Lois McMaster Bujold, Maureen F. McHugh, Lauren Beukes

[nanila]

One of the positive things I got out of the discussion about EasterCon was a heap of recommendations for science fiction authors to check out. I started with the three listed in the subject line and bought, respectively, two collections of short stories and a novel to help me decide which ones to pursue.

Lois McMaster Bujold, Proto Zoa (author recommended by pbristow)

This is a collection of five early short stories. The first three are prosaic modern-life tales of woe in which the petty problems of ordinary people are solve humourously by the intervention of powers sufficiently advanced to look like magic. I was amused, but not engaged enough to consider reading something novel-length by this author.

Then I read the fourth and fifth stories.

These make the leap to wonderfully developed future worlds and hint at the potential for masterfully crafted space opera. The first, "Dreamweaver's Dilemma", is a psychological/technical suspense thriller in which an artist tries to solve a crime before it is committed. The second, "Aftermaths", is a gentler character exploration that deals, with melancholy tenderness, with the unpleasant business of post-war tidying up. It could easily have been transplanted from its setting in space to many points in humanity's history. I understand these last two are related to the Vorkosigan saga. As an introduction to and appetizer for those books, this pair of short stories performs beautifully.

Verdict: Moar please. What's the first book in the Vorkosigan cycle?

Maureen F. McHugh, After the Apocalypse (author recommended by pax_athena)

The first of these stories seemed promising. It reminded me of "I Am Legend", with a main character of unelevated social status (a convicted criminal) forced to survive in a collapsed society overrun by zombies. But the unsatisfying ending was, unfortunately, a harbinger of what was to follow in the remaining stories. Many of them can't rightfully be called short stories, but are vignettes. I couldn't find one that had a clear resolution and some of them seemed to be character sketches that made little sense without the context of a larger work. I found a few characters appealing enough to overlook the thinness of the plot, such as the Chinese girls taking on their corporate masters (and winning). But the attraction was to the characters rather than their context.

Verdict: I'm glad I sampled this, but I probably won't seek out more by this author.

Lauren Beukes, Zoo City (author recommended by ceb)

Ah, now this was satisfying to read. It's set in alt-present Johannesburg, with a highly intelligent sharp-tongued cynical ex-junkie anti-heroine (whom most other authors would probably have made male) named Zinzi December. Outcast in more ways than one - she's an aposymbiot as well as being an indebted ex-con - she ekes her living off her uncanny ability to sense what other people would very much like to keep hidden. Until someone hires her for an improbable sum and she senses that something is very wrong indeed. The twisted cyberpunk setting is well developed and woven cleverly into the plot, which can be read as a highly enjoyable detective novel or as a complex exploration of cultural mores or both. I note that some reviews of the book found the ending abrupt or slightly unbelievable, but I found it perfect. The good guys don't always win. And they're not always good. Or guys.

Verdict: There is only one other novel available, Moxyland, which I'll certainly be reading.

Up next are Octavia Butler, Seanan McGuire and Ben Aaronovitch. Further suggestions are most welcome.

Comments

[ceb]

Vorkosigans start with Shards of Honor and then Barrayar, which you may find together as Cordelia's Honor. (The wikipedia article lists Falling Free first but that's a prequel set so early it's not at all like the rest of the series.)

I too wish Lauren Beukes would write faster! :-)

[nadriel]

There must be more Vorkosigan books. I demand it! :-)

[gramina]

In fact, there is an Ivan-centric book due out I-think-later-this-year. (cheers quietly!)

[ironed_orchid]

You beat me to it!

[nanila]

I hope one day to understand this conversation. ;)

[ironed_orchid]

You might one day.

I started reading as the omnibuses were coming out, and they are great, but sometimes they have sacrificed chronological order in favour of thematic content.

Something to bear in mind if you end up getting them. Pretty much all of them do have a timeline in the front or back.

[nanila]

I now understand this conversation. I'm making an effort to read in chronological order rather than by thematic content - for instance, Cetaganda and Ethan of Athos (clearly much later) are lumped together in the same volume. So once I've finished Cetaganda, it's on to the stories in Miles Errant!

