moonlight Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 Hi. I am looking for book recommendations for my husband. He likes to read Historical Fiction. Southeast Asia, Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan interest him. But, really any book having to do Asia, Europe will interest him. He loves Science Fiction, but it's hard for me to find a title he hasn't read. Any ideas you might have for more obscure sci fi books? He has read all the Asimov, Clarke, Hawking books. Thanks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 I enjoyed Sarem, which is about the Salisbury plain area of England. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 (edited) Hi. I am looking for book recommendations for my husband. He likes to read Historical Fiction. Southeast Asia, Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan interest him. But, really any book having to do Asia, Europe will interest him. He loves Science Fiction, but it's hard for me to find a title he hasn't read. Any ideas you might have for more obscure sci fi books? He has read all the Asimov, Clarke, Hawking books. Thanks. Some of my favorite science fiction is not books I hear about more -- -The Sparrow- by Mary Doria Russell Excerpt here: http://marydoriarussell.net/novels/the-sparrow/excerpt/ I also really like the Safehold series by David Weber -- starting with -off Armageddon Reef-. But I'm not sure how much science fiction it is. Maybe more like industrialization history with science fiction elements? Earth has been destroyed by the Gababa, but this one colony got out at the last minute and survived. However, the people volunteered with one idea in mind and instead were brainwashed with the original colony leaders as the "archangels" and new religious writings, etc. Some of the original colony leaders did not like the way the plan was changed and tried to prevent it. WHen that didn't work, they set a few other plans in motion to bring back all the ancient information after enough time had passed that going more tech would not draw the attention of the Gababa. One of those plans is a self-aware AI and it is nearly 1000 years later, he's awake and with all this knowledge. It is fascinating reading, and treats religion very respectfully with a lot to chew on about the nature of truth, even whether the original colonists may have been justified given the danger they were under. Hrms. I think I'm making a jumble of that. Here's the Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Off_Armageddon_Reef Also -The Martian- by Andy Weir is REALLY good. When I reading it, it was hard to remember it was not true NASA history I was hearing about. (I also read -The Lost Moon: The perilous voyage of Apollo 13- and this book *felt* like that one) Edited January 25, 2016 by vonfirmath 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reflections Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 I second The Martian! I really like Jim Butcher's series Harry Dresden- it is however Sci Fi Fantasy. But they're great books. There's the Dune series. Frederik Pohl's books like Heechee Rendezvous. Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game series. If you go to Goodreads, or just google search "Books like _____" you'll be surprised what you'll find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted January 25, 2016 Share Posted January 25, 2016 Any ideas you might have for more obscure sci fi books? He has read all the Asimov, Clarke, Hawking books. Well, if he likes space operas, he might try Ancillary Justice. That's not really "obscure", of course, being a Hugo winner, but it's more recent than Asimov and if he mostly sticks to older authors he might not have gotten around to it yet :) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted January 26, 2016 Share Posted January 26, 2016 Non-fiction he may like: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World and The Secret History of the Mongol Queens, both by Jack Weatherford Some general recs that may or may not hit the mark: A Dream in Polar Fog by Yuri Rytkheu My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie I Am the Great Horse by Katherine Roberts (YA) Extraordinary Renditions by Andrew Ervin Captain Alatriste by Arturo Perez-Reverte The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon Twelve Fingers by Jo Soares Seconding The Sparrow and The Martian. Also, has he read Ubik by Philip K. Dick? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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