#sci-fi books

[atomic-chronoscaph]

Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy - art by Don Ivan Punchatz (1966)

[stary-night]

Thinking about sci-fi stories as a force to advocate for better societies and critiquing modern capitalism.

Particularly with the Iain M Banks Culture series and The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells.

Both series present a utopian society that offers food, healthcare and education to it's residents, as well as being inclusive and welcoming of different genders and sexualities.

This is shown in contrast to other parts of the galaxy, which mirror our own world in late stage capitalism - where people are often unable to afford necessities and work themselves to death and conflicts are common because they help fund wealthy individuals/companies.

Through both books being set in the future, they are able to critique and imagine the further development of modern problems, while also being able to advocate for hope for the future through community.

It's a really cool theme I've seen in the scifi genre as a whole.

[aroaessidhe]

I found a secondhand copy of Na Viro yesterday! a great Pasifikafuturist sff novel with a sapphic mc 💫

[tallysgreatestfan]

This space opera is just so good, I had to draw a lineup of my favorite characters from "The Risen Empire" by Scott Westerfeld.

Featuring

lesbian Borg Ellen Ripley

local bisexual neurodivergent woman exploited by the monarchy switches sides the second

massively traumatized guy gets spaceship command instead or therapy (think Ash Tyler or Jeffrey Sinclair)

Padme and/or Deanna Troi and/or Delenn if their stories weren't written so sexistly

[coffeetime88]

Dan Simmons' Hyperion books are a wild trip that I am glad I went on

Just finished reading the whole series (Hyperion, The Fall of Hyperion, Endymion, The Rise of Endymion), and BOY HOWDY do I have EMOTIONS. The series starts with "Oh hey, seven stories about seven people on a super-future pilgrimage. Neat!", then the second book keeps you trying to figure out what's both going to happen and is happening to these people you've come to know. Then the third book starts with "Let's hang out with these kids as they go on a universe-hopping journey!" and the fourth ends the series with an emotional rollercoaster the likes of which I had never been on before.

Dan Simmons' greatest strengths are his ability to write people and his ability to write mysteries. You will want to learn more about every character, and you will be on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next.

I STRONGLY recommend this series if you like Science Fiction and are any amounts interested in Theology (especially Christianity). The first two books (Hyperion & The Fall of Hyperion) are perfect as a standalone set as well. The covers I recommend are the ones featuring The Shrike, the 3-meter tall metal man covered in spikes and razors (drawn by Gary Ruddell). Have fun and happy reading!

[djrusso-romance]

Tumblr friends, I'm not sure if you can help me... this is a longshot. But here goes. Can someone direct me to some books that give I Was a Teenage Excolonist Vibes?

I want this:

But in book form.

[rotten-whispers]

Tales from a Mall Masterpost

Status: Available for purchase on Amazon!

Online Sneak Peek

Redbubble Stickers

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Are you tired of living in the 21st century? Come explore the Fresh Malls, an establishment in a sci-fi 22nd century world, where ferrets have mechanical attachments, people have tails, and there is a squad of approaching zombies that annoyingly blocks our ability to buy the newest summer fashions!

[glitter-and-be-gay]

Apostles of Mercy - Book review

by Lindsay Ellis

Lindsay Ellis has once again crafted a novel that encompasses the breadth of people's (very pointedly not referring only to "human" here) emotions when faced with desperate situations. The myriad reactions to fear, the things we will do to save ourselves and those we love, the urges to be cruel or compassionate in the face of impending doom, and how there are always choices.

There is infinite nuance in how Ellis writes her characters. It makes one wonder what one would do in those circumstances, between a rock and a hard place. The times when we would choose cruelty over mercy. It's easiest to imagine oneself as noble and self-sacrificing, but I know how irritable I am when I haven't slept well, so I cannot possibly imagine being my very best self when faced with horrific existential quandaries. I hope never to find out. Some of these characters are irredeemable, and it comes down to their own choices when the only unforgivable sin is protracted callous self-interest.

