It's time I think for me to start another thread to pick all your brains about the best sci-fi fantasy novels to read. I know I got loads of excellent recommendations from everyone in my last thread. I look forward to hearing what you've all been reading since then.

My self, I've been working through Dan Simmonds books. I read The Hyperion series and I've just finished reading The Ilium books.

Before I start on Endymion I've got to finish a Peter F.Hamilton book, The dreaming void.

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Reality Internet Personality

Hunters of Dune, Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson

Failure is unthinkable – not only is their survival at stake, but they hold the fate of the entire human race in their hands.

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I wasn't posting back then and didn't see the thread, but I get most of my science fiction from Analog . I have been reading it for over 40 years and I like it because it's delivered to my mailbox every month and you see many of the up and coming authors. While I don't take it, the other option is Asimov's which may also be of interest to you.
Analog also contains a book review each month where you can look at information on newly published books that the reviewer found interesting.

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I've in fact just finished a sequel too: Regenesis by C J Cherryh (one of my favourites) follows on from Cyteen, thus also following up developments from Downbelow Station and 40,000 in Gehenna.

Political intrigue on a world only habitable by humans with constant technical intervention, whose biosphere must be maintained viable. Who killed Ariane Emory? Perhaps we see the answer here.

This, like its forerunner is a tangled, introspective book. I enjoyed it a lot, although Reseune seems a little too damn clever to be truly believable, and Defense a little too dumb. I would not recommend it as a first introduction to C J Cherryh's works. For that, try Downbelow Station, The Pride of Chanur or Gate of Ivrel.

Dune: Dune itself is still one of the great works of science fiction, but the sequels seemed to me increasingly pot-boilers. I'm afraid I haven't yet found the enthusiasm to start on the books written by his son. By all means try to encourage me!

Dune: Dune itself is still one of the great works of science fiction, but the sequels seemed to me increasingly pot-boilers. I'm afraid I haven't yet found the enthusiasm to start on the books written by his son. By all means try to encourage me!

I agree about Frank Herbert's Dune, love the film versions to. As for his son I found the House series, House Atreidies, House Harkonen and House Corino (never finished that one) not too good. But the following Butlerian Jihad, The Machine Crusade and The Battle of Corrin I couldn't put down. I'd recommend those and the lastest I've read, Hunters of Dune. I'm looking forward to the others following.

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The book "Contact" by Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan is a must read for SETI enthusiasts, while many have seen and enjoyed the film starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey the actual book is the penultimate flight of fancy for the sci-fi emissary.

I'm still working through E.E.'Doc' Smiths Lensmans and Skylark series

Then You'd probably like Recall not Earth by C C MacApp then.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

I really enjoyed the series of books by Julian May

The saga of Pliocene Exile vol.1-4
Interventuion vol.1-2
the Galactic Milieu triology Vol.1-3

all these books are of the same characters set in different points in time. I really enjoyed these books and could hardly wait for the next book to be published. Of course that was in the 90's but you should still be able to find them.

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Old James

I really enjoyed the series of books by Julian May

The saga of Pliocene Exile vol.1-4
Interventuion vol.1-2
the Galactic Milieu triology Vol.1-3

all these books are of the same characters set in different points in time. I really enjoyed these books and could hardly wait for the next book to be published. Of course that was in the 90's but you should still be able to find them.

I really enjoyed those too.

Thanks for the suggestions guys and gals. Keep 'em coming.

Some I've read and enjoyed and some are new to me so I'll be checking them out.

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Reality Internet Personality

I stumbled upon Dan Simmons' works more than 15 years ago. I started with Phases of Gravity and I still think that is his best work.

I've in fact just finished a sequel too: Regenesis by C J Cherryh (one of my favourites) follows on from Cyteen, thus also following up developments from Downbelow Station and 40,000 in Gehenna.

Political intrigue on a world only habitable by humans with constant technical intervention, whose biosphere must be maintained viable. Who killed Ariane Emory? Perhaps we see the answer here.

This, like its forerunner is a tangled, introspective book. I enjoyed it a lot, although Reseune seems a little too damn clever to be truly believable, and Defense a little too dumb. I would not recommend it as a first introduction to C J Cherryh's works. For that, try Downbelow Station, The Pride of Chanur or Gate of Ivrel.

Dune: Dune itself is still one of the great works of science fiction, but the sequels seemed to me increasingly pot-boilers. I'm afraid I haven't yet found the enthusiasm to start on the books written by his son. By all means try to encourage me!

Ref C J Cherryh, do you know she has started making her books available a ebooks, bypassing publishers etc.

C J Cherryh

The books are available at Closed-circle. The books available so far, for 5$, include Heavytime and Hellburner

Closed circle also has books by Jane Fancher and Lynn Abbey. I cannot make any comment on their books as I haven't read them.

