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Max Malterer

Goodreads Author

Born

in Munich, Germany

Website

https://www.maxmalterer.com

Genre

Science Fiction, Contemporary, Fiction

Influences

Kim S. Robinson, Matt Haig, Ling Ma, Cixin Liun, Octavia E. Butle ...more

Member Since

March 2024

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I write near-future novels that feel close enough to touch—stories where intimate lives collide with plausible technologies and the hardest choices are human.

My debut, The Human Relief Project, explores a society being “freed” from work and the people deciding what remains of purpose and dignity when jobs fall away.

Before turning to fiction, I spent years building systems in non-profit, tech, and strategy roles. That work taught me how incentives, policies, and good intentions ripple through everyday lives—lessons that now shape my storytelling.

I call my approach Speculative Realism: character-first fiction where big ideas are carried by lived moments rather than explanation, and realistic what-ifs quietly reshape how we see familiar choice ...more

33 posts
Max Malterer's Blog

The Tool Is Not The Shortcut

Hey everyone,

My past months have mostly belonged to SAINT, my new novel about AI religion. More on that in fall.

For now, I want to write about something around the writing itself: how I use AI in my writing process, how that has changed over the last years, and where I currently draw the line for myself.

There are more and more articles, posts, and opinion pieces on AI-generated novels, AI-assi

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Max Malterer’s books

Average rating: 4.46 · 65 ratings · 35 reviews · 2 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Human Relief Project: When The World Stops Working (A Novel) 4.27 avg rating — 45 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Birthright: A Near-Future Novel 4.90 avg rating — 20 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

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Max’s Recent Updates

Max Malterer wrote a new blog post The Tool Is Not The Shortcut Hey everyone,My past months have mostly belonged to SAINT, my new novel about AI religion. More on that in fall.For now, I want to write about someth Read more of this blog post »
Jul 19, 2026 07:02AM · like
Max Malterer liked Melany Vergara-Suarez's review of Birthright: A Near-Future Novel: "New and relevant concepts for scholars to explore Birthright explores what happens when an Ideological State Apparatus, as theorized by Louis Althusser, fails in its basic function of generating productive forces within a neoliberal economy. In this " Read more of this review »
May 27, 2026 09:35PM · see review
Max Malterer liked Adry's review of Birthright: A Near-Future Novel: "Birthright was such an easy and engaging read, even as it explored complex societal dilemmas that made me question my own moral values. It’s an intimate, daring, and chillingly honest story about the cost of perfection, with a plot twist that kept me" Read more of this review »
May 27, 2026 09:35PM · see review
Max Malterer liked Dalla Torre's review of Birthright: A Near-Future Novel: "A topic that gives you pause for thought. Would it be better for humanity if we all raised children according to a template? Encouraging and shaping them individually, but all according to the norm? Max Malterer does an excellent job of describing th" Read more of this review »
May 27, 2026 09:35PM · see review
Max Malterer has read The Human Relief Project: When The World Stops Working (A Novel) by Max Malterer (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 14, 2026 04:58AM · like
Max Malterer has read Birthright: A Near-Future Novel by Max Malterer (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 11, 2026 10:58AM · like
Max Malterer finished reading The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 05, 2026 10:53AM · like
Max Malterer is currently reading The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2026 04:40AM · like
Max Malterer has read How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 03, 2026 04:40AM · like
Max Malterer has read I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 05, 2026 11:06PM · like

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Max Malterer

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