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 And here's Part II of our best reads.

Part I was HERE and looked at Fantasy.

Part II looks at SF, Film &TV, comics, computer games and our hopes and wishes for Christmas 2007 and 2008.

For those not aware from the first part, in a change to our usual routine (ie: RobB and I list our favourites) we thought it would be good if we asked some of our other staff members and Forum regulars to join in.

So, joining us this year around the SFFWorld Christmas tree are Adam (known as Werthead on site), Aidan (known as Al’Kael), Graeme (known as Deornoth) and Robert (known as Cervantor), as well as Rob Bedford and myself.

(Hobbit Editor Note: It may be worth noting that comments were made by participants without knowing the other’s responses. Some interesting similarities and differences! My responses are last in the list, simply because I felt you should read others before mine. To make a difference between the questions and my comments, I’ve used Hobbit and Mark where appropriate.)

               2.  Science Fiction

Hobbit: SF: As strong as Fantasy this year?

Robert:  Before I comment, I just want to point out that I don’t read or follow the science fiction genre nearly as much as I do fantasy. In fact, I’ve probably read more SF this year than I have in the previous ten years combined, so my opinion probably means squat (wink). Here’s what I think anyways… Take away all of the media tie-in books (Star Wars, Halo, Mass Effect, etc.) and I don’t think you have as many SF novels being released as fantasy or as many ‘best-sellers’. That said, I think the level of quality is a bit more consistent in SF, but then again, I’m just speculating. Purely as a fan, I have to say that I’ve read and enjoyed more fantasy this year than I have science fiction. I don’t know if that means anything, but there you go…

Adam: Stronger than in some time, actually. Ian McDonald and Richard Morgan delivered two novels which may become seminal in the genre (Brasyl & Black Man), whilst Alastair Reynolds and Peter F. Hamilton both enjoyed returns to form and Paul J. McAuley gave us his most solid book in some time.

Aidan: You know what? I’ve read very little SF this year. A mistake I hope to remedy in 2008. As an outsider of the genre, though, it seems like SF is having a hard time keeping up with Fantasy in regards to attention.

I think what SF really needs is for a Patrick Rothfuss to come along and really get people excited about it again. Richard Morgan is doing a damn fine job, but his novels are perhaps a bit too inaccessible for the general reader.

SF also seems to get less attention from bloggers these days and I’m worried that that’s the fault of the publishers, who aren’t pushing it hard enough. It’s also not a good sign when I can’t walk into a bookstore and buy any of Peter F. Hamilton’s novels, have to special order Richard Morgan novels and see only two copies of Ian McDonald’s Brasyl on the shelf.

I’m hoping something comes along in 2008 that forces me to take a real strong, serious look at what the genre has to offer.

Rob Bedford: Fantasy is the big kid on the block, undoubtedly. My reading often slants more towards Fantasy than SF. Science Fiction is not going away any time soon, though.

Graeme: I think that’s really a matter of personal preference but in terms of books published SF does seem to be catching up all of a sudden (there seems to be a lot more to choose from). Whether this is down to resurgence in SF or a backlash against Fantasy I don’t know…

Mark: Well, not as strong as Fantasy, which is clearly the genre leader, but I felt it was a stronger year on the whole. An interesting mix of newer writers (Marianne de Pierres, for example) and a consolidation of the fairly-new: Alastair Reynolds, Peter F. Hamilton, Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Charlie Stross…

Hobbit: A better year for SF, then?

Robert:  I’m going to assume this question refers to previous years, and in that respect I’ll have to pass because I just haven’t read enough in the genre to make any worthwhile comparisons. (grins.)

Adam: Better than last year, which I’m actually having trouble remembering anything about (the much overhyped Spin aside) in terms of major SF releases.

Rob Bedford: Better than last year?  Maybe, but hard to say from my standpoint, as I said, I read more fantasy.

Graeme: Certainly a better year for me reading SF! There seems to be a lot more of the stuff I like (space opera rather than hard SF) and it’s getting me back into the genre.

