19 of the Greatest Science Fiction Book Series
Science Fiction writers—much like their cousins over in Fantasy—are renowned for being able write volume upon volume of prose, great tracts of novels, seemingly without end. Often these tomes are filled with nothing so much as overly lengthy location descriptions and predictable plots. However, some of the true greats of Science Fiction have surpassed the limits of the form, and created vast inter-twined plots set across multiple novels, and multiple time periods.
19. The Odyssey Series by Arthur C. Clarke
2001: A Space Odyssey is an undisputed masterpiece in the field of Science Fiction—it’s too bad the sequels can’t say the same thing. 2010, 2061 and 3001 just couldn’t live up to the power of the original. Perhaps it’s because the novel was written in conjunction with the immensely influential film, or maybe Clarke tired of the saga of the monoliths. None of them are bad novels, it’s just the blinding strength of the first in the series makes them dim in comparison. I do have a soft spot for 3001 especially, though I have no idea why. Also, if you can get hold of it, try and read the comic adaptation of 2001, it was one of Jack Kirby’s finest works.
18 Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Regardless of what you think of his politics, OSC wrote an amazing novel in Ender’s Game. It’s a book that just about every high school boy connects with on a deeply visceral level. However, like some of the other series on this list, it suffered diminishing returns. After the astonishing Ender’s Game, Card went on a more philosophical bent with Speaker For The Dead, Xenocide and Children of the Mind—which is where many readers lost the series. To be fair, at this point they are a bit dry, but still readable. It was after this that Card wrote the Shadow novels, a parallel set of stories that felt like he was milking the franchise. Then there was A War of Gifts: An Ender Story, about which the less said the better.
17. Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
I can’t be the only kid, who at the age of 10 found myself entranced by the futuristic yet feudal world of Pern, with its engineered fire-breathing dragons, deadly threadfall, and telepathic bonding. Impressive in their longevity (19 novels and counting) McCaffrey’s Pern stories are perhaps not the most cerebral of novels, and they sit on a line somewhere between SciFi and Fantasy that can cause many a pedantic argument. Yet even for all this, they’re extremely fun reads for young adults, and maintain their interest throughout the series.
16. Barsoom by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Starting with Princess of Mars, and on for 11 novels and countless stories, the grand high king of pulp crafted the tales of Barsoom, the dying world of Mars. Populated by giant four-armed brutes, beautiful topless aliens, noble beasts and immense treasures, the stories inspired generations of writers to follow. By today’s eyes, they’re misogynistic, racist and colonialist, but for the time were ripping good yarns. The staid morality found therein has dated poorly, but if you can turn off modern sensibilities for a couple of hundred pages, the sheer scope of adventure will draw you in. Plus, there’s an upcoming John Carter film by Mark Andrews and Andrew Stanton of Pixar.
15. Old Man’s War by John Scalzi
A recent series of novels, of which The Last Colony was a Hugo nominee for best novel in 2008. The series puts humanity as a troubled race in a universe full of other species, which they must battle against for livable planets. Adults at the age of 65 are allowed to sign up for the military, and when they join, their brains are transferred to younger clones, jam packed with nanotech and genetically souped up abilities, before being sent into the fray. Comparatively short to the other entries on this list (only four novels at present), Scalzi’s series artfully combines military action with philosophical depth, and has been compared to Heinlein at his best.
14. Crystal Rain by Tobias Buckell
Another recent series, Buckell’s Crystal Rain and its sort-of sequels are a refreshing take on science fiction, that challenges the traditional Euro-centrism of the genre. What does that mean? Buckell’s from the Caribbean, and he adds a distinctive flavor to his work, bringing island patois and outlook to series. Well, maybe series is the wrong term. The three novels are independent of one another, but take place in the same universe, and share a common character or two—including the Rastafarian badass Pepper. The second novel in the trilogy — Ragamuffin — was nominated for a Nebula.
