8 ms·

Ask HN: Sci-Fi novels?

12 points by octopus 13y ago

Just finished "Ready Player One". Do you have any other good Sci-Fi books suggestion ?

sophe 13y ago
Armor by John Steakley
yawz 13y ago
Are you looking for something similar? It's not easy to recommend something based on a single book but have a look at Vicious by V. E. Schwab, This Perfect Day by Ira Levin or Wool by Hugh Howey.
- octopus 13y ago
  Not necessarily similar, just new Sci-Fi novels, I'm familiar with the classics: Herbert, Asimov, P.K. Dick ...
  - yawz 13y ago
    I run a sci-fi/fantasy blog with a few other people where we review books etc. So are you looking for more action/adventure type sci-fi, hard sci-fi, space opera, loads of alien life, etc?
    - octopus 13y ago
      What is the address of your blog ?
      - yawz 13y ago
        http://speculativebookreview.blogspot.com http://speculativebookreview.blogspot.com
        octopus 13y ago
        Thanks.
keithba 13y ago
Most anything by Charles Stross, especially the Laundry series (Atrocity Archives, Jennifer Morgue, etc)
- turbojerry 13y ago
  I really enjoyed Halting State, and Accelerando, and also the MaddAddam Trilogy by Margaret Atwood as well as Philip K. Dicks works, Valis in particular.
gamegoblin 13y ago
I misread your question as sci-fi novellas, but I still think you'll enjoy these (Three Worlds and Prime Intellect are both quite long, anyway). Three Worlds Collide http://robinhanson.typepad.com/files/three-worlds-collide.pdf http://robinhanson.typepad.com/files/three-worlds-collide.pd... The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect http://localroger.com/prime-intellect/mopiall.html http://localroger.com/prime-intellect/mopiall.html The next few are short stories: The Last Question http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-question/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-question/ The Last Answer http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-answer/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-answer/ Let's Help Germinate This Seed http://www.thrivenotes.com/lets-help-germinate-this-seed/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/lets-help-germinate-this-seed/ The Egg http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html
- brudgers 13y ago
  Just returned the new novella pair Stepping Stone and Love Machine by Walter F Mosely to the public library. I'm a Mosely fan but his science fiction is less conventional than Socrates Fortalow and Easy Rawlins and they're not tight to.the mold of detective fiction. It reminds me of Harlan Ellison a lot and a little of Lovecraft.
dodders 13y ago
Lexicon - Max Barry. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman. Channel Skin - Jeff Noon. The Long Earth - Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter. The Difference Engine - William Gibson.
- dllthomas 13y ago
  Oh, never noticed there was new Max Barry since "Jennifer Government"! That was good times, though - I should pick up some more...
dan-g 13y ago
If you're talking about any sort of science fiction, I (and I'm sure countless others) would recommend Dune by Frank Herbert -- the best-selling sci-fi novel of all time, and for good reason. It's not as light-hearted as Ready Player One, though.
- octopus 13y ago
  I've read the entire Dune series more than 15 years ago, one of the best Sci-Fi series I've ever read.
  - dllthomas 13y ago
    That's no longer the entire Dune series, then. Unfortunately.
toddjefferson 13y ago
I just finish "The Martian: A Novel" by Andy Weir and I really enjoyed it.
Jach 13y ago
My two favorites are Permutation City by Greg Egan and The Golden Age by John C. Wright (actually that one's a trilogy). I hear good things about Iain M. Banks' Culture novels. I've only read one (The Player of Games) and while it was enjoyable it was still sort of meh, if that makes sense... (I've got Excession in my queue and I suspect I'll enjoy it more.) While it's more in the realm of science-fantasy, you might enjoy this alternate universe imagining of the Harry Potter story: http://hpmor.com/ http://hpmor.com/
jlees 13y ago
What did you like about it? I'd suggest Tad Williams' Otherland, Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age & Snow Crash, and Gibson's Pattern Recognition purely based on subject matter (gamey-cyberpunk-ARG-AI), but none is quite as lighthearted in terms of nodding towards videogame culture.
nayshins 13y ago
"Old Man's War" by John Scalzi "Hyperion" by Dan Simmons
- yawz 13y ago
  Those are definitely two of my favorites. Funnily enough, a few days ago there was a discussion about the most memorable space ships. Mine was "Yggdrasil" :).
maxerickson 13y ago
Altered Carbon I liked Peter Watts stuff: http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm
thatusertwo 13y ago
A Scanner Darkly - Philip K Dick Neuromancer - William Gibson Expanded Universe - Robert A. Heinlein
- gautamc 13y ago
  http://www.lib.ru/GIBSON/neuromancer.txt_with-big-pictures.html http://www.lib.ru/GIBSON/neuromancer.txt_with-big-pictures.h...
brudgers 13y ago
I have found the Hugo Award winners to be a great way to find books and authors that I didn't know I would like based on what I already knew I liked. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Award_for_Best_Novel http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Award_for_Best_Novel
HackOfAllTrades 13y ago
These days I seem to prefer extended series of books that develop a detailed alternate universe. Three truly excellent series (Author-Series-1st Book): Eric Flint - 1632 - "1632" David Weber - Honor Harrington - "On Basilisk Station" Stephen Brust - Vlad Taltos - "Taltos"
mohaps 13y ago
Personal favorites: "Flowers for Algernon", "Snow Crash" and "Schild's Ladder" #YMMV
opionion-matter 13y ago
Neurovont was a nice surprise: http://www.amazon.com/NeuroVont-Incorporated-Gil-A-Waters/dp/0982280920 http://www.amazon.com/NeuroVont-Incorporated-Gil-A-Waters/dp...
blinkdaddy 13y ago
I too just finished Ready Player One. Such a great read. I tend to lean on Good Reads lately for recommendations. But picked up Atopia Chronicles (http://amzn.com/B00DUK1RKY http://amzn.com/B00DUK1RKY) after browsing popular sci-fi on amazon's best-sellers list. It has great similarities to Ready Player One - virtual presences, future VR challenges, etc. but a very different kind of book (split into multiple story lines, not one continuous story). But that said, if you've not read Snow Crash then drop everything and read that next!
bdunbar 13y ago
Because no one has mentioned it yet: 'Blindsight' by Peter Watts.
- monknomo 13y ago
  Peter Watts is excellent. Blindsight and the Rifters trilogy are both fun hard sci-fi bent reads
Mankhool 13y ago
I'm ancient and have been reading Sci-Fi my entire life. I just finished "The Darwin Elevator" (1st of 3 in a trilogy) and it was the most refreshing SF I've read in a least 10 years.
rainmaking 13y ago
Stranger In A Strange Land. Edgier than Star Trek but has that same feel of charming naivite; think 400 pages of Lt. Commander Data on a love potion.
rainmaking 13y ago
Friday, if you want a stunning cross of tech Sci-Fi with a Bond Girl in the lead role.
rainmaking 13y ago
Of course, "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" if you like it down and dirty, a tale of a "Computerman" working for the man but secretly using his machine to subvert the powers that be up until the final showdown.
efutch 13y ago
"Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson

