Best Sci-Fi Novels

[Gospel]

Rendezvous with Rama.
The Foundation series.

I found the entire Rama series dull as fudge to be honest but I'm a huge Asimov fan. I often revisit the Foundations series on audible.

[Jeff the Bear]

Good god, the nerds are fighting.

Hey, along with porn, Nerd fighting was what the internet was invented for...who's better, Batman or Superman? Kirk or Picard? What is the best Sci Fi Novel? Who produces the best computers?

[Massey Ferguson]

My two cents, Jeff:
I think the turnaround in Elethiomel's thinking is explained quite well. He has lived several lifespans where all he did was fight and win, fight and lose or fight and die, only to be reborn and do it all over again. And again. It's hardly surprising that he has become jaded and that his thinking has changed.

[Brazil]

Risibly thought out? There are several other people who appear to agree (on't that blog), and I have put forth cogent reasoning for my point...which is infinitely more than you have been able to manage in any of our recent encounters, which has begun and ended at 'You're wrong', and then when proved that you didn't know what you were talking about you moved onto 'well my mate says you are wrong, so I think you are wrong'.

Talking of which, have you actually read this book?

You never put forth "cogent reasoning", you present your opinions as fact and then ignore anything that contradicts them. the fact that you couldn't be arsed to read the link that JM2K6 put up proves this. That you are oblivious to the fact is only more hilarious.

I did read it, and then stated that I did not agree with what they were saying...which when called on by JM as you are doing now, I went into great detail in the post after, if you bothered to look.

I'm also getting the feeling that you haven't read the book at all, and probably even the series. Please tell me you have, as otherwise you've got to start asking yourself some tough questions as to why you are even in this conversation.

[JM2K6]

I wonder, would Elethiomel's change and the subtleties of the character be lost if it took you 18 months to finish the book?

I'm reading Use of Weapons...got Surface detail ready to read after that.

17th Feb 2012

Just finished Iain M Banks' 'Use of Weapons'

19th Sept 2013


I guess his finger got tired

[Jeff the Bear]

My two cents, Jeff:
I think the turnaround in Elethiomel's thinking is explained quite well. He has lived several lifespans where all he did was fight and win, fight and lose or fight and die, only to be reborn and do it all over again. And again. It's hardly surprising that he has become jaded and that his thinking has changed.

But in the penultimate reverse storyline (in the big sleepr ship), 'he' is already suicidal. It's not a gradual realisiation, it is directly after the battle (we are led to believe it is Zekalwe who is suicidal after surviving his earlier suicide attempt, but it is in fact Elethiomel being suicidal on making the chair)...as such, we can only assume that he has had a moment of clarity at some point between those two events that has totally changed his outlook and which has precipitated his running away onto the sleeper ship.

[Jeff the Bear]

I wonder, would Elethiomel's change and the subtleties of the character be lost if it took you 18 months to finish the book?

I'm reading Use of Weapons...got Surface detail ready to read after that.

17th Feb 2012

Just finished Iain M Banks' 'Use of Weapons'

19th Sept 2013


I guess his finger got tired

I lost the book, and then work got in the way...and then I finally, ahem, 'acquired' it again for my Kindle Fire HD which I purchased for my summer holidays this year and then re-read it from the beginning. In fairness, 3 months is still a long time, but work and an incoming baby has meant I haven't had as much time as I would like to devote to reading.

[Chuckles1188]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

[Rinkals]

I remember being highly entertained by "The Stainless Steel Rat"

It was a long time ago, so my taste has probably changed in the interim, though.

Still, if you do find it enjoyable, I believe there are twelve novels in the series...

[Gospel]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

Your post just reminded me of The Left Hand of God trilogy which promised so much. I'm staring at he final instalment splayed out face down on my couch and wondering if I'll ever be arsed to finish Beating of his Wings. I've diversified into some Dresden Files just to keep my spirits up.

[Croft]

Rendezvous with Rama.
The Foundation series.

I found the entire Rama series dull as fudge to be honest but I'm a huge Asimov fan. I often revisit the Foundations series on audible.

