I was off sick last autumn and binging on sci-fi films, one of which was ‘Predestination’.
A few minutes in, I realised this had to be either Philip K. Dick or Robert A. Heinlein, and as soon as it was over, I ordered a copy of the book. Of course the book was way better! I probably read it three times over (it’s a short story), trying to map the Unmarried Mother’s life in my head.
This is such a clever plot, and considering it was written 65 years ago (okay, so it’s a bit sexist), I think it’s absolutely ahead of its time... the very definition of science fiction. Any work of fiction that really makes me think is great: I want to earn my enjoyment of the story.
The story "All You Zombies—" is the basis for PREDESTINATION from Sony Pictures, just released in the US on January 9, 2015, starring Ethan Hawke, directed and written by the Spierig Brothers.
Robert A. Heinlein's brilliance and diverse talents are on display in this collection of five short stories that range from mind-twisters ("All You Zombies—"), paranoia and surprise ("They—"), hilarious engineering conundrums ("—And They Built a Crooked House"), fantasies ("Our Fair City), and the beautiful, heart-breaking "The Man Who Travelled in Elephants".
"Not only America's premier writer of speculative fiction, but the greatest writer of such fiction in the…
I loved this book because it started as three stories and ended as one—a style I recognise in my writing.
I re-read Revelation Space over Christmas, and it was almost like reading a new book: there was so much I had missed in my previous read (or forgotten). But it’s not just the intermingled plotlines; my visualisation of Reynold’s world makes this a favourite. He has a way of describing his universe that is incredibly evocative.
This is not a shoot-em-up sci-fi; this is a complex read that paints pictures in the reader’s mind—a rare skill.
The legendary space opera that kicked off the ground-breaking, universe-spanning series.
Nine hundred thousand years ago, something wiped out the Amarantin. For the human colonists now settling the Amarantin homeworld Resurgam, it's of little more than academic interest, even after the discovery of a long-hidden, almost perfect Amarantin city and a colossal statue of a winged Amarantin. For brilliant but ruthless scientist Dan Sylveste, it's more than merelty intellectual curiosity - and he will stop at nothing to get at the truth. Even if the truth costs him everything. But the Amarantin were wiped out for a reason, and that…
I didn’t want to like cyberpunk (I have a few author friends who work in that genre), but I dipped an enhanced toe into Altered Carbon and was blown away. Immortality provided through cortical stacks and swapping bodies?
I was an immediate convert. I’m obsessed with over-population stories, and although I was a tiny bit disappointed that Morgan included colony planets, I found his universe compelling and disturbing, and I wanted in! Yes, I’d like the chance to live another life or two because it might allow me to do things differently; however, Morgan’s characters are stubbornly set in their ways.
The best part? The story pivots around religious dogma (‘Resolution 653’), and for me, this is what sets it apart from other sci-fi masterpieces.
This must-read story is a confident, action-and-violence packed thriller, and future classic noir SF novel from a multi-award-winning author.
Four hundred years from now mankind is strung out across a region of interstellar space inherited from an ancient civilization discovered on Mars. The colonies are linked together by the occasional sublight colony ship voyages and hyperspatial data-casting. Human consciousness is digitally freighted between the stars and downloaded into bodies as a matter of course.
But some things never change. So when ex-envoy, now-convict Takeshi Kovacs has his consciousness and skills downloaded into the body of a…
2038: a devastating pandemic sweeps across the world. Two decades later, Britain remains the epicentre for the fornax variant, annexed by a terrified global community. David Malik is as careful as any man to avoid contact with the virus. But when his sister tests positive, she must relocate to Fornax Island to join the isolated population of contagious-untreatables.
The military suspects an officer is responsible for the prime minister’s death. Malik seizes his chance to represent the possible assassin, allowing him to protect his sister. Yet somehow, he finds himself accused of masterminding the assassination. When Malik discovers that a foreign corporation is manipulating events on Fornax Island, it forces him to choose between self-preservation, his sister’s welfare, and the future of thousands of residents.