Mark: Yes: see above. Things are looking really good in SF at the moment, in my opinion.  

Hobbit: What has surprised you this year in SF?

Robert: See my reply above to the same question for Fantasy.

Adam: Brasyl, which had every prospect of being impenetrable drivel, turning out to be incredibly intelligent, articulate, beautifully written and, in places, extremely funny. I also noted a bit more of a cross-slide between SF and Fantasy, perhaps best exemplified by Chris Wooding’s superb The Fade.

Rob Bedford: John Meaney’s Bone Song.  I didn’t connect with his earlier work, but this book fascinated me. It was published in the UK earlier in 2007 and US readers will be treated to this “Dark SF” early in 2008.

Graeme: I’d gone off Richard Morgan’s books (didn’t think much of Market Forces in particular) so was pleasantly surprised to see him back on top of his game in Black Man. I’ll certainly be picking up his books, in the future, which was something I was thinking about stopping doing.

Hobbit: What would you recommend as your ‘favourite five SF’ this year?

Robert: This wasn’t quite as tough, but I still had a few titles that were right there like Richard K. Morgan’s Black Man/Thirteen and Elizabeth Bear’s Dust. Once again, in alphabetical order:

1) Hilldiggers by Neal Asher

2)  Radio Freefall by Matthew Jarpe

3) Stealing Light by Gary Gibson

4) The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton

5) War Machine by Andy Remic

Adam:

1)      Brasyl – Ian McDonald

2)      Black Man (Thirteen) – Richard Morgan

3)      Cowboy Angels – Paul J. McAuley

4)      The Dreaming Void – Peter F. Hamilton

5)      The Prefect – Alastair Reynolds.

Rob Bedford:

1) Bright of the Sky by Kay Kenyon:   This was a great Planetary Romance with fascinating aliens and greatly developed characters. 

2) Ragamuffin by Tobias Buckell:  Buckell’s Caribbean flavored far future continues to impress me.

3) Black Man/Thirteen by Richard K. Morgan:  This might be the most talked about book in Science Fiction this year.  While I thought it was a flawed book, it was nonetheless a powerful novel that very nearly demands to be re-read and noticed.

4) The Last Colony by John Scalzi: Scalzi is an accessible, fun writer.  A lot of people should take note of him (as if they aren’t already ;) )

5) Fast Forward 1 edited by Lou Anders: This anthology, the first of an annual series, was extremely solid and a great example of how diverse the short form of the genre is.

Graeme: Again, in no particular order…

1) Black Man – Richard Morgan (a welcome return to form after some stuff that I didn’t think hit the heights of Altered Carbon)

2) The Electric Church – Jeff Somers (a great idea and the constant gun battles / ’low tech’ attitude kept things flowing nicely for me!)

3) Ragamuffin – Tobias Buckell (Space Opera with a Jamaican accent! Great characters and got its point across without having to get too technical.)

4) Inside Straight – George RR. Martin (I’d never read any Wild Cards books before and Inside Straight is forcing me to think again about this. Nine authors writing like one ‘uber-author’ is a real treat to read and I don’t think I’ve ever been so engrossed in the outcome of a reality TV show…)

5) The Inferior – Peadar O Guilin (One of those books where I’m always tempted to miss my stop on the tube so I can read a little bit more.)

Mark: A harder choice than the Fantasy this year: so many good ones! In no real order, other than alphabetical:

1) Brasyl, Ian McDonald. Despite the interest in football/soccer, (grins) an excellent book of fractal universes. Stylish and clever.

2) The Dreaming Void, Peter F Hamilton. More space opera-y work from Peter, with an interesting delve into Fantasy here. Confident, omnipresent.

3) Cowboy Angels by Paul McAuley. Not perfect, but some great ideas. The image of lines of Turing gates operating next to each other at twilight has remained with me since I read it.

4) Black Man, Richard Morgan. Not quite as good as I hoped, yet a very interesting book that will generate lots of awards, I feel. Less action, more thinking.

5) The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds. More straightforward than some of his Inhibitor work, it made a fast-moving and engaging prequel.