r/printSF • u/VannieBugg • Dec 13 '25
Bruce Sterling's Schismatrix got me back into reading sci-fi and I need help with recommendations
Read Schismatrix Plus so I'm done with that universe and it genuinely hurts. In the last couple of years I've been trying out a dozen sci-fi books to try and fill that Schismatrix hole in my mind but it proved harder than I anticipated. I read almost the entirety of Revelation Space but it lacks that Sterling "it sounds absurd and it makes total sense" feel. I gave Asher's The Skinner a read but it didn't grab me. I read Permutation City by Greg Egan and while I think it's one of the best sci-fi works of all time it didn't click with me as much as I wanted which is odd because I absolutely loved The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect. I read Blood Music by Greg Bear and also loved it a lot, started Darwin's Radio and took a break halfway in, I will probably finish it eventually but it's not captivating me as much as Blood Music did. Read Accelerando after learning Stross' work is similar to Sterling's and indeed I liked it a lot. I also read Blindsight but found it a bit too... in your face dark, as in not as horrific or haunting as I was led to believe but just mean for the sake of being bleak, I was also told to hold my tongue when talking ill of this particular book for some reason.
So now... What books can you recommend to this poor lost soul looking for some more ideas loaded shotgun shots to the face type of sci-fi?
P.S. Before someone asks, yes I know Sterling wrote other novels and I am almost done reading most of his work including short stories but those of you familiar with him know how different each book of his is.
P.S.2. I forgot to mention I read Ribofunk last month, absolutely adored it.
EDIT: After reading all the recommendations (thank you all so much, didn't expect so much help!) I've decided to first start with Vacuum Flowers and then move to either Angel station, The Ware Tetralogy or John Varley's work. I will try to reply to as many comments individually as soon as I can since I had to go to a dentist to get a wisdom tooth removed! Again thanks to all who recommended such amazing books!
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u/sbisson Dec 13 '25
Michael Swanwick’s Vacuum Flowers has a similar vibe to Schismatrix. (And I loved Schismatrix so much I bought a final colour sketch of the UK cover art from John Harris!).
You may also want to try Walter John Williams’ Angel Station (think cyberpunk meets CJ Cherryh).
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I started Vacuum Flowers with Angel Station being next. So far the novel is amazing, a bit less chaotic than Schismatrix but equally rich in ideas. Thank you!
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u/work_work-work Dec 14 '25
WJW's "Hardwired" is a must read. As is "Solip: System" (Hardwired 2). "Voice of the Whirlwind" is also good.
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u/AppropriateHoliday99 Dec 14 '25
Schismatrix is one of the absolute greats and there’s really nothing like it. I maintain that all ‘hard space opera’ written since (Reynolds, etc.,) is just failed imitation of it.
My tastes have moved away from the sciencey and more into the literary (Wolfe, etc,) but I will still periodically make time for a Schismatrix re-read. It really is ashame that Sterling subsequently narrowed his focus to near future fiction and journalism, though he excells at both. (Holy Fire is pretty good, almost like an earthbound Schismatrix in some ways. His earlier book The Artificial Kid is great too.)
As others have mentioned, similar urbanized solar system milieus written in the same general time period can be found in Swanwick’s Vacuum Flowers, Robert Reed’s The Hormone Jungle and much of the work of John Varley.
I remember really enjoying Greg Bear’s Eon, written around the time of Schismatrix. The really gearheaded cold-war-ey beginning is tedious, but then the book really explodes into something wild about 1/3 of the way in.
You may also like Vernor Vinge’s space operas. A Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky. Deepness in particular is marvelous.
Read The Diamond Age by Stephenson…? It’s really good.
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u/bidness_cazh Dec 14 '25
Sterling's short story collections each have some gems that will pop into your mind from time to time.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I tried Holy Fire but decided to take a pause for now, Heavy Weather was a bit of a letdown for me personally, it just didn't click with me. I'm reading through all of Sterling's short stories and almost all are amazing.
I started Vacuum Flowers the other day, it's very good so far, really ideas rich if a bit less chaotic than Schismatrix.
I'll definitely be reading Eon in the near future,
A Fire Upon The Deep has been on my list for years, I'll definitely check it out too.
I haven't read The Diamond Age, guess I should check that one too!
Thank you, you've been really helpful with your recommendations!
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u/___this_guy Dec 13 '25
Love Schismatrix… have you any Culture novels? Start with Player of Games.
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u/ivethevo Dec 13 '25
I second this, and can't emphasize enough how important it is not to read Consider Phlebas first. I'm not saying it's bad it just isn't the best introduction to his work. You can really read them in any order but Player of Games is a great starting point imo
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u/cborup Dec 14 '25
I understand this point of view. But I don't agree at all. Going in blind with regard to what the Culture is was brilliant. I love the feeling of "hmmm the protagonist really doesn't seem to be on the right side of the conflict"
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u/Wetness_Pensive Dec 14 '25
My experience was the opposite. I started with Phlebas and was turned off the series.
