Never could get into science fiction. Any book that might start me liking it?
Never could get into science fiction. Any book that might start me liking it?
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Never could get into science fiction. Any book that might start me liking it?
Ready Player One. It’s the first science fiction book I’ve read in decades and reminded me of what I enjoyed about the genre.
Try any of Issac Asimov books…..and remember that he was writing these 50 years ago! Try The Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe.
Galaxy*
I have to second The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series. Great books, so much fun.
I didn’t care for the genre till I read The Hitchhikers Guide to Galaxy. Love it.
Dune.
Dragon Riders of Pern.
Wanderer’s Escape.
Ready Player One – first one I was able to stick with
Blaze Ward has a series I love, The Jessica Keller Chronicles, but if a female MC isn’t your thing he also wrote a series entitled The Science Officer with a male MC. Lots of battle strategy, politics, and general mayhem.
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.
I’m literally about to start that ?
You probably won’t regret that decision. Maybe.
Red Rising trilogy. It’s what the Hunger Games should’ve been, in my opinion.
I loved the Red Rising Trilogy and was surprised it didn’t become more popular.
Supposedly going to be a movie so we’ll see.
LOVE this series ❤
Thanks all.
The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Ready Player One
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card. Excellent voice.
Ready Player One or The Martian!
The Martian was surprisingly good. My buddy INSISTED I read it.
@Vic I am glad you enjoyed it! I was worried I wouldn’t like it sense it started off pretty science heavy but after about 40 pages I really got into it
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch.
The Wheel of Time series. I think that’s the name of it.
The Host, that’s not too much sci-fi but still a little bit !
ACOTAR!
That’s far from sci-fi
https://amzn.to/2kvUN3O
Nope. I am in the same boat lol
The Ann Leckie Ancillary trilogy is exceptionally well written. She obviously knows her Henry James and Joseph Conrad and Virginia Woolf and tries to work forward from their advances in what’s possible for first person narration to do.
So Douglas Adams’ Hitchhiker has been mentioned, but I also have to share some love on Fantasy as well. I’m a major fan of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series. First book I read of that series was Men At Arms about a murdered clown and Leonardo Da Vinci accidentally inventing a Gun.
The other book I always recommend is Hogfather, when the personification of Death has to dress up like Santa Claus and deliver Christmas presents, or the real Claus will cease to exist. It’s complicated.
I also think you might like some Star Wars books, if that’s your speed, particularly The Thrawn books by Timothy Zahn, Peter David’s Star Trek books (I love Q-Squared), and Doctor Who.
Especially Doctor Who books written by this crazy funnyman named Douglas Adams. You might have heard of him?
Love Terry Pratchett books!
@Diane Me, too!
Please share your favorites! Mine is either Night Watch (I’m a huge Les Mis fan) or Hogfather because when I’m feeling down this quote always makes me laugh: “Getting an education was a bit like a communicable sexual disease. It made you unsuitable for a lot of jobs and then you had the urge to pass it on.”
Dune!!
Yep hitchhikers won me over
http://bewareofmonsters.com/ Jeremy Robinson has something in damn near every field of sci-fi, and all of it is great.
ANTARKTOS RISING starts by feeling like the movie 2012, and then comes into its own tale.
DIDYMUS CONTINGENCY is a time travel tale where a scientist tries to disprove Jesus Christ.
In PULSE, the Chess Team has to battle the mythical Lernean Hydra, reborn in the modern age by a mad scientist.
In PROJECT LEGION, he gets Godzilla style action but with a solid heart. (Later books go full-on Pacific Rim.)
With THE DISTANCE, one man has to cross the country to save a lady after everyone else on the planet is turned to dust.
And in HUNGER, I personally solve world hunger… and cause the Apocalypse in the process.
There are literally a couple dozen others that I didn’t name here listed on the site above. 😀
Isaac Asimov’s Foundation stories are classic science fiction and you might like them.
That’s my favorite genre!
My suggestions would be Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game quartet, or The Worthing Saga for space opera. For time travel sci-fi, perhaps Connie Willis’s Doomsday Book, To Say Nothing of the Dog, or Blackout/All Clear.
I also second The Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Dune.
ENDER’S GAME itself, absolutely. I’ve always been afraid to go beyond that one simply because it is *so* amazing.
You’re right, Ender’s Game is amazing, but I would recommend trying the books that follow it if you’re interested. Especially since there are two directions to go from Ender’s Game: you either follow Ender or follow Bean. And actually, after reading them, Shadow of the Hegemon and Xenocide became my favorites from that series.
Ender’s Game, Ready Player One, Jurassic Park
i struggle with syfy and high fantasy myself but loved Hitchhiker’s Guide. i know that Dune is supposed to be a great series. i’ve never read it.
i do find that while not good with traditional syfy i really do enjoy techno thrillers my favorite being “The Sapporo Outbreak” by Brain Craighead (Kindle has it for .99 cents)
Red Rising by Pierce Brown.