13. The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson
Okay, calling the Baroque Cycle Sci Fi is perhaps debatable. It’s alternate history (more or less), but Stephenson say’s it’s Sc iFi, and who the hell am I to argue with Neal Stephenson. Notoriously long, the Baroque Cycle is made up of eight books spanning three volumes spanning 1660-1714, and is heavily thematically linked to the development of science and technology. It’s also deeply concerned with alchemy, numbers, cryptology and linguistics, because, well, it’s Stephenson, and that’s the sort of shit he’s into. If you ever struggled with his other work (I know that the end of Snowcrash left me a bit headachey), Baroque Cycle probably won’t be for you, but for fans of super-dense concepts and ideas, you can’t beat Stephenson.
12. Hyperion Cantos by Dan Simmons
Okay, let’s take one of the key works of English fiction — Canterbury Tales — and recast it in the far future, about a group of pilgrims going to the tombs of Hyperion. Well, that’s the first novel in the quartet, and the conceit is dropped after that. However, the Hyperion Cantos is a magnificent work of literary depth, filled with allusions to seminal works of English literature, plus the machinations of a human interplanetary Government on the verge of collapse. Religion, death, war, and FTL travel mingle with references to John Keats.
11. Seafort Saga by David Feintuch
Feintuch has a habit of creating main characters that are utter bastards. Not in the badass kinda way, but just complete assholes. They’re usually doing the best they can in the situation, but they’re massively flawed — and all the more endearing for that. Nicholas Seafort is a rigid adherent to the rules, and has an unusually strict moral code. Set in the 22nd century, the Saga is spread over 7 books (and one more in the works) following Seafort from being a Midshipman to the leader of Earth, and usually stuck making horrible no-win situations along the way. The original four novels are probably the strongest, but it’s an incredible body of work, and intriguing in its world building.
10. Lensman by Edward Elmer “Doc” Smith.
This classic series of pulp novels from the 30s and 40s became a major influence on a generation of SciFi writers and comic book creators. Hell, the Green Lantern Corp is pretty much a direct ripoff of Lensmen. Intergalactic police force. Check. Ancient benevolent aliens. Check. Alien artifact that confers new powers on the members of the force. Check. Yeah, there’s a few similarities. In Lensman, the members are given a Lens, a symbiotic creature which gives them the mental powers of telepathy with which to police the galaxy, with plenty of now dated rip-roaring adventure, and more than a fair share of Eugenics.
9. The Culture Cycle by Iain M. Banks
Over eight loosely connected books, Scottish author Iain M. Banks, the Culture is described as a grand, a futuristic pan-species society, a liberal anarchy, completely egalitarian and loosely governed by super-intelligent AIs. The world is “post-scarcity”, so completely past any limits of food, health or age. So how do you write stories about such a utopia? Hell, how do you write eight books plus short stories about it? You focus on the people that do the dirty work, and help other societies get closer to joining the Culture.
8. Riverworld by Philip José Farmer
Imagine every human who ever lived was suddenly resurrected on the banks of an unimaginably long river. Every person who had ever lived from the point of early homo sapiens onwards, with all their food needs met and their cultures in conflict. So what happens? Well, a whole bunch of 20th century rock stars play gigs, some people enslave others, and Mark Twain builds a steamboat. As flippant as that may seem, Farmer takes a diverse array of disparate historical figures, liberally mixes in original ones, and sets them the task of figuring out the how and why of their sudden resurrection. While the series does lose its strength in later volumes, it wins massive points for originality, and involving very interesting characters.
7. The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson
Describing the Illuminatus! Trilogy is an exercise in foolishness. Massive conspiracies, alternate dimensions, sex, drugs, rock & roll, fnord, all hail Eris Discordia. Everything about the novels borders on post-modern absurdism, which makes them essential reading. It’s a rambling ode to time travel and unreliable narrators. Everybody fucks everybody else, and there’s a rather passive aggressive dwarf. It reads a bit like a darker Hitchhiker’s Guide, packed with black humor and surrealism. Read it, your brain will appreciate the exercise. Fnord.
