Please recommend a good hard sci-fi book

[PumaMan]

Please recommend to me a good hard sci-fi book. I've read almost all of Arthur C Clarke and Isaac Asimov. The book can incorporate FTL speed and aliens -- I'll go that far afield. The book can be older or contemporary. But the science must be pretty sound. Likeable characters would help too. I will also entertain other types of sci-fi . . . maybe.

(NOTE: Many sci-fi books I've started to read and just couldn't take it anymore.)

[beelzebubble]

i liked Robert Heinlein back in the seventies. Don't know what I would think of him now. Have you tried Cyber-punk. Not my thing but you might like it.

[PumaMan]

i liked Robert Heinlein back in the seventies. Don't know what I would think of him now. Have you tried Cyber-punk. Not my thing but you might like it.

Thanks. I've read a few of Heinlein's books, but like you, way back when. I've only read one or two books in the cyberpunk genre of sci-fi -- not my favorite genre I'm afraid. Although I have watched some good cyberpunk movies: Blade Runner (both) and Alita Battle Angel come to mind.

[Wyldesyde19]

Have you tried Herbert’s Dune series?

[PumaMan]

Have you tried Herbert’s Dune series?

Yes, thanks. Many years ago. I think I might have quit in the middle of the third book though. I have been thinking about re-reading the first book -- I have it somewhere . . .

[Takoma11]

Some sci-fi I've read in the last few years that I quite liked, not sure if they'll totally match your criteria:

Spook Country
Halting State
Lord of All Things
Nova Swing

[PumaMan]

Some sci-fi I've read in the last few years that I quite liked, not sure if they'll totally match your criteria:

Spook Country
Halting State
Lord of All Things
Nova Swing

Thank you. I've never heard of these. I will check them out. :up:

[Thursday Next]

Not sure this is quite what you're looking for but The Martian is pretty good.

[PumaMan]

Not sure this is quite what you're looking for but The Martian is pretty good.
Yes, that's exactly the kind of sci-fi I'm looking for, but I'm willing to deviate some. I've already read Andy Weir's book The Martian. I think he has other book(s) that I should probably check out.

[Takoma11]

Thank you. I've never heard of these. I will check them out. :up:

Of that list, Lord of All Things probably had the most compelling science, though I don't know enough about the science involved (staying vague for plot reasons) to be a great judge of that. It's also very long and kind of bleak, just a heads up.

Halting State is probably the most fun.

[Citizen Rules]

Never Let Me Go (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Let_Me_Go_(novel))Never Let Me Go is a 2005 dystopian science fiction novel by British author Kazuo Ishiguro. It was shortlisted for the 2005 Booker Prize (an award Ishiguro had previously won in 1989 for The Remains of the Day), for the 2006 Arthur C. Clarke Award and for the 2005 National Book Critics Circle Award. Time magazine named it the best novel of 2005 and included the novel in its "100 Best English-language novels published since 1923—the beginning of TIME". It also received an ALA Alex Award in 2006. A film adaptation directed by Mark Romanek was released in 2010; a Japanese television drama aired in 2016.

[Sedai]

House of Suns - Alastair Reynolds - He won't use FTL etc. in his books.

The Three-Body Problem - Liu Cixin

But most of all, I would recommend...

A Deepness in the Sky - Vernor Vinge - Again no FTL. Probably my favorite first contact novel, as it shows first contact from the perspective of the aliens. Has a great mystery/twist component, also. READ THIS BOOK!

[PumaMan]

Never Let Me Go (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_Let_Me_Go_(novel))

I saw the movie a few years ago, with Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield. Not a bad flick at all.

[WHITBISSELL!]

Yes, that's exactly the kind of sci-fi I'm looking for, but I'm willing to deviate some. I've already read Andy Weir's book The Martian. I think he has other book(s) that I should probably check out.Check out Project Hail Mary. It's much heavier on science than The Martian. I think it perfectly fits the bill. Weir's second novel Artemis is also pretty good. I also remember really liking Rendezvous With Rama by Arthur C. Clarke back when I first read it.

[PumaMan]

Check out Project Hail Mary. It's much heavier on science than The Martian. I think it perfectly fits the bill. Weir's second novel Artemis is also pretty good. I also remember really liking Rendezvous With Rama by Arthur C. Clarke back when I first read it.

OK, thanks.

I've read Rendezvous With Rama several times, the last time not too long ago.

[WHITBISSELL!]

OK, thanks.

I've read Rendezvous With Rama several times, the last time not too long ago.Sorry. My bad. After I posted I took a closer look at your original post. I never read the other three that Clarke co-wrote with Gentry Lee or the two Lee wrote on his own. So I don't know how they stack up to the original.

[PumaMan]

I never read the other three that Clarke co-wrote with Gentry Lee or the two Lee wrote on his own. So I don't know how they stack up to the original.

I tried to read a couple of those sequels to Rendezvous With Rama and I didn't like them at all.

[Sedai]

I liked Rama II well enough, even if it took forever to get going - it's worth the trouble IMO. I couldn't get into the third book so I stopped reading it.

[PumaMan]

I know that 2001: A Space Odyssey was written while the movie was being made and comes from Clarke's short story The Sentinel, but I enjoyed it, for the most part. The second novel 2010: Odyssey Two was just OK (IMO). But the next two, 2061 and 3001 were not my favorites.

