Science fiction books

[Spike]

I grew up on a steady diet of science fiction, and there is a lot of stuff out there...  I have a lot of favorite authors.  I did actually just read the Mars trilogy a year or so ago, for the first time.  Great series!

I have never read sci-fi books, any recommendation for a first read?

My first recommendation would be to check out your local library, especially if you never have.  Yes, you can borrow books for free - also music and movies.  Another recommendation is the Baen Free Library, which cycles various books up for free (Baen is a publisher, free books are volunteered by the authors; the idea is to offer a book as a teaser, to spur interest).  Oh, and of course don't forget about Project Gutenberg!  Just because a story is old doesn't mean it's bad.  For example, Haplo mentioned Scalzi (good reads) - one of his was Fuzzy Nation, which was based off the old H. Beam Piper stories, at the Gutenberg link.

Robert Heinlein - very prolific writer, Starship Troopers is probably my favorite (the book, not the movie!).
David Drake - gritty, futuristic military sci-fi; most notable series is Hammer's Slammers, a merc company. Uses ancient history as a basis for plot lines.
David Weber - more military sci-fi; has been called "Horatio Hornblower in space".  Quite complex storylines.
L. E. Modesitt, Jr. - fantastic author.  The Saga of Recluce series is great fantasy, and the Parafaith War is a great sci-fi story.  Very detailed characters.

Ah, there are so many others.  I'd really really recommend just hitting a library and browsing the science fiction area, and find stuff that sounds interesting.

[Finjinimo]

I always pick up any new Peter F. Hamilton books that come out. "Fallen Dragon" though, is still one of my long-time favorites.

[Sobel]

I always pick up any new Peter F. Hamilton books that come out. "Fallen Dragon" though, is still one of my long-time favorites.

Same, loved his Commonwealth saga, well the first three at least.

If you liked those, I'd highly recommend the following trilogy if you haven't already read them

http://www.danielabraham.com/books-2/the-expanse/

Well worth a read and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

[JugglerX]

The Red Mars trilogy is an absolute classic. There are lots of science fiction books i'd like to recommend. But in keeping with the "landfall" or "colonization" theme I would suggest a book called Jem by Frederik Pohl. It's good, not an absolute classic (but it remains on my bookshelf). It's a solid sci-fi about different factions colonizating an alien planet. Lots of cool ecology and speculation on how different factions would choose to engage with a variety of semi intelligent and possibly conscious native species.

[Semmy]

The Red Mars trilogy is an absolute classic. There are lots of science fiction books i'd like to recommend. But in keeping with the "landfall" or "colonization" theme I would suggest a book called Jem by Frederik Pohl. It's good, not an absolute classic (but it remains on my bookshelf). It's a solid sci-fi about different factions colonizating an alien planet. Lots of cool ecology and speculation on how different factions would choose to engage with a variety of semi intelligent and possibly conscious native species.

thanks for the tip.
Read some reviews. Now waiting for the books to arrive.

[Christian]

Anyone here a fan of Richard Morgan? I love sci fi noir, the more gritty and violent the better, and Altered Carbon is one of my favorites

Also Warren Hammond's Kop, Ex-Kop, and Kop Killer are also excellent and would probably be enjoyed by Rimworld fans. It's set on a distant rain-soaked rotting world where the early colonists and poor live in crime-ridden slums while they deal with the powerful and technologically advanced newcomers

[Semmy]

atm im reading pure.

[Gazz]

Or in the line of the writing of the warhammer 40K universe they got some awsome series. Ghaunt's ghosts for instance

It's also got some very bad books. Like the Ghaunt's Ghosts series. =P
An carelessly tacked-together sequence of battle scenes. Definitely for WH40k fans who want precisely that.

John Ringo or David Weber also offer "much dakka"... but almost always as part of an actual plot.
(even though Weber often uses the plot =)

Ringo's Troy Rising series is something I'd recommend. Near-future so not too crazy... but getting there when the humans start adapting alien technology in true redneck fashion. =)

[Nitishajack]

Dune (Dune Chronicles #1)

Simply one of the most original and epic sci-fi stories ever; certainly a classic for it's era. The story of a family, a spice trade, a religious inter-steller jihad, the temptations of power and much more. Later books by family members are derivative, but the original few are well worth it!