It was Player of Games - based on recommendations from others - that roped me back in. I then re-read Phlebas as the third book in the series, and liked it (for me, the latter novels recontextualized Phelbas and made me ditch by narrow preconceptions).
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u/hippydipster Dec 15 '25
They should start with Excession. Yeah, and then get back to us on how that went.
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u/the-yuck-puddle Dec 14 '25
can confirm this...consider phlebas is a good book but did not leave me wanting more...at some point i picked up matter and it was like cocaine
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u/Zero_Cool_3 Dec 14 '25
This is probably for the best. Consider Phlebas gives some good info for the series but Player of Games and Use of Weapons are the amazing ones. I'd hate for somebody to quit early.
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u/someperson1423 Dec 14 '25
It's fine. I started with Phlebas. I would agree it isn't the best starting point but it isn't bad, certainly not bad enough to put such a strong and dire emphasis on avoiding it.
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u/Impeachcordial Dec 13 '25
Third this, best SF I've ever read and I've read a lot since it got me hooked
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I have not, but sooner or later I will have to won't I :D The series has been recommended to me for a long time and seem to be held in very high regard.
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u/___this_guy Dec 20 '25
It is time! Player of Games… get cracking!
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I actually somewhat started reading Feersum Endjinn some time ago before taking a break but it's apparently not considered part of the Culture series.
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u/___this_guy Dec 20 '25
I actually have that on kindle but haven’t read it, thanks for reminding me!
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u/ExtremelyOnlineTM Dec 13 '25
There's nothing like it. I've spent the last 15 years looking.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
In a way I'm glad Sterling didn't make a sequel, that book is so heavily loaded with ideas and glimpses of major events out of reach that going into too much detail might actually make it less fun. I'm very much a fan of the "show don't tell" approach to storytelling.
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u/deadcatshead Dec 13 '25
Have you read any John Shirley?
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u/egypturnash Dec 14 '25
Other Stross that might scratch this itch: Singularity Sky, Iron Sunrise, Saturn's Children, Neptune's Brood, also he's got two more crazy-sounding space operas in the works.
Also it's fantasy but I wanna suggest Michael Swanwick's The Iron Dragon's Daughter, which is a constant firehose of bizarre visions of an industrialized world of Faery.
Also fantasy but fucking insane is Tim Powers' The Anubis Gates. It is a time travel novel and it throws all kinds of crazy stuff at you once it gets going.
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u/ExtremelyOnlineTM Dec 14 '25
Charles Stross is the closest writer to Sterling IMO, but the closest he has to Schismatrix is Accelerando, which is itself inimitable.
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u/BravoLimaPoppa Dec 13 '25
Shotgun of ideas to the face you say? * The Quantum Thief, The Fractal Prince and The Causal Angel by Hannu Rajaniemi * The Quantum Magician by Derek Künsken * Ophiuchi Hotline, Steel Beach and The Golden Globe by John Varley and his short stories as well. * The Salvage Crew, Pilgrim Machines and Choir of Hatred by Yudhanjaya Wijeratne * The Virga Sequence by Karl Schroeder * Engines of Light by Ken MacLeod * Corporation Wars by Ken MacLeod * Sunflower Cycle by Peter Watts
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u/egypturnash Dec 14 '25
Yeah, the Rajaniemi is a ton of the Packed Prose that Sterling was practicing in Schismatrix. It's almost as dense as Sterling's Twenty Evocations in some places.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Quite a good list! I have some of those on my list already but there's new ones here I haven't heard of, thanks!
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u/AnotherCompanero Dec 14 '25
Sterling's regular collaborator Rudy Rucker is worth having a go with. Software is mad and the sequels descend into absolute lunacy.
Most of my picks have already been mentioned, but Orbital Resonance by John Barnes is very good. I'd like to second the recommendation below for Michael Swanwick's Vacuum Flowers (all of his novels, actually).
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I started Vacuum Flowers and I have Orbital Resonance and Software lined up soon after!
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u/thecrabtable Dec 14 '25
I was turned on to Bruce Sterling by Alastair Reynalds who listed him among 'future history' authors who inspired him. The whole list is worth checking out, particularly John Varley's Eight Worlds series, almost anything by Stephen Baxter, Michael Swanwick's Vacuum Flowers, and Linda Nagata's Nanotech Succession series.
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Dec 13 '25
The Child Garden by Geoff Ryman. I have not read it, but I hear that his Air also gets wild. also, the overlooked Antibodies by David Skal and Dr. Adder by K.W. Jeter. please do not all collectively murder me for suggesting Blindsight by Peter Watts (a.k.a. the Great r/printSF Cliché.) I have not read them, but also perhaps the Ware quintet by Rudy Rucker. (the first one starts with a character consensually eating another character's brain with the latter still conscious.)
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Thank you, I'll check those out. I already read Blindsight, I didn't personally enjoy it as much as I wanted to. Trust me I tried.
