Good Modern Science Fiction

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investingdad
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by investingdad »

chuckb84 wrote: Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:53 am I'm working my way through Stephen King's 11/22/63 and really enjoying it. This is marginally "science fiction", but a very interesting period piece and commentary on causality, the immutability of the time stream of events, and morality. It reminds me somewhat of Lewis Shiner's "Glimpses", another hard to categorize but excellent book.
I’ve read all of King’s work and have read this one several times. What I like best about King is how his writing is almost invisible as you read the story, just naturally flowing.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by heartwood »

I'm half way into Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.

I see there's a mix of opinions about the book in this thread.

I think he's got a good story and interesting ideas. He's got some good characters. He seems to convey his command of science and engineering. I hope to finish and learn the ending.

Perhaps he's not a writer for me. I quit half way through The Martian when it came out. My reaction to some of the writing in PHM, from the early chapters on, is MEGO. William Safire of the NYT coined or at least popularized the acronym for My Eyes Glaze Over. Too much detail, many arcane calculations (even for me, an engineer). I know I can skim/skip as I go, but I'd prefer he tell the story he has w/o showing what a polymath he believe's he is and boring me with stuff that doesn't advance the story for me.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Barkingsparrow »

The Ghost Brigades and The Last Colony - John Scalzi

Final two books in the original Old's Man War trilogy. I enjoyed them, but definitely not up to par as to the first book.

A Desolation Called Peace - Arkady Martine

Sequel to the excellent A Memory Called Empire. I had trouble getting into it initially, the plot taking its sweet time to get started, and it seems the author was overwriting with some far too long sentences. Then at some point it started to clicked, the writing style became more consistent and the story started coming together. In this sequel, the Empire has to confront an alien threat. I ended up really liking the book, and hoping she does another book in this series. I thought she did a good job of coming up with a fairly innovative alien race.

Salvation - Peter Hamilton

I'm about half through this book and am really getting into it. It's a complicated book with a lot of ideas and advanced technology and it takes time to sort through the characters and details. In a nutshell, it's about a team sent to a far extra-solar planet to investigate a crashed alien ship.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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LadyGeek wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 12:58 pm Redemption Ark, by Alastair Reynolds. Book #2 of the Revelation Space trilogy. I'm finding it better than Book #1 (Revelation Space) and will keep going.
Absolution Gap, by Alastair Reynolds. Book #3 of the Revelation Space trilogy. I just started reading it and it seems interesting. This is the first time I'm trying a cybergoth genre and I'm not so sure I like it. I'll switch to something else next.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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"A Memory Called Empire", by Arkady Martine (A "Tor" Book 2019)

Martine's first sci-fi novel about the fulminating turmoil in a Galactic hegemony has been reviewed in this thread several times. As I finally got around to reading it, I thought I would chuck my deux centimes worth into the ring. The author has earned a doctorate studying the history of the Eastern Roman Empire and that influence certainly shows in her portrayal of the Teixcalaan dominance. In addition, I was often reminded of the Second Foundation trilogy of Brin, Bear, and Benford as she describes the machinations and intrigues of an Imperial Court; I wonder if those books were also an influence? Martine is either a gifted natural talent or had a great creative writing teacher, but her ability to compose a very imaginative and compelling saga on her initial effort is very impressive. She has certainly got me hooked and I will be picking up the recently published sequel to "Empire" by next week at the latest.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by hilink73 »

LadyGeek wrote: Sat Jul 31, 2021 6:28 pm
LadyGeek wrote: Mon Jul 05, 2021 12:58 pm Redemption Ark, by Alastair Reynolds. Book #2 of the Revelation Space trilogy. I'm finding it better than Book #1 (Revelation Space) and will keep going.
Absolution Gap, by Alastair Reynolds. Book #3 of the Revelation Space trilogy. I just started reading it and it seems interesting. This is the first time I'm trying a cybergoth genre and I'm not so sure I like it. I'll switch to something else next.

Reynolds is fantastic!

I'm on the last pages of "Bone Silence", third book of the Revenger trilogy.
Absolute pager turner! Having a blast.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by pezblanco »

heartwood wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 1:59 pm I'm half way into Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.

