Best recent sci-fi novels

[NeilC]

I've been reading a bit of sci-fi again recently. Any recommendations for really good and relatively recent (10 years) sci-fi novels that really hold together well as a work of fiction and don't start with a good idea but tale off like many seem to.

I've been reading lots of good short stories but want some full length stuff.

[Anti_Hypeman]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345479211/sr=1-1/qid=1147278073/ref=sr_1_1/002-2899045-9768800?%5Fencoding=UTF8

[ImaginalDisc]

Destiny's Road by Larry Niven. It's a new book, and it has nothing at all to do with his Known Space setting.

[The Don]

Anything by Iain M. Banks

[Jon.]

I quite liked the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy by Robert J. Sawyer.

[Aurelian]

William Gibson: Neuromancer trilogy

Octavia Butler:

Parable of the Sower

Xenogensis Trilogy, read the series in order: Dawn, Adulthood Rites, and Imago.

Margaret Atwood's Oryx & Crake

[Bikewer]

I like Ian Banks too. Add to the list Greg Bear; I've enjoyed all of his novels. Maybe in a genre of it's own are the works of China Miehville, but greatly enjoyable-especially if you like prose.

[TragicMonkey]

Ilium by Dan Simmons. I haven't read the sequel yet, but Ilium was good.

[tomgv15]

Currently reading Simmon's Ilium. It's not grabbing me as quickly as the Hyperion books. I like the approach of three seemingly disparate story lines drifting towards each other. Simmons can wander off into different directions - it's worth the trip, so I'm hanging in there.

Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained by peter F. Hamilton. Great contemporary space opera. Each book clocks in at approximately 800 pages.
The opening sequence was fantastic. So, one chapter got me to read two fat novels. Be prepared for boredom. Hamilton brings in new story lines hundreds of pages into the story. Still, I bought Judas Unchained the day it came out. Check 'em out.

The Road to Mars - A Post-Modem Novel by Eric Idle. SF, Humor, and a treatise on comedic theory.

[Buckaroo]

Neal Stephenson RAWKS. Snow Crash, The Diamond Age, Cryptonomicon, and Zodiac are all not only brilliant, but a helluva lot of fun, too. Okay, so maybe Zodiac isn't as ambitious as the others, but it's a cracking good eco-thriller, and has its own charms.

Haven't read the Baroque sequence yet, but it's on my list.

[Mark A. Siefert]

I'm not reading anything recent, but I am reading David Drake's Hammer's Slammers books right now. In fact, they just released a hard cover compilation (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/189238969X/sr=8-1/qid=1147409404/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-9830049-1872015?%5Fencoding=UTF8)that I am very intersted in picking up as soon as I clear up some debt.

[Almo]

Dune may not be recent, but it rules from on high. It was awesome enough for Trena to read all 6 books, even though she generally doesn't like sci-fi.

[nescafe]

A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Venge.
Stories of Your Life and Others, by Ted Chiang. It is a collection of shorts, but they are marvellously crafted.
Anything by Greg Egan.
Anything by Charles Stross.
The Nights Dawn trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton.

[CptColumbo]

I've been reading a Harry Turtledove series where the CSA won the Civil War, and the events in North America parallel those in Europe in the early 20th century. With the CSA as Germany and the US as England/France.

[Nancarrow]

Anything by Iain M. Banks

Yes. Yes yes yes yes yes. Yessy McYestington of Yestown Yeshire.

(I concur with this suggestion)

[Buckaroo]

Anything by Greg Egan.


Dang, forgot about him. READ THIS.

[kevin]

Neal Stephenson RAWKS. Snow Crash, The Diamond Age, Cryptonomicon,

Seconded. Haven't made it round to Zodiac or the other stuff, but all of the above are great. Snow Crash is probably my favorite book.

[kevin]

I really enjoyed Eric Flint's Ring of Fire books. I've read the first 2 and one of the short story collections. You can get the first 2 (1632 & 1633) online for free:

http://www.baen.com/library/eflint.htm

Basically he took a mining town in modern west virginia and transported back to 1632 Germany. He then looks at the effects our ideas and technology has on the world.

He also opened it up to other writers to write with other characters in the same world. It's very interesting stuff.

[kevin]

I've been reading a Harry Turtledove series where the CSA won the Civil War, and the events in North America parallel those in Europe in the early 20th century. With the CSA as Germany and the US as England/France.

I thought Guns of the South was awesome. I hadn't realized he'd written more on that.

I tried his alternate history book on WWII (where aliens invade during WWII). I thought the concept was good, but there were so many characters over such a wide area that I couldn't keep up. I stopped reading around 3rd book. I should go back and give it another try.

