1. Blindsight by Peter Watts

2. Children of Time trilogy by Adrian Tchaikovsky

"Three worlds collide" by Eliezer Yudkowsky. First contact with aliens, moral relativism, game theory, and a hilarious cameo by prediction markets. Available here.

"The Southern Reach Trilogy" by Jeff VanderMeer. - modern sci - fi take on alien life that is really alien, or is it? There is also a Netflix adaptation of the first book in the series with Natalie Portman, imo they did a good job (which is pretty rare nowadays).

More recent suggestions:

1. The Three-Body Problem": A secret military project in China makes contact with an alien civilization, leading to unforeseen consequences and a global scientific investigation.

2. "The Dark Forest": Facing the threat of an alien invasion, humanity scrambles to understand the universe's cosmic principles and develop strategies for survival.

3. "Death's End": Set in a distant future, the final book explores humanity's place in the universe, advanced technologies, and multi-dimensional challenges.

Looking at your list I can suggest a few more:

- "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson - An influential cyberpunk novel with a unique take on virtual reality.

- "Hyperion" by Dan Simmons - A sprawling space epic with fantastic world-building and multiple perspectives.

- "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick - The book that inspired the movie Blade Runner, exploring themes of artificial intelligence.

- "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin - A thought-provoking novel that explores gender and society on an alien planet.

I know there is no bounty left but you must read the Culture series by Ian M banks, space eutopia run by AI. maybe start with the second book the the series the player of games as the first is a bit different.

Permutation city - can abstract mathematics be conscious. The answer must be yes.