Top products from r/scifi

We found 118 product mentions on r/scifi. We ranked the 1,817 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.

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Top comments that mention products on r/scifi:

u/omaca · 2 pointsr/scifi

I'm reposting something I posted a couple of years ago:

Well, perhaps the most famous recent post-apocalyptic novel was McCarthy's The Road. Quite a bleak book, and very characteristic of McCarthy's spartan prose, this became a huge international best seller and a successful Hollywood movie. I certainly recommend it, but it's not really an uplifting book and has several confronting scenes. Still, very good.

The other obvious recent "literary" PA novels would be Margaret Atwood's "Oryx and Crake" trilogy. They start with Oryx and Crake, are followed by Year of the Flood and conclude with MaddAddam. These are very good books with strong feminist and ecological themes (a good thing!). Highly recommended.

The Dog Stars is yet another recent PA novel which garnered a fair bit of praise (I picked it up after hearing a segment on the novel on NPR's Fresh Air). I enjoyed it, despite the cliched "Survivalist" aspects and occasional far-fetched coincidences. A good, fun read; especially if you're a dog lover. :)

Other recommended titles (which I won't link to directly for time reasons) include Justin Cronin's The Passage trilogy (kind of a mash up between post apocalypse and horror), Stephen King's The Stand (ditto), A Canticle for Leibowitz, Earth Abides and Alas Babylon (the triptych of classics of the genre).

Good luck. I love these books even though I'm a positive optimistic guy! :)

EDIT: I overlooked Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven (fun, action packed but accused by some of racist undertones), The Postman by David Brin (so so so very much better than the movie it spawned. So much better), The Year of the Plague by someone I forgot (rather original PA novel with nano-technology rearing its head) and even Blood Music by Greg Bear (though most people consider this full on science fiction, it does feature an apocalypse... or a sort. :)





 



 




 



Since then, I've thought of (or read) a few more. Perhaps one of the most famous is Station Eleven. It garnered a fair bit of media attention and mainstream critical acclaim a couple of years ago. It's a bit of a slow burner, and whilst it's not my favourite post-apocalyptic novel, it's certainly worth picking up. The Girl with All the Gifts was a recent hit. Set in the UK, it tells the story of a band of British scientists and soldiers searching for remaining survivors, as they bring along a very strange and very dangerous survivor of the recent plague. It's great fun and was made into a movie recently. I believe the author recently published a sequel (The Boy on the Bridge?), but I haven't read this.

Wastelands is a collection of short-stories. Some really good stuff here, and if you're not feeling up to a full length novel or comptemplating the end of humanity, it's well worth a look.


Let me know if you want more. It's a favourite genre of mine. :)

u/jello_aka_aron · 4 pointsr/scifi

Gregory Benford might be to your liking, Eater hits a lot of those old hard SF buttons in particular. The Hyperion Cantos may also do the trick. C.S. Friedman's In Conquest Born and This Alien Shore are favorites that have that classic sci-fi feeling.

I would also give Stephenson another shot.. it's really good stuff, but yeah Snow Crash is a little over-the-top (very much so for the first chapter or two, but it does settle down a good bit). I mean, the main character is named Hiro Protagonist... there's obviously going to be a certain level of tongue-in-cheek, self-aware ridiculousness going on, but it's quite amazing how well he foresaw much of the modern computing world. Cryptonomicon is awesome and is one of those rare books that somehow feels like science fiction even though there's nothing out of the ordinary in it. Anathem and Zodiac are also quite good and more traditional in tone and style.

u/aenea · 6 pointsr/scifi

You've got some great suggestions so far- I'd also suggest Old Man's War ...it's fun.

Legacy of Heorot is also a good, fun read.

Connie Willis writes great short stories, and The Doomsday Book is one of the better time travel books that I've read (especially if you have any interest in history).