I see there's a mix of opinions about the book in this thread.

I think he's got a good story and interesting ideas. He's got some good characters. He seems to convey his command of science and engineering. I hope to finish and learn the ending.

Perhaps he's not a writer for me. I quit half way through The Martian when it came out. My reaction to some of the writing in PHM, from the early chapters on, is MEGO. William Safire of the NYT coined or at least popularized the acronym for My Eyes Glaze Over. Too much detail, many arcane calculations (even for me, an engineer). I know I can skim/skip as I go, but I'd prefer he tell the story he has w/o showing what a polymath he believe's he is and boring me with stuff that doesn't advance the story for me.
I too am half way thru ... maybe a little less. I really like the book so far. His calculations seem fun to me ... he just gives the quick idea and then doesn't really drag you thru the work or anything. However I enjoyed the Martian also, so maybe I have more patience for his style than you do. The writing style reminds me strongly of the old sci-fi of the 60's style like Paol Anderson and Heinlein but somehow better.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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hilink73 wrote: Fri Aug 27, 2021 3:32 pm Reynolds is fantastic!

I'm on the last pages of "Bone Silence", third book of the Revenger trilogy.
Absolute pager turner! Having a blast.
I'm glad you like it and I agree he's an excellent writer. I just didn't like the cybergoth genre all that much.

If you like vampires, may I suggest you also look at the many books by Anne Rice? I've read many. Interview with the Vampire is a classic. Her books don't belong in this thread, but I think it's important to mention her if you like the "goth" genre. (Discuss in What Book Are You Currently Reading? Part VI.)
LadyGeek wrote: Mon May 24, 2021 7:38 am Welcome! I agree. You got me thinking.

When I had my paperback collection,* I very much enjoyed the Pern series as well as many books by Mercedes Lackey. I may revisit these authors with my Kindle.

Around the same time frame, I was also reading C. J. Cherryh - notably Downbelow Station and Cyteen.

* Many years ago, I gave all of my paperbacks to a friend's son. He grew up reading those books and still has the collection today.
Downbelow Station, by C. J. Cherryh. See Valuethinker's review here. The Pride of Chanur series is also on my list to read again.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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LadyGeek wrote: Thu Sep 02, 2021 6:17 pm
hilink73 wrote: Fri Aug 27, 2021 3:32 pm Reynolds is fantastic!

I'm on the last pages of "Bone Silence", third book of the Revenger trilogy.
Absolute pager turner! Having a blast.
I'm glad you like it and I agree he's an excellent writer. I just didn't like the cybergoth genre all that much.
The Revenger books aren't cybergoth or vampires or anything like rather it's space opera set in the far future where the solar system has been transformed into a large number of small habitats and people travel between wordlets in solar-sail ships.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by forgeblast »

Not sure if you would consider it science fiction but I just blasted through all the Rivers of London books in about a month. Cannot wait for the next one. Very impressed with the writing, and sense of humor is great and they read easy. The tv/movie rights were just bought by simon peg. I truly hope they do a Netflix series on them the characters are some of my favorite.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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placeholder wrote: Thu Sep 02, 2021 9:51 pm ...The Revenger books aren't cybergoth or vampires or anything like rather it's space opera set in the far future where the solar system has been transformed into a large number of small habitats and people travel between wordlets in solar-sail ships.
Thanks, my mistake. It's classified as young adult sci-fi / steampunk. I'll put it on my list.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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"Shards Of Earth", by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Orbit - Hachette Book Group 2021)

Tchaikovsky was a new name to me. He's a Brit and evidently has been pumping out sci-fi and fantasy since 2008. "Shards" is the first book of a series. Right off the bat, this novel contains a bunch of tropes that have been popular in space opera over the last 25 years or so. For example:

1) A curmudgeonly, irascible, but noble and brave captain of a space ship leads the way. He and his crew survive (barely) by taking contracts for salvage of space wrecks.
2) The ship is old and battered and constantly in need of make-shift and jerry-rigged repairs.
3) The crew is very diverse, consisting of humans, augmented humans, aliens, and augmented aliens. They are constantly getting on each others' nerves, although they respect each others' contributions to keeping the ship flying.
4) There is a potential threat to all of space civilization from an irresistible, incomprehensible alien berserker.
5) Into this mix arises a human with special talents who may be the only being extant who can successfully confront this threat.