6. The Sprawl Trilogy by William Gibson
For me it was a toss-up wether to choose Gibson’s Sprawl trilogy Bridge trilogy. Both are similar in style, and Gibson’s cyberpunk is in fine form on both series. Sprawl has slightly more known, comprised of the excellent Neuromancer (1984), Count Zero (1986) and Mona Lisa Overdrive (1988), plus three volumes of short stories. These are the archtypical cyberpunk. Those infamous grey skys, console cowboys, cybernetic killing machines and nation sized Zaibatsus. While cyberpunk feels dated under the light of modern technology, it still packs a gritty punch.
5. Michael Moorecock’s Multiverse
Oh boy, the multiverse. Spread over dozens of novels ranging every setting imaginable, Moorecock’s Multiverse is SciFi, Fantasy, and just about every other genre you can think of. There’s steampunk, high fantasy, post-apocalyptic wastelands, time traveling dandies, Russian assassins, evil Sun Gods, and much more. Yet throughout such disparate novels you will constantly find recurring characters in the archetypes of the Eternal Champion, the Lords of Order and the Dukes of Chaos, who battle for control of the multiverse, while others fight for the balance. While it’s impossible to call Moorecock’s most famous character — Elric — SciFi, Jerry Cornelius and the Dancers at the End of Time definitely are.
4. Dune by Frank Herbert
This series is contentious. Few dispute the grandeur and influence of Dune itself, but the sequels (Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune, and Chapterhouse: Dune) are more philosophical and at times much harder to follow. Following Dune’s success perhaps Herbert grew self-indulgent. Unfortunately, he died before finishing the final book in the famous series, so we’ll never know how the epic of sandworms and spice will end. And no matter what anybody says, the Brian Herbert/Kevin J. Anderson books NEVER EXISTED!
3. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams
If you haven’t read this five book trilogy, you’re a bad person. Quite possibly the funniest works of the English language, the absurdist comedy of HGttG is an instant barometer of someone’s worth. If they find it funny, they can be considered a decent human being. Any other view should lead to instant shunning and social ostracization. If you have read the books, consider listening to the radio plays as well. They’re slightly different, and provide a bit of a different view on the story. As with Dune, I refuse to acknowledge the existence of the Eoin Colfer sixth book.
2. Ringworld by Larry Niven
You want to blame anyone for Halo, you might as well level your ire at Niven. If it weren’t for his fantastic stories about an artificial ring planet, hidden deep in space, then the iconic look — and name — of Halo wouldn’t even exist. Technically part of Niven’s significantly larger Known Space series, there are seven books devoted just to this curious alien artifact, filled with genetically altered humans and a vast amount of unimaginable technology. What’s funny is that the sequel to the original book was only written to try and patch up the scientific flaws in the first, due to bitching by fans.
1. The Foundation Series by Isaac Asimov
Where do you start with Foundation? Arguably Asimov’s most famous body of work, if won the Hugo Award for “Best All-Time Series” in 1966, and covers around 500 years of time over seven novels — chronicling the attempts of a small planet at the ass-end of the galaxy to preserver the knowledge of humanity from various dark ages. Guiding them are messages left by the long dead Harry Seldon, who figured out how to mathematically predict the actions of massive groups of humans. To prevent a 30,000 dark age, he sets up a colony at the edge of the galaxy, and falsely tells them they’re to put together an encyclopedia of all knowledge, when their actual task is to shorten those barbaric times down to a single millennium. It’s an amazing set of novels, and rightly deserves its renowned as the greatest series in all of Science Fiction.
Written by Tim on March 25th, 2010 | Tagged as: Books
On March 25th 2010, Ghost1227 wrote:
I personally believe that Jon Norman’s Chronicles of Counter Earth should have been included to make this an even 20
On March 26th 2010, samus wrote:
Aweomse list, but, as several have noted, the omission of the Alastair Reynolds' Revelation Space series is a glaring omission.
On March 26th 2010, bill wesley wrote:
I'd put P.J. Farmers World of Tiers #1(way better than Riverworld), Zelazny's Amber series #2, Dune #3, and Foundation #4 –
On March 26th 2010, Nelson Giles wrote:
Great write-up on great sci-fi book series, but please…
In writing about literature in a form full of bad writing in terms of grammar and spelling faux pas' up the ying yang, you've made the whole thing suspect at best.
