Space Opera Fans discussion

Greetings Space Opera Fans!

I hope y'all are staying warm during the c-o-l-d month of December (unless you're from down-under, in which case, whew! Hot!) It's time to nominate which space opera books we'd like to read as a group in February.

Up this month we have the following categories:

READER PICK: Dead trees is where it's at for the Reader Pick, which should be widely available in both paperback and ebook at most chain bookstores and public libraries. Books can't be exclusive to Kindle Unlimited since we're a global community.

INDIE PICK: This is for those newer, edgier books where the author has to do it all. Books that have been published by a micropress that helps you upload the thing, but YOU otherwise do the work and marking are okay, or if you got your backlist back, still qualify.

YOUNG ADULT FRIENDLY PICK: This is where YOU guys help me indoctrinate set a good example for my teenagers and hook them up with good books that won't make them roll their eyes. That means: Must be written FOR a young adult and STAR a young adult protagonist (age 17 or less) and not have been published any earlier than the year 2000 AD (yeah, I know you all think Heinlein is young adult, but the Y2K kids think he's sooooo 1966).


(If the cover looks like THIS, it won't appeal to a 2016 teen)

Since it's hard to find purely space opera YA books, any sci-fi book that has a strong space or space-yearning element will probably be acceptable. Gotta still have spaceships and aliens.

Drop your nomination into the thread below and, on the first of the month (or so), we'll spin it through Random.org to pick three brand new group reads.

Be epic!

Anna Erishkigal
SOF Borg Queen

P.S. - as of late we've had some people we've never heard of before popping by to spam this thread with nominations for the same book and then disappearing, never to be seen again. While we welcome new members, that's kinda a crappy thing to do to our author-members who hang out here organically to chit-chat about cool science stuff, so just so you know, if it's fishy, I just disqualify any nomination that is not made by an active community member.

Anna wrote: "I hope y'all are staying warm during the c-o-l-d month of December (unless you're from down-under, in which case, whew! Hot!)"

I'm not sure it's December right now, even in the crazy lands of Australia ;)

On topic: Where can I see previous books? I don't want to nominate something people have read!

I'd like to nominate for reader pick Hidden Empire Kevin Anderson Saga of the Seven Suns Book 1 https://www.goodreads.com/series/4119...
Fran

Ok, I'm new to the group, but grew up with Heinlein.

Two suggestions for the reader pick:
James White's Sector General series, beginning with the first book: Hospital Station .

Christopher Nuttall's Empire's Corp series, beginning with: The Empire's Corps.

Nuttall (and no, I'm not Nuttall's shill) is publishing an excellent YA series featuring a young woman from earth who is transported to an alternative world where she ends up in an Academy for young people with some magical skills.
Schooled in Magic.

While I had a great time reading each of these, and wouldn't mind reading them again, I'd get my wish if a series-beginning book of equal quality is selected.

Hi. I know I've not been chatting much of late, but it's because I've been getting my new book out (and moderating another Goodreads group). Is that still spammy?

If not, I'll offer The Perihelix for the Indie Pick, and I can supply advance ebooks as it launches Feb 16.

If it is, then I'll wait till I've had a chance to do more chatting!

My nomination would be By Bear Bones (Vasexandros) . I've read it recently. It has a very unique approach. I really enjoyed reading it. There were many places where I burst into laughter.

P.S: It is appropriate for people of all ages.

I don't know what's been nominated in the past, but

Reader Pick: Old Man's War by John Scalzi

I just recently finished this one and really enjoyed it. It's maybe more in the Military SF than Space Opera genre, but it's still much more fun and story driven than most Military SF I've read. Leviathan Wakes and the Expanse series is the other space opera thing I'm reading, which is also quite good if you haven't read it yet.

Indie Pick: Tech, Lies, and Wizardry by J.S. Morin.

I don't read a ton of Indie stuff, and this short story is mostly a prequel to a longer series that I haven't started, but it's fun.

YA Pick: Entangled by Amy Rose Capetta

Read this one awhile ago. Not my favorite book, but for a YA space opera that's recent, I thought it was good. Cinder is another solid pick, but I figure that's been nominated already xD

I want to nominate my new indie book I have published myself on Amazon. It is a SciFi love story on a Storm Planet that I have gotten lots of fan mail wanting more stories about this far away world. This one is called STORM SLAVE and so far is selling pretty good but it needs some reviews.STORM SLAVEM. Garnet

Reader Pick:

Indie:

YA suggestion - Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue I just read the series earlier this month and would say it is a great fit for teens.

I would like to nominate my YA novel - The Queen of Sidonia. The Queen of Sidonia

It isn't a female protagonist kicking butt in a dystopia. It's about a 17-year-old thrown in the middle of a power game through no choice of her own and dealing with the demands of duty and family. Factor in a team of assassins after the princess, a conflicted bodyguard and some decent humor and it's a fun read.

I wrote the bodyguard, Remi, so that a mother could hand the book to a daughter and say "This is how a man should treat you."

PG-13 for violence and alcohol/drug references.

