books with living/sentient/AI ships

sherman · 04-08-2011, 03:52 AM

Hi folks...

So yeah, basically feel like reading books that include some sort of living/sentient/AI ships as main or major characters. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Have read the likes of Brainships (McCaffrey), Liveship Traders (Hobb), Dahak (Weber) etc.

ATDrake · 04-08-2011, 04:06 AM

If sf comedy might be your thing and you're willing to haunt the used bookstores, Nick Pollotta writing as "Jack Hopkins" did a very funny 3-book series about a futuristic network news team, published by Ace in the 90s. Details at the ISFDB.

The pilot of the ship (who had an equal role and screentime to the rest of the regular cast) they used to get around the solar system was a disembodied Brain-in-a-Jar, and in that setting, Brains ran ships, space stations, etc. The series starts with Satellite Night News, though I read them out of order and they worked pretty well standalone.

Xoanon · 04-08-2011, 05:40 AM

The Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton has sentient star ships and space stations.

dworth · 04-08-2011, 07:20 AM

Iain M Banks' series of novels set in the Culture features a large number of characters who are sentient starships.

ardeegee · 04-08-2011, 01:16 PM

Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space series has one.

TonyR · 04-08-2011, 01:39 PM

Frank Herbert's novel DESTINATION: VOID is worth a look.

Bests,

Tony Rabig
The Other Iron River, and Other Stories, at Amazon Kindle Store
The Other Iron River, and Other Stories, at Smashwords

sherman · 04-09-2011, 05:54 AM

Thanks for the suggestions guys?

Any others?

sabredog · 04-09-2011, 06:47 AM

Fifth Imperium you have mentioned. Have you tried the Safehold series by David Weber. Not quite a sentient spaceship, but a living AI trying to guide the second rise of man.

Jadon · 04-09-2011, 08:21 PM

Fool's War by Sarah Zettel has an emergent AI in a mechanical ship. If you stretch the point, The Two Faces of Tomorrow by James P. Hogan has one in a mechanical space station. The Helix and the Sword by John C. McLoughlin has biological space ships and stations (not sapient, IIRC), though not as major characters. The latter volumes in Thomas A. Easton's "Organic Future" series have biological starships.

Bill Starr has a "damaged human bonded to starship" character in The Way to Dawnworld and The Treasure of Wonderwhat. They're far from significant plot points, but there are living sea-faring ships in The Crucible of Time by John Brunner and Harry Harrison's "Eden" trilogy. (Crucible wins points for being one of the rare novels without humans/humanoids.) There's a sapient biological sky-city in The Quiet Invasion by Sarah Zettel.

Moya on the Farscape TV series was sapient. While not a major player in the two Farscape novels I've read, there are several other novels and anthologies. The AI leading the generation ship in Kevin O'Donnell Jr.'s Mayflies is sapient and a significant character. John Varley's Titan series has sapient biological space stations.

JeremyR · 04-10-2011, 05:22 AM

There's the classic short story, "Mr. Spaceship" by Philip K. Dick

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/32522

sabredog · 04-10-2011, 07:47 AM

David Weber's "Path of the Fury" had a AI controlling the main characters starship

gollu · 04-10-2011, 02:49 PM

There is the classic book for me :
Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke
A must read for any scifi fan :P

Jadon · 04-10-2011, 08:30 PM

Not major in either case, but in both the Mechanical Sky and Genesis duologies, Donald Moffitt has bioengineered trees as relativistic starships.

Bricorn · 04-11-2011, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jadon

Not major in either case, but in both the Mechanical Sky and Genesis duologies, Donald Moffitt has bioengineered trees as relativistic starships.

interesting, thanks.

grumpy3b · 04-11-2011, 04:10 PM

Heinlein had several:

Methuselah's Children (memory fuzzy but pretty sure as Dora is part of the Lazarus Long/Howard Family short stories as well as the novels)
Time Enough for Love
The Number of the Beast (perhpas far from his best work but readable)
add to this many short stories about the Howard Family and Lazarus Long where these ships come in and out of the plots.

Also with not a ship but a sentient computer system was The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.

The Hal Spacejock books by Simon Haynes who is a member here, there are four, also have an AI ship, and sentient robots as well.

I think there might be a couple more but I don't recall at the moment.

04-08-2011, 03:52 AM	#1
sherman Guru Posts: 875 Karma: 2676800 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Taranaki - NZ Device: Kobo Aura H2O, Kobo Forma	books with living/sentient/AI ships Hi folks... So yeah, basically feel like reading books that include some sort of living/sentient/AI ships as main or major characters. Does anyone have any suggestions? Have read the likes of Brainships (McCaffrey), Liveship Traders (Hobb), Dahak (Weber) etc.

