Looking for series like Honor Harrington

[Grazzit]

Hello all, I just joined this group :)

I usually read UF but I have been addicted to Space opera Since Splinter in a Minds eye 30 years ago.

I am not a huge fan of SF in general, but love books like and its whole series.
Below is a list of series I'm trying to add to. I'm looking for series like them.

Series I have read and loved:
Very good
first 5 were great.
I don't mind good books without Space battles.
This was love/hate. Not a huge fan of outthere SF. But the characters were Fantastic
Awesome
Good series, gogo Robots and Cyborgs
Hero is all most perfect, but I enjoyed them

Some books people are going to think I'm nutters for not liking.

Foundation Series
Revelation Space series
Old mans War
Hyperion
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Consider Phlebas (Culture, #1)



Any help adding to my list of loved Series is most appreciated :)

[Betsy]

I'm a huge fan of the Honorverse, but not all military SF. Like you, I liked the first few Lost Fleet books, but then got tired of them. I also really liked the Vatta's War series.

Another series I love is the Golden Age of the Solar Clipper, by Nathan Lowell. They're not military or heroic. They're about space commerce and they're character driven. The protagonist is Ishmael Wang, one of the most likeable characters I've ever come across. And there's a new series just starting, that continues Ishmael's story, and looks to be a little more action oriented.

[Ronnie]

You might like the Orphanage series by Robert Buettner.

There's also the Sector General series by James White still space opera, but more medical space opera.

[Niels]

I'm with you on Foundation, piece of crap.

I just finished A just determination by the guy that wrote The Lost Fleet (have you checked out The Lost Stars spin-off btw? Much better than the Lost Fleet imo).

It was of course very law-drama-ish, but I really liked the "inside the military with real people dealing with real social and practical challenges"-vibe, from the bottom-up perspective of a junior officer on his first assignment.

[V.W.]

The Stars at War

Heirs of Empire

Igniting the Reaches

[Grazzit]

Ty Betsy, just finished Quarter Share and got half share, good book, great characters.

Ronnie, Neils and VW I'll check out the books you listed, TY

[Ronnie]

No problem, happy to help.

The "Sector General" books might be a bit hard to track down, I believe they're out of print at the moment.

[Kirsten]

I love the Sector General books! But I don't think I'd compare them to Honor Harrington.

[Ronnie]

They're still Space Opera. :)

[Kirsten]

Yes, but not very like Honor Harrington which is what the requester was asking for. I read that as wanting a female kick-ass, smart protagonist in a space military or similar role.

[Brandon]

Recommendations from Novelist Plus:

Paradox by Rachel Bach
RCN series by David Drake
Expanse series by James S.A. Corey

[Sarah]

There are a few really good military science fiction series with awesome female protagonists:

Confederation series by Tanya Huff
Andromeda series by William Dietz
Silver Wings series by Evan Currie
Journey to Nyorfias series by Terry Roy
Aeon 14 series by Michael Cooper
Gateway series by Brian Dorsey

Just to name a few.

[Aaron]

To Honor You Call Us
3 books currently, it's basically straight space sub combat stuff and it's some of the best space action out there the battle that lasts the first almost 100 pages of book 3 is probably one of the best done battles I have ever read in space opera. It's a bit more Lost Fleet like then Honor Harrington like.

Renegade was a great first start to a new series.

Fire with Fire is a Space Opera I recommend a lot, it's very very classic old school sci-fi but with more modern writing it's a weird case that people seem to either love or be kind of bleh on.

[Grazzit]

Ty all, of those listed since my last post I have already read:

Silver Wings series by Evan Currie and To Honor You Call Us

SW was great while it was focused on Sarg, then it was just ok IMHO. THYCU is a fantastic series, but I prefered the first 2 books over the last one.

Kirsten, The protag doesn't have to be Female, however I find most of the books i read that I love have Females that do more than look pretty or are just an afterthought.

I loved The books I listed because they weren't overly Militaristic or Hard science. Weber goes on and on about how things are done, but I just sorta skim that.. The characters are what i love about those books. Well just about any book IMHO.

I have said before "A book can be about dog **** drying on a sidewalk if the characters and dialog are great."

As a reader I have found that the only things i really can't stand is Angst, love triangles, instant love, and science textbooks in fiction form.

[V.W.]

Actually it is mainly in Harrington that Weber goes on a bit. His other series are pretty fast moving.