Ah, I do have another YA suggestion. A three book series (so far): Alexis Carew: Into the Dark . I like it because of the young heroine and how much "agency" she has. This is definitely space opera, until the YA series by Nuttall I recommend above which might better be defined as fantasy-opera.

I wrote a review:
This is a coming of age story in the 'coming of age in the military' tradition of Mr. Midshipman Hornblower by C.S. Forester. While I haven't gone back and reread C. S. Forester's first volume of the Hornblower series recently, each of the significant events in Ms. Midshipman Carew's first star voyage parallels (as I remember them) a scene from Hornblower.

That said, there have been lots of Hornblower-like stories. Such as David Weber's Honor Harrington novels. Into the Dark held my interest, it was well written and it contained blessedly few typos. [There is a funny one, however, where 'sails' is misspelled 'sales'.]

This is basically a story set in space ("space-fiction"), rather than "science-fiction." As another review has pointed out, wandering around the galaxy using sails (top gallant, top main, etc) on multiple masts and navigating by throwing a metal container off the aft end of the space ship (like a log on an old clipper ship) is ... bizarre.

I've no dog in the fight; I don't know the author.

READER PICK: The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet

INDIE PICK: Renegade

YA PICK: I'll second Molly Fyde and the Parsona Rescue . Love Hugh Howey's work.

Betulyn wrote: "My nomination would be By Bear Bones. I read it recently and enjoyed it a lot. There were many places, i burst into laughter. It is quite appropriate for youngsters.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/..."
I second this nomination, it is pretty interesting and definitely different

YA: Molly Fyde *The other 3 books are somewhere on that tbr list. The giant abyss that it is.

Indie: Ill 2nd Renegade, its quite fun and the other book in that series just hit too. Joel def. has interesting stories. Love all of his stuff so far.


Reader: A soldier's duty by Jean Johnson.

The only bad thing about all these various nominations is my curiosity that leads to more money loss.

Indie Pick Quarter Share by Nathan Lowell

Reader Pick Frozen Sky by Jeff Carlson.

Indie: Quarter Share

Certainly can't go wrong with Quarter Share as an Indie. But I'd like to pick Subversion Enemy Lines Book 1 by John Mireau.

What about The Rookie by Scott Sigler as YA?
I also noticed Fluency by Jennifer Foehner Wells above as an Indie, I accidentally ordered the YA version of it and thought highly of that.

Indie Pick! My book Timberwolf is still getting extremely strong reviews, so here goes nothing! http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-rev...

Is that fire coming out of his/its mouth?

no - just sort of an energy effect coming from his mech suit. Plus the lit cigar. ; )

As a psychologist, i agree with Tom's comment..The cover of the book speaks itself..

Betulyn wrote: "As a psychologist, i agree with Tom's comment..The cover of the book speaks itself.." That's the most awesome thing i'll read all day.

I m sorry Tom there is a small mix-up.. I meant Jon's comment.. The person looks like smoking something weird. Plus he has very negative vibes. I don't read the book, but the cover really speaks itself..

Oh - you're picking up all the right vibes. Timberwolf is an anti-hero and has a lot of baggage and darkness in his character. I thought you were referring to Freud "sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."

I wouldn't quote Freud as he is a bit overestimated scientist. People who do not know the biggest fallacy of his theory can easily make such comments...;)

I m glad that the book has good comments, i would think of reading it.. Still promoting a book that has the main character with anger issues would not be a wise approach if the readers are youngster. I don't have kids of my own, but having a degree in developmental psychology give me the rights to declare my opinion in such circumstances. I m really sorry if any of my words offended you..Apologies..

There's not a lot of Freud in my book, if you read it, I'd love to hear your psyche assessment of the main characters, especially the antagonist.

Betulyn wrote: "I m glad that the book has good comments, i would think of reading it.. Still promoting a book that has the main character with anger issues would not be a wise approach if the readers are youngste..." More about the experiences he's been through than true anger. Sort of like Wolverine. You'll see when you read it ; ) BTW - my suggestion was Indie, not YA.

Deal... Looking forward to reading it.. :)

There's a short that takes place 20 years before the book you might enjoy. http://www.amazon.com/Breacher-Tom-Ju... includes the first 3 chapters of Timberwolf as well.

Who knew there were Space Opera characters who smoke cigars? Next ganja? I think I'll get out some rolling papers and roll my own ... book.

[Tom: I don't have a creative writing bone in my body. I'm grateful for each and every creative fiction person.]

Jon - nice to have your comments. If you want to get a good sense of my work, this short set in the Timberwolf universe will introduce you to the characters. It also gives you the first 3 chapters of the full novel for free. I think you'll enjoy. http://www.amazon.com/Breacher-Tom-Ju... Best read with a smoking bowl of space ganja.

Hi everybody! Got some cover bling here, but we've got a few nominations that we've either read before as a group, so I'll list them, and then try to ferret out the one's that aren't suitable to give people a chance to nominate an alternative pick.

@Osama - Doctor of Chieftains seems to be earth-bound literary fiction? I can find nothing Space Opera in the description? This might not be the right community for your book.

@Jemima - The Perihelix sounds like a perfect fit, but since it's not available until February 16th, I'd like to invite you to come back next month (and thereafter) to nominate your book?