I really enjoyed the series of books by Julian May

The saga of Pliocene Exile vol.1-4
Interventuion vol.1-2
the Galactic Milieu triology Vol.1-3

all these books are of the same characters set in different points in time. I really enjoyed these books and could hardly wait for the next book to be published. Of course that was in the 90's but you should still be able to find them.

I really enjoyed those too.

Thanks for the suggestions guys and gals. Keep 'em coming.

Some I've read and enjoyed and some are new to me so I'll be checking them out.

Those first 4 I read many years again, they were excellent! Not sure I know about the others, I'll be looking for them.

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I'm almost finished reading a book called "Anathem" by Neal Stephenson. It started out in one direction and then took off in a totally different direction altogether. When I first saw it in the bookstore I passed it up but then later bought it and I'm glad I did.

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. . . a brilliant story Victor - i have the Original book [well worth the read in fact]

I'm still working through E.E.'Doc' Smiths Lensmans and Skylark series

Then You'd probably like Recall not Earth by C C MacApp then.

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BOINC Wiki . . .

Science Status Page . . .

A really good Sci-fi Fantasy book is Rising Moon by Kari Arthur. The series is about a half vamp half werewolf twin brother and sister, who work for a paranormal investigation unit. Their blood is rare and makes them both strong and fast so a lot of people want to harvest their blood so they can make a super species. It was a great series one that anyone would enjoy whether you're male or female.

-Michele- :)

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. . . a brilliant story Victor - i have the Original book [well worth the read in fact]

I'm still working through E.E.'Doc' Smiths Lensmans and Skylark series

Then You'd probably like Recall not Earth by C C MacApp then.

I know and the fact that the author didn't make too many books, I could imagine the mass detectors and the gargantuan ship coming up out of solid rock from Null Space, Then there were the evil Vulmot and the Slave Chelki and the Hodn, If any book deserved being made into a movie, This would be My pick, But It will never be most likely.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

. . . sci-fi becomes reality in tiME:



. . . The 'Construction' of a Renewed Vision of Scientia

> 'The Dialectic of Duration' by Gaston Bachelard

re: the debate between Bergson and the Physics of Relativity

" . . . that time is multiple and discrete"

> 'Duration and Simultaneity' by Henri Bergson

(Bergson) . . . suggests " that the traditional association between the model
of space and time is incoherent"

(Bergson) . . . finds " that a fundamental requirement of the theory is an impossibility -
the assumption that the experiences of two observers moving at different speeds within
two different physical systems might be thought of as simultaneous. This is to ignore
the limits of possible experience."

> 'The End of Time' by Julian Barbour

(Barbour) . . . "The world is relational. It is about how real things relate to real things.
This is potentially important for how we try to picture the quantum universe."

> 'Time & the Instant' . . . a [Collaboration]

" . . . the focal issue of the role the instant should play in our understanding
of time and the universe."

Contributors:

Robin Durie - 'The Strange Nature of the Instant'

Henri Poincare - 'The Measure of Time'

Henri Bergson - 'Memory of the Present and False Recognition'

Gaston Bachelard - 'The Instant'

Julian Barbour - 'Time, Instants, Duration and Philosophy'

Lee Smolin - 'The Present Moment in Quantum Cosmology'

Keith Ansell-Pearson - 'Duration and Evolution'

John G Cramer - 'The Plane of the Present'

David Webb - 'The Complexity of the Instant'

Dean J Driebe - 'Time, Dynamics and Chaos'

David Wood - 'Time-Shelters: An Essay in The Poetics of Time'

http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/barbour/barbour_p1.html
http://www.ensc.sfu.ca/people/grad/brassard/personal/THESIS/node32.html
http://www.hum.auc.dk/~poe/KLUWER/synopsis.html
http://fbc.binghamton.edu/iwtimdu.htm
http://waiting.p-h.org.uk/bibliography.html
http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/philos/ccpubs.htm

see also . . .
http://fbc.binghamton.edu/index.htm
Pirenne, Henri (1931), "La tâche de l'historien," Le Flambeau, XIV, 1931, 5-22


http://coyote.kein.org/pipermail/generation_online/2002-May/000381.html
http://www.clinamen.co.uk/gston_bachleard.htm

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BOINC Wiki . . .

Science Status Page . . .

-Michele- :)

Michele, welcome to S@H!!! You must get your own account and join our small but powerful community of Lady Crunchers!

I stumbled upon Dan Simmons' works more than 15 years ago. I started with Phases of Gravity and I still think that is his best work.

I'll see if the library has that one.

I can't remember who recommended the Hyperion series to me..it may even have been in the first incarnation of this thread. I've really enjoyed his books so far, they are pretty relentless with the action.

My youngest wanted me to tell me what Ilium was about while I was reading, and I just couldn't think how to sum it up in a few words that would do it justice.

My oldest reads Halo and Warhammer 50K books, so maybe I'll get him to post some of his recommendations for anyone that might be interested.

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Reality Internet Personality