On January 15 2012 20:13 Genjimaru wrote:
Wondering if anyone can turn me onto some good sci fi series. I've read mainly fantasy and I really love the genre but I'd love to read some good sci fi. If anyone has any good recommendations it would be greatly appreciated.

1) Enders Game (single greatest sci fi book in my opinion - don't bother with the sequels though).
2) John Steakley - Armor. Because I think it's the second best

3) David Weber - At Basilisk Station (space military / long series, simply because it's the first book in a long series that I quite enjoy - it's perhaps not the best book, or the best series, but it is a good book in a good series).
4) Peter F. Hamilton - The Reality Dysfunction (Best in the space opera genre).
5) L.E. Modesitt Jr - The Forever Hero. In my eyes, the best 'hero' story that is written in the scifi genre, after Enders Game.
6) Robert Heinlein - The Moon is a Harsh Mistress or Podkayne of Mars (with the original, not the first published, ending). Because everyone that wants to read science fiction should know something of Heinlein's work.

In addition, I would like to recommend:
Ann Aquirre - Grimspace.
Frank Herbert - Dune.
William Gibson - Neuromancer.
Neal Stephenson - Snow Crash.
Daniel Keyes - Flowers for Algernon.
Elizabeth Moon - The Speed of Dark.
Joe Haldeman - The Forever War.
Audrey Niffenegger - The Time-Travellers Wife.
Vernor Vinge - A Deepness in the Sky.
Alastair Reynolds - House of Suns.
Richard K. Morgan - Altered Carbon.

... of very varied genres within the scifi genre.

Roe

Canada6002 Posts

January 30 2012 16:39 GMT

#342

Great ideas to read, really abstract.

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A little hard to get into, but the style of writing is interesting to read

evantrees

Canada497 Posts

January 30 2012 17:23 GMT

#343

3) Peter F. Hamilton - The Reality Dysfunction (Best in the space opera genre).
interesting Only have read the first two commonwealth books so far but loved them.

I would add Dan Simmons Hyperion to his list, Ilium was interesting as well.
Also Stephen Baxter for more hard scifi, Nasa trilogy, manifold novels or Xelee sequence are all great.

and a random fantasy recomendation
The Stormcaller (Twilight Reign, book 1) by Tom Lloyd+ Show Spoiler +

Last book finished, Gods and Generals had read the Killer Angels previously will probably watch the two movies(Gods and Generals and Gettysburg) before I start the Last Full Measure.
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reading
Hammer's Slammers Vol. 3, will be done with the hammerverse after this except for the Voyage.
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Will start Shadows in Flight or The Dreaming Void after.

Loved the flow chart ~~but where can I find a list for it I'm curious exactly how many I have read already.~~
Going to have to try bumping Old Man's War up on the reading list a bit due to, Who shall we fight? Everyone.
hurray for contact on that list.

Edit: list http://www.npr.org/2011/08/11/139085843/your-picks-top-100-science-fiction-fantasy-books
Looks like at 20/100 for me, 22 if you count a couple drizzt books ages ago and a comic of farenhiet 451

one more edit, interactive flowchart http://www.sfsignal.com/interactive/npr100.htm

Bleak

Turkey3059 Posts

January 30 2012 17:26 GMT

#344

At the moment I am reading Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy (Expanded Universe) as I'm waiting for the New Jedi Order books I've ordered to Amazon (5 books from that series, it's gonna be yummy!)

prOpVikingBB2

Sweden273 Posts

January 30 2012 17:28 GMT

#345

As a swede and a socialist

Bleak

Turkey3059 Posts

January 30 2012 18:07 GMT

#346

On January 31 2012 02:28 StarcraftNerd1547 wrote:
As a swede and a socialist

The power of the communist beard is strong. You can see it all over, Castro, Marx, Engels, Che, Lenin. The list goes on. Except Stalin, as he expressed it with a moustache.

Lizarb

Denmark307 Posts

January 30 2012 18:11 GMT

#347

Never been much of a book reader.

But if I finally had to start reading books again, it would most likely be the first book in the game of thrones series.

achristes

Norway653 Posts

January 30 2012 18:11 GMT

#348

I was looking for some GOOD vampire books, and came across "Interview with a vampire" in my mothers bookcase :D

RetroAspect

Belgium219 Posts

January 30 2012 18:13 GMT

#349

-Hyperion Cantus (Hyperion+Fall of Hyperion+Endymion+Rise of Endymion)

-Alastair reynold's : Revelation space

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dextrin303

Sweden320 Posts

January 30 2012 18:29 GMT

#350

Just started reading the new eragon book, Inheritance.
So far so good.

ozzy1346

United States38 Posts

January 30 2012 18:54 GMT

#351

so for for english class i have read:

Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Erenriech (spelling?) <shit

Black Like Me <good

An Anthropologist on Mars: Dr. Sacks <good

lundell100

Sweden232 Posts

January 30 2012 19:54 GMT

#352

I finished reading the first book in the Song of Ice and Fire series, Game of Thrones.
Don't really know if I want to spoil the second season of the TV-series and read the 2nd book though : p

DexVitality

Hong Kong234 Posts

January 30 2012 20:06 GMT

#353

Everyone should be reading the Blizzard books

Especially the SC ones. :D Hevils Devils, Deviils Due, Spectres etc....

