I don't usually write much about Sci fi & Fantasy on this blog, however they have been a major part of my life since I was a kid watching Dr Who, Blade Runner & Star Wars and reading HG Wells, Isaac Asimov, Frank Herbert & Jules Verne. For me, there is symbiosis between this and electronic music.
I think watching these early TV shows subliminally implanted my love for synthesizers & technology .
Dr Who = EMS VCS 3 & the BBC Radiophonic workshop.
Star Wars = Arp 2600
Close Encounters = ARP 2500
Blade Runner = Yamaha CS 80
..... the list goes on, and on.
So if you are into synths, I think there is also a high probability, that you have an interest in Sci-Fi
The genre is huge, so where does one find the best books?
I think the Hugo & the Nebula awards are great places to look.
The finalists for the 2020 Hugo Awards, Lodestar Award For Best Young Adult Book, and Astounding Award for Best New Writer were announced by CoNZealand, the 78th World Science Fiction Convention, on the convention’s YouTube Channel on April 8, 2020 (NZST).
The winner will be announced on the 1st August, 2020.
http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2020-hugo-awards/
The Hugo was first awarded in 1953 and is considered the premier award in Science Fiction.
Here is a list of the best novel category for the last decade (2019 to 2010).
I think if you only read just a few books per year, you can't go far wrong if you read any these titles.
I've also added a few of my personal favorites from the last decade (and before)
2019
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2014
Ancillary Justice
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Ann Leckie (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
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2013
Redshirts
John Scalzi
(Tor Books)
Awards Hugo Award for Best Novel (2013)
Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (2013)
ISBN 978-0-7653-1699-8
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2012
Among Others, Jo Walton (Tor)
Originally published: 18 January 2011 (Hardcover)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
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2011
Blackout/All Clear, Connie Willis (Ballantine Spectra)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
2010
This years awayd was held in Melbourne, Australia.
It was a tie between two books:
The City & The City, China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK)
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It's a crime novel.
This was made into a TV series.
The Windup Girl, Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
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Personal Favourites:
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The Martian by Andy Weir
(Broadway Books, 2014)
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The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
(Sarah Monette)
(Tor Books, 1st April, 2014)
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I don't think any discussion of Sci Fi is complete without Isaac Asimov.
Foundation & I, Robot are classics that still influence us today
+ Foundation - Isaac Asimov's
+ I, Robot - Isaac Asimov - novels & Magazines
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NeuroMancer (1984) by William Gibson
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First published: July1, 1984
Ancillary Sword (2014)
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This is part two of the
Imperial Radch space opera trilogy.
Ancillary Mercy (2015)
![]()
Ann Leckie (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
The stunning conclusion to the Imperial Radch trilogy
I think watching these early TV shows subliminally implanted my love for synthesizers & technology .
Dr Who = EMS VCS 3 & the BBC Radiophonic workshop.
Star Wars = Arp 2600
Close Encounters = ARP 2500
Blade Runner = Yamaha CS 80
..... the list goes on, and on.
So if you are into synths, I think there is also a high probability, that you have an interest in Sci-Fi
The genre is huge, so where does one find the best books?
I think the Hugo & the Nebula awards are great places to look.
The finalists for the 2020 Hugo Awards, Lodestar Award For Best Young Adult Book, and Astounding Award for Best New Writer were announced by CoNZealand, the 78th World Science Fiction Convention, on the convention’s YouTube Channel on April 8, 2020 (NZST).
The winner will be announced on the 1st August, 2020.
http://www.thehugoawards.org/hugo-history/2020-hugo-awards/
The Hugo was first awarded in 1953 and is considered the premier award in Science Fiction.
Here is a list of the best novel category for the last decade (2019 to 2010).
I think if you only read just a few books per year, you can't go far wrong if you read any these titles.
I've also added a few of my personal favorites from the last decade (and before)
2019
The Calculating Stars
Novel by Mary Robinette Kowal
Originally published: 3 July 2018
This also won the Nebula Award.
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2018
The Stone Sky
Novel by N. K. Jemisin
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2017
The Obelisk Gate
Novel by N. K. Jemisin
Originally published: 16 August 2016
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2015 The Three Body Problem.
