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If you want a sequel to Rendezvous then you want this: http://www.amazon.com/RAMA-DOS/dp/B0007OMLV0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375159821&sr=8-1&keywords=rama+game Clarke's in it, along with some of the stuff introduced in later books. It also has math. I don't know how it ends, though, because when I was in high school I got to the color-based Base8 math section and blacked out.
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Jul 30, 2013 05:57
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Zachack posted:If you want a sequel to Rendezvous then you want this: It gets pretty insane towards the end. My dad would play it when I was a kid, and my brother and I would run around screaming and offering suggestions for the puzzles. I remember a sense of near-religious awe at some of the scenes in there (but I was, like, eight).
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Jul 30, 2013 14:44
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Read Mona Lisa Overdrive yesterday and it really continued the trend of Gibson's work to be more human and relatable to the modern world. It's kind of like Gibson was riding a wave of future shock starting from the late 70s, but the wave crashed in the late 80s and he's just been sort of coasting along ever sense. I know the theme of his work has always been a commentary on modern life, but I think he's lost the razor edge that he used to make the commentary cut. vvv That actually makes a certain amount of sense. Neuromancer and his stories leading up to it very much have a theme of poor people trying to make it in the world, or at the very least cope with their situation. Starting with Count Zero, you have modestly successful people interacting with the world of the very rich and powerful. Much of Mona Lisa Overdrive is about learning to cope with the pressures of fame. Speaking of Mona Lisa Overdrive, I just remembered how much I liked the little callback to Johnny Mnemonic. The part where Molly has hijacked a hovertruck and is driving recklessly. Angie comments about how crude the escape seems and Molly replies "sometimes that's the way to go." I guess she was expecting Sense/Net for her to go technical. Venusian Weasel fucked around with this message at 03:17 on Aug 1, 2013 |
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Aug 1, 2013 02:04
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Gibson got rich, I can only assume, because his latest trilogy is very much about being an artist now moving among the corporate types who were once monolithic and distant.
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Aug 1, 2013 02:05
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Finished the second Locke Lamora book, Like someone else said, if book 1 is a masterfully cooked steak, then book 2 is still masterfully cooked however a cheeseburger of some type. My eyes were spinning at sailing terminology about 2/3rds in the book. I dunno if it's a passion for Lynch or he wanted to be as methodically and autistically accurate as possible or what, but if someone shouted "FLIP THE MAIN MAST TACK LARBOURD GIBBERT ON MY MARK!" again, phew. At least Locke and Jean made fun of it themselves, so yeah. Anyone else feel like the Requin game just got cut short? I mean granted he and everyone else did say several times that his vault was impenetrable, so I guess it's not a surprise that it wasn't the actual target, but sealing the office doors shut and cutting a bunch of paintings free and then rappelling down a tower, eh, I thought the pieces mentioned up until then would be the start of it not the extent of it. Kind of anti-climax, which I guess plays into Locke's hands like "Who saw this coming?!". I was a lot more excited for the book when I thought it was going to be about Jean and Locke bilking everyone at a casino in various ways, almost like a fantasy themed The Sting. Then it goes out to sea. Lynch is a bit heavy handed with the emotional stuff, I hope he's grown more confident or subtle with the next book since it seems it'll involve Sabetha in some fashion. It just seems like Locke, Jean, et al have an on/off switch for Merry Theives and Maudlin Melodramatic Asses.
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Aug 1, 2013 04:20
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The book kind of ended up feeling like it was two separate novels that Lynch ended up smashing together. So you have the part where Locke and Jean are pulling the casino caper and the part where they're running around being pirates and neither side really feels all that connected. I agree that when they actually get around to robbing the casino it comes off as super anticlimactic.
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Aug 1, 2013 12:47
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Requin is a boss. It just goes to show you that even criminal masterminds still have nothing on white collar criminals. Also I was able to get hold of Broken Homes and finished it in two sittings. On the one hand it was just as strong as the other three books in the series and one of the best books I've read this year, but on the other hand it's incredibly frustrating because it just adds even more unanswered questions and the next book doesn't even have a title yet. There was also a huge plot twist at the end that I totally didn't see coming: Leslie made a deal with the Faceless Man to betray Peter and Nightingale in order to fix her face.
