Recommendations

[Stephen Palmer]

I just finished China Mieville UnLunDun and can wholly recommend it. Witty, original, exciting; a rattling good read. Then there's the illustrations, done in Mieville's own hand...

Elements of his other novels do come up here and there - the UnGun would not have been out of place in The Scar.

A terrific book!

 

[M.A.N.]

all science fiction is good reading....

 

[Arash]

Two series which are an absolute must, in my book, are Patrick Tilley's The Amtrak Wars and Julian May's The Rampart Worlds.

Especially the Julian May one. I sat down and read all three books in three days. I hardly got any bloody sleep! She'll do that to ya.

Two thumbs up to Julian May.

 

[Ash]

Julian May’s Exiles saga is still one of my favourites, even after 20 years or so. Although I know I’m looking back on it with nostalgia tinted glasses.

I also really enjoyed the Rampart Worlds books, there much lighter, pulpy almost, but very enjoyable, at least from my perspective. I don’t here them mentioned very often in forums so I suppose they are not widely read.

 

[Arash]

Julian May’s Exiles saga is still one of my favourites, even after 20 years or so. Although I know I’m looking back on it with nostalgia tinted glasses.

I also really enjoyed the Rampart Worlds books, there much lighter, pulpy almost, but very enjoyable, at least from my perspective. I don’t here them mentioned very often in forums so I suppose they are not widely read.

I loved The Rampart Worlds because that particular science fiction isn't technology centric. Even though she describes the world quite magnificently and there are a lot of good ideas in there, it is still just background.

The main focus is always on the characters, relationships and the fast moving plot that grips you from the beginning, which is what all good books are about.

 

[wildnlethal]

I'm a newbie girl

Wow, a lot of great picks but only some for the chicks! Anyway I want to throw this book out that my older brother 23 literally THREW at me so I would stop complaining about being bored this summer. Ha ha. I read it! I've completed all of his Harry Potter books and then i read some Asimov! Of course I like the little publisher and unknown authors the most and so, being all of 19, I actually enjoyed a teenage book called Carlton Casey: Alien Incident its by...Nick Hill. Definitely not your normal book and it didn't kill me with too many aliens, but sick, sick ending! I wonder where these authors come up with something different after you think you've read or seen everything! Anyway, support the little guys (and girls! where are we???) But check that book out, its cheap anyway and throw me some suggestions back!


Laters!

Wildnlethal2

 

[Ash]

Wildnlethal2

You may like the young adult works of Scott Westerfield

Although I want to have a serious conversation with Mr Westerfiled, he was writing some damn interesting hard SCI FI for a few years before he realised he could make more cash selling to the YA market. Scott, get you act together and start back into the adult market, you had talent and you were appreciated.

 

[Mice9]

Newcomers might try short stories?

The New York Times has been putting out collections of SciFi short stories for a few decades now. This is a good way to get a taste of SciFi from a variety of authors in a short time and see who you like. I also own a collection titled "The World Treasury of Science Fiction" compiled by David G. Hartwell 1989, and it includes people like Robert A. Heinlein, Larry Niven, Kurt Vonnegut, Arthur C. Clarke, Philip K. Dick and so on. Just a suggestion. ;>

 

[Ironjack]

Heres a rare Gem (well as far as im concerned)

Hi people nice to be a member of this fraternity!
here is a book i really enjoyed in the late 70s

Fadeout -Patrick Tilley

Alien landings on earth...really rocked my world

 

[steagle]

I don't think i could put these books in any kind of ranked favorite list:


Ender's Game- Card
Starship Troopers- Heinlein
The Godmakers- Herbert
The Forever War- Haldeman
Armor- Steakley
Dune- Herbert
The Last Legion series- Chris Bunch
Spawn- Rob MacGregor
The Mercenary- Jerry Pournelle
Star Guard- no clue (great unexpected ending)
Rogue Clone/ Clone Republic- can't remember author
The Halo Books (making books from games isn't always stupid- i genuinely believe these would have been great books even if they weren't from the game, and in my opinion, the books were better than the game- especially the first book- which is set before the game)

I'm sure there are others i can't think of right now- i've read so many, but i think i got all of the ones i really really like.

And, i know it's fantasy, but one of the all time best series i've ever read: The Black Company- Glen Cook.


one of the things i like a lot in SF books is military, FTL travel and those ppl coming back to earth to see what civilization turned into, and stories along the lines of S.M. Stirling's Dies the Fire- though i couldn't put it on the list b/c the actual story i don't like a whole lot. But i like the idea of civilization being torn down and the chaos and how the main character lives or thrives in that world (Doom series and Rogue Clone and Clone Republic).

