As an example, I love the Martian, and I think a lot of older books from authors like Asimov are heavily into engineering / competence porn. Other favs in this category include the standalone novel Rendezvous with Rama to leave you wishing for more, most of the Culture series for happy utopian vibes, Schlock Mercenary for humor, Dahak series for fun mindless popcorn.
Edit: I’m so happy to have found a replacement for r/books and the rest of them.
The Expanse is a great at engineering read. Doubly so for a space opera. Lots of very legit science in the science fiction there.
Oh yes, I love the Expanse. For some reason it doesn’t quite strike me as engineering / competence porn though, maybe because there’s a big focus on the human side.
Yeah it’s most definitely a space opera. There’s so much good science in there though.
You just reminded me I have to get caught up with that series again so I can read the last book. I powered through the whole series before the last book was released and now I kind of forget what was going on, to jump in again.
I kind of forget what was going on
Protomolecule. Lots and lots of protomolecule.
It’s so easy to read, worth starting over. If you read fast you’ll get through it all in a couple months.
I recently found the Bobiverse to be a light-hearted read in this category.
Engineer becomes von Neumann probe and has to solve quite a lot of interesting issues while bootstrapping and dealing with settling in the galactic neighbourhood
I should get back to the Bobiverse. I tried it once and couldn’t get into it for some reason. I don’t recall the exact details now, and maybe I was misunderstanding something, but there was some stuff about his drones destroying entire solar systems for raw minerals, that just seemed plain nonsensical to me? I guess with all the good things people are saying about it I should go back and figure out what rubbed me wrong the first time.
I’m on the third book now. It’s great nerd/competence porn. I set the 10 minute timer and put my ear buds in at night as I go to bed. I’ve usually drifted off by minute 9, but not because it’s boring or anything, it’s just good listening.
Kim Stanley-Robinson
His Mars trilogy and Science in the Capital are amazing.
He is my favorite hard science fiction writer for the blend of tech, politics, critiques of capitalism, and drama. His novels after those trilogies are good but some people find them fairly long winded and boring in parts… actually I do too, ah well.Thanks! I bounced off the Mars trilogy. All the petty human drama and politics just felt way too much like current news (which is probably a compliment to his writing skills, but it just wasn’t what I was looking for at the time). I think I probably need a very relaxed state of mind to be able to dive into it.
If you end up searching online for that kind of things, “hard science fiction” is the phrase that’s usually used for it.
A lot of good recommendations here. Some endorsements and other recommendations:
- Project Hail Mary by Weir is a no brainer choice if you liked The Marian. He gets the science right.
- Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky is amazing, and the first of a trilogy, so more to read.
- The whole Expanse series, by James Corey is good and he does a good job with the science, especially the celestial mechanics.
- The Uplift series (starting with Sundiver) by David Brin is great, and Brin is will known for hard SF. It’s from the 80s.
- Ancillary Justice, by Ann Leckie, is great and the first of a series as well.
- Beggars in Spain, by Nancy Kress, is great, with a good science background, though it’s more genetics than engineering. Really cool story though.
- I also agree with the recommendation on Saturn’s Children, by Charles Stross. Also the first of a loose series.
On the flip side, I really didn’t care for Three Body Problem, and though the Bobiverse books seem fun, I’m not sure I’d call them firmly hard SF.
The Three Body Problem is bad. The hype for the book is a good example of “The Emporer’s New Clothes”.
I was surprised at how little I liked it given the hype.
I did enjoy the parts about the Cultural Revolution and some of the dialog from Da Shi. That’s about it.
It’s a little bit of a slog. There are a lot of cultural references, plot devices, characters, and ways of moving through the story that are literally foreign to the western mind. Odd injections of what feels like philosophy. At least the version I read. Once you get used to it it gets better.
I have finished the series and absolutely loved it.
Could you please explain why you consider it bad?
I loved it for the game theory, ideas, and what-if aspects. The characters however, were flat 2D cutouts. I can’t say how much of that was due to translation issues, if any.
Thanks! There a few that I hadn’t heard about!
Oh, certainly. In case it’s helpful, here’s a post I made last spring with notes from a year of reading - it’s pretty much all SF and fantasy. Many of the books mentioned in this thread are there. I’ve been reading about the same amount since, and will probably do another post on the anniversary of that one.
I haven’t read Beggars in Spain or Saturn’s Children yet, will take a look!
I’d love to hear what you think, I enjoyed both quite a lot.
Allow me to chime in with a science fiction favorite: A Canticle For Leibowitz By Walter M Miller. It’s a collections of three interrelated novellas set a few thousand years apart… but there are themes and one character present in all three. Compelling characters and lots of humor make this a must read.
Anyone else read it?
It’s one of my favourites.
FIAT LUX!
Yep. This is a good one. And if you like Babylon 5, watch Deconstruction of Falling Stars (S04E22) which has a nod to the book.
Interesting. I didn’t get into that show but perhaps I’ll give it another try.