[Fiannawolf]

Some that I have enjoyed that are within striking distance of Harrington style:

A Soldier's Duty (Theirs Not to Reason Why #1)
Pursue the Past: Samair in Argos: Book 1 by Michael Kotcher
Alarm of War by H. Kennedy Hudner
Vengeance from Ashes (Honor and Duty, #1) by Sam Schall
The Long Way Home by Sabrina Chase
The Oncoming Storm by Christopher Nuttall

[R.]

If you'll forgive me advertising my own I do have a very strong female military protagonist in mine.

www.arcturian-spacefleet.com

Not exactly Harrington style, but complementary. She may look small and fragile, but you don't mess with my Jane.

[Greg]

Halfway through Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. An all female cast. So far Im liking what Im reading, and there's two more books to go.

[Anna]

You might enjoy the Sirantha Jaxx series by Ann Aguire:



Or the Paradox series by Rachel Bach.



We have a 'Girls With Guns' listopia this community contributes to BTW which you can mine for ideas :-)

Girls With Guns: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/7...

[Grazzit]

I have been waiting for the paradox series, but since it is still over $10 for the ebook I'm going to continue to wait :)

Why they think an Ebook can be over $5 is beyond me.

Edit, Since i was asked, I believe the author should get at least 95% of ebook sales. So $5 is more then they make on a $20 hard back sale

[V.W.]

Greg wrote: "Halfway through Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie. An all female cast. So far Im liking what Im reading, and there's two more books to go."

It's not an all female cast. The MC uses "she" for everybody regardless of actual sex. This is supposed to be some kind of statement.

[Fiannawolf]

Oh my...looks like Mr R my book radar attention. *waves bye bye to more money.*

[Anna]

Grazzit wrote: "Why they think an Ebook can be over $5 is beyond me..."

That's big corporations making sure their ebook prices don't undermine their paper empire. Unfortunately, the author sees very little of that money. It all goes to line the corporations pockets. :-P

[Brandon]

While I may think authors should get a higher percentage of the gross, there are not massive cost savings by publishing an ebook compared to paper books for the major publishers. Economies of scale mean that the printing, shipping, and storage costs are relatively low for a single book. Ebooks do not have those expenses, but they do require people to put together the digital package and ensure everything is right on the relevant formats. The bigger expenses of editing and promotion are still going to apply to an ebook.

The above thoughts are not just pulled from thin air but are what I have consistently been told by authors and editors currently working in the business.

[Grazzit]

Not to hijack my own thread, but I do see your point Brandon, However I would love to see the books on some of these publishers.

Materials, printing, binding, transportation, storage. VS electronic transfer.

A lot of books dont have massive marketing.

So give the editor and proofreaders a % then 90% to the author :)

[Aaron]

Grazzit wrote: "Not to hijack my own thread, but I do see your point Brandon, However I would love to see the books on some of these publishers.

Materials, printing, binding, transportation, storage. VS electronic transfer.

A lot of books dont have massive marketing.

So give the editor and proofreaders a % then 90% to the author :) "

But they do have wide distribution try getting into brick and mortar stores as a self-published, good luck. Getting published generally gives them a vague stamp of quality that puts them above the 100ks of self pubs every year. Publishing with a company isn't always the correct choice now a days and that fact is actually keeping them more in line than ever before.

Ebook prices basically come down to if you want it ASAP you are going to have to pay big bucks, if you don't think it's worth that wait a year or so and it will come down. It's not just about their paperbook industry it's about making the most money. The video game industry basically has stopped caring about physical disks/content for a while now but the pricing still starts really high then plummets as time passes.

Honestly more companies need to ruthlessly copy BAEN books sales plan.

Step 1) Sell E-ARC for ~$20 online
Step 2) Have a monthly book bundle that gives you all the books they are printing that month in ebook form for a flat fee (I think it's $20) all DRM free
Step 3) Give away first books in long series for free in ebook form.

This marketing form basically is designed to hook people on their authors/books, and to encourage doubledipping of big fans, are there fans that get the EARC then buy the hardcover 9 months later, YES LOTS OF THEM

[Fiannawolf]

As a BAEN fan...that mode does work. Its quite effective.

[Stephen]

May I humbly suggest my wife's and my Rehumanization of Jade Darcy series. (Just 2 books so far).

Jade Darcy and the Affair of Honor
Jade Darcy and the Zen Pirates

[Laz]

Stephen wrote: "May I humbly suggest my wife's and my Rehumanization of Jade Darcy series. (Just 2 books so far).
"

Great book! Take your time with the next one...