Fortunately, Tchaikovsky possesses significant ability and has not written a derivative hack job. He weaves a complex tale of a bunch of competing space nations (and throws in a space Mafia) that bicker and fight over how to handle the possible berserker menace. And - they all want to get their hands on the guy with the special talents. Our salvager space ship gets bounced all over a section of the galaxy protecting him and searching for clues that will enable humanity and aliens to understand the berserker. The story includes a number of exciting chases through space and on planets' surfaces and the author excels in describing some extended, brutal combats that are often hand-to-hand. "Shards" is a absorbing and worthwhile read.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by smectym »

FreeAtLast wrote: Sat Sep 04, 2021 8:46 pm "Shards Of Earth", by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Orbit - Hachette Book Group 2021)

Tchaikovsky was a new name to me. He's a Brit and evidently has been pumping out sci-fi and fantasy since 2008. "Shards" is the first book of a series. Right off the bat, this novel contains a bunch of tropes that have been popular in space opera over the last 25 years or so. For example:

1) A curmudgeonly, irascible, but noble and brave captain of a space ship leads the way. He and his crew survive (barely) by taking contracts for salvage of space wrecks.
2) The ship is old and battered and constantly in need of make-shift and jerry-rigged repairs.
3) The crew is very diverse, consisting of humans, augmented humans, aliens, and augmented aliens. They are constantly getting on each others' nerves, although they respect each others' contributions to keeping the ship flying.
4) There is a potential threat to all of space civilization from an irresistible, incomprehensible alien berserker.
5) Into this mix arises a human with special talents who may be the only being extant who can successfully confront this threat.

Fortunately, Tchaikovsky possesses significant ability and has not written a derivative hack job. He weaves a complex tale of a bunch of competing space nations (and throws in a space Mafia) that bicker and fight over how to handle the possible berserker menace. And - they all want to get their hands on the guy with the special talents. Our salvager space ship gets bounced all over a section of the galaxy protecting him and searching for clues that will enable humanity and aliens to understand the berserker. The story includes a number of exciting chases through space and on planets' surfaces and the author excels in describing some extended, brutal combats that are often hand-to-hand. "Shards" is a absorbing and worthwhile read.
Perhaps I’ll check this one out. The paradox of science fiction is that on the one hand, it appeals as an escape from the boundaries of this world we’re trapped in; but on the other hand, too many writers fail to resist the the temptation to “teach us” lessons applicable to the world we’re trapped in. In fact, often they begin to remind us of the overlords we’re trapped by.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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Just recently finished Orson Scott Card's "Ender in Exile". It's part 5 of an "Ender Quintet", it picks up right after "Ender's Game" and fills in some of the time between that work and "Speaker for the Dead". Enjoyed it thoroughly. Amazon says there will be one more Ender book in the series, "The Last Shadow", coming out October 19, that will wrap up the related Ender and Ender's Shadow series. I guess now I'll have to work my way through Ender's Shadow. :wink:
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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"A Desolation Called Peace", by Arkady Martine (A "Tor" Book 2021)

Nota Bene: It's always good advice to read the novels of a series in chronological order. In the case of Martine's fictional universe, I believe that it is not only good advice, but a requirement. Reading "A Memory Called Empire" first will make your appreciation of "Desolation" a whole lot easier.