Thanks, I’ll put it on my list!
I recently read “Blindsight” by Peter Watts which was about how first contact could work with an entirely alien species. It goes deep into both the physical and social sciences involved, and was a fun journey as well.
Murderbot series has a tremendous amount of tech.
Heads up — Murderbot series can be fun, but I’d say it’s more “robocop” than hard sci fi.
Greg Bear - EON but more maths heavy, and has a bit of politics but a very good read
Larry Niven - Ring world series (maybe not competence focused, but strong science backing)
Yep, added EON to my list based on the numerous recs here. Ringworld I’ve gone through, it’s such a classic!
Protector and sequels, too. I also liked Integral Trees, but maybe a little less so.
Yeah, isn’t protector part of the Ringworld series? A kinda prequel? I did love it, makes me feel better (or worse) about my aching joints. Haven’t read Integral Trees yet.
I’d reccomend the Bobiverse series by Dennis E. Taylor.
First person narrative that fully embraces its main character as an engineering superstar with galactic level influence.
Yeah, I’ve been told to reread it since apparently I missed some critical stuff my first time through.
Do you like protagonists that use their wits to beat a scenario or the hard science more?
For example a fun read that’s, in my opinion, best experienced as an audiobook is the dungeon crawler carl. It’s definitely a good example of the first type. It’s not realistic. It’s literally real life made into a D&D game (LitRPG) it is just one scenario after another of Carl just finding ways to manipulate and play with the “rules” of the messed up game.
If you’re more into the hard science than The Expanse as others have said. Or maybe even the Revelation Space series where it is future tech but relativistic time plays a part. Less of the “one person/group against all odds” but a good read nonetheless.
More looking for the 2nd at the moment. Though yes I did enjoy DCC and all the other series you mention, I’ve read them all (well maybe not all of Rev Space, at some point I lost track of the timeline and gave up).
I checked the good reads list of top rated hard science and saw a few items I can recommend.
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Altered Carbon. A fun and intense read. Future hard science. If people’s consciousness could be transmitted/used for interstellar travel kind of thing then the scenarios listed here adhere to their own crazy rules.
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Three Body Problem. First book is amazing. The sequels are good enough but the translations are a little rougher but the story carries through.
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Enders Game. Tactical and hard science aspects to it. Gets more metaphysical later in the series.
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Contact. Absolute gem that I re-read a few years back.
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Ancillary Justice. More future/hard science but worth mentioning in any list I’m willing to put Altered Carbon in. It has a viewpoint and it’s use of alternate societal perspectives (from a society that is uniform in so many ways to organic “ship” drones to questions about what is a person/identity) all wrapped in a great sci-fi story
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The moon is a harsh mistress. A little dated and the way women/people are referenced shows it (much like foundation) but a solid one that is a little more hard science and may be more in line with what you’re thinking of.
Going over this list I realize how hard it is to find true hard science (Martian) that doesn’t lean into the more future tech but consistent physical laws (Expanse) to way future nano tech or consciousness transfer (Altered Carbon, etc)
Thank you Szeth-nimi! I did enjoy Season 1 of Altered Carbon Netflix, so the books should be worth a look. I fully agree with all your other recs (though I have issues with the character writing in Three Body Problem), unfortunately I’ve read all of them :D
And now that you mention it, you’re right about how tough it is finding modern-day hard science fiction. I think you managed to put your finger on one of the things I wanted but couldn’t verbalise.
Yeah. Three body problem is a well done translation of a Chinese authors work and so I suspect there’s some things that just culturally come across easily. Nothing makes that more obvious than the sequels where it feels like it wasn’t as painstakingly done to try to convey such things like the first.
I will say I really enjoyed the paper ménagerie by Ken Liu (the aforementioned translator) and it was a unique look from a different cultural perspective.
Back on topic to sci-fi. Do you prefer singular protagonist in a limited scale of time (person/crew) fighting against some local challenge (Martian/Expanse) or larger sweeping epics spanning centuries and a lot of perspectives (Dune, Foundation)?
More human/realistic perspectives (Martian) or are you open to Alien/Non-human perspectives (ex. protomolecule perception about the gates reopening)
Back on topic to sci-fi. Do you prefer singular protagonist in a limited scale of time (person/crew) fighting against some local challenge (Martian/Expanse) or larger sweeping epics spanning centuries and a lot of perspectives (Dune, Foundation)?
More human/realistic perspectives (Martian) or are you open to Alien/Non-human perspectives (ex. protomolecule perception about the gates reopening)
Eh. I loved all your examples? Lol. Especially alien perspectives if done right are always interesting. Like Blindsight, Mote in Gods Eye, and Children of Time. I love great worldbuilding and internally-consistent plots, and I usually find petty drama and politics cringey.
