Need A Science Fiction World, but....
- Mentat1231
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Need A Science Fiction World, but....
Basically, I've read a lot of sci-fi, but there are some writers whose style I adore, and many others (though great) whose style I really don't like.
What is it that Ursula K Leguin had that Asimov didn't? I think Asimov's writing is rightly considered "great sci-fi", but it isn't my cup of tea. But, I could read Leguin any day. And I also really enjoyed the Dune series (all of it, though I admit the prequels and sequels from Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson are inferior writing... by that point I was in love with the world).
The "Uplift" series from Brin had every right to win me over (I love the "progenitor" idea and ancient races in general), but... I don't know what it is. It felt very "syfy tv series"-esque in its execution. The promise of the ideas couldn't get me past the second book (I did give it two books, out of hope that it would get better!).
Who/what should I read that will capture whatever it is that LeGuin and Herbert had, but that Asimov and Brin don't? I don't really know what it is. Perhaps it's the sort of transcendant themes and air of their settings and characters? Let me list a few more things I've loved and some that have let me down, and maybe it will help...
Loved: Orson Scott Card... specifically the trilogy after Ender's Game (Ender's Game itself and the Shadow spin-offs are very good, but too... gritty? too down-to-Earth-right-now?), the Homecoming Saga, and Wyrms (<-- my favorite). I also think the Pathfinder Trilogy was good, but a bit childish (YA?).
Liked: Anne McCaffrey... Pern is a wonderful world to stop in and visit from time to time. Super light, but enjoyable. And I even liked the Pegasus trilogy; though it was a little too comic-bookish at times.
Liked: Tom Toner's "Promise of the Child".... but, the ending is... frankly, ridiculous. And I have no desire to read the sequel.
I've also loved a great deal of sci-fi short stories, and of course I adore H. G. Wells and Jules Verne.
Didn't like: Niven's "Ringworld" or Clarke's "Rendezvous with Rama". The former is too absurd and cobbled together, and the latter is too... grounded? I don't know. They both tease an amazing, transcendant race, but it's just a tease.
I could go on and on. Does anyone see what the common threads are? Would more examples help?
One that I really thought I'd like was The Culture series by Banks... I'll be honest, it was the constantly foul language that turned me off after Consider Phlebas. That's probably a point I'll need to be flexible about (I mean, the same thing caused me to stop reading Bear's "Eon" part way through... and it was a bit "Rama"-ish).
What do you think? Am I hopeless? Any suggestions?
- Kdefaye
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I am quite unfamiliar with a lot of the mentioned authors and titles, but I just finished the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson and I must say it is an incredible fiction/fantasy read. The characters are dynamic and go through an incredible amount of development through the series. There is a science to the kind of "magic" that is enlisted within it that allows for a fantasy feel of the book, but with a grounding into how the world works (meaning there are reasoning and logic in everything). It has been branded as YA, but don't let that lead you to think these are teen/children novels. The themes are heavy and thrilling. They're pretty long reads, but are so worth it. Hope this helps!
- NetMassimo
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Philip J. Farmer is a writer of adventurous science fiction so you might like his stories. You also might like John Varley's Titan trilogy but consider that the erotic element can be quite strong so it's not for everyone.
Massimo
- casdill
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Peter Hamilton - start with Pandora's Star (The Commonwealth Saga Book 1)
Alastair Reynolds
Also,
Tad Williams - City of Golden Shadow (Otherland, Book 1)
(Williams also has a more high fantasy type series called Memory, Sorrow and Thorn that begins with The Dragonbone Chair.)
And further, more fantasy driven worlds that are not very sci- but very very deep:
Robert Jordan's the Eye of the World series (starts with The Wheel of Time).
Raymond Feist's Magician: Apprentice (The Riftwar Saga #1)
Robin Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice (Farseer trilogy #1)
Good luck finding something great.
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I was going to recommend Bradbury too. I'm not big on sci-fi, but his short stories in particular are incredible.annaestelle wrote: ↑16 Aug 2019, 10:31 Have you read any Ray Bradbury? He has some top-notch SciFi. Some of it is a bit too much for me (I prefer fantasy of science fiction, usually), but it's all good. I also echo the recommendation, above, for C. S. Lewis' Space Trilogy. The third book, Out of the Silent Planet, is the most science fictiony of the three, but all of them are so excellent!
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One feels like a duck, splashing around in all this wet. And when one feels like a duck, one is happy!
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Check out The Expanse!!! It is a book series and an Amazon Prime series. It is the best space sci-fi I have ever encountered.Mentat1231 wrote: ↑21 Jun 2018, 10:42 This is my first post here, and I have no idea if this is the right place to ask this sort of thing. Moreover, my parameters seem obscure even to me! Sorry...
Basically, I've read a lot of sci-fi, but there are some writers whose style I adore, and many others (though great) whose style I really don't like.
What is it that Ursula K Leguin had that Asimov didn't? I think Asimov's writing is rightly considered "great sci-fi", but it isn't my cup of tea. But, I could read Leguin any day. And I also really enjoyed the Dune series (all of it, though I admit the prequels and sequels from Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson are inferior writing... by that point I was in love with the world).
The "Uplift" series from Brin had every right to win me over (I love the "progenitor" idea and ancient races in general), but... I don't know what it is. It felt very "syfy tv series"-esque in its execution. The promise of the ideas couldn't get me past the second book (I did give it two books, out of hope that it would get better!).
Who/what should I read that will capture whatever it is that LeGuin and Herbert had, but that Asimov and Brin don't? I don't really know what it is. Perhaps it's the sort of transcendant themes and air of their settings and characters? Let me list a few more things I've loved and some that have let me down, and maybe it will help...
Loved: Orson Scott Card... specifically the trilogy after Ender's Game (Ender's Game itself and the Shadow spin-offs are very good, but too... gritty? too down-to-Earth-right-now?), the Homecoming Saga, and Wyrms (<-- my favorite). I also think the Pathfinder Trilogy was good, but a bit childish (YA?).
Liked: Anne McCaffrey... Pern is a wonderful world to stop in and visit from time to time. Super light, but enjoyable. And I even liked the Pegasus trilogy; though it was a little too comic-bookish at times.
Liked: Tom Toner's "Promise of the Child".... but, the ending is... frankly, ridiculous. And I have no desire to read the sequel.
I've also loved a great deal of sci-fi short stories, and of course I adore H. G. Wells and Jules Verne.
Didn't like: Niven's "Ringworld" or Clarke's "Rendezvous with Rama". The former is too absurd and cobbled together, and the latter is too... grounded? I don't know. They both tease an amazing, transcendant race, but it's just a tease.
I could go on and on. Does anyone see what the common threads are? Would more examples help?
One that I really thought I'd like was The Culture series by Banks... I'll be honest, it was the constantly foul language that turned me off after Consider Phlebas. That's probably a point I'll need to be flexible about (I mean, the same thing caused me to stop reading Bear's "Eon" part way through... and it was a bit "Rama"-ish).
What do you think? Am I hopeless? Any suggestions?