George Alec Effinger

George Alec Effinger is a Cleveland born author of the “Marid Audran” series of novels. The author went to Yale where he studied medicine but since he could not pass an organic chemistry course, he finally let go of a dream of becoming a doctor. He would then get married to his first wife who introduced him to many of his science fiction idols, as she baby sat some famous babies including Kate Wilhelm and Damon Knight.

The best place to start is the Heroes in Hell series, the earliest of George Alec Effinger's multi-book series: it opens with Rebels In Hell (1986) and runs to 26 books across 1986–2024, ending with Monsters in Hell (2024). George Alec Effinger's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.

George Alec Effinger has 133 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1972 and 2024. 89 of them belong to 8 named series — the largest being the Heroes in Hell series with 26 books — and 44 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.

Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. George Alec Effinger's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are The Nick of Time (1985–1986, 2 books), Heroes in Hell (1986–2024, 26 books) and The Budayeen Cycle (1986–1991, 3 books), plus 2 more.

This guide splits George Alec Effinger's 133 books into 8 named series and 44 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Heroes in Hell (26 books, 1986–2024); Author's Choice Monthly (13 books, 1989–1991); Infocom (6 books, 1988–1991); The Budayeen Cycle (3 books, 1986–1991); The Nick of Time (2 books, 1985–1986), plus 3 further series.