OT: Read a book!

dogscoff · #1 March 5th, 2003, 10:46 AM

After wading through one of Hardi's more turgid novels (damn, I hate that 19th Century stuff, but I thought I ought to read it since he used to live just up the road from me) I am treating myself to another Iain M Banks book: Against a Dark Background.
Only a few chapters in so far.

Anyone read any of his non (or at least, less) sci-fi stuff published under the name Iain Banks? Walking on Glass was cool. Wierd, but cool.

oleg · #2 March 5th, 2003, 01:17 PM

I am second to recommend Stanislaw Lem as one of the best sci.fi. writers of all time.

Weber/white - "On Death Ground" and "Shiva Option" are best SEIV game novels

Did't like "Crusade" and "Insurection" very much

Rexxx · #3 March 5th, 2003, 01:19 PM

I like C.J. Cherryh (her Sci-Fi work) very much. Especially her books about the Alliance-Union are great. Her basic assumptions that a stellar empire must be based mainly on space stations because most of the planets are unhabitable (if there are any), that FTL space travel is limited to certain routes (between "warp" points) sound "right" for me. What these assumptions mean for warfare, logictics and the administration of an empire is quite well extrapolated.
Downbelow Station comes with a description how life on large carriers/troop transports could be, what kind of battles could evolve between carrier fleets. Still have these descriptions in my mind when I play SE IV. Well, I have to admit that my preference for carrier fleets is based on books I read 20 years ago. Oh my God, I'm old...

Grandpa Kim · #4 March 5th, 2003, 08:46 PM

How our tastes vary.

My list: Heinlein, Niven, Pournelle, Asimov, Clark, Forward,... These I'll read just about anytime, but I also love time travel/alternate universe storys.

A new guy and a Canadian to boot is my current favorite. James Allen Gardner. AFAIK he has written 5 books, Expendable, Commitment Hour, Vigilant, Hunted and Ascending, all set in the same universe. His premise is that the Universe is run by super advanced being. They are benevolent but don't give away too much tech. They have but one law. No non-sentient may leave its home system. A non-sentient is defined as a being that murders a sentient. Oh, accidents and self defense are okay, but war isn't! If a non-sentient trys to warp out, it will find itself quite dead! In fact entire civilizations have been cut off from the universe because their government has been declared non-sentient. Its a cool premise and makes for some fascinating stories-- Ascending is absolutely hilarious without sacrificing the SF story.

Give him a read, you won't be disappointed.

Kim

Ruatha · #5 March 5th, 2003, 08:55 PM

Asimovs Foundation series is an all time high.
But I also like Jack L Chalkers Well of souls series, quite original:
Well World
(Midnight at the Well of Souls. 1977)
(Exiles at the Well of Souls. 1978)
(Quest for the Well of Souls. 1978)
(The Return of Nathan Brazil. 1980)
(Twilight at the Well of Souls. 1980)
Watchers at the Well
(Echoes of the Well of Souls. 1993)
(Shadow of the Well of Souls. 1994)
(Gods of the Well of Souls. 1994)

Also Ursula K LeGuin wrote good SF and Fantasy.

Cheeze · #6 March 6th, 2003, 07:04 AM

I may have said this already, but I recommend Zelazny's Lords of Light. And no, it's not a book based on Thundarr the Barbarian(although that would totally rule!!)!!

It is an awesome book that uses technology to mimic the powers ascribed to miracles or divinity in the Indian tradition. The hardest thing about the book, and what makes it most enjoyable to re-read, is that the chapters can alternate between the past and the present. I found that I often mixed up events as they occured in the storyline, and how much more sense they made when put in proper perspective.

That reminds me. In addition to wanting to create a design names list based on types of cheese, I want another one based on Hindu/Eastern deities, demons, heroes/heroines, places and things. Perhaps another list with names for guns would be fun...you'd have your Colt, Magnum, Kalashnikov, etc

QuarianRex · #7 March 6th, 2003, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Cheeze:
I may have said this already, but I recommend Zelazny's Lords of Light. And no, it's not a book based on Thundarr the Barbarian(although that would totally rule!!)!!

Holy SnotBalls Batman!! You remember Thundar ?!? I used to watch that when I was a kid. The Last season I saw was incredible! It had this story arc about a bunch of women who were transported from our universe and mysteriously given different powers as part of some kind of apocalyptic plot. It ended with a cliffhanger and said to watch for a conclusion next season. I waited all summer in anticipation for it to continue but it just disappeared from the airwaves. Not knowing the completion of that storyline is one of the few actual regrets that I have in my life.

Granted, that is all remembered through my then childish eyes. I managed to pick up a copy of one of the episodes in a bargain bin at blockbuster a few years back. I had forgotten all about that cyborg vilain who had two faces. The animation was laughable and the storyline was an abomination, but I tell myself that it must have gotten better in later seasons.

Anywho... Back to topic...

The Dune series. Tis a masterpiece. Truly a work of art.

The Jesus Incident and its sequels. Also by Frank Herbert. Has nothing to do with Dune but is a great read.

The Necroscope Series by Brian Lumley. About the only man on earth who can speak to the dead and the vampires who killed most of them.

Starship Troopers by Heinlein. If you have seen the movie you havent seen anythin yet. Possibly one of the best books ever written and a good map for how the military should be run (if only boot camp was like that...). Also the first mention of power-armour.

Anything by Clive Barker. This man has one of the richest imaginations I have ever encountered. He has an incredible capacity to evoke disturbing imagery. Although his tendancy to portray aberrant sexuality in most of his books means that I have a hard time recomending anything of his to my grandmother.

The Hiram Key by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. This is a non-fiction book about two freemasons who try to find the origins of their orders rituals. Their research points finds links going back to the Templars, Christ, and ancient Egypt. Think what you will, but their research is pretty good and it does tie up into a pretty damn solid theory, one that got me thinking. I highly recomend it. There is a sequel called The Second Messiah but I haven't gotten around to it yet.