Ambassador Mahit Dzmare has returned to Lsel Station after playing a key part in the ascension of a new Teixcalaanli Emperor. To her dismay, she finds that her reception by the governing Councilors of the Station is decidedly cool. As she ponders an unpleasant future on the Station, the Empire she left behind is taking emergency action. Based on a warning that Dzmare gave to the previous Emperor, the Fleet has sent out a battle group to confront an frightening alien threat in the Station's sector. They discover a Teixcalaan mining colony with all of its inhabitants horribly mutilated. In short order, Dzmare and her past Teixcalaan adjutant Three Seagrass find themselves on the command battleship, trying desperately to establish communication with the aliens and to prevent an internecine interstellar war. As will always be the case in a far flung Empire, the intrigues taking place in the capitol city and within the battleship group keep matters roiling, unpredictable, and nerve-wracking. Martine throws in a surprising twist in the last hundred pages - one that I totally did not anticipate - and far be it from me to ruin it for you. "Desolation" may earn another Hugo.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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The Pride of Chanur, by C. J. Cherryh. Book 1 of 5 in of the Chanur series. I was in the mood for a strong female lead character. Also, it's aliens - a race of lions. I enjoyed reading this series many years ago in paperback and purchased all 5 books on my Kindle. This first book is $2.99, but it's only 200 pages.

I considered the second book of the Company Wars series (the sequels to Downbelow Station), but wanted a change of pace.

Also, I was very disappointed to see that Cyteen is not available for the Kindle.

Update: Clarified wording.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by scguy613 »

Check out Saturn Run by John Sanford and Ctein. It’s one of the better ones I have read since The Martian. I just picked up Hail Mary by Andy Weir but haven’t started it yet.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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Just finished Sybil Sue Blue by Rosel George Brown which is a rerelease of a 1960s book featuring a tough cigar smoking single mother cop dealing with mysterious murders possibly linked to the Centaurians living on Earth (some of who try to kill her on sight).

https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/review/all-im-asking
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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LadyGeek wrote: Fri Sep 24, 2021 8:45 pm C. J. Cherryh. [...] Cyteen is not available for the Kindle.
Cherryh's Cyteen is one of the best novels I have read in years. I think part of what makes it work is that it is exploring some of the ideas around a society that conditions "azi" clones/slaves, but Cherryh had already written a handful of earlier alliance-union universe novels, so the exploration of the ideas and the azi characters are richer than how they are treated in earlier novels. Then on top of that background it's a twisted tale of paranoia, political intrigue, abuse and control. I remember finding the first 100 or so pages slow going, but then became entranced. It looks like it is possible to buy second hand dead tree copies of Cyteen cheaply: $6+ via gettextbooks.com price search

Recently finished a couple of space-opera-ish novels by Elizabeth Bear: Ancestral Night & Machine. Both fairly tales of salvage in space with a bit of a running theme of what it takes for civilized species to get along - inherited genetic behaviour and unregulated emotional responses considered harmful...


I am currently re-reading Peter Watts' excellent Blindsight, published in 2006, which can be read for free as html or ebook formats from the author's web site (rifters.com) . If anyone prefers their science fiction hard, bleak and biological, Blindsight may the first-contact book for you. Bonus: Fizerpharm Inc presentation: "Taming Yesterday's Nightmares for a Better Tomorrow" (youtube.com link)
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by WildBill »

Howdy

Try Charlie Jane Anders - All the Birds in the Sky was awarded the Nebula in 2016 and her latest, The City in the Middle of The Night, is excellent.

She is a good storyteller, and her plotting and character development is getting better with every book.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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Based on Asimov's Foundation series - now an Apple TV+ show. Watched the first episode tonight, seems quite good.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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You can discuss it in detail here: [What TV Show Have You Recently Watched?]

========================
Chanur's Venture, by C. J. Cherryh. Book 2 of 5 in the Chanur Saga novels. I like it.
WildBill wrote: Sun Oct 03, 2021 1:59 pm Howdy

Try Charlie Jane Anders - All the Birds in the Sky was awarded the Nebula in 2016 and her latest, The City in the Middle of The Night, is excellent.

She is a good storyteller, and her plotting and character development is getting better with every book.
Thanks! I'll put it on my list. The reviews find it difficult to classify as sci-fi or fantasy, but worth reading.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by pantomime »