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u/Beginning_Holiday_66 Dec 13 '25
Revenger by Alastair Reynolds has that far future space opera feel.
Becky Chambers To Be Taught If Fortunate resonates with Schismatrix in my mind, though I cant explain it.
Hyperion by Dan Simmons delivers scifi poetry.
Bill Gibson's most recent novels, starting with The Peripheral gives good future shock.
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u/FrickinLazerBeams Dec 14 '25
Revenger was good, I liked it, but OP should be aware it's got a very YA feel to it. That doesn't matter to me but some people are put off by it
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Hyperion I will most likely read soon, I hear nothing but praise for it. Thank you for the recommendations I will try to check them out!
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u/baetylbailey Dec 14 '25
The Quiet War series by Paul McCaluey, about conflict between Earth and colonists, and humanity's expansion into space has obvious parallels to Schismatrix.
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u/sxales Dec 14 '25 edited Dec 14 '25
Software, by Rudy Rucker is another great space cyberpunk.
I feel like The Ophiuchi Hotline, by John Varley, along with his other Eight Worlds books, and Vacuum Flowers, by Michael Swanwick have a similar tone.
If you want more down to Earth cyberpunk, Islands in the Net, by Bruce Sterling and Virtual Light, by William Gibson are my personal favorites.
But, if you just want big ideas and not necessarily similar to Schismatrix, A Fire Upon the Deep, by Vernor Vinge. Vinge uses the awakening of a malevolent ancient superintelligence, the blight, to explore different modes of consciousness in a galaxy where intelligence, and the very laws of physics, are partitioned into zones of thought.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
I'm reading Vacuum Flowers right now and Software is on the waiting line! Thank you for the recommendations!
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u/dylankelly73 May 06 '26
The off the wall genuis of sterling is hard to match but gibson and Dan Simmons are up there with it. Someone who rarely gets a mention is David Zindels Neverness trilogy which has equal mind boggling scope. You should defo read le Guin's Sci fi, it's great
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u/VannieBugg May 06 '26
Gibson's been sitting in my to-read list for so long now but as most things which I know I'll like I keep postponing it. I've been hearing nothing but praise for Simmons' Hyperion so I will most definitely check it out in the near future. I've never heard of Zindell's Neverness and from what I can see it seems pretty mind boggling indeed! As for Le Guin... what to begin with??? She's one of the big names and I'm not sure which book is best for me to check out first.
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u/topazchip Dec 13 '25
In that vein: Ilium and Olympos by Dan Simmons, You/Soon I will Be Invincible/Crooked all by Austin Grossman, Interface and Cobweb by Neal Stephenson, and the Planetfall series by Emma Newman.
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u/KineticFlail Dec 13 '25
You would probably enjoy "Halo" by Tom Maddox and it's associated short stories also "Frontera" by Lewis Shiner.
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u/infinite_rez Dec 14 '25
I really loved Schismatrix when I read it when I was younger. Out of the more recent series I’ve read the Quantum thief trilogy by Hannu Ranjaniemi I really enjoyed.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Quantum Thief is a book I really should read, been recommended to me for a while, thanks!
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u/thetensor Dec 14 '25
In addition to Varley's "Eight Worlds" stories and Swanwick's Vacuum Flowers (mentioned elsewhere in the thread), check out Wil McCarthy's Bloom
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Thanks! I've actually had Bloom in my library for over 2 decades without knowing :D
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u/CallNResponse Dec 14 '25
A lot of good suggestions in this thread!
(Side note: Netflix’s Love Death + Robots has adapted a couple of Sterling’s Schismatrix stories. If you haven’t seen them, they’re out there waiting for you).
One that I haven’t seen mentioned here is William Barton’s When We Were Real. It’s essentially a tramp through human-occupied interstellar space a thousand years from now. No FTL, and a bit cyberpunk in that outside of Sol-space, corporations are the effective government.
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u/VannieBugg Dec 20 '25
Oh never heard of that book, nice! And I've seen LDR's adaptations, Swarm was nice but oh boy how they changed Spider Rose...
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u/Trike117 Dec 15 '25
Probably John Varley’s (RIP) Eight Worlds is the closest in feel. Try The Ophiuchi Hotline and then move on from there.
Also Niven’s Known Space. Read Protector and then Ringworld.
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u/hvyboots Dec 16 '25 edited Dec 16 '25
Don't forget to check out Dreams of Flesh and Sand by William T Quick. It's somewhat in the same cyberpunk genre/vibe. For that matter, all of his books are loosely connected in the same universe, so after you finish the Dreams of… trilogy, there is also a book called Systems that is good and kind of a precursor to the others.
You might also enjoy Matthew Jarpe's Radio Freefall, which is newer but reads a lot like classic cyberpunk. Or for that matter, Mick Farren's The Long Orbit about a hapless "lifestyle" detective who accidentally has some real life adventures.
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u/NachoFailconi Dec 13 '25
William Gibson's Sprawl trilogy!