On March 26th 2010, Franko wrote:
i'll also chime with props for zelazny's "amber" series and david brin's "uplift" series.
On March 26th 2010, betty_tron wrote:
How about Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy? Great characters; cool tech grounded in realism; sprawling, epic plots…
On March 26th 2010, Renaud Laforce wrote:
The line between fantasy and science fiction is blurry at times, but I think Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun falls close enough to the science fiction side to be considered here. It's a four-volume series set far in the future, and tells the tale of Severian, a novice torturer, who travels widely in a complex, warring society before finding his appointed place.
Others have a high regard for Wolfe's Book of the Long Sun and Book of the Short Sun series, though I don't find them to my taste.
Another fascinating series is John Varley's Titan series (Titan, Wizard, and Demon). It's character driven science-fiction set in a near-future solar system where humanity has run across its first aliens – inhabiting a ring-world that is itself a sentient being. Strangeness and danger ensue for the crew of the ship making first contact, and later, for everyone on Earth.
On March 26th 2010, Bob Smith wrote:
One of my favorite series of all time is Stephen R Donaldson's Gap Series. Great read. Make your way thru the first book (its a little to gritty for my tastes) and reward yourself with the rest of the series.
Also love the chronicals of Thomas Covenant but those are fantasy
On March 26th 2010, Lorne wrote:
Peter F Hamilton!
On March 26th 2010, Thomas wrote:
Well, it was a good start. I would add John Birmingham's trilogy.
On March 26th 2010, Jabeta wrote:
Ben Bova's "Grand Tour" series–over 15 books in this universe. He recently release a book that tied another series, "Voyagers" into this universe.
Loved the Lensmen series. ANY book by John Scalzi is really good. IMO he should have won the Hugo the year he was nominated for "The Last Colony."
On March 26th 2010, Duglarri wrote:
No one is going to stump up for William Shatner's Tekwar series? I don't understand…
On March 26th 2010, Drew wrote:
I would throw up my vote for the Book of the New Sun series. It was easily one of the greatest and most literary of all SciFi I've read.
On March 26th 2010, David Phillip Oster wrote:
your wrote that "Scalzi can be compared to Heinlein", but you forgot to include Heinlein's own future history series of novels.
On March 26th 2010, Jo Watts wrote:
What a trip down Memory Lane that was WOW
RT
http://www.anonymizer.us.tc
On March 26th 2010, mrbiotech wrote:
Fairly good list, but very heavy on pulp-scifi. Would definitely recommend more space opera: glad to see Banks and Clarke on the list, but where’s Alistair Reynolds’ Revelation Space?
On March 26th 2010, Brian wrote:
I’ve only read about half the series on this list. I’ll have to check out some of the others. IMO, Clarke’s Rama series is better than the Odssey books. Rama was his “magnum opus” so to speak and the Odyssey books are only more famous because of the movies. Also, Alastair Reynold’s Revelation Space books should be on the list.
On March 26th 2010, Wizarlock wrote:
The Rama books by Arthur C. Clarke are also excellent
On March 26th 2010, Bob Roberts wrote:
You missed the Amber series by Roger Zelany
On March 26th 2010, NotaSFfanbut... wrote:
I think that Simmons Olympos/Ilium is soooo much better than Hyperion: Much more cerebral, literary – just a glimmer of the greatness that created Kali's Song, Carrion Comfort, The Terror, and Drood (reading Black Hills right now).
On March 26th 2010, coyo7e wrote:
Wow, these lists are really start to get old. There’s a reason that I make a point to Bury every “top X List” page I see on digg.
Also, you misspelled Hari Seldon in the “ultimate” series in the #1 spot. Perhaps you should read the source material before declaring it as a must-read online, or even just read your own article and check it against wikipedia.
On March 26th 2010, s wrote:
hate to be that guy, but i’m going to be…
*ahem*
WHAT?! NO MENTION OF GENE WOLFE’S NEW SUN SERIES?!?!