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Aug 1, 2013 18:32
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Brilliance by Marcus Sakey is a really good book that speculates on what would happen if, in the early 1980s, 1% of the population suddenly started being born with genius-level "superpowers". People are really good at reading body language, or data patterns, or becoming invisible by being in places that people won't notice them. The protagonist is a guy with powers who hunts down terrorists with powers. The premise is really good, the novel follows through with its promises, and the characters are interesting. In a sea of crap sci-fi novels from authors I've never heard of, this guy I've never heard of somehow stands out. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AESRRQS/ref=pe_245070_24466410_M1T1DP Now I'm gonna go look at what else he's written.
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Aug 1, 2013 21:04
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I just finished House of Suns, before that I read Terminal World as I wanted to try out some of Alastair Reynold's non-Revelation Space novels. I liked both of them a lot. What are peoples' opinions of his other non-RS material? Also, are there any authors that are similar to Reynolds? I really enjoy his style of writing. He's great at establishing some dark, creepy and unsettling atmospheres and situations.
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Aug 1, 2013 22:47
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So is Felix Gillman going to write any more stories in the "Half Made World" setting? I just finished "Rise of Ransom City" and I liked it (wasn't as good as Half-Made) but I still feel like I've missed something. Half Made World teased the super weapon the Folk promised the general to beat the Gun and the Line, Rise seemed to resolve this in the background with Harry simply relaying that the forces of the Republic have something "like" the Ransom process that can kill both Gun and Engine but we never really finish Creedmore or Liv's story. I mean, their stories finish but they all seem to happen off screen. The story finishes the saga of The Gun and The Line but it feels so drat unsatisfying. Please tell me he has another book planned. I really like the setting. 
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Aug 2, 2013 00:27
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Maybe he'll answer in this thread. He has an account.
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Aug 2, 2013 12:35
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savinhill posted:I just finished House of Suns, before that I read Terminal World as I wanted to try out some of Alastair Reynold's non-Revelation Space novels. I liked both of them a lot. What are peoples' opinions of his other non-RS material? I really enjoyed Blue Remembered Earth. Was nice seeing the trademark Reynolds stuff, only confined to the solar system in the not-that-far distant future. Looking forward to the second, especially since it seems to have some generation ship goodness. Pushing Ice was the latest book of his I've read. I liked it, even if it's nowhere near as good as you'd think if would be if you read a synopsis. If that makes sense. I haven't read Terminal World but, from what I gather, it's generally considered his worst by far, so if you liked that, I assume you'll like all his stuff.
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Aug 2, 2013 13:07
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Snuffman posted:So is Felix Gillman going to write any more stories in the "Half Made World" setting? I just finished "Rise of Ransom City" and I liked it (wasn't as good as Half-Made) but I still feel like I've missed something. I'd love to see him answer, but I don't think there will be another book. Thematically and symbolically the arc is complete. With Half Made World we saw the competing forces of Gun and Line, striving to make the world. With RoRC, it's suggested that you don't need The Gun and The Line in order to have the gun and the line. I agree it was a bit unsatisfying compared to the action we got in Half Made World, but that's literature for you. I am still thinking about RoRC and need to do a re-read. It's really just packed with ideas. I think Gilman may be the legit heir to LeGuin and Herbert in terms of thoughtful fantasy.
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Aug 2, 2013 13:31
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You could just ask him: https://twitter.com/felixgilman
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Aug 2, 2013 13:39
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savinhill posted:I just finished House of Suns, before that I read Terminal World as I wanted to try out some of Alastair Reynold's non-Revelation Space novels. I liked both of them a lot. What are peoples' opinions of his other non-RS material? Terminal World and Century Rain are what I classify as Reynold's "not worth reading they are so bad" novels. Troika is also very loving bad, but won't waste nearly as much of your time. I think Chasm City is one of his best standalone novels. It takes place in the RS universe but is a self-contained novel. The Prefect is the same way and also quite good, but I recommend having read RS before you read The Prefect; it's less self-contained. Pushing Ice is middle of the road. I enjoyed it, but whenever Reynolds tries to do something "character based" it just shows how much that's not his strong point. Galactic North is a good short story collection that's totally worth reading. A lot of the short stories tie into the RS universe, but they are fine if you don't read it. Blue Remembered Earth is iffy to me. I enjoyed it and many of the concepts, but the characters were boring and the plot felt almost tacked on. If the second and third book in this trilogy go somewhere, it could make this book better by proxy, but I'd wait to see what people say about the second book before you bother with this one.
