Science Fiction that people can actually believe
935601
I love this series. It's the type of book that will keep me up until 2am without realizing it. So many science fiction books are so far out there, creating an entire universe separate from our own. The Expanse is the opposite of that. The idea that space travel has developed into this type of future seems plausible. The authors go into detail on the effect living in space has on the human body and psyche. I'm not saying that everything they write is true scientifically but at least they're making an effort.
4090337
Many reviewers have compared the writing to Asimov...in many ways I agree. It's not what I would call a character driven novel but a plot driven one based firmly on science "fact" (given there's nothing too outrageously unbelievable about the science predictions) The twist in the story was kept hidden just long enough and firmly supported with the events in the tale. I look forward to more endeavors by Cantrell
559951
While geared for young adult, this old adult was amazed by the utter believability of a totally automated society.  The Venus Project actually exists in Florida, and McCord has taken that reality and pushed the envelope to maximum capacity. With food coming up through the floor and machines creating buildings on their own, the barriers between fact and science fiction are blurred.  While supportive of the project the author skillfully crafts some 'trouble in paradise,' which I won't reveal here.  An entertaining read and, even better, one that will spark a lot of discussion with your kids.
3217788
Good science fiction is about how a new technology would change humanity and its institutions. The Matrix's new technology is a form of virtual reality. The Terminator's is time-travel + an emergent god-computer, Mad Max is post-nuclear-apocalypse fiction, Jurassic Park is about the cloning of animals, and tens of thousands of scifi novels are about space travel and how it would change humanity.

Really good science fiction makes you think not only about what a human institutions might to become, but what they are, now.  The 'new tech' in Daemon is network technologies, the human-institutions are our gov systems.

Daemon is action-packed and fun, but it also really made me think. The ending seemed ambiguous at first, but the more I thought about it the better I liked it.

(I would add that I 'read' Daemon as an Audible book, and the narrative production was superb, the best I ever heard.)
1106758
Scalzi has produced a great blend of science fiction and action while keeping the people at the forefront of the story.

For me, the human aspect really makes the story as 75 year old from earth leave their lives behind for a vague notion of war and youth. The interaction of the people as they move through processing and into battle is what really makes the story. The author has taken an idea, made it seem plausible and dared you to dream about the possibilities.

This is the first book I have ready by John Scalzi, but I will be reading the next two books in the series soon.

<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Ghost-Brigades/dp/0765354063/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Ghost Brigades</a>
<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Last-Colony/dp/076535618X/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Last Colony</a>
278680
A nice and unexpected surprise. It's been long since I'd found a good sf novel with some new ideas and reasonably written. The parallel plot is very well paced. It pays somehow with a certain lack of character develpment but, all in all, it's quite effective.
English is not my mother language and so I'm not a good judge about style, but I dare to say this book is high above the average writting seen  in scifi this days..
All said, not military series, not fantasy mix, not steampunk, not trascending humanity (well, perhaps a little bit), just a  story with science in it's core and some sense of wonder in it.
4890391
Wonderfully human characters striving against great odds. A truly plausible story. No impossible heroes, rather people who suck it up and just do what must be done. The science and world building is entirely believable.

A very enjoyable read. Thanks Christopher, this is a space opera I can recommend to others.
2500334
If you have not read a Sci-fi book in 45 years,like me,this one will surprise you pleasantly.
I heard about Red Hope on Goodreads. I bought on Kindle and was captured by this book from the first chapter.
The best thing is the premise is believable with today's technology. The US is currently preparing to go to Mars so that fit right in.
I won't go into the plot for those who have not read it yet. I was hoping the book didn't end when it did. I found out some time later that JJ is working on a sequel due out in December 2017. This is not a weird Sci-fi tome with otherworldly monsters, it is down to Earth, oops, Mars.
T.Ridinger, Sanford, FL
175150
I read this book because it was on the NPR Top 100 List and it was in the library.  I've been going through the list and finding some pleasant surprises, and this was definitely one of them.  This is science fiction for intelligent people - I would call it "hard core" sci-fi - and truly an outstanding vision of the universe (galaxy?) - original, interesting, and almost believable.  The concept of the different zones and the discovery of the Blight was brilliant, and the desciption of Relay and the other worlds was truly outstanding.

The only weakness of the book was frankly the "Tines", the dog-like creatures, who were frankly repellent in too many ways for me to be captivated by them.  Howver, the Skroderiders, stalk-like alien creatures, were done exceptionally well.  Any flaws in the book are more than made up for by the description of the galaxy and the whole "universe-view" which was really just overwhelmingly excellent.  It's difficult to find sci-fi of this high level of near-genius creativity and quality.

One more thing - don't give up on the book - the first 50 pages or so are very difficult - Vigne shows without explaining - I would recommend once you're half-way through the book, go back and reread the first 3 or 4 chapters - it's amazing - the first time you read them you can't understand a word but after you've been half-way though and go back you understand them perfectly.  Either you like books like that or you don't, I happen to like them.  Anyway, it's not science-fiction for the faint hearted, but it is highly rewarding to the intelligent science fiction reader.
837685
This book is a combination of science and science fiction with a little military stuff thrown in. It all works and makes for an intriguing story. The author does an excellent job of explaining how inter-species verbal communication could be possible. He also makes a very plausible argument for human life on other planets and why we could be visited for reasons other than global conquest. Finally he involves the US Navy and USGS.
The result is a really fun read.

