I’m new to scifi books, and books in general. (only got into reading 3 years ago) I’ve read dune, the dispossessed , a fire upon the deep and the stars my destination. I’m currently reading the left hand of darkness . What should i read next? Suggest me some of your must-reads.

  • @[email protected]
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    76 hours ago

    10 is hard to go off the top of my head, but, in semi-random

    The expanse: loved it so much we have our son the middle name Holden

    Dune: always a classic for a reason

    Children of Time: find myself dwelling on this

    Honor Harrington: the best military sci-fi

    Forever War: made me think

    Hitchhiker’s Guide: always makes me laugh (also like Darkside of the sun, but not listing both)

    Hyperion: definitive space opera

    The matian: definitive hard scifi

    The culture: like the federation in star trek, but better.

    • @[email protected]
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      13 hours ago

      Children of time needs more hype. Probably the best science fiction to come out in recent times.

      We’re going on an adventure!

      I didn’t think the second book could be on par with the first but it was also fantastic.

      • @[email protected]
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        23 hours ago

        Third one wasn’t as good, but worth a read. Adrian Tchaikovsky must be the most underhyped sci-fi author writing today, his “The Final Architecture” series is great bit of space opera.

        • @[email protected]
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          22 hours ago

          Good to hear. Haven’t read the rest of the series, but felt the first was so good it didn’t need a follow up

  • SSTF
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    47 hours ago

    In no particular order:

    Forever War. This is a good companion piece and counterpoint to Starship Troopers. As a book I find it more engaging and easy to get through than Starship Troopers. There is a lot of interesting contemplation about society and government structures in the book.

    Foundation. A classic novel that tackles the idea of the “great man” theory of history. The next two follow-up books round out a great trilogy. There are more books after that, but those belated sequels don’t have the same spark.

    Dune. It’s Dune.

    Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy. This book and the sequels are the funniest scifi out there.

    Ender’s Game. A great book about a child prodigy in military strategy, and the consequences of a government which uses him.

    At The Mountains Of Madness. Humanity is either a joke or a mistake.

    Tactics Of Mistake. Decently breezy military scifi. It takes The Art Of War and turns many of its principles into a scifi plot.

    Hyperion. Strange, scary, weird.

    Old Man’s War. Another military scifi that is accessible and easy to get through. Great central concept.

    The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress. Robert Heinlein’s best book. An uprising, but on the moon.

  • @Alteon
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    1110 hours ago

    The Expanse Series Enders Game We are Legion (We are Bob) Murderbot Chronicles

      • @Alteon
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        23 hours ago

        Ignore the down votes …they just don’t understand they nuance of Sanctuary Moon.

        • @[email protected]
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          13 hours ago

          This instance doesn’t even show down votes nothing can hurt me I’m invincible! Greatest security bot out!

  • @[email protected]
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    68 hours ago

    Andy Weir‘s Books (The Martian and Project Hail Mary) are very good entries and fairly easy to read and brilliant.

    Then you can look into Corey’s The Expanse for more „realistic” sci-fi in around earth and/or look into Banks’ The Culture of you want to stretch your imagination.

    Further mentions: Hugh Howley (Wool/Silo), Neal Stephenson (Anathem, Seveneves, Snow Crash …)

  • magic_lobster_party
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    1510 hours ago

    The Three Body Problem trilogy, in particular the second book. It’s hard to talk about it without giving away the mystery of the first book, but it’s a book series that reshaped my perception of the universe.

    Otherwise, there’s Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy for some good old British comedy.

    • @Alteon
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      310 hours ago

      The first one was so bad though. The characters had ZERO depth, and the “game” was obviously created by someone who has never played a game before…ever. The dialogue was so cringey at spots.

      Like…I can’t bring myself to read the second book.

      • @[email protected]
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        12 hours ago

        I read most of the first book in Chinese, and so attributed it to my language level not being high enough. So I read it in English, and it was worse. Then later, again, someone recommended the TV series, and I watched the whole thing thinking that I might have missed something. I believe the first season also contains parts of book 2. Still, I don’t understand why so many people like it. It feels like it was written by someone who never read other sci-fi before, to say the least.