On March 26th 2010, Meredith wrote:
Seriously?!
Ender’s series # 18 out of #19!? It should at least be in the top 10.
On March 26th 2010, nathan wrote:
Gordon R. Dickson!!!
On March 26th 2010, william wrote:
I have read some of these, surprisingly not all, but to omit Jack Chalker was a mistake imho
take the G.O.D. series, just as an example.
On March 26th 2010, Chad wrote:
You forgot the Uplift series by David Brin. It’s definitely better than some of the others you have listed.
On March 26th 2010, Tyler wrote:
You missed Kevin J Anderson’s Saga of the Seven Suns.
On March 26th 2010, Jack wrote:
Excellent list. Nice to see Dan Simmons get some recognition.
On March 26th 2010, taters wrote:
Good choices. I would have also included Jack Vance’s ‘Demon Princes’ stories.
On March 26th 2010, MIkey Donuts wrote:
Cobra by Timothy Zahn?
On March 26th 2010, J.D. Ray wrote:
I would easily replace any one of several listed here with Daniel Keys Moran’s “Continuing Time” series. Three published novels, with two more in the works, and a variety of short stories tell a story set in a universe that spans millennia (indeed, some stories are set after our universe dies in heat death and some have found a way to navigate to a pocket universe where they set up a new civilization).
The published novels (Emerald Eyes, The Long Run, The Last Dancer) cover a near future after the UN has prosecuted a war to create an Earth-wide government. Then they try to create super soldiers and end up with telepaths. Who rebel. Cybernetics, virtual reality, space travel, metaphysics and other standard tropes get solid treatment throughout a series that’s internally consistent and well thought out.
The cool part is that they’re available online for free: http://immunitysec.com/resources-dkm.shtml
On March 26th 2010, drewbob wrote:
Nothing by Jack Vance? BAH.
On March 26th 2010, Robert Bobs wrote:
These are, for the most part, bad books by bad writers. Asimov, Niven, E.E. Smith, that Pern crap, Orson Card… if sf didn’t have an abundant public who have very little taste, these writers and books would have died merciful and obscure deaths.
On March 26th 2010, hihi wrote:
no philip k dick wtf?
On March 26th 2010, Nate Gifford wrote:
I’ll agree with missing the Amber series by Zelazny. I also missed the Childe Cycle by Gordon Dickson.
Also I strongly disagree with the assessment of Card. I believe that Speaker for the Dead is the blindingly brilliant book of the series. It outshines everything else in the Enderverse IMO.
On March 26th 2010, relix42 wrote:
Another vote for Saga of the Seven Suns – epic, interesting, and well balanced story and engaging characters.
On March 26th 2010, Brimt wrote:
I’m no huge sci-fi buff but I’ve read a fair bit of it and in my opinion Stephen Baxter’s Xeelee sequence should make any top 10 series list.
Epic doesn’t begin to describe it, it’s a complete past, present and future history of the universe and the unimaginably powerful forces at war in it. Humanity does relatively well out of it but is still ultimately shown to be a harrowingly insignificant speck on the universe’s backside. One of the books in the series isn’t advertised as such and you can get most of the way through the book before you realise how it actually fits into the galactically-sprawling story. It’s classic Stephen Baxter in that the final chapters of every book lift the top off your head and drop your brain into a bottomless pit of awesome. Generally with Baxter you feel cheated if the last few chapters don’t encompass the rise and fall of at least one galactic civilisation and the passage of billions of years.
His prose isn’t the best but his ideas are second to none.
On March 26th 2010, Alex wrote:
The Stainless Steel Rat series written by Harry Harrison are the best. The best.
On March 26th 2010, les wrote:
The Emprise, Enigma and Empery trio of books from Michael P. Kube-Mcdowell is also a good read. They seem to be seriously underrated, I never see them mentioned.
On March 26th 2010, Adam Kupka wrote:
I would have thought this list very suspect if not for the inclusion of the Burroughs Barsoom series.
