# Recommend Some Science Fiction Novels **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [July 1, 2023, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389 "2023-07-01T02:21:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cjackson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a3d4f5/32.png) [@cjackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjackson)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/1 "2023-07-01T02:21:23Z")
Right now I am reading Revenge of the Sith and Heir to the Empire. I have read 2001: A Space Odyssey, Rendezvous With Rama, Fountains of Paradise, Tau Zero, Dragon’s Egg and Leviathan Wakes. I will next be reading Caliban’s War. Beyond all that, what are some must reads? ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/2 "2023-07-01T02:23:28Z")
The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Robert Heinlein. Maybe the best Sci-Fi book of all time. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/3 "2023-07-01T02:45:19Z")
The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester. Tactics Of Mistake by Gordon Dickson. ---
**Author:** ![steepone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@steepone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steepone)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/4 "2023-07-01T08:41:11Z")
The Dragon Riders of Pern series The Ship Who Sang The Ship Who Searched All are by Anne MacCaffrey and are excellent reads ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/5 "2023-07-01T09:05:19Z")
_Children of Time_, by Adrian Tchaikovsky, is one of the best recent SF novels I’ve read. It has spiders in it. ---
**Author:** ![Mikkel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikkel/32/13151_2.png) [@Mikkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikkel)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/6 "2023-07-01T09:16:09Z")
The Barrayar saga by Lois McMaster Bujold. Anything by Bujold, but the other notable series I will classify as fantasy, not Sci-Fi. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/7 "2023-07-01T10:10:28Z")
_Dark Matter_ by Blake Crouch ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/8 "2023-07-01T10:24:23Z")
The three-volume _Science Fiction Hall of Fame_ compilation is a good start if you want to familiarize yourself with the classics of the genre. It may be hard to find a copy as it’s been out of print for some time, but Rene Barjavel’s _La Nuit des Temps_ (translated in English under the name _The Ice People_) is an underrated classic that feels as relevant today as it did in the '60s. ---
**Author:** ![sohvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sohvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sohvan)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/9 "2023-07-01T11:21:06Z")
**Lord of Light** by Roger Zelazny, although it could be categorized as either scifi or fantasy. ---
**Author:** ![Moonrise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonrise/32/14764_2.png) [@Moonrise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonrise)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/10 "2023-07-01T11:34:10Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > … Rene Barjavel’s _La Nuit des Temps_ (translated in English under the name _The Ice People_) is an underrated classic that feels as relevant today as it did in the '60s. Seconded. I read this book for school when I was about 13 and absolutely loved it. An interesting premise (the discovery of two survivors from an incredibly advanced but dead civilisation under the ice in Antartica), lots of suspense, a wistful evocation of a long-lost world, and a Romeo-and-Juliet kind of ending. Please note there are a couple of relatively explicit sex scenes in it. Not exactly porn, but certainly… descriptive. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/11 "2023-07-01T11:47:24Z")
You could try my novel SPINDOWN – a murder mystery/thriller set on a massive colony spaceship: > **[Amazon.com: Spindown eBook : Crawford, Andy: Kindle Store](https://www.amazon.com/Spindown-Andy-Crawford-ebook/dp/B07HVWCFFJ)** > > Spindown - Kindle edition by Crawford, Andy. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading Spindown. ---
**Author:** ![Mikkel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikkel/32/13151_2.png) [@Mikkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mikkel)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/12 "2023-07-01T12:02:01Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > You could try my novel SPINDOWN Bought. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/13 "2023-07-01T12:07:25Z")
**Ringworld** by Larry Niven (the sequels are spotty, up to you) **The Martian** by Andy Weir **The Mote in God’s Eye** by Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/14 "2023-07-01T12:19:57Z")
DAMMIT! Beat me to it. Try “Rivers Of Time” by L. Sprague De Camp. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/15 "2023-07-01T13:13:15Z")
Terrific! I hope you enjoy it! ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/16 "2023-07-01T13:58:54Z")
We’re in another golden age of science fiction, and I really encourage folks to check out recently-published works. Here are a few that are worth considering: -The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet: space travel with a bunch of tremendously sympathetic characters. -Ancillary Justice: real weird space opera in which people and spaceships can have multiple bodies. -Some Desperate Glory: I just finished this last night and love it. Earth is destroyed and the tiny remainders of humanity seek vengeance. And then it twists, over and over. -Gideon the Ninth: hilarious nasty gory necromantic space empire murder mystery. So weird, so good. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/17 "2023-07-01T14:15:21Z")
Another vote for The **Moon is a Harsh Mistress.** With developments in AI and the return to lunar exploration, this is a great time to read it. ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/18 "2023-07-01T16:33:27Z")
Keep going on _The Expanse_ series, some of the books are better than others, but the whole series is just fantastic. > [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Ancillary Justice: real weird space opera in which people and spaceships can have multiple bodies. > [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Gideon the Ninth: hilarious nasty gory necromantic space empire murder mystery. So weird, so good. I came here to mention those two, so I’ll have to come up with some more: Martha Well’s _Murderbot Diaries_ are fun, and unlike some of the others, are much shorter and less epic, which can be a nice change of pace. Iain M. Banks’ _Culture_ series is a classic. Dan Simmon’s _Hyperion Cantos_ is a very satisfying four book series. The first book is a series of short stories tied together as tales told by people traveling together (I guess a style going back to the _Canterbury Tales_, which I’ve never read). The other books are more traditional novels. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/19 "2023-07-01T16:37:15Z")
The problem (and a wonderous one to have!) is that Science Fiction is such a broad term (leaving out the horror that is the further generalization of sci-fi/fantasy) that I’m having a hard time figuring out _what_ to recommend! I mean the OP has space fantasy (Star Wars), Golden Age Scifi (harder and softer), and modern scifi. But there’s Military Scifi, Social Engineering scifi, Alternate/Divergent History scifi, Dystopian/PA Scifi, Near Future Scifi, and on and on and on. So, I’ll throw a few suggestions. But if you want to give us more direction, that would be great as well! I’d recommend Live Free or Die (I’ve mentioned this before, first of three books in a version of the Schlock Mercenary Universe), The Nantucket Trilogy starting with Island in the Sea of Time (modern Nantucket sent to the bronze age), Snow Crash, and Old Man’s War. Tried to make a eclectic mix of different authors and styles. I will also second the mentions of Bujold’s scifi and the Hyperion Cantos. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2023, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389/20 "2023-07-01T17:01:28Z")
Sentient spiders. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recommend-some-science-fiction-novels/986389.md?page=2)