      • Clay_pidgin
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        28 hours ago

        I hated it. Other than the folding think I didn’t find anything worthwhile in it, and I’ve read other books with the same gimmick, if at a smaller scale.

      • magic_lobster_party
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        19 hours ago

        I agree with your points, but I liked the first book despite its flaws. The second book actually has an interesting protagonist that’s not solely a vessel for the story, which is why I particularly like that book. And there’s no weird VR game involved (apart from one very short section).

    • @[email protected]
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      210 hours ago

      I absolutely hated the first one. I read that the second one introduces interesting concepts, but I can’t convince myself to go through this again.

      • @[email protected]
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        23 hours ago

        The second one is better, the third is a return to the first. I forced my way through them, but honestly it wasn’t worth it.

  • Diplomjodler
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    69 hours ago

    Anyone who likes Iain Banks, should give Anne Leckie a try. I’ve never had that special kind of “Iain Banks feeling” again until I read her books. But Banks is still the GOAT, of course.

  • KingJalopy
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    710 hours ago

    Blindsight by Peter Watts

    The Bobiverse series by Dennis Taylor

    Anything by Blake Crouch

    William Gibson isn’t for everyone but I love him.

    Not exactly sci-fi more like litrpg but my favorite series currently is Dungeon Crawler Carl. Audio books are the way to go here, Jeff Hayes is fucking incredible.

    I might get shit for this but Project Hail Mary

  • @A_Union_of_Kobolds
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    1011 hours ago

    Did you just read the first Dune book? If so, I highly suggest getting through God Emperor of Dune. Messiah wraps up (mostly) Paul’s story, then Children and GEoD resolve a lot of the themes.

    I’ve been getting into the Culture series by Iain M Banks, which is frequently recommended for good reason.

    The Forever War by Joe Haldeman is a classic of hard military sci-fi

    Ringworld by Larry Niven is likewise a classic, though I never finished it

    Philip K Dick’s stories are also a must

    Asimov’s Foundation series is basically sci-fi’s LotR, deeply fundamental to the genre

    I know I’m forgetting one or two, I’ll add if I remember

    • Clay_pidgin
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      28 hours ago

      There are quite a few books and novellas in the Ringworld universe, properly called “Known Space”. One of my favorite bits is the different human planets and their people.

    • @Bleys
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      310 hours ago

      +1 for the Culture series, personally my favorite sci-fi books

    • @pointnullOP
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      310 hours ago

      Yes, i read Dune. But unfortunately it wasn’t for me . I had a hard time understanding the prose as I’m a new reader.

      • @A_Union_of_Kobolds
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        210 hours ago

        Yeah Frank’s writing is good but can be difficult I’m sure. The audiobooks are really good if you like those, they’re fully-produced dramas with actors and effects and all that jazz.

  • @atomicorange
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    9 hours ago

    Stranger in a Strange Land

    The Moon is a Harsh Mistress

    Both by Heinlein

  • @mr_stank
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    610 hours ago

    I really enjoy Kim Stanley Robinsons books, the Mars trilogy especially. However a couple of his standalone books are also great (Aurora and 2312).

    Also, I love peter f Hamiltons world building. Pandoras Star kicks off a huge story spanning 7 odd books.

    And finally, James sa Corey and the expanse series are phenomenal.

    • Peachfacedshredder
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      2 hours ago

      Seconded for Peter Hamilton books, a total of 8 books if you include the prequel Misspent Youth.

      One warning that the story perspective jumps between many different characters viewpoints before bringing them together. It can feel really confusing and irrelevant until you get further into the book.

  • @[email protected]
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    510 hours ago

    Anything by Stanislaw Lem. Very philosophical at times, but easy enough to read, and with a lot of jokes and thrills… I’d start with some short storys.

  • @[email protected]
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    10 hours ago

    Everone always praises Asimov’s Foundation, but I found his robot stories (collected both in “I, Robot” and “The Complete Robot”) more entertaining. While Foundation is more of an adventure story, the robots pose interesting philosophical questions are are always good for a last-minute reveal. They’re also usually quite short, so they’re a good read when your time is on a budget or you’re not an avid reader in general.

    I wish I had learned earlier that short stories can also be entertaining and not just the artsy bullshit you’re forced to read in school.