Sci Fi

[Shooty*]

I can't recall us having a sci fi book thread before... this might belong in the movies and music section, but I thought I'd start the ball rolling.

I could do with some Sci Fi recommendations.

I'm a big fan of Neil Gaiman, Alistairs Reynolds, Neal Asher, Peter F Hamilton and Richard Morgan. Read all of their stuff (except Market Forces by the later), so I'm now running out of stuff I know.

There is an exception here: I've not read Hamilton's stuff outside the Nights Dawn trilogy in case it's not as good as that trilogy.

Any other recommendations? I've tried a couple of other authors (Iain M Banks, whoever wrote the stuff with Reid Malenfant in it, M John Harrison) and don't rate any of them (excet Banks, but the Culture novels seem to be rather varied). Hate to say it, but I find Arthur C Clarke boring. Have read all the Foundation novels too, and they just got worse and worse.

I particularly hated the style of the Malenfant writer (Stephen Baxter, that's it). It was very condescending, which is a shame as it had nice ideas.

Any recommendations? I keep meaning to pick up some Ben Bova, but his covers always put me off (yep, sadly, I do make snap judgments by covers). Anne McCaffrey is another one whose covers put me off. Greg Bear? Elizabeth Moon?

I've never read Dune. Should I?

 

[darthcarl]

Dune carries a lot of baggage and decreases instead of progresses as you read the novels. I love Greg Bear. He tackles different levels of sci-fi. His sequal to the lost world called dinosaur summer was a fun read. Eon and Slant were the books that got me started with him. I still love the ideas in Eon.

check out Kim Stanley Robinson. specifically the Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars trillogy and Antartica.

if you want the classics then Heinleins Stranger in a Strange Land and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress will fufill your desire. They are amazingly timelesss. Avoid random Hienlein books. The lazarus long story thread is tedious.

 

[Shooty*]

Thanks Carl,
I tried Red Mars. I have a PhD friend who loves KSR and that series, but it was a bit dry for me. I enjoyed it for what it was, but think I prefer the Space Opera, outlandish, gothic, massive weapons and strange people, kind of sci fi, which Reynolds excels at.

I'll give Bear a go.

 

[chuk hell]

I read a book by Greg Bear called BLOOD MUSIC that was really good. If you are familiar with the "gray goo" scenario in nanoscience then this is sort of a bio-tech take on that. Freaky.


Sci-Fi, wow, I'm a little old school. I really dug William Gibson's NEUROMANCER and some of his short stories but haven't kept up with his newer stuff.

There's a guy called K. W. Jeter who wrote the wonderfully perverse DR. ADDER which pre-dated all the cyberpunk stuff by many years. He's sort of a poor man's PKD. But I dig him. That's one of my favorite books of any genre. I've read it 3 times.

Going back to when I was a kid I've enjoyed almost anything I've read by Phillipe Jose Farmer with IMAGE OF THE BEAST being a favorite...although that book is more horror than sci fi. Speaking of Sci Fi/ horror I'm a huge fan of H. P. Lovecraft and have read most of his work. It haunts me.

Other Sci Fi writer I've enjoyed are Harlan Ellison, H. G. Wells, PKD and Michael Moorcock...who is more of a fantasy writer but the Elric series is great.

Edit to add a second recommend for STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. everyone should read that at least once. I'll also say the first DUNE is worth reading but I never read the sequels.