year 2017. The story came from an eating disorder that had for a time. Miller’s work has been translated into many other languages that include: Russian, Italian, Hungarian, Czech, French, Croatian, Polish, Mandarian, and Hebrew.

In the year 2013, his story “57 Reasons for the Slate Quarry Suicides” won a Shirley Jackson Award. “The Art of Starving” won an Andre Norton Award for Best Book. The book was also one of NPR’s Best Books for the year 2017.

“The Art of Starving” is the first stand alone novel, which was released in the year 2017. It has been days since Matt has eaten. His stomach twists and stabs, pleading to get a meal, but Matt will not give in. Hunger keeps him sharp, clears his mind. He needs to be as sharp as he can be if he is going to figure out how Tariq and his group of high school bullies pushed Maya, Matt’s sister, away.

Matt’s hardworking mother keeps the kitchen stocked with food, but Matt is able to resist the call of cookies and casseroles because he discovered something. The less he eats, the more he appears to have certain powers. The ability to see things that he should be unable to see. The knack to tune in to thoughts that come from other people’s heads. Possibly even the authority to bend space and time.

What is lunch, really, when compared to the universe’s secrets?

Matt decides to get into Tariq’s life, and then use his powers to figure out what happened to his sister. He only has to keep the longing and hunger at bay. It won’t be a problem. Matt doesn’t realize that there are all kinds of hunger and he is not in control of every single one of them.

Readers found this to be a moving, disturbing, powerful read. The book hits its stride when the focus is on Matt, Maya, and his mother, as well as the other people. It is hard to think about anything else while you are reading this book, as it is entirely engrossing. Sam Miller is an excellent writer who created some memorable characters that will not soon be forgotten.

“The Future of Hunter in the Age of Programmable Matter” is the second stand alone novel, which was released in the year 2017. A band of friends, a pair of lovers, and the struggle between addiction, love, and what comes next. Otto, who is a former addict, is indebted and grateful to Trevor, his lover,. Otto is faced with temptation and possible disaster, but he is fighting against it. Fighting it in a future where it is possible to reprogram matter and anything can happen. Good or bad.

This is a highly compelling short story. Miller is able to give a vivid picture of his world, and his style is able to fluently depict Otto and his state of mind. He writes in such a way that is effective in showing the different themes of the story.

“Blackfish City” is the third stand alone novel, which was released in the year 2018. After the climate wars, there was a floating city built in the Arctic Circle. It was once a remarkable feat of social and mechanical engineering, but now it is filled with corruption and the population is simmering with unrest.

Into all of this turmoil walks a strange new visitor. A woman who is accompanied by a chained polar bear and an orca. She vanishes into the crowds trying to find somebody that she lost three decades ago, trailed by whispers of missing people that could bond with animals. This new arrival draws four people together and sparks a series of events that is going to change Blackfish City forever.

The book is quite a roller coaster ride of a read. Miller created a world that is so complex, deep, and well-imagined that it seems to be a real living breathing entity all its own. He is able to explain the current technology, social aspects, and the world’s history through the characters’ perspectives or City Without a Map chapters.

“Destroy All Monsters” is the third stand alone novel, which was released in the year 2019. Solomon and Ash both experienced something traumatic when they were only twelve years old.

Ash lost all memory of the event when she fell out of Solomon’s treehouse. Since then, Solomon has increasingly retreated further into a world that he apparently created inside his mind. It insulates him from reality, but there are enemies and monsters everywhere. Both animal and human form.

Solomon slips deeper into the place he refers to as Darkside. Ash knows the only chance she has to free her best friend from his pain is to remember what exactly happened in his backyard and they must face the truth.

Miller offers up a brilliant tale where there are no easy answers for fighting too real monsters in our lives, yet there is still room for healing, hope, and bravery. Some found this to be a fearless and profound genre bender of a book. It is intimate and impactful story that is going to linger with anyone that reads it.