[nanila]

I am now informed enough - and sufficiently in love with this series - to say a hearty HURRAH! to this. :D

[gramina]

I'm so glad! :D

[nanila]

I forgot to say thank you for participating in the general glee that prodded me into reading more. So now I will. Thank you!

[gramina]

Shards of Honor is my favorite starting place; however, I have a couple of friends who are violently allergic to anything that looks like it might have the possibility of the consideration of something that might look like romance in the right light, and for them I recommend beginning with Warrior's Apprentice. Once they get hooked on the world and the family, they generally backtrack to Cordelia.

Me?

I want to be Cordelia when I grow up :) One of the best compliments I've ever gotten was that I already was.

[nanila]

I don't mind romance, so I'll probably start with Shards of Honor. If it doesn't grab me or I'm not in the right mood, I'll swap to Warrior's Apprentice. Thank you very much!

[nanila]

Thank you! rmc28 has shown where it is possible to get them all in e-book format, hurrah. Downloaded for my Kindle. :)

I'm totally cheating on the other three authors by reading Moxyland first.

[0jack]

Check out Baen's website. There's a bunch of Bujold there for free in ebook form. :)

[rmc28]

This is the Baen link: http://baencd.thefifthimperium.com/24-CryoburnCD/CryoburnCD/. Enjoy. I love Bujold's books.

[0jack]

Thank you! I have it DLed and I'm having one of those days where I get lost even on the best websites. :p I couldn't remember where it was for the life of me.

[nanila]

Oh, fantastic. Thanks very much!

[ironed_orchid]

"Why are we being so generous? Simple: we think the more people who read Ms. Bujold’s works the more people will buy them."

How very sensible!

[nanila]

Ooh, thank you for mentioning this. I managed to find some of them through the individual book links before rmc28 linked to the lot. :)

[ironed_orchid]

I love Bujold.

I also love Seanan McGuire, but while I like the Toby Day books a lot, it's her zombie medical/political thriller books, which are written as Mira Grant which really got my attention.

[nanila]

pbristow mentioned the Mira Grant as well. Do you think I should start with one of them instead?

[ironed_orchid]

Hmm. I think if you find yourself in the mood for some urban fantasy featuring a changeling PI in San Francisco, then you need to start with Rosemary & Rue.

I really loved the way that book started, btw.

If you feel like reading a political thriller set in a post-zombie-apocalyptic future, then Feed is where it's at.

I haven't read the first In-cryptid book yet, cos it just came out.

One factor that might influence you is that Newsflesh is definitely a trilogy (with some extra material, about novella length) and the last installment comes out next month. The October Daye series is six books in, and there are several more to come, at a rate of about one a year. So if you want a sense of completion, instead of a "WTF just got revealed, how long do I have to wait to find out more?" then the zombies are the safer bet.

[azurelunatic]

I don't know if you've encountered C.J. Cherryh yet, nor Diane Duane, but I hold their writing up there with the best of LMB's.

[nanila]

Nope, never heard of either. Do you have recommendations for introductory works?

[azurelunatic]

For Diane Duane:

So You Want to be a Wizard: YA: kid on the receiving end of some bullying takes refuge in the library, discovers a book she's never seen there before (much to her surprise), and it turns out to be a manual on how to be a wizard. Promptly some great responsibility shows up to go along with the great power. The one-star reviews on Amazon say that a) from a Pagan perspective, it's too Christian, b) from a Christian perspective, it's too pagan. It is one of the books that I use to reinstall my brain if I feel the registry's become corrupt. It is the first book of a series, but nicely self-contained. It is helpful to read the books that come before if picking up another book in the series, for the backstory, but 1-4 don't leave too many dangling plot threads. The whole series is an exploration in ethics. The central philosophy involves self-determination, non-intervention in things that aren't broken, asking nicely and explaining the problem to get help, helping where needed, sacrifice, and redemption.

Stealing the Elf-King's Roses: Detective novel with magic in. Two lawyers, a number of suspicious deaths, and an inter-universal conspiracy = good times for all.

