If you loved how John Carter awakens on Barsoom and gradually deciphers Thark honor codes, Martian gravity, and the politics of Helium and Zodanga, you’ll click with Ransom’s journey in Out of the Silent Planet. Abducted to Mars, he must navigate the languages and worldviews of the hrossa, sorns, and pfifltriggi. The wonder of strange landscapes and the thrill of first contact echo Carter’s first leaps across the red sands—only here the cultural immersion and ethical puzzles deepen that sense of discovery.

Part of the pull in A Princess of Mars is seeing Carter navigate Thark clan laws, forge trust with Tars Tarkas, and grasp the codes that shape Martian life. In The Left Hand of Darkness, envoy Genly Ai must understand Gethen’s gender-fluid people and their intricate diplomacy to survive. Like Carter brokering alliances across Barsoom’s city-states, Genly wades into ritual, etiquette, and realpolitik—only the stakes hinge on planetary unity, and the cultural depth rivals the best of Barsoom’s city intrigues.

If Carter’s duels with green Martians, raids on airships, and desperate bid to save Dejah Thoris kept you flipping pages, Brackett’s The Ginger Star delivers the same breathless momentum. Eric John Stark charges across the dying world of Skaith on a rescue mission, cutting through barbarian tribes and ancient cults as ruthlessly as Carter slashed through Zodangan plots. It’s all the headlong action, strange ruins, and fierce honor-codes you enjoyed on Barsoom—turned up to a fever pitch.

If Dejah Thoris and John Carter’s bond amid sieges, arena fights, and city-state rivalries hooked you, Dragonflight pairs romance with world-defining peril. Lessa rises from obscurity to partner with F’lar and the dragons of Benden Weyr, their relationship tested by Threadfall and political maneuvering much like Carter’s battles for Helium. The chemistry and mutual respect that bloom under fire echo the Carter–Dejah dynamic—only now it’s paired with telepathic dragonflights that scratch the same swashbuckling itch as Barsoomian sky-battles.

Woola’s unwavering loyalty and battlefield ferocity are a big part of A Princess of Mars’ charm. In His Majesty’s Dragon, Captain Will Laurence bonds with Temeraire, a brilliant and devoted dragon whose partnership transforms skirmishes into breathtaking aerial duels. If Woola shadowing Carter across Barsoom’s wastes made your heart swell, Temeraire’s protective wit and courage will, too—only now the camaraderie drives the entire war effort, with the same gallantry and derring-do you loved in Carter’s campaigns.