@J.Young-Ju - we <3 LOVE <3 Mr. Scalzi, so much so that we read through the entire Old Man's War series a little over a year ago. Sorry... Most of already read it. Would you like to nominate something different?

@Dave - we already read Scott Sigler's Galactic Football series last year, so alas it's not eligible to be read again. BTW - it most definitely is classified as adult simply because it has adult protagonists in an adult pro football league. To be YA, it has to be written specifically for and starring young adults. That doesn't mean young people wouldn't love it, just that we can't classify it as such.

@Jon - I went with your SECOND nomination for YA pick (Into the Dark) as Schooled in Magic is too far into the fantasy side of things to qualify as Space Opera. -K?

Okay ... Here's the COVER BLING so far :-)

READER PICK:



INDIE PICK:



YOUNG ADULT FRIENDLY PICK:



Okay ... let me know if i muffed anything up or missed anything (excepting the comments above the bling), and if you nominated something we already read, feel free to make another nomination in that category. Remember, one (wo)man, one vote for EACH category.

Also ... if anybody wants to check on what we read before, on the main community page, on the right-hand side under the logo click 'bookshelf.' It will tell you what books we've read as a group since I've been mod for the last few years.

By bear bones can also be i the YA list.. I bet they will find it hilarious..

By bear bones can also be i the YA list.. I bet they will find it hilarious..

But Indie category is the primary nomination list

Indie Pick:
Pico's Crush (Central Galactic Concordance Book 3)
Pico's Crush

by Carol Van Natta

*looks at backlog*'

*cries*

Oh well! Ill eventually get to all of these. I got the 2nd collection for Sector General in my backlog as well.

*adds more stuff to the evergrowing Amazon wishlist.*

*realizes most of the reader picks so far are indeed on her kindle*

Help.

My Dear Queen of the Borg:
1. Of course it is ok to nix one of my picks as too fantasy. While I think all of mine are excellent and would recommend them to any Opera fan, I'm hoping that choices I haven't read win.

2. I withdraw my recommendation of Hospital Station. Apparently, it isn't available on Kindle. Four or five of the series books are on kindle, priced at $6.99 or $7.99 which is more than I paid for them originally. Still excellent, but should be taken out from the Library for now.

One limiting problem appears to be that at 4 or more publishers brought the books out originally. Each may be reluctant to produce them in kindle or lower the price for fear of generating profits for competitiors.

I will steer clear of the classic space opera in my nominating as it didn't prove too popular last month and so will nominate
as my reader pick.

@ Jon "My Dear Queen of the Borg: I withdraw my recommendation of Hospital Station...." ... I just changed your nomination from Hospital Station to the James White Beginning Operations: A Sector General Omnibus which DOES include Hospital Station on Kindle, along with Star Surgeon and Major Operation. And the omnibus is also available in paperback, used if people are broke, for under a buck. -K?

@ Betulyn - "By bear bones can also be i the YA list.. I bet they will find it hilarious.." ... To qualify for our SOF YA-friendly pick, the story has to have been written specifically FOR the young adult audience and star an age 13-17 year old protagonist ... that's not to say young adults wouldn't like it ... just that I've got a few of those strange, alien creatures (also known as teenage daughters) hanging around the house and they won't touch it unless it stars teens like them dealing with teenage-type issues in a space opera setting. I'm on a personal quest to promote an alternative to sparkly vampires. :-)

@Fiannawolf - "*looks at backlog* *cries*..." ... she who has the most books, wins 3:-)

***

Okay ... here's the updated Cover Bling (hollar if I missed anything):

READER PICK:



INDIE PICK:



YOUNG ADULT FRIENDLY PICK:

Hi Anna. Think you missed my nomination from about 5 mins before your last post. Not that I'm getting paranoid :-)

@Adrian - oops! You must have posted just as I was doing it. Just went back and added it (above, don't want to repaste it).

Dear Queen of all the Borgs: I tried to search to see if Carol's first book in her series, Overload Flux, had been read. If it hasn't, then it might be better read before Pico'o Crush. In any event, I just bought Overload Flux

Jon wrote: "I tried to search to see if Carol's first book in her series, Overload Flux, had been read..."

We read it a while back, Jon :-) It was well received.

If you want to scope out books we've already read, go into our community BOOKSHELF at the top of the front landing page, just to the right (click into bookshelf). You can also check down at the bottom of the community under 'Previous BOTM threads' (click into the folder) to find the original book discussion. Some are really active, some crickets.

If I may nominate myself again in the indie category.


Run from the Stars

(There's probably a right way of doing this. I just hand-coded the HTML)

Hello, I would like to join the next month of reading and want to nominate an Indie book, By Bear Bones (Vasexandros) . Ace read, love to read and discuss.

Anna wrote: "Greetings Space Opera Fans!

I hope y'all are staying warm during the c-o-l-d month of December (unless you're from down-under, in which case, whew! Hot!) It's time to nominate which space opera bo..."

Hey all! I've been away for far too long.

For the indie pick, I nominate

For the "dead tree" book, I nominate . I've seen the movie, but have always wanted to read the book. Thought this would be a good excuse!