Alternate Universes
 

Does anybody have suggestions for SF books that deal with the idea of alternate universes? This is a topic that I'm interested in as, I'm inclined to believe that au's exist.
If possible, please try to exclude any alt history or time travel stories. I like alt history, but have already read a whole bunch of those types of stories. As for time travel, it's one subject that doesn't interest me.

ez, as far as I know, though I haven't read either one, both Moorcock's almost everything and Zelazny's Amber series have to do with Alt unis.

Well I just picked up Conquistadors by S. M. Stirling which deals with an alternate universe as well if that helps. Also the series that has Homid and Humans in it deals with them.

Kushiel

funny........ I just wrote down an idea for my third book that deals with an alternate Universe;)

Even though its only a four page outline, so far close friends and family members give it a go for the future.

Let you know in two-three years when its done.:D

If you're willing to try some mind-blowing *really* hard SF, try Greg Egan's "Disaspora." Computer realities & alternate universes, plus (as a bonus for the same low, low price!) the best attempt at describing existance in 5+ dimensional space ever. :cool:

to answer, ezchaos request:
 

The term "alternate universe is normally not found in author's books. However, quite a number of them deal with stories of another reality, which to me means the same thing.

There are two series books that deal with this subject. The first one is a four book quadro-logy(I know, a made up term)
from Harry Turtledove about a misplaced Roman legion that winds up in another world or dimension. It's called, "The Misplaced Legion" . Came out in 1987.

Another is a two book series by author Lawrence Watt-Evans.
His books called, "Out of this World" (1993) and the sequel, " In the Empire of Shadow"(1995) have to do with a man and his family who are trapped in an alternate universe or reality. This one is really good. In particular when his family is murdered and he seeks revenge on the bad guys.

Not a trilogy in four parts?

Douglas Adams always was good at the understatement.

I have to second Roger Zelany's Chronicles of Ambers for the alternate worlds bit and also his book Roadmarks which discusses time travel and alternate futures. There are others he also does - one with a young werewolf....

Barbara Hambly does three alternate universe series in the Science Fantasy catagory - The Time of the Dark (Darwath series), The Silent Tower (The Windrose Chronicles), and finally Rainbow Abyss. In each of these books another universe makes contact with our Earth, a good read.

Also look for Jack Chalker's Changwind series. The first book lays out an interesting concept of alternate universes stacked like a set of dolls, nesting inside each other as they get progressively smaller.

Usually Alternate Universes are displayed as two types :

Alternate timelines-
similiar to our own world's history but with changes, some minor some major. For example, one world were you were born as a girl instead of a boy, or where the Greeks lost the battle of Marathon or a fledging colony of 13 states called collectively 'The Americas' lost the battle for independence.

Independent - while there may be some similiarity to the location or the presence of Humanity, the universe itself seemingly runs by different rules - instead of physical sciences, magic or psyonic ability are the rule.

To see some really weird ideas and concepts, try some science fact: http://sciam.com/article.cfm?article...880000&catID=2 :cool:

ez, try anything by Philip K Dick. Alternative universes and realities were one of his main interests.

WM

Job: A Comedy of Justice by Robert A. Heinlein
While the pararell universes makes up a large part of the story they're in a way not of greater importance and from what I remember you won't get a scientific explanation.
So I would recommend this for the entertainment of pararell universes rather than as a "explaining sci-fi".

Not in the sci-fi, and dealing more with spiritual matters than scientific, is Pullman's His Dark Materials.

Don't want to forget Robert Sawyer's "Hominids" series: two universes, one is our normal universe, the other is one where Neanderthals were the dominant species. Not on my all-time favorite list, but certainly well done.

hmm
 

A more lighthearted one about alternate universes is Piers Anthony's Apprentice Adept series, Split Infinity, Blue Adept and Juxtaposition, which is excellent imho.

There are a couple of historical fiction type alternate histories that were not bad:

S.M. Stirling wrote a trilogy about the island of Nantucket being hurled back in time to the bronze age. It was a bit thin in spots - doing a lot of summarizing to get all the stories in (there are multiple POV characters), and towards the end (last book) it got too filled with one battle after another.

Island in the Sea of Time
Against the Tide of Years
On the Oceans of Eternity

I have read all these. not sure of their proper order.

Eric Flint also has a few books where a part of the state of West Virginia gets hurled back to Germany in the 1600's. There are a couple of sequels. It is similar to Stirling's, except Flint is funnier, and he tries to explain how it happened - which is also very funny.

1632
1633
1634: The Galileo Affair & Ring of Fire: The Sequel to 1633

Ring of fire is an anthology with other writers doing stories in the 1630's universe. I have only gotten as far as 1632 with these, probably because they first came out in HC.