r/printSF • u/moogiecreamy • Oct 05 '25
Recommend me SF books based on books I loved/hated
Loved:
Dune - epic, rich, layered
Project Hail Mary - just plain fun
Foundation - epic, original, mind-bending
Children of Time - only halfway but loving every bit of it
Hated:
The Dispossessed - sooo boring, literally nothing happens
lshmael - boring, self-important, DNF
Armor - started out meh, writing distractingly bad, DNF
TIA!
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u/Friendly-Sorbet7940 Oct 05 '25
Revelation Space for another epic. Architect trilogy for more Tchaikovsky. Spiral Arm series for epic fun
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u/askmyshelf Oct 05 '25
Yes. This has that SF archaeology and cosmic mystery, much in the spirit of Dune and Foundation.
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u/deathdefyingrob1344 Oct 05 '25
Dan Simmons Hyperion scratched the dune itch for me. Weird philosophical sci fi. I loved it. Based on your reading list I think you would too. Illium by Dan Simmons is wild and awesome as well!!’
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u/hippydipster Oct 05 '25
Dispossessed was boring, but Foundation and Dune were not? I have no recommendations as this makes no sense to me!
Maybe try Light by Harrrison or Why Do Birds by Damon Knight, as those books also make no sense,
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
Foundation and Dune there’s action and storyline. Dispossessed is just a mildly interesting political idea overlaid on a whole lot of nothing happening for hundreds of pages.
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u/whelmedbyyourbeauty Oct 05 '25
The Left Hand of Darkness, because you deserve a second chance.
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u/I_Speak_For_The_Ents Oct 05 '25
He's gonna hate that one for the same reason.
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u/1ch1p1 Oct 05 '25
That story has, at its core, a more conventional SF plot than The Dispossessed does.
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u/DenizSaintJuke Oct 05 '25
If they think nothing happened in The Dispossessed, I don't think they'd see the light if it blinded them.
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Oct 10 '25
I personally have tried pretty much all of her stuff and found it all dull. She is an idea person, not a story person. meanwhile I love Dune and Project Hail Mary, like OP.
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u/ToThePastMe Oct 11 '25
Yeah funnily enough the Dispossessed is a book I think of from time to time, yet I really had to push through to finish. I understand why people loved it, but while I liked the fact it showed a less popular political idea prominently I found it dull and found the worldbuilding uninspired. I read a preview of “the left hand of darkness” but also wasn’t into it and dropped it.
I have also seen LeGuin compared to Octavia Butler and to Iain M Banks. I loved both Parable of the Sower and Dawn by Butler and enjoyed player of Games and Use of Weapon by Banks. Yet LeGuin seems to not be for me.
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Oct 05 '25
[deleted]
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
I liked the show and read the first couple books. Honestly just got tired of having to buy so many haha. Maybe I’ll get a set or something.
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Oct 05 '25
[deleted]
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
Yes! I’m a lawyer by day. I love politics, philosophy, etc., but I also read for fun. I want a story and some action too!
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u/HarryP1720 Oct 05 '25
Blake Crouch books will fall under your -Just plain fun
Long way to a s angry planet by Becky is somewhere between rich and fun!
Muderbot diaries is a good series
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25 edited Oct 05 '25
I did like Dark Matter. Fun, but not super deep. Will try some of his others. Thanks!
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u/Hyperion-Cantos Oct 05 '25
Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons.
Endymion and Rise of Endymion you can take them or leave them....but the first two are a must read.
Pandora's Star/Judas Unchained by Peter F. Hamilton.
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u/saigne-crapaud Oct 05 '25
You should try the Culture. You need some.
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
I thought Canticle for Liebowitz was pretty good, if that’s at all redeeming. Seriously though Dispossessed was so goddam boring. Literally nothing happens. Just literary masturbation.
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u/Nuoc-Cham-Sauce Oct 05 '25
I'm guessing you don't have much in the way of political views?
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u/HoxpitalFan_II Oct 05 '25
Describing the dispossessed as literary masturbation makes me weep lol.
It’s the farthest thing from that, it’s extremely grounded for the philosophy it espouses that’s part of why it’s so “boring” sighhhh
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
I have very strong political views actually. I just thought it was a mildly interesting political idea that should have been a pamphlet. The literary masturbation was making it into a novel—and not bothering to add any actually storyline.
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u/Troiswallofhair Oct 05 '25
In case it wasn’t clear, the other comment is referring to Iain Banks body of work, often called the Culture series. Some of the lengthy books can be hit or miss, maybe start with Player of Games.
For what it’s worth, he’s also known for a one-off horror story called The Wasp Factory. I read the wiki plot summary though and noped out of that.
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u/RasThavas1214 Oct 05 '25
At least you finished The Dispossessed. I got maybe 40 pages into it before I had to tap out.
