Please suggest some hard Sci-Fi (I do want to read the Ringworld novels, I have only read the shorts), or regular, just not the frufy shit and some good fantasy, also no frufy shit.
To give you an idea of what I like, I have read everything Heinlein wrote and have read the Elric saga many times, I also liked Nivin's Earth a lot.

Try Robert L. Forward - Dragon's Egg

(a thought ... do we need a separate thread where people make requests for book suggestions? hmm. Yes, I've decided we do.)

Stephen Donaldson, The Gap Series, first one is called The Real Story.

Awesome and wide ranging solid space opera. Amazingly complex.

Greg Egan, read any of his books. Brilliant aussie sci fi writer, some of his stuff goes over my head a little (the quantum stuff) but mostly it's just sheer brilliance. Good one to start with is Quarantine.

'Amnesia Moon' and 'Gun with Occassional Music' are both stunning sci-fi novels.

Fisherman's Hope (The Seafort Saga), by David Feintuch. Wow, what an unusual sci fi story. Set in a future where a kind of puritanical Christianity is widespread and space travel is run along naval lines, with the ships run along similar lines to the 18th century naval vessels. From Amazon "Naval Academy Commandant Nicholas Seafort is a legend to the masses, an idol to his hundreds of teen cadets. They don't see the tormented soul of a man who believes that merciless duty has led him to betray every friend he ever loved, every ideal he ever cherished. After a lifelong ordeal, Seafort needs time. Time to reflect. Time to heal. Instead he is pulled into a maelstrom of crisis, corruption, and danger as the helpless, unprepared Earth faces annihilation from a horde of alien attackers. Alone at the center of a cosmic apocalypse, Nick Seafort must face his final battle . . .And his most unforgivable sin. "

Now that series is a really good read.

Have you read any Vernor Vinge? All his stuff is solid. Actually, if you pm me an address I can send you a couple books.

Anything by Peter F. Hamilton, but I'd recommend starting with this trilogy.

1. The Reality Dysfunction (1996)
2. The Neutronium Alchemist (1997)
3. The Naked God (1999)

All his work is has great character development, many interwoven sub-plots, and really cool hard-core science-science-fiction. My only criticism is that he has a hard time ending a story.

Also Sean McMullen's Voyages of the Shadowmoon. Really nice, mildly humourous, but fairly straight fantasy.

The Silmarillion

I really enjoyed Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained. But I just couldn't get into the Reality Dysfunction series. It held up well for me across the first 3/4 of the first book, then I lost interest.

You might like the Miles Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold.

The Greatwinter Trllogy by Sean McMullen

Transcension by Damien Broderick

The Risen Empire / The Killing of Worlds by Scott Westerfeld

Red Thunder by John Varley

Eon by Greg Bear

Merchant Princes series by Charles Stross

For fantasy--Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williamson, a very complex hero's journey.

For SF--any of the Vorkosigan books by Lois McMaster Bujold. If you haven't read any of these run out right now and get them. These are sort of space opera, the hero, Miles is a brilliant military leader with a stunted body, fighting enemies for his emperor as well as fighting prejudice against his appearance. I know it sounds sappy, but seriously, Miles Vorkosigan, is the best character I've come across since Valentine Michael Smith in close to 40 years of reading SF.

Asimov - I Robot (short stories), Caves of Steel, Naked Sun, The Foundation Trilogy

Clarke - Tales from the White Hart (short stories), Childhood's End, Fountains of Paradise

Simak - Time is the Simplest Thing

Anderson - Operation Chaos, Three Hearts and Three Lions, lots more

I knew this topic would get a LOT of action.

Anyone read the Man Katzen wars?
Any good?

Those by Larry Niven?

Pretty sure he wrote them. I read another series by him some time ago.

Maybe a while ago--why not go for it if it interests you? I find it difficult sometimes to accept other people's recommendations. Although I believe them, and I'm sure the books are good, sometimes it makes a difference if I pick it out myself.

Sometimes not. :)

that's Man-Kzin wars....and yes...you cannot go wrong w/ Niven. or Poul Anderson. or Orson Scott Card.

I have learned to trust clodfobble's taste, and Happy Monkey''s. look thru the books you're currently reading thread for reviews.

Read a lot of Card, good stuff.
I also gotta' get my hands on The Selfish Gene and The God Delusion.

Heh, thanks. Now I've gotta get off my ass and write something here.

Niven invented Man-Kzin, but I don't know how many of them he wrote. Anything by Niven is worth reading, though his more recent stuff isn't quite up to his earlier level.

You can't get much harder science fiction than Kim Stanley Robinson's Red/Green/Blue Mars series. The tech in that series is not quite sufficiently advanced to be indistinguishable from magic, which is nice. Lots of politics, and occasionally dry, but I liked them.

Alfred Bester, the namesake of the Babylon 5 villain, is an icon.

Neil Stephenson's Cryptonomicon may or may not be considered science fiction, but it is fascinating, and includes its own encryption method.

E. E. "Doc" Smith's Lensman series can't be called "hard" - it is the prototype rollicking space opera - but it is a lot of fun.

