Fantasy:
* The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson: A young girl is raised by a powerful AI program and must navigate a world where technology and magic intertwine.
* Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson: A hacker in a virtual reality world battles against a powerful virus that threatens to destroy reality.
* Ready Player One by Ernest Cline: In a dystopian future, a young programmer competes in a virtual reality game with a life-changing prize.
* The Peripheral by William Gibson: A young woman in a rural Kentucky town uses a virtual reality headset to connect to a futuristic city, where she becomes entangled in dangerous conspiracies.
* The Martian by Andy Weir: An astronaut uses his engineering and programming skills to survive on Mars after being stranded.
Science Fiction:
* Neuromancer by William Gibson: A cyberpunk classic featuring a hacker who is hired to hack into a powerful AI program.
* The Culture series by Iain M. Banks: A series of novels set in a utopian society where technology has advanced far beyond anything imaginable, and programmers play a crucial role in shaping the future.
* Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan: In a future where consciousness can be transferred into different bodies, a detective investigates a murder in a world where technology has blurred the lines between life and death.
* The Singularity Is Near by Ray Kurzweil: A non-fiction book that explores the concept of technological singularity, where artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence, and discusses the role of programmers in this future.
* The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein: A lunar colony fights for independence from Earth, using a sophisticated computer system designed by a programmer.
* Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: A young boy is recruited to attend a special military academy where he is trained to fight an alien invasion, and his skills as a strategist and programmer become essential to his success.
* The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams: While not primarily about programming, Arthur Dent's struggles to navigate the universe after the destruction of Earth are heavily impacted by technology and the whims of computer systems.
Note: Some of these novels delve into more complex themes of artificial intelligence, ethics, and the future of humanity, while others are more focused on the action and adventure aspects of the programming world.
These are just a few examples, and there are many other great novels that feature computer programmers as protagonists. I encourage you to explore and find the ones that resonate with you the most!