04-09-2011, 08:21 PM	#9
Jadon Hermit Posts: 192 Karma: 9425 Join Date: Oct 2006 Device: Kindle Keyboard, Kobo Glo	Fool's War by Sarah Zettel has an emergent AI in a mechanical ship. If you stretch the point, The Two Faces of Tomorrow by James P. Hogan has one in a mechanical space station. The Helix and the Sword by John C. McLoughlin has biological space ships and stations (not sapient, IIRC), though not as major characters. The latter volumes in Thomas A. Easton's "Organic Future" series have biological starships. Bill Starr has a "damaged human bonded to starship" character in The Way to Dawnworld and The Treasure of Wonderwhat. They're far from significant plot points, but there are living sea-faring ships in The Crucible of Time by John Brunner and Harry Harrison's "Eden" trilogy. (Crucible wins points for being one of the rare novels without humans/humanoids.) There's a sapient biological sky-city in The Quiet Invasion by Sarah Zettel. Moya on the Farscape TV series was sapient. While not a major player in the two Farscape novels I've read, there are several other novels and anthologies. The AI leading the generation ship in Kevin O'Donnell Jr.'s Mayflies is sapient and a significant character. John Varley's Titan series has sapient biological space stations. Last edited by Jadon; 04-09-2011 at 08:26 PM. Reason: more examples

04-11-2011, 04:10 PM	#15
grumpy3b Banned Posts: 246 Karma: 14967 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 2 (x2), Kindle 1, a couple old PDAs	Heinlein had several: Methuselah's Children (memory fuzzy but pretty sure as Dora is part of the Lazarus Long/Howard Family short stories as well as the novels) Time Enough for Love The Number of the Beast (perhpas far from his best work but readable) add to this many short stories about the Howard Family and Lazarus Long where these ships come in and out of the plots. Also with not a ship but a sentient computer system was The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. The Hal Spacejock books by Simon Haynes who is a member here, there are four, also have an AI ship, and sentient robots as well. I think there might be a couple more but I don't recall at the moment. Last edited by grumpy3b; 04-11-2011 at 04:13 PM.

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04-08-2011, 04:06 AM	#2
ATDrake Wizzard Posts: 11,517 Karma: 33048258 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Roundworld Device: Kindle 2 International, Sony PRS-T1, BlackBerry PlayBook, Acer Iconia	If sf comedy might be your thing and you're willing to haunt the used bookstores, Nick Pollotta writing as "Jack Hopkins" did a very funny 3-book series about a futuristic network news team, published by Ace in the 90s. Details at the ISFDB. The pilot of the ship (who had an equal role and screentime to the rest of the regular cast) they used to get around the solar system was a disembodied Brain-in-a-Jar, and in that setting, Brains ran ships, space stations, etc. The series starts with Satellite Night News, though I read them out of order and they worked pretty well standalone.

04-08-2011, 05:40 AM	#3
Xoanon Enthusiast Posts: 32 Karma: 502326 Join Date: Feb 2011 Device: Kindle	The Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton has sentient star ships and space stations.

04-08-2011, 07:20 AM	#4
dworth Zealot Posts: 140 Karma: 2094632 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Bradford, UK Device: kindle pc	Iain M Banks' series of novels set in the Culture features a large number of characters who are sentient starships.

04-08-2011, 01:16 PM	#5
ardeegee Maratus speciosus butt Posts: 3,292 Karma: 1162698 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-350	Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space series has one.

04-08-2011, 01:39 PM	#6
TonyR Connoisseur Posts: 55 Karma: 100000 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Kansas Device: Kindle, Jetbook Lite, iPod Touch	Frank Herbert's novel DESTINATION: VOID is worth a look. Bests, Tony Rabig The Other Iron River, and Other Stories, at Amazon Kindle Store The Other Iron River, and Other Stories, at Smashwords

04-09-2011, 05:54 AM	#7
sherman Guru Posts: 875 Karma: 2676800 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Taranaki - NZ Device: Kobo Aura H2O, Kobo Forma	Thanks for the suggestions guys? Any others?

04-09-2011, 06:47 AM	#8
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Fifth Imperium you have mentioned. Have you tried the Safehold series by David Weber. Not quite a sentient spaceship, but a living AI trying to guide the second rise of man.

04-10-2011, 05:22 AM	#10
JeremyR Guru Posts: 973 Karma: 2458402 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: St. Louis Device: Kindle Keyboard, Nook HD+	There's the classic short story, "Mr. Spaceship" by Philip K. Dick http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/32522

04-10-2011, 07:47 AM	#11
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	David Weber's "Path of the Fury" had a AI controlling the main characters starship

04-10-2011, 02:49 PM	#12
gollu Unsullied Posts: 249 Karma: 759693 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Israel Device: Kindle 2i	There is the classic book for me : Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke A must read for any scifi fan :P

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04-10-2011, 08:30 PM	#13
Jadon Hermit Posts: 192 Karma: 9425 Join Date: Oct 2006 Device: Kindle Keyboard, Kobo Glo	Not major in either case, but in both the Mechanical Sky and Genesis duologies, Donald Moffitt has bioengineered trees as relativistic starships.