One of my favourite things to do is to pick up short story anthologies at the library, which usually gives me a good idea of which authors I'd be interested in reading.

u/HomunculusEmeritus · 3 pointsr/scifi

Yes, it is a book. Just about 400 pages in hardback. I've read so much science fiction that at this point it's become about finding newness despite the oldness of it all - sorry if that comes off sounding superior, or trite; I could never write a book!

I'm just a third of the way through, but I do recommend it. If you've ever read this collection: http://www.amazon.com/Science-Fiction-Hall-Fame-Vol/dp/0765305372 it's got a quality to it that reminds me somehow of some of these short stories. And fwiw that's truly an excellent anthology.

For example (not a spoiler), there's a scene that takes place during Mao's Cultural Revolution where a Physics professor is being forcefully, and publicly, interrogated by his students. It seems some of the theories he taught didn't match doctrine... But there's a point where the scenario is likened to parallel processing in a computer; that the same events are taking place across the city at the same time. It's quite effective the way he simply uses the term "parallel processing", and how it reflects the societal implications of how policy was (or is) implemented.

The style, backdrop, personalities, and overall care with the way the book was written are refreshing to say the least. You know how much of a standout Scalzi is in his writing? From this book I'd say Liu is just as distinctive.

u/MyCoolYoungHistory · 12 pointsr/scifi

Oh I hope Leviathan Wakes wins best novel. If anyone hasn't heard of it now's the best time to start. Quite a great read and the sequel comes out this summer.

u/netsettler · 2 pointsr/scifi

It always surprises me how The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell has slipped under the radar of many. It's intense in places but extraordinarily well-written. It has a sequel that's not nearly as good (probably due to a publisher urging a rush job), but overall this is an amazing book. It's my number one favorite book, not just sci-fi book, for a variety of reasons. Very thoughtful, very vivid characters, very interesting descriptive detail. So realistic in places it almost doesn't feel like sci-fi.

I enjoyed Ascent by Jed Mercurio a lot. The opening chapter is more violent than I wish. I almost stopped reading, worrying the whole book would be that way, but it lightens up. The first chapter can, frankly, pretty much be skipped by anyone who doesn't like that kind of thing. The rest of the story was much more even and interesting. I have a feeling when I see the upcoming Apollo 18, if I even bother (I'm expecting bad reviews), I'm going to wish it was this story instead.

u/SharksAreNatural · 8 pointsr/scifi

Spin by Robert Charles Wilson. Stunning scifi grand idea payoff in the conclusion. If you like it, the sequels are also magnificent. The climax of the last book, in particular, is mind shattering. It isn't a twist ending, because you have all the clues before the denouement. When the author finally puts them together, I promise you will be amazed and thoroughly satisfied.

u/[deleted] · 1 pointr/scifi

A few other options (and these might have been mentioned in previous comments):

Clarke's Rama series (although the first two of the four, in my opinion, are the best).

Niven's Ringworld series -- Note: there is a great variety in the quality of these books-- some are great, some are not. The first one, Ringworld, is superb and definitely an anchor of the "Big Dumb Object" type of books. Protector is also great!

Peter Hamilton's Pandora's Star -- followed by Judas Unchained and the Void Trilogy ! Great world-building!

Greg Bear's Eon series

By the same author of Red Mars, pickup Icehenge -- a shorter read but definitely full of Kim Stanley Robinson's world-building depth.

u/ChiperSoft · 0 pointsr/scifi

If you want some "mind blowing" scifi, definitely look into the works of Greg Bear. He has a flair for writing stories that will make your jaw drop. Blood Music and Eon are good starters. Even tho both books do center around technology (nanotech and space travel, respectively), the writing is not tech heavy.

Two other books I strongly recommend are both collections of short stories that Orson Scott Card put together from various authors. The books are called Future on Fire and Future on Ice, and no the stories have nothing to do with temperature. Fire is supposed to have stories that get you fired up, Ice is supposed to be all stories that chill you to the bone. It's worth mentioning that Future on Ice contains the original Greg Bear story that Blood Music came from.