The important thing note, however, is that not all Barsoom is created equal. While the first three books are a singular tale (The Gods of Mars being my favorite book of all time), the final eight books are episodic in nature and fairly ‘meh’ at best.
Every fan of literature, Sci-Fi or not, owes it to themselves to read “A Princess of Mars, The Gods of Mars, and Warlord of Mars” before they die.
On March 26th 2010, YoYoMaMa wrote:
Could the Dark Tower series by SK be wedged in here?
On March 26th 2010, YoYoMaMa wrote:
Oh and always enjoyed The Man Who Never Missed. Almost thought The Old Man’s War was that one but then I remembered…
On March 26th 2010, Dug Fresh wrote:
Beelzebub’s Tales to His Grandson is by far one of the funniest, most scathingly satirical (if not most difficult) science fiction trilogies I have ever read and most definitely should be included in this list…
On March 26th 2010, Namrepus wrote:
Definitely Peter F Hamiltons Reality Dysfunction series.
That and the Saga of the Pliocene exiles by Julian May, while on that border of scifi/fantasy.
These have been the top 2 series on my mental list for the last 10 years easy.
On March 26th 2010, Chris wrote:
Adding my vote to Gene Wolfe's "Sun" books. Not just the New Sun but the Long and Short Sun books as well.
Also, CJ Cherry's Foreigner series.
On March 26th 2010, yanzihappy wrote:
The "Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card" sound good.
On March 26th 2010, Kevin Daniel wrote:
The Sten series by Allan Cole and Chris Bunch.
The Warlock of Gramarye series by Christopher Stasheff.
The Starfisher's series by Glen Cook.
The Berserker series by Fred Saberhagen.
Kane by Karl Edward Wagner…
On March 26th 2010, Russ McBride wrote:
I think the most glaring omission is Robert Silverberg's Majipoor Series, starting with the great Lord Valentine's Castle.
On March 27th 2010, Moz wrote:
The exclusion of Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun is a travesty.
On March 27th 2010, Just A. Dude wrote:
Um….no Kurt Vonnegut, no Philip K. Dick. Who the Hell put this shite list together?
On March 27th 2010, sbrasseux wrote:
The wonderful Lois McMaster Bujold won multiple awards for the Vorkosigan series. (Mirror Dance, Memory, the Mountains of Mourning, etc. )
And I do love Harrison's Stainless Steel Rat
and Zelazny's Amber series…
On March 27th 2010, Stockbridge wrote:
Catherine Asaro's Scolian Empire books would make my list
On March 27th 2010, R Shannon wrote:
many already mentioned, but I noticed a lack of C.j. Cherryh, Honor Harrington novels by Weber, Mile Vorkosigan by Lois McMaster Bujold – if you are doing sf, drop all the fanstasy and stick to sf.
Might add, I published an sf semi-prozine in the 80s and Lewis Shiner interviewed Robert Anton Wilson for it. RAW states the Illuminati trilogy was originally four books, but the publishers insisted on a trilogy. One night, fed up and a bit lit up, they said "F***K IT! They are paying by the pound, let's just give it to them that way." So they cut up all four books into a pile of small strips, pulled them out at random and pasted up three books and sent them off – the result being the books we love today!
On March 27th 2010, maGma wrote:
I see some good series and some poor ones. Same goes on the comments.
I would name 2 series not mentioned by anyone, and which I love. They are Jack McDevitt's, 14 times nominated for Nebula award, whose novels frequently deal with attempts to make contact with alien races, and with archaeology or xenoarchaeology:
- Academy series; and
- Alex Benedict series, one of which (Seeker) won the Nebula award in 2006.
.
On March 27th 2010, Dana wrote:
How about alternate history series by Harry Turtledove, or S.M. Sterling, or Eric Flint? And no one has mentioned Keith Laumer's "Retief of the CDT" series. Or Piers Anthony's Xanth series (which dragged on far too long). And the three in John Varley's Titan series
Peter Hamilton has the Night's Dawn series, as well as his Mindstar series and Void series.