[TobiasTheViking]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345479211/sr=1-1/qid=1147278073/ref=sr_1_1/002-2899045-9768800?%5Fencoding=UTF8
you've GOT to be kidding.

[joe1347]

Old Man's War and The Ghost Brigades - John Scalzi

[antihippy]

Iain Banks! yes! Anything by Iain Banks!

But, as he is well known I will make some additional recommendations:

Anything by Ken Mcleod! Start with the Start Fraction and then just work your way through the rest of the books.

Also Charles Stross is not bad. I preferred his second book, Iron Sunrise, over his first

I also read a compilation of "Scottish Speculative Fiction" called Nova Scotia recently. very very good. Unlike a lot of anthologies there is not a bad story here (admittedly some are merely above average).
My girlfriend has promised to lend me a book of contemporary Finnsh SF/fantasy fiction which sounds excellent as well. Apparently there is a really good "1st contact" story in there that is ... unsettling.

I'd also recommend anything by Alistair Reynolds.

Unlike others I don't really like Peter F hamilton all that much. He has good ideas but tends to get them out too quickly. I liked the start of Nights Dawn but by the end of the 2nd, beginning of the 3rd, book was mightily fed up. And I thought Pandora's Star was highly overrated; good in parts but mostly patchy. I've come to equate him with Thomas Harris - good if you need to spend time in an airport lounge.

[Bikewer]

Currently reading Greg Bear's new title, Quantico. Only about a hundred pages in, but if Bear's vision of future law enforcement is even close, I'm happy I'll be retiring...

[fabian_lidman]

I second those who recommended Greg Egan. Especially "Permutation city" -- it's deep stuff.

[beowulf573]

"Spin" by Robert Charles Wilson. Couldn't put it down.

[Red Siegfried]

David Gerrold's "Chtorr" series is brilliant, and only a little older than 10 yrs:

A Matter For Men
A Day For Damnation
A Rage For Revenge
A Season For Slaughter

And the series is unfinished! Arrghhh!!! Nag David Gerrold to finish the damn "longest trilogy he ever wrote"!

http://www.gerrold.com/

http://www.chtorr.com/

Gerrold basically wrote the series bible for Star Trek: TNG and is probably best known for writing one of the most popular Star Trek episodes ever, "The Trouble With Tribbles." Also did a lot of writing for TV - great guy, and has a new movie coming out soon based on one of his books - "The Martian Child."

Finish the damn story, Dave! These cliffhangers are killing me!

[Mojo]

I'd second Greg Egan, Alastair Reynolds, Ken McLeod and Neal Stevenson, and add Stephen Baxter if you like hard sci-fi.

[nescafe]

"Spin" by Robert Charles Wilson. Couldn't put it down.
Ooooh, haven't read that one yet. Loved Darwinia and Chronoliths, though.

[Mark A. Siefert]

Currently reading Greg Bear's new title, Quantico. Only about a hundred pages in, but if Bear's vision of future law enforcement is even close, I'm happy I'll be retiring...

Have you ever read Queen Of Angels?

[nescafe]

Iain Banks! yes! Anything by Iain Banks!


Gotta second that. Anything by Iain Banks (and Iain M. Banks) is generally worth reading.


Also Charles Stross is not bad. I preferred his second book, Iron Sunrise, over his first


You mean just in that series? (the Eschaton series -- Singularity Sky and The Iron Sunrise) The Atrocity Archives is a hilarious book (not quite scifi, more like H.P. Lovecraft had a love child with the producers of the BBC miniseries The I.T. Crowd), and Accelerando (available online -- google for it (silly URL mangling)) is well worth a read.

[antihippy]

I hadn't heard of "The Atrocity Archives" so will check it out. I suppose that makes Iron Sunrise his third book! I've not read Accelerando yet as I'm waiting for the paperback version. I'm not one for reading books online, or printing onto A4 - there is just something wrong with that. I like having a load of shelves stacked with books!

[Wudang]

Gotta second that. Anything by Iain Banks (and Iain M. Banks) is generally worth reading.


Except "The business", "Song of stone", "dead air" and Inversions. But "The bridge", "Espedair street" and "Use of weapons" are first rate.

Richard Morgan - sure the characters are a little thin sometime but the plots race along.
I second Vinge and Stephenson though I can't seem to get going with the Baroque books.
In fantasy get Robin Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice.
Jordan's Wheel of Time I loved until about book 7. I've read 10 and now I plan to not buy any until the damned thing is finished and I can skim through the description's of Elayne's gowns and every woman's generic tantrums.
And try this (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0553579703/qid=1147776285/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-5808979-7992013?s=books&v=glance&n=283155)

[rats]

I second:
Oryx & Crake, by Margaret Atwood

Also:
China Miehville (I've read Perdido Street Station, and The Scar)

Only read one Iain M. Banks, which was so shallow I don't even remember what it was about (liked The Wasp Factory though). Probably picked a bad one.