May I suggest The Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell , and the Expanse series by James SA Corey. I'm more of a fan of standalone books, but both these series are great space opera, and have me coming back for more.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Pam01 »

kramer wrote: Mon Sep 08, 2014 1:21 am
shmidds wrote:+1 The Martian
Plus, plus. I thought this book was fantastically detailed and I almost couldn't put it down. I downloaded a free PDF version last year (the author's license made it freely distributable) but it is now on Kindle books on Amazon, as well. It is by Andy Weir. You can see lots of reviews on Amazon.
I enjoyed Martian thoroughly. Weir's latest book, Hail Mary, is also enjoyable.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Barkingsparrow »

pantomime wrote: Mon Oct 04, 2021 7:27 pm May I suggest The Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell , and the Expanse series by James SA Corey. I'm more of a fan of standalone books, but both these series are great space opera, and have me coming back for more.
I really liked the Lost Fleet series. Campbell has a new trilogy extending the adventures of Black Jack Geary, The Lost Fleet: Outlands; the first book might be out I think, if not, it's due this year.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Barkingsparrow »

heartwood wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 1:59 pm I'm half way into Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.

I see there's a mix of opinions about the book in this thread.

I think he's got a good story and interesting ideas. He's got some good characters. He seems to convey his command of science and engineering. I hope to finish and learn the ending.

Perhaps he's not a writer for me. I quit half way through The Martian when it came out. My reaction to some of the writing in PHM, from the early chapters on, is MEGO. William Safire of the NYT coined or at least popularized the acronym for My Eyes Glaze Over. Too much detail, many arcane calculations (even for me, an engineer). I know I can skim/skip as I go, but I'd prefer he tell the story he has w/o showing what a polymath he believe's he is and boring me with stuff that doesn't advance the story for me.
I just finished Project Hail Mary. I'm not an engineer, so found a lot of sections incredibly tedious with excruciating detail. I literally skimmed the bulk of many chapters and apparently did not miss much of the plot - so this ended up being a fast read. I wanted to find out how it all ended, which is why I persisted. That said, I bought the book new and felt I wasted my money. Hopefully the movie that is planned will work better.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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I am now 75% through the first book in the Hyperion series (entitled "Hyperion") , and I can say unequivocally that it is in my top 5 sci-fi novels ever. I'm surprised I never heard of it until recently. It is one of the few I have read that is not at all formulaic...the premises are very complex but not overly confusing, very engaging, very quirky, and unfold slowly as you go along. Definitely a "page-turner", and quite revolutionary writing for the late 1980s.

Lots of funny quirks that you could criticize (eg: people in the 28th century still read paper books and write with pens!). OK, it was written in 1989, and nobody even thought about e-books at that time. But really.... But giving the author the benefit of the doubt (given the frequent interjected humor), I think maybe that stuff was in there for a laugh. His point perhaps being that "Progress" is hardly symmetric, even now.

It's suggested that the book was modeled after "The Canterbury Tales", and that analogy is pretty transparent, though I think a more apt comparison might be The Alexandria Quartet (but a much easier read).

(By the way, I find the term "Modern" amusing....is that defined as post- Neuromancer? post- Cat's Cradle? I can only think of a handful, if even that many, examples of good sci-fi written before that. *giggle* )
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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I guess not specifically SciFi (but, hey, fantasy is usually on the same bookshelf in the library), rereading Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, book 1) to prep for the Amazon Prime Wheel of Time release on the 19th. I guess some consider this book series to be on par with GoT, really hoping Amazon doesn't butcher the TV adaptation, but cautiously optimistic I guess.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Barkingsparrow »

Kagord wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:30 am I guess not specifically SciFi (but, hey, fantasy is usually on the same bookshelf in the library), rereading Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, book 1) to prep for the Amazon Prime Wheel of Time release on the 19th. I guess some consider this book series to be on par with GoT, really hoping Amazon doesn't butcher the TV adaptation, but cautiously optimistic I guess.
I vaguely remember reading the first 3 books and enjoying them, but then it went downhill quickly as the author went on an apparent money grab by writing book after book, moving the plot forward at a glacial pace. I quit about book 6. There's a reason people started referring to these books as the "Waste of Time" :)
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