John Varley's Steel Beach is fun and racy. It's got the magic tech, but it uses it to very good effect.

As for fantasy, I'm currently rereading Neil Gaiman's Stardust, after seeing the movie. Gaiman's Sandman is like a romp though the entire world of fantasy. His "Through the Looking-Glass-esque" Coraline is going to be another movie.

Wolf's not a fan, but I'll recommend the Thomas Covenant series, which still has a couple more books coming out some time. I'll also second the Gap series mentioned above, also by Donaldson.

H.P. Lovecraft is great, as well.

I guess I'll stop here.

Neuromancer - William Gibson
Pournelle's Mercenary series.
Zelazny - isle of the dead, Roadmarks
Haldeman - the forever war
Frank Herbert - Dune, the godmakers

all old friends, read multiple times

Thanks for all the ideas everyone.
Read all the Dunes and Tolkien numerous times, Eon was great too.

I forgot Firestar, by Michael Flynn.

rkz just come on over I've lots to read.

Good fortune, I found a history of tobacco that I only half finished that had lost. Great book. Gonna' restart and finish.

I have a really good history of coffee--it's called Uncommon Grounds. very interesting!

My Mom just gave me a bunch of stuff. Stephen King I have not read and some sci-fi.
I really appreciate the list guys and I will also share it with her. We will both get a lot out of it, I am sure!

Ooooh. You really can't go wrong with a good Stephen King yarn!

The people I know who read Terry Goodkind seem to read all of them.


Swan Song by Robert McCammon was a pretty good apocalyptic story.

Swan Song was excellent.

yeah, that one's a keeper

I do want to read the rest of the Clan of The Cavebear books and reread the first three or four (I don't remember how many I read).

I'm reading Darwin's Radio by Greg Bear and I can't put it down. I just looked it up on Amazon and found out that there's a sequel.

Human reproduction, genetics, politics, and violence. A great story.

I've read Darwin's Radio and the second novel... the second kinda' bogged down for me.

Do yourself a favor and stop after the first one. They just get worse. I call them Boddice-ripper of the Cavebear.

LOL!!!! Funny!

I completely agree that #2 and #3 are worse, but if I remember correctly they do have more sex scenes. (Of course these days we have the internet... we don't have to plow through rotten novels for that.)

Beest likes Iain M Banks and Iain Banks (same author, one name for fantasy novels, the other more sci-fi, never remember which is which). I quite like them too, actually. Even though neither are "my genre".

I'm glad someone else said it.

Be warned that Hamilton's Pandora's Star does not set a cracking pace. I have yet to see if Judas Unchained runs any quicker. Hamilton seems to write these five-hundred-page multideckers that move like Swedish cinema.

If it is a solid story with fleshed-out characters I'm ok with that.
Moby Dick has been read once every two years for most of my life.

Been promising myself I should give Moby Dick a proper run through ever since Jeff Smith so convincingly raved about it in Bone. (Series of graphic novels. Deeper and more complex than most, and a big hit.)

I recommend about any Zelazny, though I'd give the nod to his earlier Amber novels over his later. Perhaps it was that I was younger? His language has the sensibility of a poet's. For a Zelazny intro, hmm: try The Doors of His Face, The Lamps of His Mouth. Collection of short stories that should tell you if you want more of the late Mr. Z.

Oh: John Myers Myers' Silverlock. Older than it looks. Ya gotta like a story that starts with two men, shipwrecked, clinging to a floating yard, falling into conversation -- and each shortly concluding the other is a world-class bullshitter.

Thanks man! I will put them on the list.

Iain M Banks is his sci-fi name, Iain Banks is for the straight (though even these usually have a degree of magical realism) novels.

Yeah, you're right "fantasy" is not the right description (haven't read on in a while) Thanks.

OK, dammit. Thread resurrection. Because I can.

Science fiction novels (2 or 3 books?). The protagonist is a woman from a rich family who, as a teenager sees a meteorite crash and gets scared about a "deep impact" type of even. As an adult she devotes her life--and family fortune--to preparing to meet this threat when it appears.

I can't remember the title or author. Well?? Bueller?

It sounds familiar but...

does the something have to be sci-fi ish????

not ringing a bell. closest I can come to is Contact, and I'm sure that's not it

How 'bout some civil war stuff? KILLER ANGELS is VERY good.

or CONFEDERATES IN THE ATTIC -Tony Horwitz. Very good.

I'm slowly chugging through the latest in the Outlander Series...pretty good so far - the whole series itself has been outstanding.

Would it surprise anyone to learn I'm currently reading a Doctor Who novel?

NO ;) You nutt.

It's actually not that great, but I've started it now....

Does it warrant finishing?

In an attempt to not just ask questions, post and see if anyone answers, I'll add in here that I've never seen the attraction of Dr Who...I've tried, but obviously, I just don't get it.

At the moment I'm reading Clive James' latest book 'The Blaze of Obscurity' which I is absolutely hilarious. There's something quotable on about every 5th page.

I didn't get Dr. Who until David Tennant started playing him. And even then, I still don't really appreciate it for what it is, I just think David Tennant is hot so I don't mind watching it.