For something lighter hearted, my wife loves the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy books and, even tho it's more Fantasy then SciFi, you can't go wrong with the Discworld series. The early books can be a little rough, but the later novels are simply excellent writing. The city watch books are particularly thrilling reads.

u/Leiawen · 52 pointsr/scifi

http://www.amazon.com/Mote-Gods-Eye-Larry-Niven/dp/0671741926/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413465938&sr=1-1&keywords=the+mote+in+god%27s+eye

The Mote in God's Eye - Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. One of the greatest First Contact books ever. Hugo and Nebula nominee.

"Writing separately, Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle are responsible for a number of science fiction classics, such as the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning Ringworld, Debt of Honor, and The Integral Trees. Together they have written the critically acclaimed bestsellers Inferno, Footfall, and The Legacy of Heorot, among others.
The Mote In God's Eye is their acknowledged masterpiece, an epic novel of mankind's first encounter with alien life that transcends the genre."

u/EoghanHassan · 1 pointr/scifi

Mick Farren - The DNA Cowboys

Its got is all, fellowship, drugs, adventure, sex and buckets of general weirdness. Kind of DarkTowerish.


Allan Weisbecker - Cosmic Banditos

I had lots of awkward moments in public, trying (and failing) to stifle laughs. Great stuff. Worth it for the intro alone.


M. John Harrison - Light

This novel is unlike anything else I have read. That Harrison squeezes three stories in to this slim volume is a work of wonder.


John C. Wright - The Golden Age

If you like the Culture Novels, you will probably really like this.


Jeff VanderMeer - Veniss Underground

Disturbing and dark. Still haunts me.

u/funkymonk11 · 2 pointsr/scifi
  • Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Game"
  • Neal Stephenson's "Snow Crash"
  • Joe Haldeman's "Forever War"
  • Arthur C. Clarke's "Rendezvous with Rama"
  • Vernor Vinge's "A Fire Upon The Deep"
  • Kurt Vonnegut's "The Sirens of Titan"
  • Philip K. Dick's "Do Android Dream of Electric Sheep" (inspiration for the Blade Runner movie)
  • Dan Simmons' "Hyperion"

    Every single one of these books has something different to offer you from the genre of scifi. Those three at the top are great entries into the genre. As what I perceive to be "deeper cuts", allow me to suggest my four favorite scifi novels:

  • Isaac Asimov's "Foundation"
  • William Gibson's "Neuromancer"
  • Paolo Bacigalupi's "The Windup Girl"
  • Alfred Bester's "The Stars My Destination"

    Cheers!
u/Wagnerius · 7 pointsr/scifi

<with a french waiters accent>

For madam,

I would propose either china miéville "Perdido..." or Robert Charles Wilson "spin". Both weave interesting believable characters within a good sf plot.

But If you want a page turner, I would say Eliantris or Warbreaker both by brandon sanderson. They're fantasy and really hard to put down.

In the end, I would propose "To say nothing of the dog" by connie Willis. Very clever and funny with a time travel theme.

</with a french waiters accent>

( Damn, I really liked to be a bookseller...)

u/desertfish_ · 1 pointr/scifi

Well, for one, you could try to see if you like Asimov's robot stories. One collection of these is "I,Robot" which I enjoyed myself a lot. There's also a couple of full length novels (see wikipedia ) A bit of googling should find you a lot more (not only about robots) and the same holds for Clarke ofcourse. Happy reading :-)

u/artman · 1 pointr/scifi

Good to hear from you. I am not a book critic at all so I thank you for letting me try.

>Indeed, the story is designed to start in media res, and the lack of familiarity with the setting is intentional. The next six chapters are dedicated to exploring the characters and the world around them. I've always found it more interesting when the reader is thrust into an unknown universe, only to have information about that universe slowly disclosed over the course of the story.

Ever read John Scalzi's work? In Ghost Brigades he does this very well in the first chapter where you are just boggled to the point that you can't put the book down to find out where the story will go next. I know that most writers do this, but that was the one that stands out right now. He is a great writer and I recommend him if you haven't read any of his work. Start with Old Man's War.

