What SF are you reading now, 2000-2014?

[Ed]

One of my real-life friends recommended that book last night. So now I guess I have to read it. I need an alternate universe in which to read everything.

[John]

During the golden period of Sci Fi, there were many books that I could not put down. There are many concepts of the future that i have not traveled and i am always looking for quality over verbosity. I think the next book from Andy Weir and Crouch will hopefully be there.

[Leo]

Ed wrote: "I need an alternate universe in which to read everything."
You don't get it Ed. That universe exists already. Just read the book and you will see.

[Ed]

Leo wrote: "...That universe exists already. Just read the book and you will see."

I'm aware of those many-worlds interpretations of QM and I think they are bunk. Which is why I'm reluctant to read this book.

[Jim]

Dogs of War by Adrian Tchaikovsky was fantastic. It's a fast, entertaining read, yet full of points to ponder. I gave it a 5 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

[Marc-André]

I finished The Will to Battle by Ada Palmer. It was very satisfying. I gave it 4 stars. Complexe political intrigue that leads to war in a post-scarcity (maybe) utopia.

It is very ambitious and sometimes does't live up to that ambition, but it is a welcome change from space operas. Utopias are rather scarce in sci-fi lit right now.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I started reading:


The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Eleven edited by Jonathan Strahan

[Leo]

So, I finished the Pines trilogy by Blake Crouch :
Pines
Wayward
The Last Town
It was a great trip.

[Jim]

Leo wrote: "So, I finished the Pines trilogy by Blake Crouch :
Pines
Wayward
The Last Town
It was a great trip."

I really liked the way the first book ended. Is it worth reading the other 2? Do they really add to the story?

[Leo]

Well, finding out what is the secret about Wayward Pines is the most important storyline in the 3 books alltogether I think. So you can leave it there if you want. Book 2 and 3 have no such big issues. But of course, still lots of things are happening in and around town, which appears to be sort of an inversed Jurassic Park. Books 2 and 3 contain lots of action but not many very surprising developments. However, Crouch sure does know how to keep you reading. I liked it a lot to be submerged in this world for a week or two.

[Oleksandr]

I recently finished Dark Matter by the author of the Pines trilogy. It was more or less 'usual' inter-dimensional travel but for the last part which improved on the overall book

[Jim]

OK, thanks, Leo. I liked "Dark Matter", too. I agree that Crouch can keep a story going.

[John]

I will read the Pines trilogy. Crouch writes concepts that cause you to think. I am reading Twilight by Peter James. Has anyone read the Dream Park series by Larry Niven & Steven Barnes? I am starting that next.

[Fixxxe]

After finishing Children of time, which i liked a lot, waiting for the next book, i am into John Scalzi. I finished Old man war which i also liked a lot, and now reading Ghost brigades. I liked the first part of it but i am in a down moment in the book.
after the series, i want to read Ben Bova's book. i have some of them in French and the rest in english, hope it will be easy enough for me to read.

[Michael]

Fixxxe wrote: "After finishing Children of time, which i liked a lot, waiting for the next book, i am into John Scalzi. I finished Old man war which i also liked a lot, and now reading Ghost brigades. I liked the..."

I just finished Old Man's War a couple days ago and loved it, waiting on Ghost Brigades to get sent to my library.

Going to try Terminal Alliance after i finish Heinlein's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Ghost Brigade. I heard it was similar in style to John Scalzi.

[Leo]

People created a free library at my work and there I found The Road. Started it yesterday and it looks great.

[Marc-André]

I just finished Glasshouse by Charles Stross.

A very human story about memory, identity and post-human brain hacking in a post-singularity setting. Also post-scarcity. Those are a lot of posts. It is clear Stross wants to take readers elsewhere. As ususal he is trying to show off. And he succeeds.

Stross explores current gender identity and roles, while he explores what war would be fought over in a universe where there are no material needs. (Information. Information is the object of war.) It is a tough equilibrium act, but it is one he pulls off.