[4T2]

Have you read the Empire of Man series also by David Weber? It's not technically space opera (most of the first 3 books take place on an alien planet rather than on a spaceship), but it's a pretty decent series. The first book is March Upcountry If you like Weber, you'll probably like this - it's a bit of a cross between the Honor Harrington series and his fantasy War God series (first book Oath of Swords)
One of the best parts of the Honor Harrington series in my opinion was the camaraderie and banter between the crews - and that's something that carries over to the Empire of Man series.
Also - you don't like Hitchhiker's Guide? Blasphemy! ;)

[Kirsten]

Someone doesn't like Hitchhiker's? We need to schedule an intervention - STAT!

[Grazzit]

Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Someone doesn't like Hitchhiker's? We need to schedule an intervention - STAT!"

I can't watch Dr Who either.. /hide

[Jessica]

Hurry! Call the medics STAT! This person is in dire straits! Doesn't lik the Hitch hikers series OR Doctor Who? This is an Emergency!

[Betsy]

Actually, he's not alone. I've never read Hitchhikers, but I did watch it on TV. I thought it was clever and occasionally funny, but not worth more than that. I liked Dr. Who in the 70s and have watched occasional episodes more recently, but after the fifteenth time that the Daleks were revived after having been totally annihilated, I got fed up.

[Kirsten]

OMG! LOL! I agree that the more modern ones are not as fun. I've given up on Capaldi. (Though, I regret that because I hear River Song came back.)

My favorite Doctor was Tom Baker.

[S.J.]

I recently stumbled across a really interesting series called the Loralynn Kennakris series. The books have great characters, a strong, fascinating female MC, really awesome world building, great writing and intricate plotting. Well worth the read.

[Fiannawolf]

*puts all the books on her wishlist* Yes.

[Krzysztof]

two my favorite military space opera now
similar to Honor Harrington: Angel in the Whirlwind series

Undying Mercenaries series James McGill is great character each next book is better than previous

[Jon]

Grazzit wrote: I can't watch Dr Who either.. /hide.

Count me as another Who-not.

Baen has long been ahead of the publishing curve, IMHO.

[Jemima]

I stopped watching Dr Who after Chris Ecclestone. sigh

I thought I'd like Capaldi, but couldn't cope with the first episode, so... no.

[Anna]

I'm a Two-Ten plus Rose 'shipper. Stopped watching at Eleven. Matt Smith just seemed to goofy to be the doctor, but then my kids got me sucked back into it on a NetFlix binge. As a kids show, yeah, it was okay to watch with them. But as an adult show, I liked the more mature versions of the doctor. David Tennant had just that right 'puckish' character.



Thought Christopher Ecclestone was a good doctor, but too old for rose. David Tennant was just right for Billy Piper.

[Brian]

GatewaySaintDraxius LostDraxius Redeemed

[Kirsten]

Anna wrote: "I'm a Two-Ten plus Rose 'shipper. Stopped watching at Eleven. Matt Smith just seemed to goofy to be the doctor, but then my kids got me sucked back into it on a NetFlix binge. As a kids show, yeah,..."

I hated Billie Piper!

[Leo]

Let me throw a suggestion into the mix for the work of Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle - particularly together on such work as Footfall or The Mote in God's Eye - a great place to start though is with The Legacy of Heorot which details the life of a human colony as it encounters the unfortunate and deadly consequences of meddling with their new environment.

[Laz]

Leo - I concur. Niven has great concepts, and Pournelle provides solid characters. Niven alone is not as compelling for me.

[Leo]

Laz wrote: "Leo - I concur. Niven has great concepts, and Pournelle provides solid characters. Niven alone is not as compelling for me."

Aye, I agree, they work well as a team. Though Niven's Ringworld is classic, but yes, a lot of his other work leaves me cold.

[Lizzie]

S.J. wrote: "I recently stumbled across a really interesting series called the Loralynn Kennakris series. The books have great characters, a strong, fascinating female MC, really awesome world building, great w..."

I added that set to my want to read list.

[Lizzie]

4T2 wrote: "Have you read the Empire of Man series also by David Weber? It's not technically space opera (most of the first 3 books take place on an alien planet rather than on a spaceship), but it's a pretty ..."

I liked the Empire of Man series. In some places it felt a little repetitive but overall I enjoyed it.

[Lizzie]

Anna wrote: "You might enjoy the Sirantha Jaxx series by Ann Aguire:

[bookcover:Aftermath|10..."

Both of these looked interesting until I saw the price. I do not understand why e-books are so expensive. And on Amazon neither is part of their free reading for a monthly subscription. If they are in print, I start looking for them used in the local bookstores, when the ebook price is more than $4.

[Lizzie]

I only watch Dr. Who when I am bored and suffering from insomnia in hopes of it putting me to sleep. I do like Torchwood and would have liked to see it continue.