It’s also a series…I called it a Star Wars /Hunger Games combo. It definitely attracted me and I couldn’t wait to read the next one!
Jim Butcher’s Dresden Series. It’s a mix of fantasy and old school detective novel. It’s fun and well written.
Or, if you’re looking for societal commentary, Stover’s Cain series.
If you don’t like sci-fi I’m not really sure you’ll get into it. But I really like Ready Player One, The Martian, Armada, Artemis, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, and Dark Matter.
REBEL WING trilogy by Tracy Banghart was minimal sci-fi told more as a war story.
And I absolutely despise Steve Alten, but his book MEG has a movie version coming out this summer and is a genuinely fun summer read. Basically, Super Jaws but at San Diego rather than New Emgland.
The forever war
The Martian by Andy Weir
Hungry, it’s YA, but good
Ender’s Game is good.
check out Thadd Evans on extasy books! he is a stunning author xx
Childhood’s End by Arthur C. Clarke, an all time best.
The City and the Stars is my favorite by him.
try michael grants series (can’t remember the names), dark matter and the chaos walking trilogy
Dark Matter
Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. And many comic books are sci-fi.
There are different types, ive fond anne mccaffrey to be a good starter, for me, maybe try crystal singer
The Brain Ship books are really good. Also love James P Hogan.
Childhood’s End. Arthur C Clark. I always cry at the end.
Illumina
Riders of Pern buy McCarthy
Anne McCaffrey
Mine. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1483443825/
https://www.amazon.com/Ecstasy-Unbound-Guardians-Realms-Book-ebook/dp/B06XD7YDBW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527559441&sr=8-1&keywords=setta+jay
These books got me into SF
Spin https://www.amazon.com/Spin-Robert-Charles-Wilson-ebook/dp/B0016IXMWI/
I also liked Robopocalypse: https://www.amazon.com/Robopocalypse-Contemporaries-Daniel-H-Wilson-ebook/dp/B004CFAWS4/
Genesis by Bernard Beckett – it’s short and philosophical.
Anathem by Neal Stephenson – it’s long, but full of wit, steeped in both history and speculative science, and also has some really great action scenes.
Lexicon by Max Barry – it’s really more of an action thriller that just happens to have a sci fi bent.
A Long Long Sleep by Ann Sheehan – YA retelling of Sleeping Beauty as a teen who was cryogenically frozen and awoken far into the future.
War With the Newts by Karel Capel – classic satire novel that uses sci fi as social commentary.
Roadside Picnic by the Strugatsky Brothers – Classic nihilist sci fi with a side of the weird. Inspired the Tarkovsky film Stalker (and subsequently the video games). An absolute staple of science fiction.
There are all sorts of science fiction– I’m sure you’ll find something you enjoy!
“HItchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” is what changed my mind about sci-fi. Also most of Isaac Asimov’s work or Ray Bradbury. Kurt Vonnegut has some good sci-fi too.
Stephen R. Donaldson is great!
Ender’s Game
Ursula LeGuin
Job a comedy of errors…
By Robert Heinlein
Nemesis by Asimov. Oh, have you tried reading anything by Ray Bradbury? Try his short story “A Sound of Thunder”.
The Shiva XIV series by Lyra Shanti.
She has some short reads in the series as well as three novels.
Maybe start with a short? I really enjoyed them, but I’m not really into hard core sci fi either.
Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
Ready Player One
The Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov. It is not a long novel and it was published in 1953. The science is not deep, like you don’t have to know physics or chemistry, etc., It is actually a murder mystery set in the future. I have read it twice since I first discovered it back in the early 80’s and still have my copy.
I don’t know if these are really sci-fi but 1984 (george orwell) And Fahrenheit 451 (both dystopian futuristic ish)
The Lunar Chronicles if you like fairytales/retellings. It’s sci-fi but really sticks to that Disney Princess theme.
ETA: YA series by Marissa Meyer
Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy
Enders game did it for me
What do you normally like to read?
https://g.co/kgs/DTt1xS
Another nomination of Ender’s Game. Amazing book!
Dark matter
Y E S !
I don’t even know how I came across them, Dan. It isn’t my usual genre.
1) A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet and
2) A Closed and Common Orbit
both by Becky Chambers
I cannot wait for the 3rd book to drop in July.
I actually listened to the Audible version at 1.65 speed and it was PERFECTION.
VERY SIMILAR TO FIREFLY
Star Trek the original series
Ender’s Game is an obvious one. It’s easy to read, really fast paced and intense. My sister doesn’t care for sci-fi but even she loved it. Also check out Flowers for Algernon by Keyes and Cuckoo’s Egg by Cherryh.