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Really, that stuff looks like crap...on the other hand so do most sci-fi books out nowadays. Give me some good ole fashioned classic heinlein thank you very much.
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I must admit, i've only looked at the cover art and really have had no reason to pick it up...considering i've seen the same covers on multitudes of sci-fi books. What makes this series so good compared to the generic alien war novel.
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I haven't heard about Honor Harrington. What sci-fi is it?
Aboot Heinlein, I read "Starship Troopers" because of the movie. It was good, had the same kind of "ahead-of-its-time" technological details that Dune feasted in. What would be the next step?
And is it pronounced Hine-lin?
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Nimmy: Heinlein (yes, you pronounced it correctly (with a Kansas-Missouri cornpone accent if you want to be truly authentic) was the Dean of sci-fi - literally the author who lifted sci-fi out of its robots & rayguns era into literature, and against whom even modern sci-fi authors are mentioned (any time a new techno-fiction novel is published, the publishers manage to find SOME reviewer who will refer to the author as "The New Heinlein". I myself - and several persons I know - revere his works as the pinnacle of sci-fi.
Starship Troopers the novel was, of course, a far better novel that the movie was cinema. In fact, I watched the movie once - and won't again. As Van said, it can be seen as a satire on fascism - although I would argue that the government in the novel is in fact the ultimate in democracy. Heinlein was quite prolific as a writer - Starship Troopers is my favorite novel - but to be honest it was not his best. We can go into that in another thread if you like. ________________________
Vanguard & Nimrod: The Honor Harrington novels are written by David Weber - arguably the best of his genre: The Techno (or HARD) sci-fi novels. They are as detailed and internally self-consistent as a Tom Clancy novel - but with a whole new universe to play with.
They take place some 100s of light years away from Sol, and almost 2000 years in the future - and are centered around the Kingdom of Manticore (a binary system colony of Earth) and its war with another, larger stellar 'Republic' of Haven - also an Earth colony.
With the exception of a 'hyperdrive' to allow for interstellar travel, the novels are almost ridgidly scientifically accurate.
I sometimes think that potential authors are put off by the idea of a female protagonist - thinking that this is going to be a touchy-feely girls' novel - dragons and fantasy or some such. Nothing could be farther from the truth. You learn very early on that equality of the sexes is the rule within human space - and Honor's gender rarely becomes even apparent - except within her personal life.
I could go into more detail if you like - but the best way to judge it would be to pick up the first book: "On Basilisk Station" - easily one of the best 10 sci-fi novels I have ever read. Trust me guys, anyone who likes Heinlein, Niven, or Pournelle will love this series - and read them repeatedly.
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I guess I can see the Pournelle recommendation, but I'd really like to think that Niven and Heinlein have a bit more imagination showing than that.
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Sol: Have you even read it? The level of 'imagination' in the HH books is staggering. If you have read thge books - and then say this: please, let's discuss the books failings. If not - you're not really entitled to an opinion, are you?
Nimrod: Great! Looking forward to some great discussions.
The_Tom: Yes. Heinlein. Literature. Hugo. Nebula. Dean of Science Fiction. Stranger in a Strange Land. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Starship Troopers. I'll put him up against Steinbech's droning anyday. Heinlein was IMHO right up their with Clemens. See above comment to Sol. Have you read these books?
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Yes, Heinlein is considered literature. Look up any literatary criticism anthology and you'll probably come upon his name. Don't mistake his work for trash like Piers Anthony, etc just cuz they're in the same section of the bookstore. He's considered just as potent a author as Bradbury, Asimov, and Clark.
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I've read more Weber novels than I probably should have. Most recently The Apocalypse Troll, but I never finished it. Trust me, I'm familar with the Baen library. It just isn't my cup of tea.
I don't mean to slam Weber, by the way. I mean, he's writing perfectly servicable military fiction with heaps of old school space opera thrown in. But it doesn't strike me as being particularly imaginative.
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