I'm sure there are more but those are just the ones I can see on my shelves from my computer…
On March 27th 2010, Edge McLanahan wrote:
To be fair the author did say 19 of the best series not the 19 best sci fi series. Some others are Eric Flints 1632 alt history series and David Drakes Daniel Leary series is just great classic space opera. And may I add another ringing endorsement of the Stainless Steel Rat series.
On March 27th 2010, Daniel wrote:
Frederik Pohl's Heechee series is also worth mentioning.
On March 28th 2010, Isabelle wrote:
Geez, give the guy a break. Sure, it's not perfect, but it's a pretty good list. Riverworld looks interesting.
On March 28th 2010, Lew wrote:
CJ Cherryh has several hard SciFi and several fantasy series, all of which are completely outstanding. Cherryh's realities are very dense, with very deep insight into the main characters and the political calcuations they live continuously juggle.
Chaneur, Cyteen, Foreigner, etc. in hard SciFi.
Faded Sun, etc. in Fantasy.
On March 28th 2010, CustomCharacter wrote:
Am I the only one who actually PREFERRED the 2-4th books of the Ender’s Game series?
On March 29th 2010, Tom wrote:
Pretty good list, but I can't believe you did not include Weber's Harrington series. They are very good, and as a series, they are great!
On March 29th 2010, leisurelyviking wrote:
Pretty good list, but it's kind of sad that only one out of your 19 series is authored by a woman. I can think of a few others that would easily fit in there.
On March 29th 2010, Dave wrote:
I picked out a few of those selections that I had read at some point in the past. I even saw a few that I recognized even though I hadnt read them. But I think the list is sadly short. Not a single selection from Heinlein? Not even one? Asimov was rightly placed at number one but that wasnt even his best series. What about other long-lived great sci-fi writers like Alan Dean Foster and Piers Anthony? I really think the list needs some work…
On April 2nd 2010, iabhii wrote:
Rama series should have been included great list nonetheless sure to check out some of them
On August 15th 2010, nated0gg0106 wrote:
Uhh, dunno what this guy was thinking when he wrote the Ender’s Game review, but the sequels a bit dull..?? And the Ender’s Shadow series was “milking the franchise”?!? HA, sorry but Speaker for the Dead was in my opinion a much better book then Ender’s Game, even though they are both amazing. The Shadow series and all the sequels are all GREAT, some of the best SF books ever written, so if you love Ender’s Game, DO NOT let this discourage you, you should read every single one of the books, they are all amazing, including the Ender in Exile book.
On August 29th 2010, J Anthony Carter wrote:
Now, while I can say I liked and in several instances, multi-read, the books mentioned. There is almost no end to the wonders and satiation available to the most gluttonous reading needs available in the world or online today! Not the least of these not mentioned are Robert Jordan’s “Wheel of Time”, Zelazny’s “Chronicles of Amber”, Ursula K. Le Guinn, Stephen R. Donaldson’s “White Gold Wielder”, and on and on… and on and on and on.
Authors whose books are likened to multi-course meals and who’s intensity and skill can easily make the real world disappear for the length of time we’re physically able to delve into their depths.
Why do people do things like make a top 10 or top 20 list when there’s more of the world of Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror than is known to their poor mortal minds? Only starts a “hey dude! You forgot” convention to bring to the fore what everyone already knew, there IS no list. There is only the mind! Muah-ha-ha-ha-ha!!
On September 22nd 2010, Me wrote:
Really? Really? No mention of Piers Anthony’s Bio of A Space Tyrant series, Heinlein’s Lazarus Long series (beginning with Stranger in a Strange Land).
On September 24th 2010, David Schramm wrote:
Please take a moment to visit the site below and see if this new science fiction book might be of interest to your readers. Thank you.
http://www.BlackMarketMemories.com
David
On September 25th 2010, Joe wrote:
On the top of my list are Harry Turtledove’s World War and Colonization series, and David Gerrold’s War of the Chtorr.
On September 26th 2010, Lidless wrote:
Kudos for the Lensman series being in the top 10, but the description of the lens was WAY off. It wasn’t a symbiotic creature at all – it was just a badge that matched the complexity and power of the brain. And it wasn’t an artifact that conferred powers. The powers came from within and as a result of millions of years of genetic manipulation. All the aliens did was to train the brain.
