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Good SF/fantasy read?

Another one of my all-time favorites! They've been trying to make that movie for years, but I hear that they're closer than ever. BTW, have you ever recognized any similarities between Ender's Game and Neon Genesis Evangelion?
 
Cats Cradle is great. I also liked God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, and Mother Night. I also loved Venus On the Half-shell, by "fictional" author Kilgore Trout.
 
I really don't read a lot of sci-fi, so I can't help you there. I can help with fantasy though. ;)

Sabriel by Garth Nix
Lirael by Garth Nix
The Sword of Shannara Series by Terry Brooks
 
For some lighter sci-fi reading, I highly reccommend Spider Robinson's Callahan's Crosstime Saloon series. There are several books... 7 or 8 in the series now, I think. They most certainly must be read in order.These are some of the better books I've read in terms of creating characters that you can care about, and the books really do leave you with something.

William Gibson's Neuromancer is also rather good.

For fantasy, David B. Coe's Lonn/Tobyn Chrinicles is one of the better modern fantasy trilogies I've read in a long time.

The Retrieval Artist books by Kristine Kathryn Rusch are pretty good, and Robert Charles Wilson has an interesting one out called The Chronoliths.

If you really want to get into some deep stuff, then some of the best fantasy literature I've ever read was Dante's Commedy (John Cardi does a very nice translation).

Caleb Carr has a horribly written book, Killing Time that's worth the read anyway, thanks to the interesting ideas it presents.

Someone suggested Piers Anthony earlier.... I agree, if you're talking about his earlier works, and even some of the early Xanth novels weren't too horribly bad (Ok, the first 2 were tolerable).

Oh, also, on a light-hearted fun note, more children's sci-fi really, but still an entertaining little read are Janet Asimov's Norby books.
 
Almost anything by Jack Vance, especially the Demon Kings series, Cugel's Saga, the Alastor series and Planet of Adventure. I haven't read his latest books though. :(
Right now I'm reading the first Amber series by Zelazny. It's great! I also loved his Jack of the Shadows (or what's its name in English).
And the "classics" of course: Heinlein, Asimov, Clarke.
I am Sheridan :rolleyes:
 
I'm really into Dan Simmons right now, and he's got a new series starting with "Ilium" a bit later this year. But I will definately be looking at some of the other recommendations here :)

Also, has anyone read China Mieville? He writes what's been deemed "urban fantasy" and "wierd fiction"; 'Perdido Street Station" is simply amazing.

Which Harlan Ellison stories would anyone recommend?
 
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