Science Fiction + ______ Recommendations

[Iphinome]

Originally Posted by TStarnes

If you are looking for more, I have been trying to make a system (mostly for myself and my son) to help me find new book recommendations that match stuff I already like. If your interested its at homeofreading.com

You might find that goodreads will meet your needs.

[TStarnes]

Originally Posted by Iphinome

You might find that goodreads will meet your needs.

I find that the way they do recommendations isn't very good. Its more what other people like, but since people have such a wide range of tastes, the suggestions I get don't really match up. If I show I like the vorkosiogn series, why suggest harry potter, the two are pretty different. At least get the genre right.

Book social networks are good for that, being a social network. But as a tool for finding new books that match with what I like, I find they leave much to be desired.

[jrlewis]

Dan Simmons' Hyperion books have some mysteries, particularly the first book, Hyperion. There are seven main characters, each with a complex and bizarre personal history that needs to be resolved.

[FizzyWater]

Kristine Kathryn Rusch has her Retrieval Artist series (first book is The Disappeared, although she does have a short story called The Retrieval Artist that might pre-date it chronologically).

[CHunter_Author]

Have you ever read "The Bradbury Report" by Steven Polansky? It's pretty good. The narrator is a little airy, but the story is more circumstantial than anything else . I know what you mean, trying to find a sci-fi book that doesn't scream sci-fi. In the best sci-fi books the genre disappears within the story. My current book is an attempt at that very ideal. Definately check out the Bradbury Report. See if that is what you have in mind.

[DArenson]

Dean Koontz writes good horror + dark fantasy + science fiction. For example, Lightning.

[earthpigborn]

Just popping back in to thank everyone for their replies. I've spent the past few days reading Adam Troy Castro's Emissaries from the Dead- it's a decent Sci-Fi/Mystery with the traditional "detective with a chip on her shoulder" heroine but the setting is pretty cool and while the book is confined to a single space station the universe it inhabits looks like it'll be fun to explore.

[djb132]

I'm currently reading a series from Baen Books. It has mystery, Sci-Fi elements & historical(ish) fiction.

If you give it a try, I'd recommend reading a few chapters before deciding if you like the book. If I looked at the first book in a book store or at the library, I wouldn't have gotten it.

As a bonus, the first 4 books of the series can be had for free from Baen Books' library.

Belisarius Saga

An Oblique Approach
In the Heart of Darkness
Destiny's Shield
Fortune's Stroke
The Tide of Victory
The Dance of Time


The first book, An Oblique Approach is at http://www.webscription.net/p-300-an...-approach.aspx

[BenG]

Cowboy Angels by Paul McAuley - Stargate meets 24

[RexGalore]

Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan. Great book!
A sci-fi book that has elements of a noir-crime-story.

[DMSmillie]

For a mix of political intrigue with elements of "who dun it", against a background of social change and unrest with the early stirrings of war, plus brilliant characters and human expansion throughout the solar system and beyond into deep space, I highly highly highly recommend "Heavy Time" by C.J. Cherryh, and the sequel "Hellburner" (which has added overtones of "gamers on the bleeding edge", to borrow from the "book in 5 words" thread Hellburner is my stand-out, all-time favourite book - I've lost track of how many times I've read it).

The description on her website reads:

"Initial book of the Alliance-Union Universe, followed by Hellburner. Actually best to read Downbelow Station first, though it comes later. These are the books of the Company Wars, the foundation piece for the whole Alliance-Union Universe."

(Note: I didn't read "Downbelow Station" before reading these two books, and didn't feel I was missing anything.)

Both of these are available ($5 each) in a wide range of DRM-free ebook formats on the website she shares with two other authors - Closed Circle.

Only downside is that, because of issues with publishers and a desire to do the ebook thing herself (with the other two authors in Closed Circle) rather than having publishers handle it all, getting her other books out as ebooks is proving kind of slow, so might have to wait a bit before more of her Alliance/Union universe books become available. But I reckon Heavy Time/Hellburner stand on their own very well.

[WillAdams]

::applause::

_Heavy Time_ and _Hellburner_ are _excellent_ books --- highly recommended. Also very good (though I mis-like the casual sex angle) is _Rimrunners_ --- _Merchanter's Luck_ is somewhat better on that, though it's similar attitudes.

Cherryh's Alliance-Union universe is a really well-realised one and I wish she'd write more in it.

Her Morgaine trilogy is as good (and some would argue also a part of it) --- and so perfectly suited to be the world for a MMRPG that I'm surprised no one has ever licensed it for that purpose.

William

[BrentKnowles]

I'll second the Robert J. Sawyer recommendation!

[Richard Kane]

Pardon me mentioning this author again in this forum, but Carel Mackenbach has written his SF novel with the Vatican as visual arena.

Brother Frank Bootsma - an astronomer of the Vatican Observatory - is abducted to future China because he is somehow connected to the inventor of a time-travel machine. Bootsma has discovered the Vatican has been manipulating time since the condemnation of Galileo. Don't want to spoil the plot so check it out yourself.

No space odyssey, but a remarkable story that has pre-Big Bang residues, an unexplained solstice in a Basilica in Burgundy Vezelay in France, and a mysterious sundial in the Tower of the Winds on top of the Vatican Secret Archives as major story elements.

Time Hack has a cheaper version as The Day Time was Hacked. See at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk for Kindle downloads.

[snipenekkid]

Originally Posted by earthpigborn

I'm looking for books that are set in Science Fiction universes but with a plot that could belong in a different genre. Like Asimov's Robot series- set in the far future with robots but is essentially a mystery story.

My preference would be SF+mysteries but if you have a combination that's really good, go ahead and list them. I'll read anything

I am unsure about availability as ebooks but something to watch and search for are the The Black Widowers Society by Asimov. They are short stores, mysteries, not so much SF but, hey it's Asimov and that was enough for me. But the stories are fun and good puzzle type mysteries.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...GlmCPyrHg_kPMA

I first found out about them here and have only found a couple used anthologies with a story here and there.