Read a good book lately?

[HenryDorsetCase]

Agreed. The Hyperion Cantos (all three books) are strong literary SF for which Simmons has won awards and will become classics. Recommended.

I might check them out: I have been so disappointed with a lot of the science fiction I've read lately. and tend to stick with authors I know. William Gibson of course (Zero History last year), Neil Stephenson, Neil Gaiman, Cory Doctorow.

I just finally had some time to read and have finished Ed Macy's APACHE. Just started HELLFIRE. Loved both of them. And the highlight of APACHE is the last sortie: they either had to give him a MC or DFC, or cashier him!... Unbelievable.

I've also read (last year) GENERATION KILL by Evan Wright, and ONE BULLET AWAY by Nathaniel Fick. Both came out Iraq, and Generation Kill got made into a great HBO TV miniseries (Buy the DVDs.... dont watch it on peasant TV shredded and with ads)

[Winston001]

Thanks for the suggestions HDC, will check them out.

I too have been disappointed by recent SF and only pick up the occasional book. Strangely now that we live in the times predicted by the Golden Age, readership interest has dwindled. Its all vampires and magic now. Pah.

Love Larry Niven's Known Universe. Jerry Pournelle has written some good science prediction books. Harry Harrison had a remarkable ability to veer between absurd comedy to serious stuff like West of Eden. A E Van Vogt was a classic author. Stanislaw Lem was a master although you'd be hard pressed to find his books today. Asimov was so productive that his fame became bigger than his ideas but he did write some good books.

Charles Sheffield is an author I discovered a while ago. A little depressing but interesting. He's a physicist and written a few factual books too. Stephen Baxter doesn't work for me - I don't find his characters believable.

Greg Bear's Aeon is a classic. Orson Scott Card - Ender's Game is another, but generally I find his work too dark. If I want that, Stephen King wears the crown.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Thanks for the suggestions HDC, will check them out.

I too have been disappointed by recent SF and only pick up the occasional book. Strangely now that we live in the times predicted by the Golden Age, readership interest has dwindled. Its all vampires and magic now. Pah.

Love Larry Niven's Known Universe. Jerry Pournelle has written some good science prediction books. Harry Harrison had a remarkable ability to veer between absurd comedy to serious stuff like West of Eden. A E Van Vogt was a classic author. Stanislaw Lem was a master although you'd be hard pressed to find his books today. Asimov was so productive that his fame became bigger than his ideas but he did write some good books.

Charles Sheffield is an author I discovered a while ago. A little depressing but interesting. He's a physicist and written a few factual books too. Stephen Baxter doesn't work for me - I don't find his characters believable.

Greg Bear's Aeon is a classic. Orson Scott Card - Ender's Game is another, but generally I find his work too dark. If I want that, Stephen King wears the crown.

Yes! I've read a lot of Niven, and Niven and Pournelle etc. I had a massive Eastern European science fiction binge a few years ago. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky wrote a couple of books I love: MALL WORLD and ROADSIDE PICNIC. I really like Lem, too. About as far as I get towards fantasy is some of the Gaiman stuff (it works because its set in a slightly skewed city you know, current timeframe and his characters work Ive also read NIGHT WATCH, DAY WATCH AND TWILIGHT WATCH (Pretty decent film adaptations too).

I've tried with Iain M Banks too but the Culture just didnt grab me. Good ideas though. I like his crime fiction a lot though.

I like crime fiction generally: Really enjoy Robert Crais, Banks, or course the Stieg Larsson books, Ive read a bit of James Patterson, James Ellroy is fantastic (THE COLD SIX THOUSAND is great, but you might want to start with his earlier stuff).

etc. I used to read a lot more than I do now, DAMN YOU TV!!!!

[Usarka]

M. John Harrison is really good scifi IMO but a little weird.

[wysper]

I used to read a lot more than I do now, DAMN YOU TV!!!!

Yep that is one of the reasons we have no tv here, well we have a tv to watch the odd dvd. But no tv - sky - freeview etc.

It is amazing how much more time we have.

And how much less the kids get bombarded with.

On the sci fi front, I am more of a fantasy fan and my favourite is probably still Stephen Donaldson's Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.

Read some not bad sci fi lately, I will try and remember what it was and post it up.

LOL

[george formby]

Yep that is one of the reasons we have no tv here, well we have a tv to watch the odd dvd. But no tv - sky - freeview etc.

It is amazing how much more time we have.

And how much less the kids get bombarded with.

On the sci fi front, I am more of a fantasy fan and my favourite is probably still Stephen Donaldson's Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.

Read some not bad sci fi lately, I will try and remember what it was and post it up.

LOL

Epic. I got into them at college before the series had finished. Ended up taking me best part of a decade to read them all.

I cannot remember the name of the author but I really enjoyed a series of fantasy books about humans going back to the Pleistocene. I think the first one was called the Golden Torc. A great blend of Sci fi, fantasy & science. If my recall comes back I will post the names.