Interestingly enough, this is Stross' most accessible novel I've read. Ever. It is also his most sensitive and sentimental story. Coincidence?

I recommend it to any sci-fi fan worth their salt, or anyone who wants to read about gender roles and identity. Or military PTSD.

I'm starting Iron Sunrise.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

Leo wrote: "People created a free library at my work and there I found The Road. Started it yesterday and it looks great."

One of my all-time favorites. Enjoy!

[Jim]

Zeroes by Chuck Wendig was a hot mess, especially at the end. It started off great, but got worse until I could barely finish it. I gave it a 2 star review here;
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Oleksandr]

Jim wrote: "Zeroes by Chuck Wendig was a hot mess, especially at the end."

I agree with your assessment. For me it went downhill from the camp, where they were put. If you gather best hackers, use analog cameras or at least have a system w/o a gateway from outside!

[Jim]

If you read my review, you'll see that's about where I started having issues, too.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I started reading:


Authority by Jeff VanderMeer

[Leo]

RJ wrote: "I started reading:
Authority by Jeff VanderMeer"

I liked the whole trilogy. Still waiting for a chance to see the movie Annihilation.

[Dhara]

Oleksandr wrote: "Jim wrote: "Zeroes by Chuck Wendig was a hot mess, especially at the end."

I agree with your assessment. For me it went downhill from the camp, where they were put. ..."

Yes! I felt the same.

[Dhara]

John wrote: "During the golden period of Sci Fi, there were many books that I could not put down. There are many concepts of the future that i have not traveled and i am always looking for quality over verbosit..."

I am awaiting Andy Weir and Blake Crouch's next.

[Dhara]

Jim wrote: "Leo wrote: "So, I finished the Pines trilogy by Blake Crouch :
Pines
Wayward
The Last Town
It was a great trip."

I really liked the way the first b..."

The next two books in the series are even better than the first book. The climax will leave you satisfied. The show was utter BS, though.
After I finished reading Dark Matter, which is one of my most favorite sci-fi books, I started reading everything by Crouch. His writing style is very engaging. I love his work. All his books, novellas, and short-stories are free on Kindle Unlimited.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

Leo wrote: "RJ wrote: "I started reading:
Authority by Jeff VanderMeer"

I liked the whole trilogy. Still waiting for a chance to see the movie Annihilation."

I haven't seen it either.

[Marc-André]

I finished Iron Sunrise by Charles Stross. It is a space Opera in a post-singularity universe.
Space nazis are the baddies and the plot is interesting, as the space nazis are trying to prevent the birth of a god-like AI distributed accross time, and see to the birth of their god-like AI.

Not Stross' best novel, which is excusable as it's his early work, but the beginning and end are fun.

[Cronos]

Just finished the Super Powereds saga by Drew Hayes. I really enjoy this novels

[Marc-André]

I just finished Autonomous by Annalee Newitz. There is great potential with the world building. Indentured servitude for robots and humans in an hypercapitalistic world i not something we see often. But the world building is never fully realized and superficial.

Aside from the robot Paladin, most of the characters are unidimentional and not ery engaging. The plot is an after thought.

I might sound like I didn't like the novel, but I liked it. I just wanted to like it more. It is packed with lots of great ideas that deserved more work or though. Newitz is a diamond in the rough. I must not forget this is her first novel.

If I had to asign a genre a genre, I'd say it is hopepunk.

[Jim]

Outpost is the first of an SF trilogy by W. Michael Gear. I read another trilogy by him about 15 years ago & liked it, so I'm not surprised that I was really impressed by this one. I gave it a 4 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Michael]

I'm currently reading The Gordian Protocols by David Weber and Jacob Holo. Weber is most famous for his Honor Harrington series,but this is a new universe and a story about time travel instead of space travel. Sonehow, time has been broken creating a whole new universe, and a time traveling historian must find the only person who exists in both timelines to help him prevent time from self destructing and destroying a dozen universes. Its Bern fin so far, with interesting characters and plenty of action.