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Aug 2, 2013 17:34
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savinhill posted:
Vernor Vinge
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Aug 4, 2013 17:57
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gohmak posted:Vernor Vinge Vinge does creepy? Interesting.
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Aug 4, 2013 18:26
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Darth Walrus posted:Vinge does creepy? Interesting. Not really. Richard Paul Russo does creepy, though. Try Ship of Fools.
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Aug 4, 2013 19:01
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Hoping some goons can help recommend a good fantasy book/series to get into. Been on a Star Wars kick recently having read the Thrawn Trilogy, Darth Plagueis, Outbound Flight, Deceived, and now Scoundrels. I'm looking to change it up a bit. I'm not big on fantasy, to be honest, but I'm looking for a book or series with clever characters gifted or not or characters who aren't necessarily gifted or special who can use their wits instead. All the better if they're evil or not-entirely-good. I'm thinking of characters like Plagueis and Thrawn, I guess. I know GoT would be the obvious recommendation. I just don't think I can get into it having watched the TV series up to this point. Some books I've been considering: The Black Company Lies of Locke Lamora Mistborn Name of the Wind
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Aug 4, 2013 21:53
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along the way posted:Been on a Star Wars kick recently having read the Thrawn Trilogy, Darth Plagueis, Outbound Flight, Deceived, and now Scoundrels. I'm looking to change it up a bit. No poo poo. Is darth plagueis a real thing? What editor let that one go by?
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Aug 4, 2013 21:57
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Of those 4 books I'd say go with Lies of Locke Lamora. It's part of a series that has been going slow since the author has had some personal issues, but nearly all of the first book is self-contained. It's also the best match for the criteria you laid out.
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Aug 4, 2013 22:08
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andrew smash posted:No poo poo. Probably the same one who thought Savage Opress was a good name. (He's Darth Maul's brother, I believe.) I can't wait for them to run out of other stupid names and finally name someone Killfuck Soulshitter, since that one is actually vaguely amusing. Megazver fucked around with this message at 22:13 on Aug 4, 2013 |
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Aug 4, 2013 22:10
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andrew smash posted:No poo poo. I believe you can thank George Lucas for that one. As far as I know, Plagueis is first mentioned in Revenge of the Sith. Thanks for the recommendation. I was leaning towards LoLL given the premise.
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Aug 4, 2013 22:21
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along the way posted:I'm not big on fantasy, to be honest, but I'm looking for a book or series with clever characters gifted or not or characters who aren't necessarily gifted or special who can use their wits instead. All the better if they're evil or not-entirely-good. I'm thinking of characters like Plagueis and Thrawn, I guess. Also check out KJ Parker's Engineer's Trilogy, an epic fantasy trilogy in which a Thrawn-like mastermind (albeit one who studies engineering, not art) manipulates people and even countries to get what he wants: revenge. Finally, and this may be a reach for you but more people should read them so I'm saying it here anyway, there's Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond and Niccolo series. They're historical fiction, not F&SF (though they've influenced many F&SF writers), and she uses a dense and sophisticated writing style that is worlds away from Star Wars novels (especially in the Lymond books, where the protagonist often makes otherwise boring conversations more interesting for himself by speaking entirely through quotations from classical literature and poetry, usually in the original languages), but in essence they are both stories about a world-historical genius wrecking havoc on everyone who gets in his way. As Zahn does with Pallaeon, she situates the perspective outside the head of the genius, leaving the reader (along with the other characters) guessing...and fearing...their intentions. I'll also note these are very long series, but I assume most readers of this thread should be unfazed by such concerns.
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Aug 4, 2013 23:30
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savinhill posted:Also, are there any authors that are similar to Reynolds? I really enjoy his style of writing. He's great at establishing some dark, creepy and unsettling atmospheres and situations. Darth Walrus posted:Vinge does creepy? Interesting. Eh, only really in Deepness in the Sky, and kinda in Fire Upon the Deep. Still, he does it well there, but he is more the hardish sci fi like Reynolds andrew smash posted:No poo poo. George Lucas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R09jFWQVrE0
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Aug 5, 2013 01:55
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along the way posted:Hoping some goons can help recommend a good fantasy book/series to get into. I haven't read Lies or Name of the Wind, but The Black Company definitely fits into what you want; the main characters are a group of amoral mercenaries who have minimal magic but are clever and good fighters. I enjoyed Mistborn and some of the main characters are certainly clever, but they're also significantly more powerful than most of their adversaries so I'm not sure it's what you're looking for. I'm also going to throw out The Malazan Book of the Fallen series; there is a lot of magic and absurdly powerful characters, but there are also a lot of relatively mundane soldier type characters and more than one plot involves them outsmarting more powerful people.