I loved the first Rama, I found it really suspenseful. But the others were pretty weak and I've never bothered with them again.
The foundation series were great up to and including the mule.

[Zakar]

I just finished off the Long Earth and the Long War, both collaborations by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett. Absolute cracking reads, and a well thought out concept I hadn't seen in sci-fi before. Highly recommended.

[Chuckles1188]

I just finished off the Long Earth and the Long War, both collaborations by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett. Absolute cracking reads, and a well thought out concept I hadn't seen in sci-fi before. Highly recommended.

I got about a third of the way through the Long Earth and then got distracted. Need to pick it back up again (though will probably have to start from the beginning again).

[_fatprop]

Has anyone read The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon?

It is getting pretty good reviews

[Zakar]

I just finished off the Long Earth and the Long War, both collaborations by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett. Absolute cracking reads, and a well thought out concept I hadn't seen in sci-fi before. Highly recommended.

I got about a third of the way through the Long Earth and then got distracted. Need to pick it back up again (though will probably have to start from the beginning again).

Its a bit of a strange one as it doesn't have a traditional story structure. Long War is a bit more traditional in that regard. Apparently there are three more in the series coming.

[Chuckles1188]

I just finished off the Long Earth and the Long War, both collaborations by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett. Absolute cracking reads, and a well thought out concept I hadn't seen in sci-fi before. Highly recommended.

I got about a third of the way through the Long Earth and then got distracted. Need to pick it back up again (though will probably have to start from the beginning again).

Its a bit of a strange one as it doesn't have a traditional story structure. Long War is a bit more traditional in that regard. Apparently there are three more in the series coming.

That doesn't usually bother me. I was enjoying it, but then a friend loaned me a book and I had that as a higher priority.

Hey, speaking of which, the book in question was China Mieville's Embassytown. Even stranger than the Long Earth and takes a while to get into but ultimately a fun read. I've heard that Perdido Street Station (think that's what it's called) is also really good, anyone able to corroborate?

[flaggETERNAL]

Anyone else read The Long Earth and Long War by Pratchett and Baxter. Enjoyed it. Pretty lame ending though imo.

EDIT: Oops just saw Zakars post.

[Flyin Ryan]

Good god, the nerds are fighting.

Hey, along with porn, Nerd fighting was what the internet was invented for...who's better, Batman or Superman? Kirk or Picard? What is the best Sci Fi Novel? Who produces the best computers?

Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

It's been awhile since I read it, but I read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy after I saw the movie. The movie did the book little service missing some of the humor. One thing that got me though was there were like 5 different books in it written by Adams, and reading them one after the other, he contradicts stuff that happens from one book to the other, did Adams mean them to be kind of stand-alone stories with the same basic set of characters?

[Zakar]

I just finished off the Long Earth and the Long War, both collaborations by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett. Absolute cracking reads, and a well thought out concept I hadn't seen in sci-fi before. Highly recommended.

I got about a third of the way through the Long Earth and then got distracted. Need to pick it back up again (though will probably have to start from the beginning again).

Its a bit of a strange one as it doesn't have a traditional story structure. Long War is a bit more traditional in that regard. Apparently there are three more in the series coming.

That doesn't usually bother me. I was enjoying it, but then a friend loaned me a book and I had that as a higher priority.

Hey, speaking of which, the book in question was China Mieville's Embassytown. Even stranger than the Long Earth and takes a while to get into but ultimately a fun read. I've heard that Perdido Street Station (think that's what it's called) is also really good, anyone able to corroborate?

Perdido Street station, like everything by Mieville, is f**king weird, but good. I've also read the sequal, "the Scar", which is also really good.

I have also read The City & The City by him. Another interesting concept, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the other two.

[Mat the Expat]

Perdido Street station, like everything by Mieville, is f**king weird, but good. I've also read the sequal, "the Scar", which is also really good.

I have also read The City & The City by him. Another interesting concept, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the other two.

I think Meiville is overated.

He writes interesting books but a lot of them disappear up their own arse.

