Science Fiction
Discussion
Legend83 said:
Is Hyperion a reasonable first encounter with Sci-Fi books or is it a bit hardcore for a novice like me?
I've been reading sci fi for a long time and, whilst I didn't find it wholly impenetrable, there would certainly be easier ways into the field. That said, it's a really good read so by all means give it a go. If it's not quite what you're after, there is plenty of more accessible stuff you can try instead rather than giving up on sci fi as a whole!
Legend83 said:
What would you recommend to ease me in gently?
Oooh, now you've opened a whole shipping container full of worms!Anyone who reads sci-fi will have their own answer to this. For me, The Mote in God's Eye is probably THE best sci-fi book I have read - it's by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It's all about first contact with an alien civilisation which is truly different from humanity.
Arthur C Clarke wrote a lot of good stuff. Rendezvous with Rama is a good starting point.
If you're not put off by sheer volume in a novel, Peter F Hamilton has written some stonkingly good "space opera" sci-fi. Really good stories and very accessible. Start with the Night's Dawn trilogy.
Expect a whole host of other replies offering alternatives!
Probably "near sci-fi" rather than tech-heavy hard sci-fi (Greg Bear and David Brin, for example) or jargon/genre-heavy cyberpunk (although Richard Morgan is pretty accessible stuff - Tom Clancy does violent SciFi), or huge space operas.
Peter F Hamilton is good, but a lot are BIG novels/series - for a lighter intro try Mindstar Rising and sequels - post-deluvian near-future stuff set in and near Peterborough (sort-of). Detective stories which just happen to also be sci-fi*.
Equally near-future but with strong elements of geekery and humour are any of Charles Stross' novels. Light reads and hard to put down...
Finally, contrary to my advice above, Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy. It IS sci-fi, but it's a great story which could just as easily have been set 300 years ago about the colonisation of America...the story is the main thing, the sci-fi is sort-of incidental. Very idealistic, but you find yourself immersed, wanting to be there, WANTING that world to come true...
Peter F Hamilton is good, but a lot are BIG novels/series - for a lighter intro try Mindstar Rising and sequels - post-deluvian near-future stuff set in and near Peterborough (sort-of). Detective stories which just happen to also be sci-fi*.
Equally near-future but with strong elements of geekery and humour are any of Charles Stross' novels. Light reads and hard to put down...
Finally, contrary to my advice above, Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy. It IS sci-fi, but it's a great story which could just as easily have been set 300 years ago about the colonisation of America...the story is the main thing, the sci-fi is sort-of incidental. Very idealistic, but you find yourself immersed, wanting to be there, WANTING that world to come true...
- Shameless plug alert*
andyroo said:
*Shameless plug alert*
Why don't you guys try Noah's Ark, by, er, me! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Noahs-Ark-ebook/dp/B00B2YA...
Just bought it!Why don't you guys try Noah's Ark, by, er, me! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Noahs-Ark-ebook/dp/B00B2YA...
andyroo said:
*Shameless plug alert*
Why don't you guys try Noah's Ark, by, er, me! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Noahs-Ark-ebook/dp/B00B2YA...
Is there a paper version?Why don't you guys try Noah's Ark, by, er, me! http://www.amazon.co.uk/Noahs-Ark-ebook/dp/B00B2YA...
Lurking Lawyer said:
For me, The Mote in God's Eye is probably THE best sci-fi book I have read - it's by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It's all about first contact with an alien civilisation which is truly different from humanity.
Arthur C Clarke wrote a lot of good stuff. Rendezvous with Rama is a good starting point.
Completely agree. I read the Mote in God's eye in a single sitting it was so good.Arthur C Clarke wrote a lot of good stuff. Rendezvous with Rama is a good starting point.
smn159 said:
Is there a paper version?
There is; it's a little steep though: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1482026066/ref=red...
Lurking Lawyer said:
I've been reading sci fi for a long time and, whilst I didn't find it wholly impenetrable, there would certainly be easier ways into the field.
That said, it's a really good read so by all means give it a go. If it's not quite what you're after, there is plenty of more accessible stuff you can try instead rather than giving up on sci fi as a whole!
48 pages in and I am enjoying it! A lot of it is going over my head but the writing style is mesmerising and I find myself able to put my own interpretation on what I imagine his world to look like.That said, it's a really good read so by all means give it a go. If it's not quite what you're after, there is plenty of more accessible stuff you can try instead rather than giving up on sci fi as a whole!
Will soldier on.
Legend83 said:
Lurking Lawyer said:
I've been reading sci fi for a long time and, whilst I didn't find it wholly impenetrable, there would certainly be easier ways into the field.
That said, it's a really good read so by all means give it a go. If it's not quite what you're after, there is plenty of more accessible stuff you can try instead rather than giving up on sci fi as a whole!
48 pages in and I am enjoying it! A lot of it is going over my head but the writing style is mesmerising and I find myself able to put my own interpretation on what I imagine his world to look like.That said, it's a really good read so by all means give it a go. If it's not quite what you're after, there is plenty of more accessible stuff you can try instead rather than giving up on sci fi as a whole!
Will soldier on.
NO SPOILERS!Gun said:
I'm by no means a Sci-fi veteran and struggled through the first few chapters but it gets much easier to read further in. Whereabout are you in it at the moment?
Hi mate,Father Dure has just been forced down the thousands of steps of the Cleft and witnessed the Shrike in the Basilica. He has just had all his comlogs and evidence of the Cathedral burned too - bummer!
Really getting it now and it is beautifully, sumptuously told.
Legend83 said:
Hi mate,
Father Dure has just been forced down the thousands of steps of the Cleft and witnessed the Shrike in the Basilica. He has just had all his comlogs and evidence of the Cathedral burned too - bummer!
Really getting it now and it is beautifully, sumptuously told.
Nice - makes we want to read it again Father Dure has just been forced down the thousands of steps of the Cleft and witnessed the Shrike in the Basilica. He has just had all his comlogs and evidence of the Cathedral burned too - bummer!
Really getting it now and it is beautifully, sumptuously told.
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