The SF Book thread

[crofootski]

Found a webpage describing the Piers Anthony trilogy, Omnivore/Orn/Ox: here

 

[admiraldave]

One of my favourites is David Brin's Uplift books, especially The Uplift War. The second trilogy isn't as good as the first, but I love it's ending.

Pity to hear you think the Harrington series is going downhill, Admiraldave, I've always enjoyed it.

IMO, the series peaked at Flag in Exile and has been on a downward spiral ever since. War of Honor was practically unreadable, it was so slow, dull and repetitive.

I love how Weber thinks spending half a chapter describing the foibles of that book's particular redshirt is somehow supposed to make me care when the redshirt inevitably shuffles off the mortal coil. Whatever.

The last "sci-fi" I read, however, was Timothy Zahn's latest Star Wars novel.

I love Zahn. Both his Star Wars novels, and his original SF stuff. Spinneret remains one of my favourite books. I haven't tried his more recent stuff, like Angelmass or The Icarus Hunt, though.

Peter F Hamilton gets a little distracted, but his books generally rock.

I've yet to get all the way through his Neutronium Alchemist series, I've read the first two books. Interesting series. I've also read The Nano Flower and A Quantum Murder, which were interesting reads.

Anybody else read "Macroscope" by Piers Anthony? Or his trilogy: Omnivore, Orn, Ox?

Read Omnivore and never bothered with the follow-ups. I kinda liked his SF/fantasy "Adept" series. At least the first triology, I couldn't get into the second.

 

[Tibbetts]

At the moment, i'm reading Eric Flint's - "1634: The Galileo Affair". Quite good.

Next up is "Weapons of Choice" by John Birmingham.


Tibbetts

 

[KoshFan]

Another "ancient" classic that is definitely available is Zelazny's "Lord of Light". A great read.

Amen to that!

IMO, the series peaked at Flag in Exile and has been on a downward spiral ever since. War of Honor was practically unreadable, it was so slow, dull and repetitive.

I have to disagree -- I admit War of Honor was far more political than action, but the action at the end of the one where she's taken prisoner is just so good. Also I'm very interested in seeing where the treecat and White Haven subplots go. Last of all I've gotten to like enough characters on both sides of the war (in particular Theisman, Tourville, and Forraker for the Havenites) that I really want to see how they stop the war this time.

I love Zahn. Both his Star Wars novels, and his original SF stuff. Spinneret remains one of my favourite books. I haven't tried his more recent stuff, like Angelmass or The Icarus Hunt, though.

Icarus Hunt is well worth reading at least once, although it doesn't quite stand up to repeats. Angelmass had an interesting concept but I found it a bit forgettable. Probably my favorite of his non-SW is the second Cobra book. Have you read the Conquerors trilogy?

 

[admiraldave]

Honor wasn't captured in War of Honor. I'm going to start another thread for this discussion, just to try and keep this thread spoiler free.

Probably my favorite of his non-SW is the second Cobra book. Have you read the Conquerors trilogy?

While I liked the concept of the Cobras, the trilogy didn't resonate with me. I guess I never strongly warmed to the Moreaus.

I enjoyed the Conquerors trilogy. The technology was fascinating, the Wolfpack concept was kinda cool, though seemed silly. What amused me most was the ending. Just seemed different.

 

[sleepy_shadow]

to get into Banks' sci-fi I reccomend Use of Weapons, one his best. Inversions is also very good.

"Inversions" is good... but aside from one character hovering on the edge of guessability... and the home civilization of three characters in the main story (hinted at, but never even named)... it's not science fiction! If "Inversions" happened on Earth, it would occur sometime around the 17th century.

But I liked it notably. I also notably liked "Excession" and "Look to Windward". "Player of Games" and "Use of Weapons" I moderately liked -- despite finding the latter occasionally difficult to follow, because of a somewhat wandering timeline.

"Consider Phlebas" I read with interest, but liked only partially. Of the short story collection "State of the Art", I liked multiple stories, but not all (and not equally).

I guess that tells which author of written science fiction I currently consider my favourite?

By the way: Banks has also written non-Culture science fiction (the Culture being his apparent "main sequence"), which I have yet to sample.

 

[anlashok1]

I'm currently reading "The Illuminator" by Brenda Rickman Vantrease. It takes place in 1379. I've recently read The Ilustrated Da Vinci Code, Dark Fire by C. J. Sansom, 3 books by Julian Stockwin (they're about the royal navy in 1800's), The Engines of God and Omega by Jack McDevitt. Yeah, I know they're not all SF but I can't find anything I really like in that genre. Maybe I'll pick up something from this thread, so keep them coming.