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Barkingsparrow wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 12:07 pm
Kagord wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:30 am I guess not specifically SciFi (but, hey, fantasy is usually on the same bookshelf in the library), rereading Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, book 1) to prep for the Amazon Prime Wheel of Time release on the 19th. I guess some consider this book series to be on par with GoT, really hoping Amazon doesn't butcher the TV adaptation, but cautiously optimistic I guess.
I vaguely remember reading the first 3 books and enjoying them, but then it went downhill quickly as the author went on an apparent money grab by writing book after book, moving the plot forward at a glacial pace. I quit about book 6. There's a reason people started referring to these books as the "Waste of Time" :)
Yes, definitely a lull in the middle and common complaint, but then Mr. Sanderson came on with a strong finish which made the trudge worth it, IMHO.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by SgwayMontrose »

Barkingsparrow wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 12:07 pm
Kagord wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:30 am I guess not specifically SciFi (but, hey, fantasy is usually on the same bookshelf in the library), rereading Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, book 1) to prep for the Amazon Prime Wheel of Time release on the 19th. I guess some consider this book series to be on par with GoT, really hoping Amazon doesn't butcher the TV adaptation, but cautiously optimistic I guess.
I vaguely remember reading the first 3 books and enjoying them, but then it went downhill quickly as the author went on an apparent money grab by writing book after book, moving the plot forward at a glacial pace. I quit about book 6. There's a reason people started referring to these books as the "Waste of Time" :)
The filler finally killed the series for me. A paragraph of “Egwene curled her hair back behind her ear cutely while in her green dress with three and thirty wrinkles left there from the dry cleaners the day before as she mounted her horse with the too low stirrups said to Rand Al Thor “ok”
GoT had it’s own issues with the same though
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by LadyGeek »

I hung on through Book 12. The TV series can be discussed in [What TV Show Have You Recently Watched?].

I'm currently on the 5th book (of 5) in the Pride of Chanur series by C. J. Cherryh. I'd say it's as good as the first four.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by LadyGeek »

WildBill wrote: Sun Oct 03, 2021 1:59 pm Howdy

Try Charlie Jane Anders - All the Birds in the Sky was awarded the Nebula in 2016 and her latest, The City in the Middle of The Night, is excellent.

She is a good storyteller, and her plotting and character development is getting better with every book.
All the Birds in the Sky, by Charlie Jane Anders. It's an interesting mix of science and magic. The story telling and plot development is indeed very good. Just when it starts to get boring, something pops up and I suddenly can't stop reading.

I'd say her perspective of the real world is off the beaten path, but it makes you think.
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tooluser
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by tooluser »

"The Sparrow", Mary Doria Russell
and I just started the sequel, which I bought at the same time quite a ways back, based on some long-forgotten recommendation.

It gets better as you read it, but man that first 200 pages was difficult. Lots of cringey exposition and not-very-subtle foreshadowing and deliberate withholding by the author as to what may come later. It was much better once the characters actually started in pursuit of their goal. A slowly unfolding adventure mystery scifi horror tale.

It prominently features the Catholic religion and asks some deep questions but I don't think handles them any better than Dan Simmon's Hyperion series, which was also an adventure mystery scifi horror tale, and which was more consistently entertaining.

We'll see what the sequel brings.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by SgwayMontrose »

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridge_of_Birds This is fantastic. Short read but utterly magical and engaging
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by abuss368 »

V the final battle movies and series!

That was classic sci fi!

Best.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Barkingsparrow »

Read the last book in the "Salvation" trilogy - Saints of Salvation by Peter F Hamilton. A complex, dense, and epic trilogy that I would describe as "hard sci-fi soap opera" that spans thousands of years. Here's a descriptive blurb that touches on the start:

In 2204, humanity is expanding into the wider galaxy in leaps and bounds. A new technology of linked jump gates has rendered most forms of transportation--including starships--virtually obsolete. Every place on earth, every distant planet mankind has settled, is now merely a step away from any other. And all seems wonderful...until a crashed alien spaceship is found on a newly-located world 89 light years from Earth, harboring seventeen human victims. And of the high-powered team dispatched to investigate the mystery, one is an alien spy.