>You shouldn't ;)

Dang! If you can, link the next installment. I'll be having a slow day at work tomorrow!

u/jef_snow · 60 pointsr/scifi

Ender's Game, Revelation Space, Altered Carbon and a few other great series out of there have dedicated a lot to overcoming time dilation.

Joe Haldeman tackled it head on in The Forever War Amazon link, a fantastic book that as a fan of similar stuff, you might like it!

u/constructofamind · 9 pointsr/scifi

I was actually going to suggest the entire Old Man's War series. It's very good. Actually, all of Scalzi's books are great. Just finished Lock In for the 4th or 5th time. And Forever War was amazing.

I'd also suggest Eon by Greg Bear if you're into high scifi concepts.

And I haven't seen it on the comments, but I'm sure it's there. The Expanse Series by James S.A. Corey. The Syfy series is doing a wonderful job adapting it to the small screen.

u/rheebus · 3 pointsr/scifi

Mote in God's Eye by Niven and Pournelle is fantastic.

From Heinlein himself, "Possibly the greatest science fiction novel I have ever read."

http://www.amazon.com/Mote-Gods-Eye-Larry-Niven/dp/0671741926

u/lobster_johnson · 6 pointsr/scifi

Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun. Extremely well written, very complex and rewarding to those with a fondness for symbolism and narrative puzzles.

Also, A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr. A classic, complex work about a future, post-apocalyptic society where scientific knowledge is carefully preserved by a holy order of monks.

u/fentonjm · 2 pointsr/scifi

May not be exactly what you're looking for but book 1 is free on Amazon so easy to read and check out if you like it. Spinward Fringe.

Spinward Fringe Broadcast 0: Origins: A Collected Trilogy https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004EPYUXA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_D4E0CbQ2CTC3N

u/Algernon_Asimov · 1 pointr/scifi

> I think Harlan Ellison wrote a screenplay for an actual direct adaptation of I, Robot that's in print actually.

He certainly did! Complete with an introduction by Isaac Asimov himself - where Asimov says he loved Ellison's treatment of his book.

I have a copy of this on my bookshelf. :)

u/CowboyNinjaD · 5 pointsr/scifi

Harlan Ellison made it work.

An illustrated screenplay he wrote was published several years ago, and it's actually pretty good. It shouldn't be too hard to find at a library.

All the short stories are tied together by a journalist who's investigating Susan Calvin. So over the course of the movie, we would have gotten flashbacks to all the stories as the reporter conducted interviews. And the movie would have had an interesting twist ending that wasn't in the book.

u/sonnyclips · 1 pointr/scifi

I hope the downvotes were more for my inartful and pretentious comment than against the book. Don't take my word for it though check out the reviews on Amazon. I like the book though because it blends classic space exploration scifi, like Heinlein, with more modern genetics, networking and computer technology speculation.

u/gadgetguy22 · 3 pointsr/scifi

First think that came to mind for me was Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow. Really quality stuff.

From Amazon (SPOILER ALERT): In 2019, humanity finally finds proof of extraterrestrial life when a listening post in Puerto Rico picks up exquisite singing from a planet which will come to be known as Rakhat. While United Nations diplomats endlessly debate a possible first contact mission, the Society of Jesus quietly organizes an eight-person scientific expedition of its own. What the Jesuits find is a world so beyond comprehension that it will lead them to question the meaning of being "human." When the lone survivor of the expedition, Emilio Sandoz, returns to Earth in 2059, he will try to explain what went wrong... Words like "provocative" and "compelling" will come to mind as you read this shocking novel about first contact with a race that creates music akin to both poetry and prayer.

u/Citizen_Kong · 2 pointsr/scifi

Spin by Robert Charles Wilson is pretty great.

u/cavehobbit · 1 pointr/scifi

For those commenting the lack of women authors, I agree.

I suggest Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente. She has other interesting books as well.