[Jim]

Eastern Standard Tribe by Cory Doctorow was a little better than OK. Short & fun, but it ultimately didn't sell me on its basic premise. I gave it a 3 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Leo]

My wife & kids got me a signed copy of Echo for father's day. The author Thomas Olde Heuvelt lives near our home town. He wrote the terrifying Hex, and has won a Hugo in 2015 for this short story: http://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fic...

[Jim]

Congrats, Leo.

[Ed]

I'm half through The Quantum Thief, and not understanding it much. I suppose it is post-singularity cyberpunk. Maybe it will make more sense the further I go, but it is turning into something like a game of cat and mouse between thieves and detectives, which isn't my cup of tea.

Read two 5-star SF comics: the new The Weatherman Volume 1, and the classic Transmetropolitan, Vol. 4: The New Scum.

[Peter]

Just finished A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan #1)
by Arkady Martine. A new Galactic Empire novel, and a nice one, by a Byzantine scholar. Amazingly accomplished for a first novel. Fans of intricate Space Opera may want to check it out. My take: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

[Peter]

Jim wrote: "If you read my review, you'll see that's about where I started having issues, too."

I tried that one, too, and didn't like it either. Here's a detailed 1-star review you guys might enjoy reading:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-re...

[Jim]

Good review, Peter.

[Anna]

I have trouble picking contemporary Science fiction to read - there is so much of it in comparison to what used to be available. In days of yore I would just read whatever the nearest library had available. So I thought I would read what others have read here starting with -
Ed wrote: "I'm half through The Quantum Thief, ..."
So far I'm finding it pretty good. It's an interesting example of trying to make a 'world' seem alien without being entirely incomprehensible. I looked up some words and found they described existing things I didn't know about - sadly I've already forgotten them due to brain sieveness. I think I'm more admiring the way words are introduced, like gevulot for example, and explained through context or through a later and unobtrusive definition, than I am enjoying the plot.

[Ed]

Anna wrote: "I have trouble picking contemporary Science fiction to read - there is so much of it ..."

I hope you like Quantum Thief more than I did. I gave it 2/5 stars. I was reading with another group. discussion here.

I did like the way grevulot became understandable through context. I don't think all of the terms did become understandable, but that isn't my problem with it. I simply don't like that kind of book where bunches of people are fighting against each other and deceiving each other. Just too much for my brain to keep track of.

This link has a glossary of terms in the book:
https://www.karangill.com/glossary-qu...

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I finished:


The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Eleven edited by Jonathan Strahan
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Jim]

I finished Outland by Dennis E. Taylor & liked it a lot. Again, it's a space opera, a lot of big ideas that are shown through action. It reminded me a lot of RAH's Tunnel in the Sky. I gave it a 4 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Rosemarie]

I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I rated it two stars because I only give one star to books I really loathe. This book wasn't that bad, but I really didn't like his style and use of language.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I've just finished:


Authority by Jeff VanderMeer
Rating: 3 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I didn't like it quite as much as the first book, and the first half of this one was REALLY slow, but the second half was pretty enjoyable. I just wish VanderMeer would get to the point a little quicker.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I started reading


The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume Twelve edited by Jonathan Strahan

[Peter]

Rosemarie wrote: "I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I rated it two stars because I only give one star to books I really loathe."

Well, I hated it. Didn't come near to finishing, years ago, if memory serves. Not for me!

[Leo]

Peter wrote: "Rosemarie wrote: "I just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I rated it two stars because I only give one star to books I really loathe."

Well, I hated it. Didn't come near to finishing, years a..."

I read it a few months ago and rated it 4 stars. I guess not for everybody indeed.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

Leo wrote: "I read it a few months ago and rated it 4 stars. I guess not for everybody indeed."

The Road by Cormac McCarthy seems to be one of those books that people love or hate.

I loved it. 5 stars for me. It's my 2nd favorite McCarthy book after Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West which is even more violent and bleak than The Road.

[Rosemarie]

One of the things that irked me about the road was the author's writing style. The actual plot was interesting, but I find his writing style just didn't do the plot justice, as I see it.