The Three-Body Problem was originally published in Chinese in 2008.
The 2014 publication by Tor was the first English-language version.
The second and third novels in the trilogy are titled The Dark Forest and Death's End.
Cixin Liu, Ken Liu translator (Tor Books)
2014
Ancillary Justice
Originally published: 1 October 2013 (paperback)
Ancillary Justice is part of the Imperial Radch space opera trilogy.
It is followed by Ancillary Sword (2014) and Ancillary Mercy (2015). (see below)
Apart from the hugo, this book has won a string of awards including
Nebula Award for Best Novel (2014)
BSFA Award for Best Novel (2013)
Arthur C. Clarke Award (2014)
Locus Award for Best First Novel (2014)
Nebula Award for Best Novel (2014)
BSFA Award for Best Novel (2013)
Arthur C. Clarke Award (2014)
Locus Award for Best First Novel (2014)
------------------------------------------
2013
Redshirts
John Scalzi
Originally published: 5 June 2012
Awards Hugo Award for Best Novel (2013)
Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (2013)
ISBN 978-0-7653-1699-8
2012
Among Others, Jo Walton (Tor)
Originally published: 18 January 2011 (Hardcover)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
2011
Blackout/All Clear, Connie Willis (Ballantine Spectra)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
Originally published: 2 February 2010
2010
This years awayd was held in Melbourne, Australia.
It was a tie between two books:
- The City & The City, China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK) (tie)
- The Windup Girl, Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade) (tie)
The City & The City, China Miéville (Del Rey; Macmillan UK)
This was made into a TV series.
Originally published: 29 April 2009 (Hardcover)
The Windup Girl, Paolo Bacigalupi (Night Shade)
This book also won the Nebula Award.
Originally published: 1 September 2009 (Hardcover)
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Personal Favourites:
The Left Hand of Darkness
Novel by Ursula K. Le Guin
Originally published: March 1969
Ok, this wasn't written in the last 10 years, but if you haven't read any
books by Ursula, this is a great place to begin.
It also won the Nebula
It also won the Nebula
Her career spans 60 years.
Also read "A wizard of Earthsea" (1968)
Sadly, Ursula passed away in 2018.
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The Martian by Andy Weir
(Broadway Books, 2014)
----------------------------------------------------------
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
(Sarah Monette)
(Tor Books, 1st April, 2014)
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Dune
Novel by Frank Herbert
OK, another one that's more than 10 years old but it's a classic.
There are another 5 more books in the series.
Originally published: 1 August 1965
Chilton Book Company
First Edition : blue cloth boards, the rear panel has a map.
The price on the jacket flap should be $5.95 and the rear flap should have the Chilton address across four lines.
Prior to its publication in book form, parts of Dune were published in Analog Magazine as a three part serial called Dune World in 1963-1964 and later as a five part serial called Prophet of Dune in 1965.
Chilton Book Company
First Edition : blue cloth boards, the rear panel has a map.
The price on the jacket flap should be $5.95 and the rear flap should have the Chilton address across four lines.
Prior to its publication in book form, parts of Dune were published in Analog Magazine as a three part serial called Dune World in 1963-1964 and later as a five part serial called Prophet of Dune in 1965.
This book also won the Nebula Award.
The Dune Universe is huge.
For more info:
+ Dune - The Chronological order of the novels
+ Dune Universe Timeline
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The Dune Universe is huge.
For more info:
+ Dune - The Chronological order of the novels
+ Dune Universe Timeline
-----------------------------------------------------
Foundation & I, Robot are classics that still influence us today
+ Foundation - Isaac Asimov's
+ I, Robot - Isaac Asimov - novels & Magazines
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NeuroMancer (1984)
First published: July1, 1984
Ancillary Sword (2014)
Ann Leckie (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
Publication date
7 October 2014 (paperback)This is part two of the
Imperial Radch space opera trilogy.
Ancillary Mercy (2015)
Ann Leckie (Orbit US/Orbit UK)
Publication date
6 October 2015 (paperback)The stunning conclusion to the Imperial Radch trilogy