ALso, I did not see Paolo Bacigalupis The Windup Girl mentioned, very good

u/tpodr · 33 pointsr/scifi

The anthology is The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Vol. 1: 1929-1964 https://www.amazon.com/dp/0765305372

A wonderful introduction to sci-fi.

u/PhilR8 · 1 pointr/scifi

Read this story recently in the short story collection Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse. It's a great anthology, and while I like Doctorow's entry, it's one of the weaker stories in this collection. Some real good stuff here.

u/swimsplice · 2 pointsr/scifi

For a newish, highly entertaining read, I'd recommend Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey. Do it soon, Syfy is making a TV series out of it next year, and you don't want the crappy photo reprint cover with the embossed "NOW A HIT TV SERIES" burst.

u/CygnusX1 · 1 pointr/scifi

I'm reading The Golden Age right now and it's pretty good.

u/teaselroot · 3 pointsr/scifi

Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey!! It's the first book in The Expanse series and it has seriously every thing you're looking for, and is a great, well written space opera.

u/CrosseyedAndPainless · 3 pointsr/scifi

Eon by Greg Bear

Maybe Neverness by David Zindell. Though the "mysterious artifact" in it isn't exactly an artifact. Still, it's a crime that this novel has been out of print for over a decade.

Frederik Pohl's Heechee series, beginning with Gateway. Pulpy, but enjoyable.

Ringworld of course, but I'm sure you've already heard of that one.

edit: Whoops. You mentioned Pohl already.

u/slicedbreddit · 6 pointsr/scifi

The Ender sequels (Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, Children of the Mind) and The Mote in God's Eye all have a lot of soft science. This is probably true for a lot of stories involving first contact.

Edit - Snow Crash deals a lot with linguistics as well.

u/naut · 1 pointr/scifi

For me, hand's down. It's Asimov's [The Caves of Steel] (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/bookseries/B00CKLUH32/ref=dp_st_0553293400) series. After all this time I think it holds up pretty well. I may have to go back and re-read them. Also look for I,Robot very different then the movie.

u/Pandaemonium · 2 pointsr/scifi

The Golden Age is the best far-future book I've ever read.

u/walesmd · 2 pointsr/scifi

Entire and the Rose - The first book in the series is free on Kindle, this is an excellent example of world building. I wanted to continue reading this series, well beyond the time it ended. I wanted to know so much more about these worlds.

Spinward Fringe - First book in the series is also free on the Kindle, I'm only up to book 4 but it reminds me of a book version of Eve Online. If you enjoy epic space battles, fighting against corporate overlords and crazy science (very intelligent AI, cloning, etc) this is a great series to get into.

u/mformichelli · 1 pointr/scifi

C.S. Friedman's In Conquest Born-
She's normally a Fantasy writer, so I'm guessing the style will appeal to you, and the book is awesome.
http://www.amazon.com/Conquest-Born-Daw-Book-Collectors/dp/0756400430

u/madmanz123 · 1 pointr/scifi

The bugs from Armor were good as well in terms of sheer numbers/tenacity.

http://www.amazon.com/Armor-science-fiction-John-Steakley/dp/0886773687

u/davou · 1 pointr/scifi

Theres actually a current Science workaround to FTL communication.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_entanglement

If we can find a way to artificially induce quantum entanglement in a pair of trapped particles, then we can communicate information between the pair by way of sending spin through the entanglement.

||I think a good story could be told about a human society who gets FTL technology after a few millennia of "shot-in-the-dark" ark ships. Let's go visit the cousins, somebody says, but the isolation has caused them all to develop in very unique ways...and whatever breakthrough led to the heroes getting FTL may have led the other systems to develop stranger things.

http://www.eveonline.com/
http://www.amazon.ca/Spin-Robert-Charles-Wilson/dp/076534825X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1314037179&sr=8-3

Both those 'stories' play with the idea of a divergent species due to relativistic separations

u/evilled · 3 pointsr/scifi

Check out the Spinward Fringe series by Randolph Lalonde. The original prequel (Origins) story is good space opera with an upbeat feel and the later broadcasts are are a little more dark and thought provoking as parts of the galaxy devolve into wars and power plays. Good stuff all around.

u/ilogik · 11 pointsr/scifi

I've just finished Leviathan Wakes, an excellent hard sci-fi space opera. A sequel should come out this summer

u/czhunc · 4 pointsr/scifi

I haven't read the book, but it sounds like Gateway to me.

u/justnit · 1 pointr/scifi

Spinwards Fringe, the first three books are free on Amazon Kindle.