[antihippy]

Oh, I'd forgotten to say that I am not a fan of Iain Banks's contemporary stuff. His SF stuff is far far better.

Sorry I didn't make that clear; to me Iain Banks and Iain M Banks are interchangeable.

I didn't like Perdito Street Station. It felt incomplete to me and ran afoul of the "mention adult themes and it will be classed as contemporary fantasy" cliche. It just wasn't my thing. Although I did like some of the idea in the book and he can certainly can write. I just didn't like what he was writing about.

As people are mentioning fantasy ....

I read less Fantasy than I used to, but would recommend "The Monarchies of God" series. A cracking read which moves along at a fair old pace.

Link to book one: Hawkwood's Voyage (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0441009034/qid=1147778135/sr=8-7/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i7_xgl/203-5305518-1034340)

I also enjoyed The Fencer Trilogy by KJ Parker; although I felt that her unsympathetic attitude to some of the characters spoiled her writing a little. Itput me off her scavenger trilogy and the current engineer trilogy. I didn't get past half of the 2nd book of the former and was unimpressed and frustrated with the latter.

I really enjoyed all of Robin Hobb's books up till the Fools Fate , which I didn't even read the last few pages of - I thought it was a boring exercise in closure.

[briquce]

Some of my favorites have already been mentioned, so I'll toss in: "Sewer, Gas and Electric" by Matt Ruff; "Jumper" and its sequel "Reflex" by Steven Gould.

[ferd burfle]

William Gibson: Neuromancer trilogy

Very much seconded. You asked for novels but if you're in the mood for short stories, Gibson's Burning Chrome contains some excellent ones, IMO.

Ferd

[Red Siegfried]

Very much seconded. You asked for novels but if you're in the mood for short stories, Gibson's Burning Chrome contains some excellent ones, IMO.

Ferd


Classic cyberpunk, ahead of it's time. Thirded. Mona Lisa Overdrive was brilliant too. All his books have been criticized as not having accurately predicted the future, but IMO, aside from 1980's paranoia of the Japanese owning the world as an economic superpower, which is kind of cliche now, they're a brilliant view of the future that could still come to pass. And who knows, maybe the Japanese WILL buy the world someday. ;)

[Mojo]

All his books have been criticized as not having accurately predicted the future...Well, that's not actually what sci-fi tries to achieve.

Oh, and I forgot to mention Jon Courtenay Grimwood earlier.

[Bikewer]

Mark Siefert: Yes, Queen of Angels is one of my favorite Bear titles. Read it several times.
For those not familiar, Bear covers a number of "Big Ideas" in this one, including the nature of consciousness (via an "emerging" AI), the nature of justice, future law-enforcement techniques, and probing the mind of a mass-murderer.
Compelling stuff.

[Red Siegfried]

Well, that's not actually what sci-fi tries to achieve.

Oh, and I forgot to mention Jon Courtenay Grimwood earlier.

Agreed. Somewhere in my response I left out what I originally intended to type which was "but that's why it's called science FICTION." Judging the book on whether or not it accurately depicts future events is kind of missing the point.

[kevin]

Agreed. Somewhere in my response I left out what I originally intended to type which was "but that's why it's called science FICTION." Judging the book on whether or not it accurately depicts future events is kind of missing the point.

I love reading old science fiction. Especially anything written before the theory of relativity.

Check out E.E. "Doc" Smith's Skylark series.

Asimov kept his Lucky Starr series from being reprinted for quite some time because investigations of the planets showed his speculations wrong. He eventually allowed them to be reprinted with a new forward he wrote explaining the problem.

[Angus McPresley]

A Fire Upon The Deep, by Vernor Venge.
Stories of Your Life and Others, by Ted Chiang. It is a collection of shorts, but they are marvellously crafted.
Anything by Greg Egan.
Anything by Charles Stross.
The Nights Dawn trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton.


The Chiang stories are just marvelous, among the best SF stories ever written, IMHO.

I'll add to the chorus about Greg Egan as well. He also seems to be that rare breed of writer who started excellent and got better as he went along.

I've only read Singularity Sky by Stross; he is just so different from every other writer that he deserves a go. I would have never thought that including so many obscure references to modern computing in stories could ever work, let alone be so much fun.

Other modern writers I like, at least in the short story realm, are Nancy Kress, Robert Reed, and Connie Willis.