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Aug 5, 2013 03:21
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Fried Chicken posted:Stross, Vinge, and Watts all do hardish scifi with some creepy elements really well. Haha, goddamn.
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Aug 5, 2013 08:29
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savinhill posted:I just finished House of Suns, before that I read Terminal World as I wanted to try out some of Alastair Reynold's non-Revelation Space novels. I liked both of them a lot. What are peoples' opinions of his other non-RS material? I don't know if anything else from the authors are any good but the book Leviathan Wakes had some good creepy space horror parts.
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Aug 5, 2013 12:27
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Rachel Aaron is today's Kindle Daily Deal, and I really enjoyed the Eli Monpress stories - they're a bit similar to the Gentlemen Bastards in that the main character is a charming thief. Interesting magic system, enjoyable characters - give it a shot! The Legend of Eli Monpress includes the novels: The Spirit Thief, The Sprit Rebellion, and The Spirit Eater and is on the Kindle store today for $1.99. The story continues in The Spirit War and concludes in Spirit's End Also, it's a CRYING SHAME that Paul S. Kemp is not mentioned in the Sword and Sorcery section of the OP. He's probably best known as a Forgotten Realms author, but his original stuff is The Tales of Egil and Nix ( book 1: The Hammer and the Blade, book 2 (just out last week): A Discourse in Steel). These are pulp S&S tales and are just GREAT fun.
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Aug 5, 2013 14:59
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Ferret posted:Rachel Aaron is today's Kindle Daily Deal, and I really enjoyed the Eli Monpress stories - they're a bit similar to the Gentlemen Bastards in that the main character is a charming thief. Thanks! I'll read almost anything with a sword in it if it's under a dollar a book. I really appreciate it when people highlight the daily deals in this thread.
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Aug 5, 2013 15:04
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Megazver posted:Probably the same one who thought Savage Opress was a good name. (He's Darth Maul's brother, I believe.) I can't wait for them to run out of other stupid names and finally name someone Killfuck Soulshitter, since that one is actually vaguely amusing. Both names are indeed feathers in George Lucas' hat. Let's be thankful he doesn't have much of a say in the new movies. I second the Engineer trilogy if you liked Thrawn. All of KJ Parker's books feature similar types of characters to a certain degree, but the world (and outlook) is much, much darker than the Star Wars universe, but great, great fun. Vorkosigan is great too, although probably not all too similar to Star Wars either. I enjoyed Timothy Zahn's Quadrail series quite a bit. Nothing really too intricate or deep, but it is a fun pulp fiction series with a very clever, hard-boild detective hero set on a SF-version of the Orient Express (just don't think too hard on the logistics behind it). Decius fucked around with this message at 19:01 on Aug 5, 2013 |
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Aug 5, 2013 18:53
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Ferret posted:Rachel Aaron is today's Kindle Daily Deal, and I really enjoyed the Eli Monpress stories - they're a bit similar to the Gentlemen Bastards in that the main character is a charming thief. The only downside to the Monpress series was the covers. For some reason when they came out in paperback, they had these almost romance novel bodice ripper covers. They are pretty great books though.
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Aug 6, 2013 01:48
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:The only downside to the Monpress series was the covers. For some reason when they came out in paperback, they had these almost romance novel bodice ripper covers.
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Aug 6, 2013 01:55
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Ferret posted:
I've seen these books before and thought about getting them but wasn't sure how the quality would be, glad you posted this, I'm going to check them out now. Also, thanks for the sci-fi recommendations, I'm probably going to read Ship of Fools first, I'm really intrigued by it's description. Vernor Vinge will be the next sci-fi author I read after that. I've already read Leviathan Wakes. I liked it a lot, wish the second book was as good as it, shouldn't have left Miller out of it, he was their best character.