Self published but good page turning spaceship battles. Every contact matters. Think Star Trek Kirk v Khan tactics.

UK clicky

u/wicud · 2 pointsr/scifi

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman. Even non sci-fi readers that I've recommended it to have enjoyed it and been intrigued by the future warfare that the book describes.

u/Cdresden · 2 pointsr/scifi

You've just about run out of tv. Eventually, you may have to bite the bullet, and resort to books. Here's a good one:

Gateway by Frederik Pohl.

u/swordgeek · 8 pointsr/scifi

I'm still waiting for Ellison's screenplay of I, Robot to be made into a movie.

One faithful rendition, that's all I ask.

u/1337_Mrs_Roberts · 3 pointsr/scifi

C.S.Friedman's [In Conquest Born] (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0756400430). The societies (one male lead, one female lead) are interesting.

u/ruadh · 2 pointsr/scifi

http://www.amazon.com/Armor-science-fiction-John-Steakley/dp/0886773687

This may not be it, but it has certain elements similar. Especially following the survival of that soldier.

u/gerundronaut · 8 pointsr/scifi

I seriously enjoyed the entire The Golden Age trilogy (John C. Wright).

u/patrusk · 10 pointsr/scifi

Check out The Windup Girl, it's the closest thing I can think of that reminds me of The Diamond Age. Aside from Snow Crash, of course.

u/alchemeron · 1 pointr/scifi

If I had to choose one Robert Charles Wilson novel, I'd probably opt for Spin.

u/werkbot · 2 pointsr/scifi
  • "The Little Black Bag" by Cyril M. Kornbluth
  • "Microcosmic God" by Theodore Sturgeon
  • "Arena" by Fredric Brown
    ...
    In fact, Just buy this book.
u/Clack082 · 7 pointsr/scifi

The Mote in God's Eye also features a solar sail ship powered by giant lasers.

https://www.amazon.com/Mote-Gods-Eye-Larry-Niven/dp/0671741926


The concept is called a photonic laser thruster by scientists and engineers I'd you want to look up more about systems from a real world point of view.

u/exnihilonihilfit · 3 pointsr/scifi

If you want a future in which time is currency, try the Golden Age series by John C. Wright.

u/vkevlar · 5 pointsr/scifi

Mandatory pointer to Armor, by John Steakley.

u/NotADoctor · 8 pointsr/scifi

Armor - by John Steakly

Heh, at the moment Amazon says it is frequently bought together with Starship Troopers and The Forever War

u/gabwyn · 47 pointsr/scifi

Here are the recently published novels we've covered in the /r/SF_Book_Club (you can check out the survey results for these books from the sidebar over there):

u/derioderio · 1 pointr/scifi

Leviathan Wakes has the ships flip around backwards. But I think the difference you may be looking for is one of the dividing lines between hard(ish) and soft(ish) SF.

u/1369ic · 7 pointsr/scifi

Another different take: http://www.amazon.com/Mote-Gods-Eye-Larry-Niven/dp/0671741926. It's a first-contact book with a military side, but with a twist.

u/TheFeshy · 7 pointsr/scifi

I'd also add "The Mote in God's Eye" to that list (along with it's sequel.)

Edit: Also Hamilton's other space opera, the "Night's Dawn" trilogy.