I thoroughly enjoyed these books, it's been a while since I've had so much fun reading science fiction.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by digit8 »

The Wild Cards series has been a delight for a couple of decades. Starting with the premise of an alien virus creating super humans in New York after WW2, it benefits enormously by being a shared universe of over a dozen authors(with editing by George R R Martin proving to be a fortunate choice as his career exploded). You’re seldom stuck in one characters perspective on one writers style long enough to get bored, though most books coalesce into an overarching storyline with writers alternating chapters. Really good use of reasonable extrapolation of events book to book, touching on historical and social impacts of all of these events.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by Dude2 »

Pam01 wrote: Mon Oct 04, 2021 9:02 pm
kramer wrote: Mon Sep 08, 2014 1:21 am
shmidds wrote:+1 The Martian
Plus, plus. I thought this book was fantastically detailed and I almost couldn't put it down. I downloaded a free PDF version last year (the author's license made it freely distributable) but it is now on Kindle books on Amazon, as well. It is by Andy Weir. You can see lots of reviews on Amazon.
I enjoyed Martian thoroughly. Weir's latest book, Hail Mary, is also enjoyable.
Project Hail Mary -- fantastic! I almost read it all in one sitting.
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protagonist
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by protagonist »

I just read Hyperion and started the second book of the series. It's great. Is 1989 "modern"? It's ahead of its time.

And from the same time period, The Long Run. Out of print for years but now available again. I could have gotten hundreds for my tattered copy.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by doobiedoo »

I just finished reading "Old Man's War" by John Scalzi based on earlier recommendations in this thread.

It was terrific! It's been a long time since I stayed up all night [until 8 am] reading a book.

The premise of the Scalzi book is that humans are recruited for an interstellar army when they turn 65, but can't actually join until they turn 75. At 75, they emigrate from Earth [never to return], and get new, young bodies but have a relatively short expected life span due to a high killed in action ratio. [After 10 years of active duty, they are free to go anywhere except back to Earth.]

At the end, the author acknowledges Robert Heinlein's influence. I saw a lot of similarities between the Scalzi's protagonist John Perry and the Lazarus Long character in Heinlein's Methuselah stories. They are both 1st-person narration, they are both told in a matter-of-fact style, and the protagonists are logical people who excel during critical, stressful times.

"Old Man's War" was nominated for the 2005 Hugo award.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by LadyGeek »

The Dragonriders of Pern: Dragonflight Dragonquest The White Dragon, by Anne McCaffrey. Amazon has bundled the first 3 books of the Pern series into a single Kindle book. I was surprised that they discounted the bundle price - which I don't normally see.

I've read this series in paperback many years ago. I no longer have the books and wanted to read this again. It's just as enjoyable the second time around.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by forgeblast »

I have found a few great series in a row!!
one is the
Libriomancer
(Magic Ex Libris #1)
by Jim C. Hines
Really interesting book series, imagine being able to pull items from a book to use......

and
Alex Verus Series (final one is due out soon).

Enjoy!!
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FreeAtLast
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by FreeAtLast »

"Shadows Of Eternity", by Gregory Benford (SAGA Press 2021)

It has been a dry 3 months for me perusing the shelves of Barnes & Noble and my public library's "New Additions" section for any new and decent Sci-Fi story. Everything I bought or took out turned out to be mediocre garbage. And then - Voila! - Benford's name shone brightly at my discouraged eyes early last week at the library. Now here was a late Christmas gift to raise the spirits of an enervated old man!

Needless to say, I wouldn't be writing this review if "Shadows" had turned out to be a disappointment. Benford is in top form and, as Jack McDevitt states in a cover blurb, the novel is a "wild ride". The tale starts out conservatively enough, with a description of a huge SETI library complex located on the Near Side of the Moon (the SETI telescopes are located on the Far Side). Mankind has been collecting thousands of messages from long dead civilizations of the Galactic Center for centuries. A trainee Librarian with unusual abilities named Rachel decodes a message that provides extraordinary new technology which saves the Solar System from a deadly radiation menace. However, a consequence of the technology is that alien explorers are alerted to Earth's presence and they come looking for Rachel. At this point, the "wild ride" starts and proceeds from the deepest parts of Earth's oceans to the top of Mount Everest to the caves of Mars to the corona of Sol to an unstable wormhole at the Earth-Moon LaGrange point L2 (FYI - L2 is where the James Webb telescope is heading right now!). My only "problem" with Benford's novel is that he twice puts his protagonists in extremely perilous scenarios that I didn't believe they had a chance in Heck of surviving, given the information they possessed and the spaceships they were employing. Whatever, as the young folks say - please read "Shadows" and let us know what you think of it.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by ddbtoth »

John Ringo does pretty good military SciFi.
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tooluser
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by tooluser »

tooluser wrote: Mon Nov 22, 2021 6:58 pm "The Sparrow", Mary Doria Russell
and I just started the sequel, which I bought at the same time quite a ways back, based on some long-forgotten recommendation.