Different perspectives from not alien but not human (unless otherwise specified not hard sci-fi)
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Klara and the Sun (story of an android coming to awareness of themselves, to their purpose as a friend for a child, to attachment and love as well as dealing with the inevitable changes and loss as the child grows up)
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Several short stories by Ted Chiang
Exhalation, The Lifecycle of Software Objects (technically hard sci-fi), The Great Silence
Kind of human
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Murderbot Diaries (Autonomous killing machine/human cyborg going rogue that is learning what it is to be human, and just wants to watch serials and be left alone)
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Ancillary Justice (Ships with remote/linked instances in control of human bodies and what happens when one of those “remotes” is all that’s left of that consciousness. Navigating the line of human/machine/etc.). Not political per-se but resonates with various political perspectives on autonomy/society vs individualism/ etc.
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Dogs of War. Bio weapons part animal human hybrids and wars, morality, doing what your meant to do and made to do vs becoming aware of your actions and what is right/wrong.
Dogs of War
Ooh, more Tchaikovsky. How did I miss that one? I’ve been meaning to check out Ted Chiang, this is probably as good a time as any. I’ve enjoyed every one of the recs you’ve made so far that I’ve read, I’ll definitely check out the rest!
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Just hit me. More modern time… historical fiction at the start and blends into more sci-fi as the series goes on.
Neil Stephenson: Crypto series
Cryptonomicon Reamde Fall: or dodge in hell
Oof, Stephenson is heavy! Anathem took me a fortnight to get through. I’ve read a few of his works and they’re good, but man they take a lot of mental effort (maybe it’s just me?)
They can be. Anathem was a bit more of a slog that sped up.
I found cryptonomicon to be slow at first (but not like Anathem) but it sped up quickly.
It goes back and forth between “modern” early 00’s? And WW2.
Stephenson is the kind of author you start a book and after a bit you’re like… ok… I don’t think this is for me… wait… what? And then you’re hooked.
Anathem is one of the worst that was like that. Snow Crash would be the polar opposite and one of the rare ones that just jumps straight into the world building.
Unrelated: I just finished Wind and Truth. So weird to think somebody got me hooked on Sanderson about 2 years ago and I’ve burned through all his books (except for Reckoners and the Alcatraz books). The first because I haven’t tried one but seems a bit more youth oriented and the latter because it is more youth oriented than my usual tastes.
Stephenson is the kind of author you start a book and after a bit you’re like… ok… I don’t think this is for me… wait… what? And then you’re hooked.
Yeah, I liked the books but they really do need a bit of determination to get started.
Alcatraz is definitely for a much younger crowd, but Reckoners might be worth a shot. The worldbuilding is great, classic Sanderson. The YA part comes through as a teenage MC and easier language, but it’s still plenty interesting. A lot of parallels to Mistborn.
Anything by Robert Forward and Charles Sheffield.
Have never heard of him before, will check him out!
I edited that, I’d also recommend Charles Sheffield. I’m specifically thinking of the Cold as Ice books.
Recently, I’ve been reading the Interdependency series by John Scalzi. It starts with The Collapsing Empire, featuring an unlikely heir to the throne, a time of trouble and strife, and the likely impending doom of all mankind. A lot of the story focuses on the unlikely heir grappling with how to hold things together against the catastrophe that most people don’t really believe is coming.
Looks cool! I enjoyed Scalzi’s Old Man’s War series, will be nice to visit him again.
Another vote for Greg Egan. And I too really enjoyed the Children of Time series and anything written by Alastair Reynolds, although I don’t think the genre is exactly what you’re looking for. Finding modern, hard sci-fi really is pretty difficult.
I get where you’re coming from with KSR’s Mars series. I think Ministry for the Future was a better read, personally.
Also, I find that a lot of Crichton scratches similar itch to Andy Weir. Especially things like Andromeda Strain and Airframe.
I might give Ministry a shot, haven’t tried it yet. And Greg Egan is on my list now. Crichton, I did not like Sphere and I guess it turned me away from trying his other books. I guess I should give some of them another shot.
Tom Clancy SSN.
Good light reading (historical fiction) for before bed or when you wake up at 3am due to the sound of the Herscithem outside.
Hers what?
Herscithem
From Google, 1st link: https://tinyurl.com/4xtwkcnk
Your tinyurl redirects me to https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/35465607 … not very illuminating
When I search for ‘Herscithem’, the first link is https://herschel.com/
It was a joke, because Google returned only 1 unique result for me, which was this very post.
Herschel.com is only returned if you accept Google’s suggested alternative spelling, and is obviously unrelated
Oh, whoosh :(
I don’t have an option to accept/reject alternative spellings – what I see is a message along the lines of “showing results for FUBAR; do you really want to search only for FooBar?”
Yeah, that’s Google defaulting to showing you the results for the suggested alternative. If you click yes on FooBar then you’re telling Google to stop trying to be smart and show you what you’re actually searching for.
Duck duck go does the same thing, sadly.
“Planetfall” by Emma Newman might fit your preferences judging by the things you said about books you’ve read! it’s a 4 book series (i think) and mostly deals with the inner psychology of the main character of each book. also has a bunch of engineering in it, mostly hard sci-fi!