I believe we are, slowly but surely, societally moving away from finding earnest hope and love as a way to move forward naïve. Ellis very carefully steps away from nebulous revolutions as a solution to anything and advocates for slow, steady changes in policy as the only way to fix any problems we are dealing with. The solution is not blowing up the Bad Guys because there are fundamentally no collective Bad Guys. There are individuals who make choices. American imperialist politics and the military are scrutinised from within.

And then there's the romance. How the characters love each other is incredibly compelling. I can't go into any detail without spoiling things, but one of the most touching scenes in the book is one I did not expect at all. I simply can't wait to read what Ellis publishes next.

[seaside-writings]

I just wanted to share some pictures of my Jurassic Park/Lost World book that I got few weeks ago, alongside some of my favorite diagrams from both books.

I’ve read both of the books before, but I got this really pretty silver-lined one and I just couldn’t help but take pictures of it!

Plus, we all know taking artsy pictures is fun lol.

I hope you all stay blessed and safe throughout your day.

Lots of Love & Wishes: Celia 💙🦕

[chaosslibrarian]

Trying something out :)

There’s still just a bit over 2 months left of the year but it’ll be hard to find any books that’ll top these. My top reads per genre this year. High recoomend!

Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield Sapphic horror that incorporates what is hidden beneath the sea, and a mysterious company that answers no question. One woman lost under the sea for months and her wife who was left behind are re-united... but nothing is the same.

How High We Go In The Dark - Sequoia Nagamatsu A father travels to the arctic after his daughter dies in an accident during an excursion there, and the consequences for the world are dire. Multiple POV story that follows a world during and after a devastating pandemic.

Once There Were Wolves -  Charlotte McConaghy She flees to Scotland with her sister after an experience has left her sister near catatonic. In Scotland she is trying to reintroduce wolves into the wild-life to help the local climate.. but when one man seems to have been killed by the wolves she has to fight for the wolves. (Elements of cli-fi)

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean Devon is a part of a human-life race of people that is ancient and deeply patriarchal. She is a Book Eater. She doesn’t eat food, she eats books. Her son is a dreaded Mind Eater, and as he grows he gets hungrier and hungrier, and there’s no limit to what she will do for her child.

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland The Hollow sisters are surrounded by mystery. As children they mysteriously disappeared only to reappear months later with no memory of where they’ve been. They discover things are even stranger than it seem, and now something hunting them because it wants them back.

I’m Glad My Mom Died - Jeanette McCurdy A memoir about McCurdy’s rise to childhood stardom and living under the thumb of an emotionally abusive and manipulative mother whose struggle with cancer keeps McCurdy guilted into compliance and inability to break free.

[groovyspecs]

The Pride of Chanur

I picked this up on a recommendation and I am really enjoying it. It was published in 1981 but doesn't feel old. Perhaps because it is sci-fi and there aren’t any obvious items to date it. I’m not very far in but so far it has me hooked.

[friedthrice]

This man knew exactly what the “decadent apocalyptic city with a dark underbelly” trope needed and I am here for it.

(Ambergris by Jeff Vandermeer)

[moraiwings]

Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.

Donna Barba Higuera, The Last Cuentista

[lightyearsandbeyond]

3 - Michael Lordes (rough draft as it is written)

Inside the office of the Minister of Intelligence for the Nagap Federate life was quiet and rigidly structured. Outside the window, a thousand plus feet below her office on the 112th floor, structure had been obliterated. Police sirens coalesced with loudspeaker shouted commands and the roar of an incensed mob to create a nightmarish noise. Bottles, rocks, in some instances gym weights were…

[zeenovos]

Y’all in case you didn’t know, the second Monk and Robot book is out and good lord I cannot WAIT to read it this weekend. If you haven’t read A Psalm for the Wild Built, please do. It features a nonbinary tea monk discussing life with a robot named Splendid Speckled Mosscap, and I anticipate the sequel being just as fantastic as the first book. Finding a fictional story to be restful is quite rare in what I read, and I’m holding onto it with both hands

[yourcoffeeguru]

ANALOG Science Fiction Science Fact Sept 1985 Eric G Iverson Gordon R Dickson || autradingpost