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Recommendations?

Miguel_Abburido

Miguel_Abburido

New Member
Hi everyone

I've just finished reading War of the Worlds for the second time (The first being way back when I was 11), and it has become my new favourite book of all time. The whole story is fascinating, involving Martians invading the earth and laying waste to Britain in huge mechanical fighting machines. Anyway I'm sure you all know the story and if not I recommend it :)

Anyhow, I'd appreciate if I could get some suggestions on similar books. I'm no science fiction buff so I wouldn't know where to begin. Basically books with aliens crusading across the earth killing stuff, bows and arrows vs the lighting type material. I personally can't imagine anything being quite as good as Wells' classic but I'd like to read something similar, something that gets the imagination going but at the same time seems totally realistic.

Any help appreciated :)
 
Oh hey, just thought of these. They are really old books but done by the master - Asimov. Only under another name - I think it's French, Paul French maybe. Check out the Lucky Starr books. Starr is a space bounty hunter if I remember. It's been a long time since I read the books. Anyway, just a thought.
 
Just did a quick search on Asimov and it seems he writes the kind of books I'm after, Isaac Asimov that is. Loads and loads of results though and some seem to be a bit too futuristic for my liking, but that's just the 'foundation' series.

Cheers for the suggestion, I'll check it out :)
 
You might try Forge of God by Greg Bear.

Asimov is one of my all-time favourites. I love his 'Foundation" and 'Robot' series.

Ell
 
Just read some reviews for Forge of God and it sounds like a great book, not a bad word against it. Can buy it used for £1 so will probably go for it. Reading the reviews however I don't get the impression it's a book about 'war', rather just a look at how everyone might react if an alien was discovered
 
I second "forge of God" It's a great book with quite a bit of action. Yes, it mostly IS about what would happen if we discovered aliens but remember they are hostile aliens. VERY VERY hostile! I will say no more or I will give away plot :)

NOW!!! I HAVE JUST THE BOOK FOR YOU!!!! :)

had to dig deep into my bookshelf to find this one, so feel special!!! :D

It's a book by a writer called Christopher Priest. The book is called The Space Machine. It's written in the style of H.G Wells :)

Basic plot: London in the year 1896. A guy and a gal go traveling in a space/time machine and end up on Mars that is preparing to go to war with Earth! They spend time on Mars and try to find a way to halt the war. Failing, they return to Earth as Mars attacks in giant machines that fire heat death rays that lay wast to London :)

Blub from cover: "Reads compulsively, like a mutation between war of the worlds and the time machine - The Times."

Go. Read. Enjoy!!!!

Regards
Sillwabbit
 
Alright then I'll buy Forge of God :)

Had a quick look around for The Space Machine (The scientific romance), can't find any reviews on it, will cost about £5 to buy, not too sure about it. Will try and find a bit more on that before I consider getting it. Still, sounds like the kind of book I'm after. I am however a remarkably lazy and workshy student, so £5 is a big investment for me :D
 
Footfall, by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle, also deals with alien invasion.

How about John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids?
 
I'll check them all out, cheers :)

Some of the Turtledove stuff seems apretty good, but the series I'm interested is like 7 books I think :eek: (One with Lizardmen trying to take over the world during WW2 - I like the sound of that :) )


I managed to get Day of the Triffids from my cousin, I'll probably be reading that after my current book
 
Some of the Turtledove stuff seems apretty good, but the series I'm interested is like 7 books I think (One with Lizardmen trying to take over the world during WW2 - I like the sound of that )
Click to expand...

Ah, the World War series (or is it world at war). Let us know how you find it. Personally, I gave up on that particular series following book 1. It's been 4 yrs since I read it but:

basically the aliens attacked the world in WW2, but didn't have any new tech- they only had stuff that this world had in the 1980s with 1 or 2 new things added- they visited the world in the medevil era, decided it'd be easy to conquer, went home, came back and we had gotten more technologically advanced- and they are REALLY slow to develop technology. If i remember right, lots of stuff got blown up, but I didn't care really- it was just a big battle story that I've seen done much better in 'real world' fiction. A question that i was asking myself was: isn't it unlikely that aliens would develop technologically in exactly the same way as us?

In the end I just found it a poor attempt at War of the Worlds. I know plenty of people who agree with me, and a number who hold the opinion that it's pretty good, if not quite a 'classic.'

His Videssious cycle however was one that I loved when younger.


Can I also recommend Day of the Triffids
 
Forge of God arrived today, unfortunately my reading pile has increased ten fold over the past few days, think I'll read iot after my current book
 
Turtledove is good, but the series does get VERY samey after a while - i got through the original four book series, but couldnt be bothered with the follow-up series (Colonisation).

His alternate Civil War history books are also pretty good, especially the early ones (Guns of the South, How Few Remain).

Phil
 
I looked at a few Turtledove books and they sound quite interesting, think there was one with the English under the rule of the Spaniards after failing to defeat the Armada. Might have to give them all a look as well.

Think I'll give the world war series a shot as well, won't be buying the entire series though, just first few perhaps.
 
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