On September 29th 2010, Ro wrote:
As interesting as a lot of these titles sound (I’ve definitely added a few to my ‘to-read’ list), I can’t take seriously a list that boasts the greatest Sci-fi book series and doesn’t even mention Piers Anthony. For shame.
On October 2nd 2010, 7LeagueBoots wrote:
What a bizarre list. Many of these are decent, some even great, but massively incomplete and missing a great number of far, far better sci-fi books…
To each their own I suppose.
On October 20th 2010, voltara wrote:
Good ‘ol Asimov, eh? Yeah, he had a nice idea there, but he is one of the clumsiest writers in the language. Terrible character development and one good novel could have told the story just as well. You gotta put him in, though, dont cha?
On October 21st 2010, WileyR wrote:
How could anyone leave out Heinlein??? Stranger in a Strange World, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, and the Lazarus Long book are MUCH better written and thought provoking than many of those listed. Piers Anthony’s Blue Adept series is much superior (IMNSHO) than the Dune series, which becomes dull after the second book. I agree about the Pern series, but where is Andre Norten in all this mishmash?
All in all not a bad list, simply ignores some of the seminal works for lesser later works.
On October 24th 2010, TerjeS wrote:
Don’t also quite grok this list, where is Heinlein?
On December 8th 2010, Marty K wrote:
How about the Cities in Flight trilogy better then some of the listed works
On December 12th 2010, Trojan Owl wrote:
I think Alan Dean Foster’s Commonwealth universe is vastly underrated. He will get his due someday.
I also think that Dickson’s Childe Cycle (Dorsai!) might deserve a spot more than some of these.
But that’s what makes it fun. Cheers.
On January 10th 2011, Hailtothevictorz wrote:
Do two books constitute a series? If so, shouldn’t Vernor Vinge EASILY be on this list? Or Greg Bear? The one omission I would say has to be glaring to me is that of Stephen Baxter and his Xeelee universe. I wouldn’t call the Xeelee sequence a series really, even though I just got the first four books in one huge volume. But, the seven novels, one novella, two short story collections and several short stories scattered throughout other sci-fi collections and anthologies are truly mind bending stuff. These stories single handedly got my into sci-fi at the age of 44. I’m hooked and have the rest of my days to get caught up. Love it.
On January 14th 2011, Jamie L wrote:
Despite being a woman I am not much inclined to make or go along most feminist arguments. So please dont write this off as ‘oh she must be a feminist.
You’ve managed to get me quite angry with this list!
Only one out of 19 authors mentioned! is female?!!? I’m not calling for some artificial ballance for ‘equalities’ sake. But while I can agree on maybe half your choices the other half are weak in comparison to those on your list. So I know that others have mentioned some of the following but they are so good they bear repeating-
For example, I cant BELIEVE you left out you left out the brilliant C.J. Cherryh with her Cyteen series or all the merchanter/or union/alliance war, or The Foreigner Universe Series [or my personal favorite of hers -the most wonderful Chanur Series.]
Some others who can at least equal if not well exceed many of those you listed- Lois Bujold’s Vorkosigan books, Susan R Matthews Ship’s Inquisitor Series, Marion Zimmer Bradley’ Darkover books may not be in the top ten but clearly beats out Morcock, Julie Czerneda’s Species Imperative series, Octavia Estelle Butler’s Parable series [only 2 books finished though a 3rd was left unfinished at her death or her Patternmaster Series. The Dancer Trilogy by Anne Maxwell could have made your list, or for youth and young at heart -Andre Norton’s Forerunner series! Or life patner team Sharon Lee and Steve Miller and thier Liaden Universe!
There are a lot more who could have made your list. You should take some time to honestly ask yourself why they didn’t!
On April 17th 2011, Ragamuffin wrote:
Who let the dogs out ?
On April 17th 2012, dazey wrote:
David Wingrove's Chung Kuo series?