I know you asked for novels, but I would still recommend this recent collection (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/031233656X/102-2219027-2101735?v=glance&n=283155) of the best of the best from the last 20 years, edited by Gardner Dozois. SF needed to change, and Gardner was the right man in the right place -- almost singlehandedly he brought the right new element into the field: literacy.

[jimbob]

*bump*

Second Ian M Banks (except Inversions)

And some of Charles Stross (Iron Sunrise especially). I don't klike his fantasy.

Neal Asher is a good "Culture Lite": quick reads and lots of action, try "The Skinner" first...

Peter F Hamilton is OK at first but he needs an editor.


Alistair Rynolds seems to start well, but then finish very abruptly

[Mojo]

Peter F Hamilton is OK at first but he needs an editor.Doesn't he just? That bloody trilogy: 1,000 pages per volume and still something of a cop-out ending...

[wolfgirl]

I hadn't read any sci-fi for years, and then a couple of years ago, NPR was doing one of their pieces where they recommend new books. One that was mentioned was Altered Carbon by a brand-new sci-fi author, Richard Morgan. I got it from the library and started reading it. Within just a few pages, I was hooked! Once I was done, I went out and bought it and its sequel, Broken Angels. I convinced my husband (who generally doesn't read much fiction) to read them, and he loved them, too. We've also lent it to friends, who are equally addicted. I'm just now reading the third in the series, Woken Furies (had lent it to a friend while I finished reading The God Delusion, and he just now gave it back!).

Wonderful hybrid of cyberpunk with noir-style detective story. A great lead character who is super-cool and super-tough; I usually don't like the uber-macho type, but Takeshi is just right. A good action story but with some things to make you think, especially about the nature of identity. Happens in a world (universe) that I can't help but picture as Blade Runner-esque. Narrative and dialogue that makes you feel as if you're there. I think that the style might be off-putting to some people, because he throws in language and cultural references contemporary to the time of the story, with no explanation. You have to figure it all out from the context, which I find totally cool in that it assumes some measure of intelligence on the part of the reader.

Three books in the Takeshi Kovacs saga (read them in order, or you'll have no idea what's going on):

Altered Carbon
Broken Angels
Woken Furies

Read them NOW!

Also by Richard Morgan, but not Takeshi Kovacs novels, and I haven't read them...yet:

Market Forces
Black Man (coming in May)

[wolfgirl]

Since I'm kinda in the mood to get back into reading sci-fi (especially after reading all these enthusiastic endorsements!), I'm gonna start with a few of your suggestions. Since Iain Banks seems to be someone a lot of you like (and I sheepishly confess to never having read), which of his books would you recommend I start with?

[Mojo]

The Wasp Factory.

If it's Iain M. Banks you're after ;), I'd suggest Against a Dark Background.

[Soapy Sam]

Iain Banks and Ian M Banks are the same person.
His early novels- and in general the non-SF stuff- is published without the middle initial, but his mainstream fiction often has SF elements- notably "The Bridge".

[merentha]

Second Ian M Banks (except Inversions)

"Inversions" may not be high on the Culture-tech, but it is still a very good Culture book. I wouldn't recommend it to first-time Culture readers, though. Best read after "Use of Weapons" (the best "M" book IMHO). Interesting to see Contact from the other side.

[gtc]

I would recommend John Barnes' 'Century Next Door' and 'A Million Open Doors' series.

His wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Barnes_(author)) article lists the various books in those series.

I would also recommend S.M Stirling (http://www.smstirling.com/). His 'The Peshawar Lancers' is probably my favourite, but I also like the 'Dies the Fire' series. The first book in the 'Dies the Fire' series didn't seem to be as well written (edited?) as the 'Peshawar Lancers' but became enormously gripping by the end.

[bruto]

Another vote for Oryx and Crake, which I just happen to be in the middle of rereading.

[jimbob]

Since I'm kinda in the mood to get back into reading sci-fi (especially after reading all these enthusiastic endorsements!), I'm gonna start with a few of your suggestions. Since Iain Banks seems to be someone a lot of you like (and I sheepishly confess to never having read), which of his books would you recommend I start with?

I'd recommend "Use of Weapons" as the best culture book, followed closly by "Consider Phlebas" and "Excession", whilst "The Player of Games" is probably the most "straight" SF book.

Use of Weapons
Use of Weapons
Use of Weapons
Use of Weapons
Use of Weapons

"The Wasp Factory" and "Complicity" are fun but fairly grim...

(some people have accused Damian Hurst of stealing the idea of the Wasp Factory and using it in his "sculptures"; even if untrue, it gives you a flavour of that book).