Spock's World: The history of the planet Vulcan, the story of Sarek and Amanda's courtship, and intergalactic politics. There are other Star Trek books that she and/or Peter Morwood have written, but this is the definitive one.


C.J. Cherryh:

Foreigner: Earthlings wind up as reluctant neighbors on a planet of aliens; one of their number is a translator/ambassador to the leader of the Western Alliance. He signed up to be a writer of dictionaries, not get shot at and become a pawn in their political games. The alien culture is gorgeously and intricately alien, and it is really refreshing to watch the straight white cisguy be in the middle of the alien culture and not wind up as the Sole Hero Badass. It can be read alone, but it comes in sets of three.

Cyteen: This feels like academic politics with a really big research budget and also human cloning; it's taken as a given that capability and personality are the result of the combination of genes and environment. Which the folks there proceed to play around with to a degree that would and should shock any reasonable IRB. The trademark Cherryh political machinations center around Ariane Emory (respected and feared Councilor for Science). When Dr. Emory harasses/seduces/assaults the promising son of her academic rival Jordan Warrick, all hell breaks loose. Originally published as a trilogy (Betrayal, Rebirth, Vindication) but if you encounter it in that format, wait until you possess all of them before starting, as it does not split up well. (A friend of mine ran into that this weekend; she hadn't been given that warning and she's very frustrated and flailing.) It fits into the larger Union/Alliance universe, but can be read on its own.

[rmc28]

You already have Lois Bujold and Octavia Butler recommended, so here are others that I like very much:

Charles Stross: the Laundry series for computer geek/British civil service/Lovecraft; the Merchant Princes series which starts off looking like fantasy (alternate worlds, lost princess) and ends up looking like SF; Halting State and Rule 34 for near-future thrillers, and a few others as well.

Elizabeth Bear: the Jenny Casey trilogy starts off as a 50-years-hence private detective thriller and ends up with space exploration, AI and nanobots; the Promethean Age books which are an interesting fantasy take on faerie; and the Jacob's Ladder series which is SF about a generation ship in trouble, literally blue-blooded 'aristocrats', and bitter divisions among the ruling families.

Sarah Monette co-wrote A Companion To Wolves with Elizabeth Bear, which is one of the most interesting and disturbing takes on "fantasy telepathic companion animals" I've read.

Elizabeth Moon has written two military SF series, the Serrano Legacy and Vatta's War (I think the latter is better), The Speed of Dark which is about a high-functioning autistic man in a near-future where a possible cure may be possible, and a fantasy trilogy (plus some spinoffs) the Deed of Paksennarion.

Jim Butcher has a long-running series, the Dresden Files, featuring a Chicago private eye who happens to be a wizard (ok, that's how it starts off). Also a planetary fantasy series, the Codex Alera, which I rather preferred.

[Hmm, I haven't read enough new authors recently, this is the same list I would have come up with two years ago. Also both the Elizabeths have been at the center of Big Fandom Rows On The Internet; I still like their books but I know people who won't buy them as a result.]

[rmc28]

Oh! I forgot C E Murphy, which is pretty silly as she's the author of the last two books I bought and read, one of which was my first ever Kickstarter :-)

[nanila]

I haven't read enough new authors recently, this is the same list I would have come up with two years ago.

Hey, they're all new to me! Thank you very much. I'll have a browse around these and see what catches my eye to line up for later.

[ironed_orchid]

Just an aside, I really like Sarah Monette's Melusine series, but with regard to A Companion To Wolves, where you find it interesting and disturbing, I thought it was crack-fic.

[azurelunatic]

I prefer Moon writing with McCaffrey possibly to either alone. I haven't re-read the Planet Pirates trilogy since ~20, so it may have since had time reveal things I'd not recommend it based on, but I liked it very much in the preceding 5 years.

[ironed_orchid]

Oh, You might like N. K Jemisin. I've read The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms and its follow up The Broken Kingdoms.

Lovely world building stuff, lots of fun interactions between gods and mortals, and these are invented gods, although they draw on archetypes. The first book is mostly about uncovering the actual history of what the gods got up to in fairly ancient times from the point of view of the narrative, rather than what is in the scripture.