Sci-fi books

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  • tiddlebit11
    tiddlebit11 Posts: 182
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    REVELATION SPACE!!!!

    Or anything by Alistair Reynolds!!! Amazing, amazing writer!!!
  • colortheworld
    colortheworld Posts: 374 Member
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    Ender's Game, for sure!!!
  • hajenkatt
    hajenkatt Posts: 331 Member
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    Piers Anthony "Incarnation" series

    I second this recommendation. The first book in the series, On A Pale Horse, is a short, easy read. It will, however, leave you with a ton of questions to discuss.
  • HunterKiller_deleted
    HunterKiller_deleted Posts: 458
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    This is more fantasy but i would recommend anything by Michael Moorcock.
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    Nothing by Orson Scott Card. Unless of course you are okay with homophobic right wing ideology.

    i realize OSC is bat **** crazy, but do you really think it leaked into Ender's Game?

    ETA: wow. just found this: http://skipendersgame.com/

    dude's works aren't getting $.01 more from me. I knew he was bad, but didn't realize how extreme.

    Personally I think refusing to read an author because s/he has a different world view from your own is rather silly, that's sort of the point of reading, exploring other world views.

    That being said, yes OSC is bat **** crazy, and his remarks have been highly offensive.

    This would be especially suprising to anyone who has ACTUALLY READ Speaker for the Dead, as one of the major concepts in the book is the idea of VARELSE and learning acceptance of the alien psyche. Don't know, MIGHT make for some interesting discussion in a book club setting about the differences between the message in the book, and the message the author is spouting off about IRL.

    Or you could just burn the book because you don't like the author, that always works out well.
  • diadojikohei
    diadojikohei Posts: 732 Member
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    How about some new authors?

    Chris wooding. Ketty Jay series.(If you like firefly, you'll love these!)

    Jaine fenn. Fantastic writer. Fresh sci fi.

    Ben aaronovtich.

    Joe Abercrombie

    Just a few!!
  • formongo
    formongo Posts: 27 Member
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    Personally I think refusing to read an author because s/he has a different world view from your own is rather silly, that's sort of the point of reading, exploring other world views.

    I think you misunderstand the point of the protest. It's not about "refusing to read an author because s/he has a different world view" but it is about refusing to support someone financially because of their 'world view,' where in this case OSC's 'world view' is outspoken bigotry and stating publicly that homosexuality should be criminalized. In his own words: “those who flagrantly violate society’s regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens within that society.” and "The first and greatest threat from court decisions in California and Massachusetts, giving legal recognition to "gay marriage," is that it marks the end of democracy in America."

    That second quote is the first line of an editorial he wrote in 2008. It's a sad read, in that its sad someone could be so misguided and hate-filled, but you can find it here: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700245157/State-job-is-not-to-redefine-marriage.html?pg=1
  • QueenBishOTUniverse
    QueenBishOTUniverse Posts: 14,121 Member
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    I have no problem with the concept of not providing financial support, trust me, my husband and I were boycotting chick-fil-a for years before most people even knew about that issue (and I LOVE chick-fil-a). I DO have a problem when people condemn literature that they've never even read. Ender's Game and Speaker both actually have very strong messages of tolerance and acceptance, it's one of the reasons many people who are familiar with OSC's work are more than a little confused by the recent stance he has taken.
  • blytheandbonnie
    blytheandbonnie Posts: 3,275 Member
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    Lots of non sci-fi in this thread.

    DUNE.
    Hyperion
    and too much to choose from by Isaac Asimov

    Really though, Dune just can't be beaten.
    I have never been able to get into Dune. I may have to try it again
  • Excepticon
    Excepticon Posts: 83 Member
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    Yes, try Tad Williams I love his Otherland series. Four books in the series. Book 1. City of Golden Shadow, Book 2. River of Blue Fire, Book 3. Mountain of Black Glass and Book 4. Sea of Silver Light.

    These books are old but they are very good if you like Sci-fi books..and also I must say, being a series they might be hard to find.

    Agreed - Williams is great at developing and maintaining multiple characters and storylines. I LOVED Dread/Johnny's character in Otherland. Great suggestion! His fantasy series Shadowmarch is surprisingly good as well. You can tell he loves his ancient cultures and religion studies!
  • bartaburesi
    bartaburesi Posts: 68
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    Of course The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams is a classic! You will love it! You can lok other Douglas Adams books too. He is awesome!

    My favourite book is Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. I read it almost 20 times already. (And if you like politics/sociology you can read Brave New World Revisited. It's about the regime and system which is run in Brave New World)

    And you know Jules Verne is still number 1!
  • JamericanBoy
    JamericanBoy Posts: 484 Member
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    Larry Niven's "The Integral Trees", "The Draco Tavern" or one he wrote with Brenda Cooper, called "Building Harlequin's Moon"

    Loved Integral Trees. Such a great alternate world story. Also good fantasy: Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series.
  • desolate_angel
    desolate_angel Posts: 170 Member
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    I'm for Asimov

    Nightfall
    9 Tomorrows (anthology)
    Caves of Steel
    Prelude to Foundation
    I, robot (not the stupid movie)

    Heinlein (his main fault is he couldn't write a decent female character if his life depended on it.)
    Starship Troopers
    some of his juvenile fiction, e.g. Have Spacesuit, Will Travel; Tunnel in the Sky

    Anne McCaffrey's Dragonrider series or Freedom series. The former reads more like fantasy than sci-fi.
  • PaulaKro
    PaulaKro Posts: 5,698 Member
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    In his own words: “those who flagrantly violate society’s regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens within that society.”
    Regarding Orson Scott Card: "In a 1990 essay for Sunstone magazine, he wrote that the laws prohibiting homosexual behavior should "remain on the books, not to be indiscriminately enforced against anyone who happens to be caught violating them, but to be used when necessary to send a clear message that those who flagrantly violate society's regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens within that society." In May 2013, Card stated that he no longer advocated this." - Wikipedia
  • jonnyman41
    jonnyman41 Posts: 1,031 Member
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    I second "The Handmaid's Tale" - it's my favorite Atwood novel.

    I read through the other posts briefly and didn't see (to my surprise and/or negligence!) .... H.P. Lovecraft! and Arthur C. Clarke! (Probably negligence - I skimmed through the posts quickly.)

    I've always loved Clarke's short stories, and The Nine Billion Names of God is my absolute favorite ever. You can find it in basically any Clarke compilation.

    Lovecraft... what can I say? He's more horror than sci-fi, but it's like... if the movie Event Horizon had a lovechild with a book and went on an acid trip to a World of Warcraft land... ish. It's interesting to say the least, and his ability to develop complex characters with amazingly weird backgrounds is outstanding.

    Cheers to a good book, and enjoy your book club!

    Just tried Handmaids Tale, sorry not sure why others like it so much. I found I was skipping long montages as they were quite boring. (PS aware that we all have different tastes though I am a fan normally of sci fi and fantasy)
  • sunshineanstars
    sunshineanstars Posts: 109
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