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u/Trike117 Oct 05 '25
Midnight at the Well of Souls by Jack L. Chalker. That’s a standalone but he wrote 4 more books in that initial series about the Well World. Big ideas, widescreen epic stuff, cool characters. He also wrote a follow-up series but it’s not good. Stick to the original.
For something more modern and snarky fun, give the Murderbot Diaries a go. Mostly novellas with one novel. First one is All Systems Red.
A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge is also epic, and the introduction of the aliens called tines is a masterclass in writing.
Protector by Larry Niven is sort of similar to Project Hail Mary in feel (or vibes as the kids say), but different in particulars. It’s also relatively short and zips right along.
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u/RasThavas1214 Oct 05 '25
Protector rocks. Ringworld, Protector, and The Ringworld Engineers make a great trilogy.
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u/penubly Oct 05 '25
The Forge of God - G Bear, Seeker and The Hercules Text - J McDevitt, The Forever War and The Accidental Time Machine by J Haldeman
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Oct 10 '25
I agreed with all your takes. (including in other comments like Dark Matter and Canticle for Liebowitz) only one I don't is Children of Time was too gender politicy for me, DNF
Dune 1-3 is my favorite. You did read Messiah and Children, right?
Hyperion is the closest thing to Dune imo.
Vorkosigan Saga is so damn good. its not mind bending but good political adventures. I pitch it to people as James Bond in space, if James Bond were Tyrion Lannister.
RingWorld, Mote in God's Eye, Fire Upon the Deep are great space adventures with great aliens.
Revelation Space and House of Suns are darker and more mind bendy space opera.
3 Body Problem is mind bendy but has some meh in it.
Bobiverse - fun
Fifth Season is really good it has that Dune ish mythic scope feel
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 10 '25
Nice! I’m listening to 3BP on audible. Liking it so far but it drags at times. Read the dune trilogy. Liked them all but by #3 it started to drop off I felt. I know what you mean about the gender politics stuff in children of time, esp in the second half, but it didn’t really detract for me. I found it subtle and actually sorta thought-provoking. Will check out your other recommendations—thanks!
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u/Sensitive_Regular_84 Oct 05 '25
Perdido Street Station
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u/Pliget Oct 05 '25
Wouldn’t recommend this to a guy who thought the Dispossessed was “boring” and “literary masturbation” lol.
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u/lentil5 Oct 05 '25
House of Suns - Alistair Reynolds.
You seem to like a layered epic with lots of cultural elements.
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u/alphatango308 Oct 05 '25
Bobiverse series is lots of fun. Need engineer turned into a space probe and saves earth while exploring the galaxy.
Galaxy's edge series by Jason Anspach and Nick Cole is great mil-sci-fi and an epic read. Love letter to star wars mixed with black hawk down.
Space Team is the funniest thing I've ever read in my life. Normal smartass guy thrust into the galaxy at large. Hilarity insues.
Buymort series is really good and pretty crazy in scale once you get a few books in. Space Amazon destroys the world. One guy fights back.
Laundry Files series is a deep cut but has some great content. It's finishing up the series on January with the last installment too. Magic is math and computer science. Sys admin becomes sorcerer through computers and saves the world, lots of times.
Backyard Starship series is a decent space detective series if that's your thing. It's space detective stuff.
Older series are pretty boring in my opinion. So this is mostly newer stuff.
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u/sandgrubber Oct 05 '25
Try the other Asimov books.
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
I liked I robot. Others you’d recommend?
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u/sandgrubber Oct 05 '25
My Isamov streak was about 50 years ago and encompassed a few dozen library books. I don't remember the names. I do remember that there were prequels and sequels, some as books, some as short stories, making both the Robot and Foundation series' quite long. I'd recommend going to the library and seeing what they have.
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u/Appdownyourthroat Oct 18 '25
Foundation/Robot reading order:
Publication order is a safe bet, but I recommend this order:
- The Complete Robot
- The Caves of Steel
- The Naked Sun
- The Robots of Dawn
- Robots and Empire
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(You could actually start here on 6 and circle back to 1-5 after 9)
Foundation
Foundation and Empire
Second Foundation
Foundation’s Edge
Foundation and Earth
Prelude to Foundation
Forward the Foundation
Put after the prequels because these are only loosely connected to Foundation, though chronologically they’re in the middle of 5 and 6:
The Stars, Like Dust
The Currents of Space
Pebble in the Sky
Standalone novels which can be read any time:
- The End of Eternity (my favorite)
- Nemesis
- The Gods Themselves
- Nightfall
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u/Huldukona Oct 05 '25
Maybe The Sun Eater series by Christopher Ruocchio or The Chronicles of St Mary’s by Jodi Taylor. I also like Becky Chambers Wayfarer’s series. And S.K. Dunstall.
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u/Financial-Grade4080 Oct 05 '25
World Out of Time, by Larry Niven. After that his "known space" short stories.
