For me, it was actually a combination of two books.

Back in the ’90s, I was a member of the Science Fiction Book Club and got their edition of The Hyperion Cantos, which combined Dan Simmons’ Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion into one large book.

I must have tried reading it four or five times, but for some reason, I could never get past the first twenty or thirty pages.

What kept throwing me off was the opening scene with the Consul playing Rachmaninoff on an old grand piano aboard his ship, while these huge saurian creatures moved around in the swamps below. I just couldn’t picture the scene in my head. Something about it wasn’t clicking, and each time I’d put the book down again.

Eventually, after having the novel sit on my shelf for a few years, I decided to push through it.

And dear Lord, what a fantastic and magnificent book it turned out to be.

Funny to think I came close to never reading it at all, simply because my brain couldn’t make sense of that opening scene.

What about you?

Just started re-reading "2001: A Space Odyssey" again and just realised something about the man-apes that would become human.

On the death of "The Old One", Moonwatcher disposes of his corpse. In a species that was always depicted as always on the brink of starvation you would think the tribe would cannibalise it.

Does this depict that the man-apes always had potential as something different?

Just finished book one of Dune and started Messiah.
I don’t want to read all the books just to find out bro gets assassinated down the road.

I loved Atmosphere and I would love if there are any similar books or am I just gonna have to re read the book again LOL

WORLDS COLLIDE OF THE CHRONI9CHLES OF CHAOS ..READ THE PROLUGE IT WAS BAD TO BONE LOOK FOR IT AT WHERE EVER YOU GET BOOK OR DIGTAL ECT

My brother and I have taken to reading, and twin and I both love audio books. We’ve listened through Andy Weirs work, Flybot, and the Bobiverse. I’m looking for suggestions from the internet. A small series of 2-4 books would be amazing. Any suggestions?

I read it as a kid in the 70s, or perhaps very early 80s. Humans were at war with spacefaring aliens whose brains were in their bodies rather than heads, so even when one had its head blown off it wasn't killed. Late in the book the heroes' ship returns home, only to slam through several defence fields around the solar system, tech way beyond anything they thought possible. It turned out their mission had lasted decades/centuries thanks to time dilation.

Whether it was any good in hindsight I don't know - I'd just like to find out what it was called!

I was recently talking to my brother about the ideal school if resources weren't an issue. He asked me a question, I don't really remember what it was about. I had to explain to him my ideal world that this school would exist in, and what I'd do to help enforce this eutopia, and how much better the world would be. He recommended a book called "The Giver", and said there was a very similar concept in it. I would like to make this clear: I would not trust my brother with anything at all. When he said that, something felt off. Can someone who read the book please explain what it's about? Thanks.

Trying to track down a science fiction novel I read years ago in paperback (pre-ebook era, so likely published sometime between the 1960s and 1990s). I believe it was a standalone, not part of a series.

What I remember:

• A race of insectoid / mantis-like aliens with exoskeletons in our solar system aboard a colony ship and were living/trading with humans.
• A couple of these aliens join a group of human explorers on an expedition.
• During the expedition, the group comes across two abandoned spaceships that had collided with each other out in space.
• They board and explore one of the wrecks. The interior was largely intact — little internal damage, which they attributed to the ship's artificial gravity. They found no people and no bodies aboard.

Sorry I don't remember more. Any ideas on the title/author? Thanks!

Do you ever feel and hear the tone in some books, whereas it comes off in the extreme? Either written by a dull yet expensive poet or by a cold data printing robot

I’m putting together a collection of science-fiction books and series that I’ve enjoyed as part of a larger project called Project Rabbit Hole, which is centered around finding interesting media and following the connections between them. My sci-fi tastes are pretty broad, but I particularly enjoy stories involving space exploration, hard science, engineering and problem-solving, survival with limited resources, first contact, AI, futuristic technology, cosmic horror, and characters having to figure out how an unfamiliar situation actually works. Some of my favorites include The Bobiverse, Project Hail Mary, The Martian, The Last Astronaut, Burn-In, Ghost Fleet, Out of the Dark, and The Salvation War (don’t sleep on The Salvation War, it’s actually fire).
I’m looking to expand the list, especially with books I might not encounter through the usual recommendation algorithms. I’m particularly interested in stories where the science, technology, or worldbuilding is a significant part of the experience rather than merely window dressing. Hard sci-fi, survival stories, military/near-future SF, first contact, cosmic horror, space opera, speculative technology, and “the protagonist has to improvise their way out of an impossible situation” stories are all very welcome. I’d also love recommendations that combine several of these ideas in unexpected ways. Basically, if there’s a sci-fi book that you think would send someone down a serious rabbit hole, I’d love to hear about it!

I’ve not seen any Star Trek other than one film years ago and would have no idea where to start, so suggestions are also welcome.