[Sedai]

Clark is hit or miss for me, with the hits being amazing, and the misses being pretty bad. I guess that is to be expected for a guy that was so prolific.

Oh, also wanted to mention Iain M. Banks' Culture series. They don't need to be read in order - I can recommend the best of the bunch if you don't want to dedicate yourself to reading all of the,.

[Sedai]

I would recommend as a start...

Keep in mind The Culture is a galaxy-spanning, post-scarcity utopian society. On the surface, it seems to be a paradise in which most of today's problems with humanity have been solved, with benevolent super AI's taking care of running society. Alas, not all is as it seems, and trouble is brewing under the surface.

Consider Phlebas - Probably the most straight-forward of the Culture books, it is the only book written from the perspective of someone outside the society of The Culture, who has an antagonistic view of it. Falls into a sort of action/adventure space opera genre for the most part.

Use of Weapons - Perhaps my favorite of the Banks books I have read. Has a unique dual structure, with one narrative in the past moving back through time, revealing events sort of like the movie Memento, while the other narrative takes place going forward in a current timeline. A fairly dark book, overall, and perhaps not as accessible as some of the others. Maybe don't read this one first.

The Player of Games - A slower, more philosophical examination of empires, political meddling, and the tactical mind. This tops many 'Best of The Culture" lists, but would probably fall somewhere in the middle for me. Still, this is really thought provoking stuff, especially if you are, or ever have been a gamer.

For the record, I started with Consider Phlebas.

[PumaMan]

I would recommend as a start...

Keep in mind The Culture is a galaxy-spanning, post-scarcity utopian society. On the surface, it seems to be a paradise in which most of today's problems with humanity have been solved, with benevolent super AI's taking care of running society. Alas, not all is as it seems, and trouble is brewing under the surface.

Consider Phlebas - Probably the most straight-forward of the Culture books, it is the only book written from the perspective of someone outside the society of The Culture, who has an antagonistic view of it. Falls into a sort of action/adventure space opera genre for the most part.

Use of Weapons - Perhaps my favorite of the Banks books I have read. Has a unique dual structure, with one narrative in the past moving back through time, revealing events sort of like the movie Memento, while the other narrative takes place going forward in a current timeline. A fairly dark book, overall, and perhaps not as accessible as some of the others. Maybe don't read this one first.

The Player of Games - A slower, more philosophical examination of empires, political meddling, and the tactical mind. This tops many 'Best of The Culture" lists, but would probably fall somewhere in the middle for me. Still, this is really thought provoking stuff, especially if you are, or ever have been a gamer.

For the record, I started with Consider Phlebas.

Thank you! :up:

[PumaMan]

(NOTE: Many sci-fi books I've started to read and just couldn't take it anymore.)

In my many years of reading sci-fi I see Sturgeon's Law.

Sturgeon's law (or Sturgeon's revelation) is an adage stating "ninety-percent of everything is crud". It was coined by Theodore Sturgeon, an American science fiction author and critic, and was inspired by his observation that, while science fiction was often derided for its low quality by critics, most work in other fields was low quality too and so science fiction was thus no different.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon%27s_law

[Sedai]

In my many years of reading sci-fi I see Sturgeon's Law.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturgeon%27s_law

Agreed, which is why it is crucial to have places where people can congregate and sift through the data, after which people can recommend what they consider to be the other 10%, that of the non-crud variety!

[PumaMan]

This is a pretty good site for gathering opinions/info about a book: https://www.goodreads.com/

[PumaMan]

Agreed, which is why it is crucial to have places where people can congregate and sift through the data, after which people can recommend what they consider to be the other 10%, that of the non-crud variety!
That's why I come here for book info/opinions/reviews. I figure the folks here would know the 10% that is worth reading.

[Sedai]

This is a pretty good site for gathering opinions/info about a book: https://www.goodreads.com/

Yea, I have an account on there :)

[PumaMan]

I've ordered four books from the list that I made from those that you all have suggested. I will order more after finishing these. I used to read a LOT when I was younger but nowadays maybe one book a month, some years fewer. I'll let you know what I think of each after reading.

Anyhow, thanks for the responses and suggestions :up:

[Austruck]

A Deepness in the Sky - Vernor Vinge - Again no FTL. Probably my favorite first contact novel, as it shows first contact from the perspective of the aliens. Has a great mystery/twist component, also. READ THIS BOOK!

This looks like the second book in a series, yes? Can I assume one needn't start with the first book, A Fire Upon the Deep?

[Sedai]

This looks like the second book in a series, yes? Can I assume one needn't start with the first book, A Fire Upon the Deep?

Even though A Deepness in the Sky was published 7 years after A Fire Upon the Deep, it's a prequel, which takes place before the events of the earlier book. Depending on what order you read them in, you either read a more epic story that focuses on more than one of Vinge's "zones," and has a much vaster scale, followed by a story that takes place in one zone, in a much smaller area of space...or you start in the small area of space, after which the next book expands out to a larger galactic scale.

I read the prequel first, then moved on to A Fire on the Deep, which does in fact have a returning character from the prequel, even though it takes place twenty thousand years later. Both books were excellent, both are first contact stories, and both have really creative approaches to alien life. That said, A Deepness in the Sky is easily my favorite.

I recommended that one, as it doesn't require as much suspension of disbelief, as it takes place in only one of the zones, which are kind of a fantastic and wild idea - it's the harder sci-fi of the two. A Deepness in the Sky is one of my favorite books of all time.