Sharkey

668 Posts

January 31 2012 00:30 GMT

#354

Finished:
Hunger Games

Reading:
Notes from a Small Island

Need:
easy to read books on Korean history, politics, etc. I have already read the books: Single Shard and When My Name was Keoko (ps I know they are made for younger audiences).

Hopefully you can help meee!

Fix637

United States256 Posts

January 31 2012 00:37 GMT

#355

Phenomenal biography of Steve Jobs. Already finished with it and I had trouble putting it down. He led an incredibly interesting life, and he was an amazing person. Not always the best person, but amazing no less.

Currently reading:

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Picked this up for the same reason everyone else has recently: The HBO series is freaking amazing. The book is even better. I can't stop reading it =)

Aelip

Denmark321 Posts

January 31 2012 00:48 GMT

#356

Recently finished:
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Bloody brilliant.

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My 14th time reading it, i don't know exactly what it is about this book that makes me reread it so many times. It's just beyond good, though still not my favourite.

Currently:
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Such an experience, i'll have to read this multiple times to catch everything. So very different from everything else.

Next up:

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I expect this to be very enjoyable.

zulu_nation8

China26351 Posts

January 31 2012 00:52 GMT

#357

feyerabend - against method
cioran - a short history of decay

jinorazi

Korea (South)4948 Posts

January 31 2012 03:02 GMT

#358

On January 30 2012 18:42 sAsImre wrote:

Show nested quote +

Which kind of version are you reading?
Anyway, it's really good to read it, if you can find a decent traduction of the Qoran (don't know how to spell it in english T___T) it's wonderful too, you can really feel the structural differences between jews/christians and muslims. Tho you'll probably need a decent history book with it to understand some specific aspect of the area at this time, but it was, for me, definetely worth it.

I'm reading the king james version. i'm actually having very hard time understanding specifics (words and sentence structure is confusing for me) but its definitely improving my english.
i'm currently on Number 14 (progressing slowly) and i am interested in reading the Quaran also

Bigtony

United States1606 Posts

January 31 2012 03:24 GMT

#359

Since my last post I read:

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo - 8/10 - great mystery, very engaging read. The exposition didn't bother me; I imagined it in a Thorzain/Naniwa voice and it made perfect sense within that context. Polite, no fluff, bullshit, or small talk.
The Girl Who Played With Fire - 8/10 - just as good as the first, but in a different way. More action and less real mystery.
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - 7.5/10 - not as good as the first, but not bad by any stretch. Pacing was a bit off and the ending didn't live up to the exposition.

The Hunger Games - 9/10 - clearly young adult fiction, but much closer to Ender's Game than Twilight. I enjoyed the characters, plot, and themes of the book. I never felt like the romance was anything more than a secondary element.
Catching Fire - 9/10 - Great pacing kept my attention as a I read the book cover to cover in about 4 hours. The tension rises steadily, and while you know that something is going to happen you can't really imagine how and you dread the consequences. Further along you know that something else is going to happen but again you really can't guess at the details. By this point I was pretty invested into the characters and I literally could not stop reading.
Mockingjay - 9/10 - I think this may be more of an 8 or 8.5, but the relationship I built with the characters through books 1 and 2 made book 3 powerful for me. About halfway through I was depressed over how shit the entire situation was and I forced myself to keep reading, hoping upon hope that the story would end well for Katniss. Near the end I had a growing sense of dread over + Show Spoiler +

President Snow. A bittersweet ending sealed the deal for me. I loved it from the first page to the last.

Now I'm looking forward to:
American Born Chinese
A Bad Idea I'm About To Do
The Alchemist

Bottomb1tch

4 Posts

January 31 2012 03:30 GMT

#360

NO ONE READS MICHAEL CRICHTON?! He is the MAN when it comes to action in books. A common motif of his is to have the plot take place over a series of a few days. The master of Parallel Action, he'll keep you turning pages and shoo-ing away sleep.
Just finished:
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Absolute thriller, impossible to put down.
Reading now:
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Dude is implanted with a computer to stimulate near ecstasy in the event of psychotic seizures. Oh he is also a psychopath, hope he doesn't, you know, get loose or anything and attempt to destroy to world.
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