Oh GOD. You started a book thread. Why did you do this??!?!?! *ahem*
Here are my comments on above recommendations:
Ditto on "Eye of the World" by Robert Jordan. He's kept the series going for a long time and it is getting sort of tedious. But all the books are good reading and the first book is exceptional. Try the first book and, if you like it, you have reading material for a long time. I think the first 8 books lasted me a good two months...
DITTO DITTO DITTO on "Battlefield Earth" I started the book with some reservations, largely based on the movie. John Travolta as a big, ugly alien is not my thing. Those reservations were swiftly allayed. The book is fantastic. And the best part is it just keeps going. You think everything has been resolved and then there is another interesting plot twist. The final climax is mind blowing. Definitely a must read.
Here are my recommendations:
"Beggars in Spain" by Nancy Kress
A fantastic book about the development of a genetic modification called "Sleepless" that allows people to go without sleep and the extreme prejudice against Sleepless. An intersting and thought provoking book in a lot of ways, especially looking toward the future.
"On Basilisk Station" by David Weber
The first book in a series about a woman named Honor Harrington. She is a naval officer in the space navy of a future daughter world of Earth (colonized by people from Earth). A tight, well thought out, believable universe. Written from a distinctly conservative point of view. The developments in some of the later books parallel the war with Iraq and our own liberal idiots. Extremely good reading. I can not recommend this series enough.
"Helm" and "Blind Waves" by Steven Gould
Both science fiction stories written in the future, the first on a colony of Earth and the second on Earth after the melting of the polar ice caps (not ecological BS, no worries, just good sci fi). Both present fascinating possible future worlds and develop the human characters well. Good reads.
"X-Wing" series by Michael Stackpole
If you like Star Wars at all these books are worth a read. The first four deal with the capture of Coruscant by the New Republic, the second four deal with some other developments, and the ninth is just a random story. Books 5-8 are written by another author, but the whole series is good and the first four are stellar.
"I, Jedi" by Michael Stackpole"
An interesting stand alone book about one of the characters from the X-Wing series. It helps to read the X-Wing series first.
Tom Clancy
Read the older Tom Clancy books. His newer ones are succumbing to the "I'm a successful writer so I don't have to create intricate plots anymore" syndrome, sadly. But his older books are excellent. I especially recommend "The Hunt for Red October" and "Patriot Games."
That's all I can come up with, at the moment. If I think of more I'll add them.
DU?