Ahhh, google. Julian May, Saga of the Pliocene Exiles.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Epic. I got into them at college before the series had finished. Ended up taking me best part of a decade to read them all.

I cannot remember the name of the author but I really enjoyed a series of fantasy books about humans going back to the Pleistocene. I think the first one was called the Golden Torc. A great blend of Sci fi, fantasy & science. If my recall comes back I will post the names.

Ahhh, google. Julian May, Saga of the Pliocene Exiles.

I read those, too: years ago. IIRC it had a sort of LORD OF THE FLIES feel to it? they had the chance to have this utopian society but screwed it up?

[Usarka]

The only fantasy I've gotten into (books you perverts) is the series by Steph Swainston. First book is The Year of Our War.

I really really enjoyed that series.

Not your typical fantasy books, the main character is a drug addict immortal who can fly. They have been likened to China Mieville but I couldn't stand the latter so I think it's a shit comparison.

[george formby]

I read those, too: years ago. IIRC it had a sort of LORD OF THE FLIES feel to it? they had the chance to have this utopian society but screwed it up?

Been a long time since I read them but IIR somebody invented a time machine which would take people back to the Pliocene but only to a specific place & with no chance of coming back.
It became a way for humans disillusioned with their lives to take a one way trip to realize their dreams.

Unfortunately when they got their the place was run by two types of aliens, short ugly shape shifters ( think trolls ) & tall pretty ones with mental powers derived from their torques ( think elves ) Most humans were immediately enslaved on arrival by the tall ones, but not all........

I think I may revisit these books even though my taste has changed. They were spectacular & clever.

[notme]

I read those, too: years ago. IIRC it had a sort of LORD OF THE FLIES feel to it? they had the chance to have this utopian society but screwed it up?

Been a long time since I read them but IIR somebody invented a time machine which would take people back to the Pliocene but only to a specific place & with no chance of coming back.....

You've given me a new series to get into - thanks :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saga_of_Pliocene_Exile

I've just finished this trilogy - AWESOME if you like your sci-fi more biased towards the sci- than the wildly -fi :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time%27s_Eye_%28novel%29

[Kickaha]

You've given me a new series to get into - thanks :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saga_of_Pliocene_Exile

I think I have the full set if you would like to borrow them

[Winston001]

On the sci fi front, I am more of a fantasy fan and my favourite is probably still Stephen Donaldson's Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.

Oh. Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. I feel depressed just saying that name. 6 books dammit. You'd think something happy, a smidgen of winning against the odds, must happen eventually to a leper living in feverish dreams...but no.

Great books. They left me drained 20 years ago but never forgotten.

Yes! I've read a lot of Niven, and Niven and Pournelle etc. I had a massive Eastern European science fiction binge a few years ago. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky wrote a couple of books I love: MALL WORLD and ROADSIDE PICNIC. I really like Lem, too. About as far as I get towards fantasy is some of the Gaiman stuff (it works because its set in a slightly skewed city you know, current timeframe and his characters work Ive also read NIGHT WATCH, DAY WATCH AND TWILIGHT WATCH (Pretty decent film adaptations too).

I've tried with Iain M Banks too but the Culture just didnt grab me. Good ideas though. I like his crime fiction a lot though.

I like crime fiction generally: Really enjoy Robert Crais, Banks, or course the Stieg Larsson books, Ive read a bit of James Patterson, James Ellroy is fantastic (THE COLD SIX THOUSAND is great, but you might want to start with his earlier stuff).

Good man, I have much the same tastes.

In addition to the above I read Michael Connelly (superb crime fiction), Stephen Leather, Stephen King's earlier books and short stories, Cormac McCarthy (No Country For Old Men) and he has to be one of the best writers around, James Lee Burke, Elizabeth George, Patricia Cornwell (first 8 books, then she just gets too dark), Linda Fairstein, used to read Kathy Reichs whose books the TV series Bones is based upon. She's nearly as good as Cornwell, just different.

[Winston001]

While I remember, here is a site where you enter the name of an author you enjoy, and a cloud of similar writers names is generated. Most useful.

http://www.literature-map.com/

[Winston001]

Matterhorn by Ken Marlantes. It took 35 years for this former soldier to complete his opus and it has become a bestseller.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010...rn-book-review

The only Vietnam book I've read which is comparable is Short-timers which was filmed as Full Metal Jacket. Except this book is much better.

The story is about a boot lieutenant's experience joining a company of Marines in 1969 and the pointless patrolling they are subjected to. Most of the time the biggest dangers are jungle diseases, tigers, the terrain - and the career officers giving orders from HQ. Then the NVA appear...

Recommended.

[HenryDorsetCase]

That I will read for sure. Cheers

Have you read CHICKENHAWK? its about a Vietnam helicopter pilot. Very good too. I've lent my copy to someone and not got it back, dammit!

http://www.bookdepository.com/Chicke.../9780552124195