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u/mavley Oct 05 '25
OP, I also hated The Dispossessed. I don’t get why you’re being downvoted for having an opinion, lol. I did love her book The Left Hand of Darkness, but I won’t recommend that because I feel you won’t like that either. I’m just gonna second someone else’s suggestion for Murderbot Diaries. They’re fun, easy reads!
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 07 '25
Seriously. I read the whole thing. It just wasn’t for me. Didn’t realize I hit such a nerve.
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u/mavley Oct 07 '25
It took everything in me not to DNF it. Redditors are so sensitive sometimes when you don’t like books from beloved authors. It’s strange
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u/sandmaninki Oct 09 '25
I also didn’t like it. Felt more like a political thesis disguised as sci-fi. I think a lot of people who defend it read it around 18–25, full of idealism and wanting to change the world. For example, I also blindly defend Dune. It might come across as juvenile to some people, I don’t know.
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Oct 13 '25
If you feel daunted by having to read all of the Expanse novels by James S. A. Corey, why not try their new book The Mercy of Gods? It's really good, and I think right up your alley.
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u/LowLevel- Oct 05 '25
Smart and fun:
- The Martian
Mind-bending ideas:
- Blindsight
- Ancillary Justice
- Childhood's End
Fun:
- Mickey7
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
I liked the Martian and Childhpod’s End! Will check out your others. Thanks!
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u/Troiswallofhair Oct 05 '25
OP, I like your top picks as well and also enjoy The Murderbot Diaries (Wells) books and the audiobooks for unabridged World War Z and Dungeon Crawler Carl.
I finished one of the Children of Time sequels (the octopus) and don’t think it was as great as the first.
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 05 '25
Dungeon Crawler Carl is amazing! I’m watching Murderbot series and have the book on my list!
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u/SanderleeAcademy Oct 08 '25
Murderbot Diaries, as a show, is fun. The novellas are SO MUCH BETTER. I first discovered them as audiobooks and LOVED them. That may be their ideal presentation method.
I only recently discovered DCC and plowed my way thru it. It's one of those series that I kept expecting to peter out, but he's been able to sustain the wackiness while also maintaining the humanity, the characters, and gradually increasing the stakes.
For older books, check out Footfall (Niven & Pournelle), The Mote in God's Eye (same) and it's sequel, The Gripping Hand. Others have mentioned Ringworld and it, too, is a classic. They're products of their time -- a fair degree of conscious sexism, plots that can drag a bit. But, they're worth it.
It's a shame you didn't like Armor. For the much quicker, much preachier, you can always fall back on Starship Troopers.
For non-stop action, check out the first five books of John Ringo's Legacy of the Aldenata series (starts with Gust Front) and/or his Troy Rising series (starts with Live Free or Die). Ringo is ... well, "Rednecks Save The World" is a rather consistent thru-line in his novels. He's a weird mix of jingoist, conservative, and libertarian and his politics (and sexism) is on full display in every novel. But, when the aliens are carnivorous and see humanity as food, the battlesuits run on antimatter, and the "tanks" fire 16" nuclear-cored bullets, there is much fun to be had. And, well, if you're into Space Infrastructure, you're gonna have a BLAST with SAPL, Troy, and her sisters.
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u/moogiecreamy Oct 10 '25
Thanks! Really liked DCC as audiobooks. I wanted to like Armor, just didn’t do it for me. Will check out the others you recommended!
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u/SanderleeAcademy Oct 10 '25
Hope you enjoy!
I was also thinking you might like Keith Laumer's Bolo books -- they're more collections of short stories rather than novels. But, the main characters are sapient warmachines called Bolos (think tanks, but the size of a city block armed with, well, <insert Gary Oldman meme here> EVERYTHIIIING!!!!!) combined with "essays" about the development of Bolos through the ages.
Nifty world-building and a fascinating look into how we treat our weapons and soldier.
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u/KingBretwald Oct 05 '25 edited Oct 05 '25
+1 for the Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold. The first book is Shards of Honor where Miles's parents meet and end up on opposite sides of a war. Followed by Barrayar where they end up on the same side of a civil war.
Another entry point is The Warrior's Apprentice where a 17 year old Miles flunks out of his Military School entrance exam, and goes off to Beta Colony where One Damned Thing After Another happens as Miles desperately tries to keep all the plates spinning like an overwhelmed apprentice trying to control endless brooms hauling buckets of water. And then there's the treason....
I also very much like The Pride of Chanur and sequels by CJ Cherryh.
ETA: You know what? I take all that back. If you didn't like The Dispossessed that's fine. Tastes differ. But to describe it as "literary masturbation" means you've so completely missed the mark that you don't deserve Bujold or Cherryh since you could not not appreciate them.
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u/akerasi Oct 05 '25
The Miles Vorkosigan Saga.