[flaggETERNAL]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

You wouldn't know where I can get a free ebook of this do you?

[flaggETERNAL]

Good god, the nerds are fighting.

Hey, along with porn, Nerd fighting was what the internet was invented for...who's better, Batman or Superman? Kirk or Picard? What is the best Sci Fi Novel? Who produces the best computers?

Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

It's been awhile since I read it, but I read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy after I saw the movie. The movie did the book little service missing some of the humor. One thing that got me though was there were like 5 different books in it written by Adams, and reading them one after the other, he contradicts stuff that happens from one book to the other, did Adams mean them to be kind of stand-alone stories with the same basic set of characters?

Star Trek. Obviously. Duh.

Sorry dude, that had to be put up.

[Jeff the Bear]

Good god, the nerds are fighting.

Hey, along with porn, Nerd fighting was what the internet was invented for...who's better, Batman or Superman? Kirk or Picard? What is the best Sci Fi Novel? Who produces the best computers?

Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

It's been awhile since I read it, but I read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy after I saw the movie. The movie did the book little service missing some of the humor. One thing that got me though was there were like 5 different books in it written by Adams, and reading them one after the other, he contradicts stuff that happens from one book to the other, did Adams mean them to be kind of stand-alone stories with the same basic set of characters?

The quality in the Hitchhikers books pretty much falls off the edge of a cliff after the first book. They are passable, but whereas the first is near enough a genius mix of humour and sci-fi, the rest largely come off as poor parodies of the first.

[JM2K6]

Rendezvous with Rama.
The Foundation series.

I found the entire Rama series dull as fudge to be honest but I'm a huge Asimov fan. I often revisit the Foundations series on audible.

I loved the first Rama, I found it really suspenseful. But the others were pretty weak and I've never bothered with them again.
The foundation series were great up to and including the mule.

The first Rama is hilarious - the sci-fi bits are great, but it's the most rudimentary writing you can imagine. Calling the characters paper-thin is being generous.

Clarke got a lot better, but Rama shows that you don't need to have absolute mastery of the English language to write an entertaining novel.

[Chuckles1188]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

You wouldn't know where I can get a free ebook of this do you?

I've heard rumours that unscrupulous types can download programs like utorrent and then search for World War Z on sites like TPB and download it without paying anything.

Obviously this is deeply immoral and I would never do such a thing.

[lorcanoworms]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

You wouldn't know where I can get a free ebook of this do you?

I've heard rumours that unscrupulous types can download programs like utorrent and then search for World War Z on sites like TPB and download it without paying anything.

Obviously this is deeply immoral and I would never do such a thing.

I overheard my butler talking to the chaufuerr and I gather one might need a proxy.
Also is the Black company worth sticking with?

[Chuckles1188]

Just started re-reading the Left Hand of Darkness again. fudge the Hainish Cycle is good. Really annoyed I can't find my copy of The Dispossessed now.

Also recently re-read World War Z, which just about counts. f**king tangfastic read.

You wouldn't know where I can get a free ebook of this do you?

I've heard rumours that unscrupulous types can download programs like utorrent and then search for World War Z on sites like TPB and download it without paying anything.

Obviously this is deeply immoral and I would never do such a thing.

I overheard my butler talking to the chaufuerr and I gather one might need a proxy.
Also is the Black company worth sticking with?

The voices in my head, over which I have no control, tell me that the URL you go to when clicking "TPB" in my post takes you to a list of proxies.

You're going to have to be more specific regarding the Black company

[Flyin Ryan]

Good god, the nerds are fighting.

Hey, along with porn, Nerd fighting was what the internet was invented for...who's better, Batman or Superman? Kirk or Picard? What is the best Sci Fi Novel? Who produces the best computers?

Star Trek vs. Star Wars.

It's been awhile since I read it, but I read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy after I saw the movie. The movie did the book little service missing some of the humor. One thing that got me though was there were like 5 different books in it written by Adams, and reading them one after the other, he contradicts stuff that happens from one book to the other, did Adams mean them to be kind of stand-alone stories with the same basic set of characters?