The only reason for dinging him a star is the ending. I won't say more because to do so would spoil the book for you.
1864853
I wasn't sure when I got the book what I might be reading.  I got the book because of who the author was.  This book was a great surprise.  I like science fiction, and I got my reward for an extremely interesting story.  It's not always you find the human earth people who are the aliens.  I just had a difficult time trying to picture just what the residents of the planet visited were actually like because I try to envision what the characters actually look like. They could have been out of the Star Wars cast of oddities.  With the latest stories about space travel, if you are someone who believes that this experience could actually happen, you will love this one.
2604702
One of the best science fiction books I've picked up in quite a while.  Engaging read, with enough true science to make it very "real."
3471554
Texas author John Freitas writes speculative fiction, a topic that comes to him naturally with his background in electronics and computer science. This book marks the opening of his four part PULSE series of science fiction stories. He lives and works n Southeast Texas and that is where he places the opening activity of his novel that hails the arrival of his series.

One aspect of Johns writing that makes his work a step above many sci-fi writers is his inclusion of scientific data that brings his stories closer to reality than simply wild adventures in space. In this series he is concerned with a very real fact  gravitational waves, brought to our attention by Albert Einstein and the subject of much scientific writing recently. And as with all fine sci-fi writers John takes this fact and explores the possibilities of the extremes and therein places his story on track to be not only suspenseful but also terrifying.

How does he take data and transform it into an immensely readable novel? He sculpts a cast of credible characters, people so real that they seem like acquaintances the moment we encounter them in his story.  And that fact embellishes the threats and catastrophes John describes  we are there, we can believe the sci-fi element.

Johns synopsis condenses the action well: The Alpha Centauri star system begins to collapse and the resulting gravitational waves reach our planet, creating strange phenomena around the globe, leaving the people who are affected by them wondering what in the world is going on. A scientist in an isolated observatory sees clues that tell him what is happening to the world may be bigger and more deadly than a few earthquakes and a few floating objects. Dr. Paulo Restrepo will have to race against time and the doubts of a world used to gravity behaving the same everywhere at every time. By the time he figures out the cause and what that means for the final approaching event, it might be too late, but he has to try.

 A very strong beginning to a series. Keep an eye on this author. Grady Harp. March 16
111246
I read Zylans Messengers some time ago and have been trying to frame my review properly.  I found this novel to be intriguing on three levels, each of which excited my imagination in different ways.

First, in the prologue, the author takes less than two pages to engage the reader in the basic understanding of the cosmos in order to create a frame of reference for the story to follow.  It also lends credibility to the fictional worlds and circumstances which cross time and space as they lay the foundation for the salvation of Earth in 2408.

Second, the author has integrated real unexplained events on Earth, such as the explosion in Siberia in 1908, with fictional causes.  I found myself doing almost as much Google research to confirm these events as I did reading the novel.  Ive never found this kind of believable fiction integrated with reality in such a convincing manner.  It sent my mind buzzing about what could be and what might be.

And finally, the author has woven an intricate story which encompasses billions of years and millions of light years. It combines the realities of the cosmos as galaxies are born and die, and two civilizations facing imminent destruction and their attempts to save themselves.  One of these, a civilization in the Andromeda galaxy in the present day, sacrifices much in a last ditch effort to preserve their species and to help the human race avoid extinction in 2408  but is comes with a single condition to be fulfilled in the distant future.

The future of the human race will be determined by how they react when faced with honoring commitments made long ago.  This is a cautionary tale and one which I highly recommend to readers of fiction and science fiction as well as anyone concerned with the inability of the human race to make rational decisions.
2135495
I really like the pace of this book and that it's real science fiction. For instance, the part where they transport near to a black hole and experience gravity gradients within narrow bands / distances from the transporter was interesting.
2010090
I am an avid reader of science fiction and during the last couple of years I have read several hundred books from Amazon. Many of these books have been exceptional and were spell binders that kept me up late. But this is the first book I have decided I wanted to leave a review. This book is exceptional. It deals not only with the standard war stuff, but it also strongly brings in the human element of right and wrong without going overboard. I am a retired engineer. I have little patience for poor science in the books I read. I found nothing in this book that is out of the realm of possibility in the near future. Artificial Intelligence is advancing at a sufficiently fast rate that there are many people who are concerned about this technology will affect on the human race. And medical people are beginning to be able to make direct contact with the human brain in order to allow people who are paralyzed to regain control. It is not too much of a leap to imagine that these advances will indeed allow for the technology described in this book to be realized. Finally, I want to say that this book was so engrossing that when I paused reading, I would find myself believing I was still in the video game. At one time, I tried to turn off my TV with a remote, and it kept turning back on. For a second, I thought one of the apparitions in the book was out to get me. I never did find out why my TV did what it did.
4174772
Extreme Science Fiction is an anthology any sci-fi buff won't want to put down. Normally us sci-fi freaks have to be fairly forgiving with stories in this genre, but not this time :) I found even some of the more outlandish stories had enough of the correct conceptual "hard facts" to make them plausible, if not entirely believable.
In short, if you have a good imagination, can think outside the "square" etc. and want to taken to far flung levels of existence in a real universe of future science bordering on magic by an author who loves this genre and has really done his research meticulously... This is an anthology you MUST try