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Aug 6, 2013 05:44
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Hey guys, I love me some good hard SF (Alastair Reynolds is a particular go-to of mine). Lately I've been thinking that I'd really like to read some SF that is a bit more various in its depictions of relationships, because I just can't see a future populated entirely by heterosexual people and couples. I'm really not interested in gay/poly/interspecies/whatever relationships being the main focus, but was wondering whether there were any good stories you'd recommend where it's part of the fabric of the universe. I'm specifically interested in the normalisation of homosexual relationships in scifi. I guess if there are any stories with a gay focus you would recommend anyway, I'd still like to hear about them! I'm definitely not trying to start a derail about the depiction of sexuality in science fiction, just interested to see whether there's anything like this out there.
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Aug 6, 2013 12:06
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SUPERFINE CONCUBINE posted:Hey guys, I love me some good hard SF (Alastair Reynolds is a particular go-to of mine). Lately I've been thinking that I'd really like to read some SF that is a bit more various in its depictions of relationships, because I just can't see a future populated entirely by heterosexual people and couples. I'm really not interested in gay/poly/interspecies/whatever relationships being the main focus, but was wondering whether there were any good stories you'd recommend where it's part of the fabric of the universe. I'm specifically interested in the normalisation of homosexual relationships in scifi. I guess if there are any stories with a gay focus you would recommend anyway, I'd still like to hear about them! Charles Stross. They aren't all space opera, and some get a bit squishy with their hard scifi (still better than the traditional space opera though). But Glasshouse features genderswapping and gender roles as a theme and a light examination of the trans experience, Rule 34 has every main character being "somewhere to the right on the Kinsey Scale", and his other novels typically have LBGT people in supporting roles (eg the Q replacement in the Laundry is a gay couple that the British government requires to be publicly out so they can't be blackmailed)
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Aug 6, 2013 15:21
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Lex Talionis posted:Well, I just listed some literary fantasy in the recommendation thread, so I guess I'm all warmed up for literary science fiction. This huge effort post was the last post on a page and went very under appreciated. I'm around 100 pages into Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolf. I really like it so far, even if I have very little idea where it is headed or will end up.
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Aug 6, 2013 16:57
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SUPERFINE CONCUBINE posted:Hey guys, I love me some good hard SF (Alastair Reynolds is a particular go-to of mine). Lately I've been thinking that I'd really like to read some SF that is a bit more various in its depictions of relationships, because I just can't see a future populated entirely by heterosexual people and couples. I'm really not interested in gay/poly/interspecies/whatever relationships being the main focus, but was wondering whether there were any good stories you'd recommend where it's part of the fabric of the universe. I'm specifically interested in the normalisation of homosexual relationships in scifi. I guess if there are any stories with a gay focus you would recommend anyway, I'd still like to hear about them! The Forever War by Joe Haldeman and Steel Beach by John Varley might be up your alley.
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Aug 6, 2013 17:21
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SUPERFINE CONCUBINE posted:Hey guys, I love me some good hard SF (Alastair Reynolds is a particular go-to of mine). Lately I've been thinking that I'd really like to read some SF that is a bit more various in its depictions of relationships, because I just can't see a future populated entirely by heterosexual people and couples. I'm really not interested in gay/poly/interspecies/whatever relationships being the main focus, but was wondering whether there were any good stories you'd recommend where it's part of the fabric of the universe. I'm specifically interested in the normalisation of homosexual relationships in scifi. I guess if there are any stories with a gay focus you would recommend anyway, I'd still like to hear about them! How about Bujold's "Ethan of Athos" ? That novel takes a naive young doctor from a men-only planet and drops him into some nasty espionage out in the greater galaxy. Good stuff.
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Aug 6, 2013 18:14
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SUPERFINE CONCUBINE posted:Hey guys, I love me some good hard SF (Alastair Reynolds is a particular go-to of mine). Lately I've been thinking that I'd really like to read some SF that is a bit more various in its depictions of relationships, because I just can't see a future populated entirely by heterosexual people and couples. I'm really not interested in gay/poly/interspecies/whatever relationships being the main focus, but was wondering whether there were any good stories you'd recommend where it's part of the fabric of the universe. I'm specifically interested in the normalisation of homosexual relationships in scifi. I guess if there are any stories with a gay focus you would recommend anyway, I'd still like to hear about them! I've been enjoying Paul McAuley and his Quiet War series as well as his other books. Not as grim as Reynolds, but no FTL, class war between Earth and its colonies, gene wizards, all kept within the Solar system.
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Aug 6, 2013 18:19
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