And it may be too far off hard science and into adventure/space opera/undefined, but I also enjoyed Stephen Goldin's work, specifically Jade Darcy and the Zen Pirates. There were at least two in the series and I don't recall which one came first--that one or Affair of Honor. I'm a pretty character driven reader, but you might find something in Goldin's backlist and I think he does write some fantasy as well, so you'll want to be selective when browsing!
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