And of course the follow-up trilogy to Pandora's Star, The Void series, but I consider that part of the same story as Pandora's Star.

u/mobyhead1 · 2 pointsr/scifi

>You can't base a movie on I robot because it is a collection of short stories showing how anomolies can occur in the 3 laws...

I beg to fucking differ.

u/Mirsky814 · 2 pointsr/scifi

Books: Eon by Greg Bear. Not the typical first contact story but saying more than that would give it away.

u/lexabear · 5 pointsr/scifi

Yup, I recently read it in Wastelands, if OP wants a print version of it.

u/APeacefulWarrior · 3 pointsr/scifi

There's a brand new box set out. The complete series for under $100. (doesn't include the miniseries)

u/idontalwaysupvote · 2 pointsr/scifi

Spinward Fringe by Randolfph Lalonde

Only problem is only the first one is free and it is part of a series. Also it is written by a new writer so there are a lot of grammatical errors but it also makes for a very original series so I look past the mistakes.

u/kittychow · 3 pointsr/scifi

Having read Harlan Ellison's screenplay years before this Will Smith vehicle came out, all I can say is I was very very sad thinking about what it should have been. Visually it was a good sci-fi popcorn action movie, but I just wish...

u/George_Glass · 7 pointsr/scifi

Last week, I bought both Anathem and Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun and decided on the latter to start reading last night. I'm not sure either book is appropriate for pre-bedtime reading when I'm starting to doze off as they both seem to require attentive reading... I think I need some brain candy for the late night reads.

u/ewiethoff · 1 pointr/scifi

Don't miss out on short fiction! :-) The nice thing about multi-author anthologies is, you discover which authors you will want to read and invest in more thoroughly:

u/Bzzt · 3 pointsr/scifi

The Golden Age trilogy by John Wright.

http://www.amazon.com/Golden-Age-Book/dp/0812579844

Thousands of years in the future, sorry. But, hard sci fi it is.

u/mattculbreth · 1 pointr/scifi

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell goes into first contact material like Contact does, but (IMHO) it's much deeper and more thought provoking.

u/rougetoxicity · 1 pointr/scifi

Have you read Spin?

http://www.amazon.com/Spin-Robert-Charles-Wilson/dp/076534825X

Give it a shot is you haven't... its fairly short anyway, so it not a huge commitment.

Also, The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

http://www.amazon.com/The-Name-Wind-Kingkiller-Chronicles/dp/0756404746

I can hear you saying OOOOOH i don't like fantasy much! Well, neither do i, but I read name of the wind, wise mans fear, and am anxiously awaiting number 3.

u/errant · 25 pointsr/scifi

Sci-Fi Starters:

Starship Troopers by Heinlein

Stranger in a Strange Land by Heinlein

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card

The Foundation series by Asimov: Foundation -> Foundation and Empire -> Second Foundation

The Robot series by Asimov: I, Robot...

u/dotrob · 4 pointsr/scifi

This short story collection has been on my to-investigate list for a while, and one of the reviews mentions a) realistic collapse scenarios and b) peak oil. Plus: Stephen King!

u/Funk86 · 1 pointr/scifi

Vernor Vinge needs to publicly apologize for making the Children of the Sky.

It was one of the worst books i've ever read. You know a book is bad when the characters have dialogue like "I think i'm finally sure, i'm sure than Nevil is evil"

I think he's done as a sci fi author. His greatest contributions will always be A Deepness in the Sky and A Fire Upon the Deep.

u/scifideome · 3 pointsr/scifi

The Windup Girl? Takes place in Thailand, the big bad corporations are GM food corporations, main character is a young woman who is the product of genetic engineering.

u/feetextreme · 1 pointr/scifi
  • Armor - More ground base fighting in powersuits than in space - Second half of the book isn't very exciting - Audiobook is awesome
  • The Forever War - War fought against aliens over a long period of time. Space and ground battles
  • Old Man's War - Lots of advanced tech in these books with space battles and ground combat - This would probably be my first recommendation
  • Currently reading Leviathan Wakes which is turning out to be pretty good