 

[Tony Teora]

SF for NewComer

As a writer of short SF and novels, I read this stuff like a galactic junkie, but if I had to pass on a few books that would suck you up into another world, they would include:

Foundation Series - Asimov
Enders Game - Card
Sirens of Titan - Vonnegut
Fahrenheit 451 - Heinlen
A Stranger in a Strange Land -Heinlein
Brave New World- Huxley
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy – Douglass Adams

For lighter (and funny) SF stuff read Douglass Adams or Vonnegut. The foundation series is awesome but very deep, and based upon how Rome would look like as an empire in space. All great stuff. If you want more suggestions send me an email listed at my site. No spam please.

Tony Teora
www.tonyteora.com

 

[bio]

Vonnegut as an example of lighter view on world questions ? What titles have do you read ?

 

[Jeroen]

He probably meant Vonnegut's The Sirens of Titan. Great book, by the way.

I would add as recommendations:

Alfred bester - The stars my destination (or; Tiger! Tiger!)
Joe Haldeman - The forever war
Frank Herbert - Dune
Isaac Asimov - the foundation trilogy
Arthur C Clarke - Rendezvous with rama
Olaf Stapledon - The last and first men & Star maker
Orson scott card - Ender's Game
Roger Zelazny - Lord of light
Douglas Adams - Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
HG Wells - The war of the worlds

and Gene Wolfe - The book of the new sun (more like a sf novel disguising itself as fantasy)

 

[Kiki]

Andy Briggs's new young adult series looks good - Hero.Com and Villain.Net - about a website that lets you download superpowers. I wish...!

 

[matt-browne-sfw]

Iron Sunrise by Charles Stross

 

[mebellus]

So, I like the earth-based crazy science fiction. I like Christopher Moore, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett (what I've read so far), JK Rowling, Farenheit 451, Brave New World...and there are more but of course I can't remember them.

I read one around age 10 in which the boy was on vacation and he found a board game in the vacation house. It turned out to be an interstellar war game. Anyone know that one?

I generally don't like vampire stories*, and plots that are similar to the Dune novels give me a headache just from reading the summary on the back of the book. Hate me for it, but whatever.


*The first few Laurell K Hamilton books were ok. I tried Tonya Huff and found her writing style revolting.

 

[thrinidir]

Flowers For Algernon by Daniel Keyes.

 

[strikerj]

Newbie looking for series recommendation

Hi, I'm new to the forums so I hope it's ok to ask for recomendations in this thread.

I'm looking for a new series and If I understand the genre description it will probably lean towards what is called Hard Sci Fi. I have a few criterias, other than that I'm just looking for something intresting and fairly fast paced.

- Very low amount of (or non-existant) supernatural stuff like a higher counciussness, an all-knowing A.I, spirits etc.

- Series finished or expected to be soon

- Anything from 2 to 7 volumes are ok but not more than that.

- Written fairly recently (last 15 years or so)

Thanks in advance.

 

[thrinidir]

Hi, I'm new to the forums so I hope it's ok to ask for recomendations in this thread.

I'm looking for a new series and If I understand the genre description it will probably lean towards what is called Hard Sci Fi. I have a few criterias, other than that I'm just looking for something intresting and fairly fast paced.

- Very low amount of (or non-existant) supernatural stuff like a higher counciussness, an all-knowing A.I, spirits etc.

- Series finished or expected to be soon

- Anything from 2 to 7 volumes are ok but not more than that.

- Written fairly recently (last 15 years or so)

Thanks in advance.

No hard-SF then? Try Crytal Rain by Tobias S Buckell, Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F Hamilton, Culture series by Iain M Banks, Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons, Hammer's Slammer military SF by David Drake, Takeshi Kovacs trilogy by Richard Morgan,...

edit: not always low on "supernatural" (we are talking sf after all!), but in most cases fast-paced, entertaining and so forth...

 

[Ariana]

Two Great Chick Books!

Wow, a lot of great picks but only some for the chicks! Anyway I want to throw this book out that my older brother 23 literally THREW at me so I would stop complaining about being bored this summer. Ha ha. I read it! I've completed all of his Harry Potter books and then i read some Asimov! Of course I like the little publisher and unknown authors the most and so, being all of 19, I actually enjoyed a teenage book called Carlton Casey: Alien Incident its by...Nick Hill. Definitely not your normal book and it didn't kill me with too many aliens, but sick, sick ending! I wonder where these authors come up with something different after you think you've read or seen everything! Anyway, support the little guys (and girls! where are we???) But check that book out, its cheap anyway and throw me some suggestions back!


Laters!

Wildnlethal2

I have to admit that when it comes to really great "Chick" novels and books, I honestly LOVE Anne McCaffrey's 'Crystal Singer' series! Excellent sci-fi with a emo feel for anyone, but especially resonates with women, and since Killashandra (*I always pictured Sigorney Weaver as Killa!) is the main character throughout, it appeals to young strong women everywhere. I must have read this series 4 or 5 times (*maybe more!)

Another less sci-fi more fantasy book that is excellent and somewhat rare is 'Maia' by Richard Adams. Great adventure, speckled with sex and a really intriguing foreign land (*somewhat Aztec?) But fascinating and not anything like the Bunny book! (*Watership Down).

Ariana