The quality in the Hitchhikers books pretty much falls off the edge of a cliff after the first book. They are passable, but whereas the first is near enough a genius mix of humour and sci-fi, the rest largely come off as poor parodies of the first.

Kind of how I felt. Dune's the same way, just read that one book and ignore the rest.

[Chuckles1188]

Hitchhiker's Guide was at its absolute peak on the radio. Continually and relentlessly gut-busting.

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

[Flyin Ryan]

Hitchhiker's Guide was at its absolute peak on the radio. Continually and relentlessly gut-busting.

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

I think I read the God Emperor one, and I just wasn't impressed. Dune minus the Harkonnens just isn't interesting.

[Chuckles1188]

Hitchhiker's Guide was at its absolute peak on the radio. Continually and relentlessly gut-busting.

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

I think I read the God Emperor one, and I just wasn't impressed. Dune minus the Harkonnens just isn't interesting.

You need to read them in order really, without reading messiah and children god emperor doesn't work nearly as well.

[Gospel]

Also is the Black company worth sticking with?

If you mean the series by Glen Cook then yes. They're a great read.

[A5D5E5]

Hitchhiker's Guide was at its absolute peak on the radio. Continually and relentlessly gut-busting.

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

The old Hitchikers TV series is ok as well. Not as good as the books. I found the second one ok and gave up on the third.

Dune is fantastic - and I think at least the first 4 books are worth reading. The prequel stuff by his son(?) is laughably poor.


Not read back through the whole thread so it might have been mentioned, but is there any love for Alistair Reynolds? Some great stuff in the Revelation Space universe. I love the fact that they don't have faster than light travel - it makes it all feel a bit more science and a bit less fiction.

[Jeff the Bear]

I haven't read Dune, but have it in my bookcase waiting...should probably get onto that next.

[Gospel]

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

The Legends of Dune Prequel Trilogy by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are a great.

[Gospel]

but is there any love for Alistair Reynolds

I enjoyed his Revelation Space novels but others like Terminal World - not so much.

[Yer Man]

Rendezvous with Rama.
The Foundation series.

I found the entire Rama series dull as fudge to be honest but I'm a huge Asimov fan. I often revisit the Foundations series on audible.

I loved the first Rama, I found it really suspenseful. But the others were pretty weak and I've never bothered with them again.
The foundation series were great up to and including the mule.

The first Rama is hilarious - the sci-fi bits are great, but it's the most rudimentary writing you can imagine. Calling the characters paper-thin is being generous.

Clarke got a lot better, but Rama shows that you don't need to have absolute mastery of the English language to write an entertaining novel.

Some great concepts in Rendezvous, but Clarke was never much of a character writer. He was a concept writer. Some of his short stories are brilliant. And the rest are merely very good.
Asimov was better at it but dealt more with humanity as a whole (Foundation, laws of Robotics etc) whilst Heinlein was more interested in how various concepts and ideas affected the individual - or how the individual could affect them (Starship Troopers / Stranger in a Strange Land).

I've got the collected short stores of both Clarke and Heinlein, both fascinating for different reasons.

Kinda feel sorry for writers that came after those 3...

[Chuckles1188]

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

The Legends of Dune Prequel Trilogy by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are a great.

All of your opinions on all subjects are now invalid I'm afraid

[Gospel]

Dune is the best of the series but the others are worth reading as long as the name on the cover is Frank

The Legends of Dune Prequel Trilogy by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are a great.

All of your opinions on all subjects are now invalid I'm afraid

Hey I liked Erasmus.

[Chuckles1188]

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2003/10/15

Kevin Anderson has a body of work that exists outside Dune which I’ve heard is pretty good. Brian Herbert has a famous dad. Together, they have conspired on a book that descends below the rankest Small Wonder fan fiction, diluting the Dune Universe down to one or two parts per million. The book itself is condescending garbage, and while it holds forth the shape and form of genuine Dune books that structure is animated with the broad, explicit motions of a puppet show. It’s clear that they read the original books, by which I mean plundered - raiding them, as tombs are raided.