12 points by octopus 13y ago

Just finished "Ready Player One". Do you have any other good Sci-Fi books suggestion ?

sophe 13y ago

Armor by John Steakley

yawz 13y ago

Are you looking for something similar? It's not easy to recommend something based on a single book but have a look at Vicious by V. E. Schwab, This Perfect Day by Ira Levin or Wool by Hugh Howey.

octopus 13y ago
Not necessarily similar, just new Sci-Fi novels, I'm familiar with the classics: Herbert, Asimov, P.K. Dick ...
- yawz 13y ago
  I run a sci-fi/fantasy blog with a few other people where we review books etc. So are you looking for more action/adventure type sci-fi, hard sci-fi, space opera, loads of alien life, etc?
  - octopus 13y ago
    What is the address of your blog ?
    - yawz 13y ago
      http://speculativebookreview.blogspot.com http://speculativebookreview.blogspot.com
      - octopus 13y ago
        Thanks.

keithba 13y ago

Most anything by Charles Stross, especially the Laundry series (Atrocity Archives, Jennifer Morgue, etc)

turbojerry 13y ago
I really enjoyed Halting State, and Accelerando, and also the MaddAddam Trilogy by Margaret Atwood as well as Philip K. Dicks works, Valis in particular.

gamegoblin 13y ago

I misread your question as sci-fi novellas, but I still think you'll enjoy these (Three Worlds and Prime Intellect are both quite long, anyway). Three Worlds Collide http://robinhanson.typepad.com/files/three-worlds-collide.pdf http://robinhanson.typepad.com/files/three-worlds-collide.pd... The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect http://localroger.com/prime-intellect/mopiall.html http://localroger.com/prime-intellect/mopiall.html The next few are short stories: The Last Question http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-question/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-question/ The Last Answer http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-answer/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/the-last-answer/ Let's Help Germinate This Seed http://www.thrivenotes.com/lets-help-germinate-this-seed/ http://www.thrivenotes.com/lets-help-germinate-this-seed/ The Egg http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html http://www.galactanet.com/oneoff/theegg_mod.html

brudgers 13y ago
Just returned the new novella pair Stepping Stone and Love Machine by Walter F Mosely to the public library. I'm a Mosely fan but his science fiction is less conventional than Socrates Fortalow and Easy Rawlins and they're not tight to.the mold of detective fiction. It reminds me of Harlan Ellison a lot and a little of Lovecraft.