It gets better as you read it, but man that first 200 pages was difficult. Lots of cringey exposition and not-very-subtle foreshadowing and deliberate withholding by the author as to what may come later. It was much better once the characters actually started in pursuit of their goal. A slowly unfolding adventure mystery scifi horror tale.

It prominently features the Catholic religion and asks some deep questions but I don't think handles them any better than Dan Simmons' Hyperion series, which was also an adventure mystery scifi horror tale, and which was more consistently entertaining.

We'll see what the sequel brings.
Not done with the sequel "Children of God", but I am about 1/3 of the way in and it's quite a bit better than the first novel. Not much exposition except that which the author of a sequel is always obliged to provide for anyone who didn't read the first novel. A truly unique and in-depth exploration of the culture of alien species, which I have never encountered before. They are neither inferior nor superior to humans, and you learn their point of view. The author's writing and story-telling skills improved greatly between novels. I have no idea how it will end.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by CardinalRule »

Dude2 wrote: Wed Nov 24, 2021 6:31 am
Pam01 wrote: Mon Oct 04, 2021 9:02 pm
kramer wrote: Mon Sep 08, 2014 1:21 am
shmidds wrote:+1 The Martian
Plus, plus. I thought this book was fantastically detailed and I almost couldn't put it down. I downloaded a free PDF version last year (the author's license made it freely distributable) but it is now on Kindle books on Amazon, as well. It is by Andy Weir. You can see lots of reviews on Amazon.
I enjoyed Martian thoroughly. Weir's latest book, Hail Mary, is also enjoyable.
Project Hail Mary -- fantastic! I almost read it all in one sitting.
I recently went back and forth (home and car) between the Kindle and Audible versions of Weir's Project Hail Mary, with the latter excellently narrated by Ray Porter. Good book, whichever way you consume it. :thumbsup
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by LadyGeek »

Old Man's War, by John Scalzi. Book 1 of the Old Man's War series. This is a new author for me, but going by the mentions in this thread and other reviews, I decided to give it a try.

In fact, I bought the entire series on Kindle: Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades, The Last Colony, Zoe's Tale: An Old Man's War Novel, The Human Division, and The End of All Things.

I don't know how he comes up with this stuff, but I love his writing style and couldn't put it down. At least for the first book.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by ososnilknarf »

heartwood wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 1:59 pm I'm half way into Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.

I see there's a mix of opinions about the book in this thread.

I think he's got a good story and interesting ideas. He's got some good characters. He seems to convey his command of science and engineering. I hope to finish and learn the ending.

Perhaps he's not a writer for me. I quit half way through The Martian when it came out. My reaction to some of the writing in PHM, from the early chapters on, is MEGO. William Safire of the NYT coined or at least popularized the acronym for My Eyes Glaze Over. Too much detail, many arcane calculations (even for me, an engineer). I know I can skim/skip as I go, but I'd prefer he tell the story he has w/o showing what a polymath he believe's he is and boring me with stuff that doesn't advance the story for me.
I'll just say that I loved the book after finishing it, even though there were times I felt the same as you express here while reading it. The martian was the same way, but I enjoyed it too. It is just kind of this author's thing. He wasn't a writer to begin with. He was an astronomy nerd to would calculate orbital trajectories for fun, and started writing a book that became The Martian.
But I'd urge you to finish the book. I found the ending very satisfying and not what I was expecting.
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Re: Good Modern Science Fiction

Post by beernutz »

I am mostly a reader of mysteries but I picked up Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky from the new releases table in the library on a whim.

Anyone vouch for it? I have yet to start reading.

I read a lot of sci-fi up through college but lost interest in that genre since the millennium.
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