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Need Sci-Fi Book Recommendation

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12 Sep 2016 10:11 #233973 by Da Bid Dabid
I participate in a Sci-Fi book club and its my week to choose the book. I was leaning toward Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan. If anyone can comment on why this is or is not a good idea or throw out some other suggestions before tomorrow night, it would be much appreciated.

We have recently read:
Neuromancer
The Difference Engine
A Fire Upon the Deep
Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Shards of Honor

Everyone expects me to choose Dune, because it is my favorite novel and most have not read it. I will let one of the others make that choice though and prefer to choose something different.

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12 Sep 2016 10:15 - 12 Sep 2016 10:16 #233974 by Disgustipater

Da Bid Dabid wrote: I was leaning toward Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan.


That was the first book I thought of when I read the thread title. It's one of my favorite books.
Last edit: 12 Sep 2016 10:16 by Disgustipater.

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12 Sep 2016 10:24 #233976 by Mr. White
I just read Altered Carbon and can highly recommend it.

I also understand there's a netflix series on it coming out next year or something.

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12 Sep 2016 10:26 #233977 by charlest
I adore Leviathan Wakes.
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12 Sep 2016 11:46 #233985 by RobertB
Altered Carbon is a good book, but there's lots of sex and violence. Enough of it that it caught the notice of more than one Amazon reviewer. More of it than what is in the works on your list. Richard Morgan doesn't believe in fading to black on that sort of thing. I don't have a problem with that, but I'm not in your book club.

I'd throw Startide Rising by David Brin on a list of books to try. If you haven't read it, I recommend it.

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12 Sep 2016 12:07 #233986 by metalface13

RobertB wrote: Altered Carbon is a good book, but there's lots of sex and violence. Enough of it that it caught the notice of more than one Amazon reviewer. More of it than what is in the works on your list. Richard Morgan doesn't believe in fading to black on that sort of thing. I don't have a problem with that, but I'm not in your book club.


Yeah, I didn't make it through Altered Carbon because of that. Kind of felt like I was reading a sci-fi Harlequin novel, but more explicit.
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12 Sep 2016 12:18 - 12 Sep 2016 12:18 #233987 by JEM
Replied by JEM on topic Need Sci-Fi Book Recommendation
Everything of Morgan's that I read after Altered Carbon was utter garbage, to the point that I started doubting myself as to whether I could actually have liked that book.
Last edit: 12 Sep 2016 12:18 by JEM.

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12 Sep 2016 12:55 #233989 by jason10mm
Peter Watts' "Blindsight". It is complex and very thought provoking, excellent for a book club.

Liu Cixin's "Three Body Problem" is also excellent.

These are both first contact novels, which should promote a lively discussion about how the characters handle things. Watts is in the deep end of hard sci-fi, Liu a bit less so, but if you can handle Vinge you can handle Watts.

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12 Sep 2016 13:18 #233990 by Jackwraith
Lord of Light. It's Zelazny's best work, IMO, and a Hugo award winner for Best Novel and Nebula nominee for the same. It's good for book club discussions because there's a tremendous amount of symbolism in it (in addition to Zelazny's elaborately poetic style) and the meaning of many things about the story and characters and even genre (some prefer to call it "science fantasy") can be interpreted in many ways.

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12 Sep 2016 13:19 #233991 by Mr. White

RobertB wrote: Altered Carbon is a good book, but there's lots of sex and violence. Enough of it that it caught the notice of more than one Amazon reviewer. More of it than what is in the works on your list. Richard Morgan doesn't believe in fading to black on that sort of thing. I don't have a problem with that, but I'm not in your book club.


Good point. I forgot this was reading within a book club.

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12 Sep 2016 13:21 #233992 by Dan Thurot
I can second Blindsight, especially if your book group enjoys discussing the themes/issues of a book in depth. It's especially interesting in that it's got some great hard science (consciousness: free will or chemical computer or illusion?) contrasted with some squishier stuff (homo sapiens vampiris). Lots to think about.

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12 Sep 2016 13:37 #233996 by Shellhead
Altered Carbon is good, but fairly conventional cyberpunk. I preferred the two sequels, especially Broken Angels.

Two random suggestion off the top of my head:

The Mote in God's Eye, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle: one of the best first contact stories that I have read.

When Gravity Fails, by George Alec Effinger: Cyberpunk in a cosmopolitan city in the Mideast. Interesting contrast between gritty noir detective story and Islamic customs.

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12 Sep 2016 13:40 #233997 by metalface13

Jackwraith wrote: Lord of Light. It's Zelazny's best work, IMO, and a Hugo award winner for Best Novel and Nebula nominee for the same. It's good for book club discussions because there's a tremendous amount of symbolism in it (in addition to Zelazny's elaborately poetic style) and the meaning of many things about the story and characters and even genre (some prefer to call it "science fantasy") can be interpreted in many ways.


Oh yeah, Lord of Light is good. Interesting read.

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12 Sep 2016 13:42 #233999 by metalface13
Not necessarily sci-fi, but gothic horror mashup, A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny is really fun to read before Halloween or during the month of October.
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12 Sep 2016 14:41 #234014 by stoic
Harry Harrison--Deathworld Trilogy
Harry Harrison--Bill the Galactic Hero
Walter M. Miller, Jr.--Canticle for Leibowitz
Dan Simmons--The Hyperion Cantos

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