dodders 13y ago

Lexicon - Max Barry. The Ocean at the End of the Lane - Neil Gaiman. Channel Skin - Jeff Noon. The Long Earth - Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter. The Difference Engine - William Gibson.

dllthomas 13y ago
Oh, never noticed there was new Max Barry since "Jennifer Government"! That was good times, though - I should pick up some more...

dan-g 13y ago

If you're talking about any sort of science fiction, I (and I'm sure countless others) would recommend Dune by Frank Herbert -- the best-selling sci-fi novel of all time, and for good reason. It's not as light-hearted as Ready Player One, though.

octopus 13y ago
I've read the entire Dune series more than 15 years ago, one of the best Sci-Fi series I've ever read.
- dllthomas 13y ago
  That's no longer the entire Dune series, then. Unfortunately.

toddjefferson 13y ago

I just finish "The Martian: A Novel" by Andy Weir and I really enjoyed it.

Jach 13y ago

My two favorites are Permutation City by Greg Egan and The Golden Age by John C. Wright (actually that one's a trilogy). I hear good things about Iain M. Banks' Culture novels. I've only read one (The Player of Games) and while it was enjoyable it was still sort of meh, if that makes sense... (I've got Excession in my queue and I suspect I'll enjoy it more.) While it's more in the realm of science-fantasy, you might enjoy this alternate universe imagining of the Harry Potter story: http://hpmor.com/ http://hpmor.com/

jlees 13y ago

What did you like about it? I'd suggest Tad Williams' Otherland, Neal Stephenson's Diamond Age & Snow Crash, and Gibson's Pattern Recognition purely based on subject matter (gamey-cyberpunk-ARG-AI), but none is quite as lighthearted in terms of nodding towards videogame culture.

nayshins 13y ago

"Old Man's War" by John Scalzi "Hyperion" by Dan Simmons

yawz 13y ago
Those are definitely two of my favorites. Funnily enough, a few days ago there was a discussion about the most memorable space ships. Mine was "Yggdrasil" :).

maxerickson 13y ago

Altered Carbon I liked Peter Watts stuff: http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm

thatusertwo 13y ago

A Scanner Darkly - Philip K Dick Neuromancer - William Gibson Expanded Universe - Robert A. Heinlein

gautamc 13y ago
http://www.lib.ru/GIBSON/neuromancer.txt_with-big-pictures.html http://www.lib.ru/GIBSON/neuromancer.txt_with-big-pictures.h...

brudgers 13y ago

I have found the Hugo Award winners to be a great way to find books and authors that I didn't know I would like based on what I already knew I liked. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Award_for_Best_Novel http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Award_for_Best_Novel

HackOfAllTrades 13y ago

These days I seem to prefer extended series of books that develop a detailed alternate universe. Three truly excellent series (Author-Series-1st Book): Eric Flint - 1632 - "1632" David Weber - Honor Harrington - "On Basilisk Station" Stephen Brust - Vlad Taltos - "Taltos"

mohaps 13y ago

Personal favorites: "Flowers for Algernon", "Snow Crash" and "Schild's Ladder" #YMMV

opionion-matter 13y ago

Neurovont was a nice surprise: http://www.amazon.com/NeuroVont-Incorporated-Gil-A-Waters/dp/0982280920 http://www.amazon.com/NeuroVont-Incorporated-Gil-A-Waters/dp...

blinkdaddy 13y ago

I too just finished Ready Player One. Such a great read. I tend to lean on Good Reads lately for recommendations. But picked up Atopia Chronicles (http://amzn.com/B00DUK1RKY http://amzn.com/B00DUK1RKY) after browsing popular sci-fi on amazon's best-sellers list. It has great similarities to Ready Player One - virtual presences, future VR challenges, etc. but a very different kind of book (split into multiple story lines, not one continuous story). But that said, if you've not read Snow Crash then drop everything and read that next!

bdunbar 13y ago

Because no one has mentioned it yet: 'Blindsight' by Peter Watts.

monknomo 13y ago
Peter Watts is excellent. Blindsight and the Rifters trilogy are both fun hard sci-fi bent reads

Mankhool 13y ago

I'm ancient and have been reading Sci-Fi my entire life. I just finished "The Darwin Elevator" (1st of 3 in a trilogy) and it was the most refreshing SF I've read in a least 10 years.

rainmaking 13y ago

Stranger In A Strange Land. Edgier than Star Trek but has that same feel of charming naivite; think 400 pages of Lt. Commander Data on a love potion.

rainmaking 13y ago

Friday, if you want a stunning cross of tech Sci-Fi with a Bond Girl in the lead role.

rainmaking 13y ago

Of course, "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress" if you like it down and dirty, a tale of a "Computerman" working for the man but secretly using his machine to subvert the powers that be up until the final showdown.

efutch 13y ago

"Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson