Science Fiction

The scourge between stars book cover

The scourge between stars

Ness Brown

SCIENCE FICTION Brown Ness
Science Fiction

"A tense, claustrophobic sci-fi/horror blend set aboard a doomed generation ship harboring something terrible within its walls. As acting captain of the starship Calypso, Jacklyn Albright is responsible for keeping the last of humanity alive as they limp back to Earth from their forebears' failed colony on a distant planet. Faced with constant threats of starvation and destruction in the treacherous minefield of interstellar space, Jacklyn's crew has reached their breaking point. As unrest begins to spread throughout the ship's Wards, a new threat emerges, picking off crew members in grim, bloody fashion. Jacklyn and her team must hunt down the ship's unknown intruder if they have any hope of making it back to their solar system alive"--

Brian's picture

Join is for our Sci-Fi/Fantasy Book Club discussion of this book on Thursday, September 14: https://www.icpl.org/events/49631/sci-fifantasy-book-club-scourge-between-stars-ness-brown -Brian

Lesser evil book cover

Lesser evil

Timothy Zahn

SCIENCE FICTION Star Wars Thrawn
Science Fiction

"The fate of the Chiss Ascendancy hangs in the balance in the epic finale of the Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy from bestselling author Timothy Zahn. For thousands of years The Chiss Ascendancy has been an island of calm, a center of power, and a beacon of integrity. Led by the Nine Ruling Families, their leadership stands as a bulwark of stability against the Chaos of the Unknown Regions. But that stability has been eroded by a cunning foe that winnows away trust and loyalty in equal measure. Bonds of fidelity have given way to lines of division among the families. Despite the efforts of the Expansionary Defense Fleet, the Ascendancy slips closer and closer toward civil war. The Chiss are no strangers to war. Their mythic status in the Chaos was earned through conflict and terrible deeds, some long buried. Until now. To ensure the Ascendancy's future, Thrawn will delve deep into its past, uncovering the dark secrets surrounding the ascension of the First Ruling Family. But the truth of a family's legacy is only as strong as the legend that supports it. Even if that legend turns out to be a lie. To secure the salvation of the Ascendancy, is Thrawn willing to sacrifice everything? Including the only home he has ever known?"--

Brian's picture

Goodness, do I love Thrawn! Just give me more Thrawn books, okay? I swear, if they mess him up in his live action debut in Ahsoka, I am going to be one sad panda! -Brian

How high we go in the dark : a novel book cover

How high we go in the dark : a novel

Sequoia Nagamatsu

SCIENCE FICTION Nagamatsu, Sequoia
Science Fiction, Short Story

"For fans of Cloud Atlas and Station Eleven, a spellbinding and profoundly prescient debut that follows a cast of intricately linked characters over hundreds of years as humanity struggles to rebuild itself in the aftermath of a climate plague-a daring and deeply heartfelt work of mind-bending imagination from a singular new voice. Beginning in 2030, a grieving archeologist arrives in the Arctic Circle to continue the work of his recently deceased daughter at the Batagaika crater, where researchers are studying long-buried secrets now revealed in melting permafrost, including the perfectly preserved remains of a girl who appears to have died of an ancient virus. Once unleashed, the Arctic Plague will reshape life on earth for generations to come, quickly traversing the globe, forcing humanity to devise a myriad of moving and inventive ways to embrace possibility in the face of tragedy. In a theme park designed for terminally ill children, a cynical employee falls in love with a mother desperate to hold on to her infected son. A heartbroken scientist searching for a cure finds a second chance at fatherhood when one of his test subjects-a pig-develops the capacity for human speech. A widowed painter and her teenaged granddaughter embark on a cosmic quest to locate a new home planet. From funerary skyscrapers to hotels for the dead to interstellar starships, Sequoia Nagamatsu takes readers on a wildly original and compassionate journey, spanning continents, centuries, and even celestial bodies to tell a story about the resiliency of the human spirit, our infinite capacity to dream, and the connective threads that tie us all together in the universe"--

Brian's picture

This is an amazing and devastating novel. I had to psych myself up each time to read it, because I would always end up sobbing. I'm glad I read it though. It's beautiful and cathartic. -Brian

Caliban's war book cover

Caliban's war

James S. A Corey

SCIENCE FICTION Corey James
Science Fiction

We are not alone. On Ganymede, breadbasket of the outer planets, a Martian marine watches as her platoon is slaughtered by a monstrous supersoldier. On Earth, a high-level politician struggles to prevent interplanetary war from reigniting. And on Venus, an alien protomolecule has overrun the planet, wreaking massive, mysterious changes and threatening to spread out into the solar system. In the vast wilderness of space, James Holden and the crew of the Rocinante have been keeping the peace for the Outer Planets Alliance. When they agree to help a scientist search war-torn Ganymede for a missing child, the future of humanity rests on whether a single ship can prevent an alien invasion that may have already begun . . .

Brian's picture

I'm late to the party on continuing this series, but I highly recommend it to Sci-Fi fans. I absolutely love the characters, and I'm pleasantly surprised by the scope of the story. -Brian

God Emperor of Dune book cover

God Emperor of Dune

Frank Herbert

SCIENCE FICTION Herbert, Frank
Science Fiction

Brian's picture

Warner Bros released the trailer for Dune Part II, and it got me interested in continuing my re-read of the series. God Emperor of Dune has always been my favorite--and revisiting it has not disappointed. -Brian

A psalm for the wild-built book cover

A psalm for the wild-built

Chambers, Becky, author.

SCIENCE FICTION Chambers Becky
Science Fiction

"In A Psalm for the Wild-Built, Hugo Award-winner Becky Chambers's delightful new Monk & Robot series gives us hope for the future. It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend. One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do people need?" is answered. But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how. They're going to need to ask it a lot. Becky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?"--

Bailey's picture

This series is the warm hug you didn't know you needed--the hope you feel on the first warm day of March or seeing a dear friend after a time apart. This beautiful, wholesome story will remind you of what matters most; hope, love, and curiosity for one another. -Bailey

Infinity gate book cover

Infinity gate

M. R. Carey

SCIENCE FICTION Carey, M. R.
Science Fiction, Adventure

"The Pandominion: a political and trading alliance of a million worlds. Except that they're really just one world, Earth, in many different realities. And when an A.I. threat arises that could destroy everything the Pandominion has built, they'll eradicate it by whatever means necessary. Scientist Hadiz Tambuwal is looking for a solution to her own Earth's environmental collapse when she stumbles across the secret of inter-dimensional travel, a secret that could save everyone on her dying planet. It leads her into the middle of a war on a scale she never dreamed of. And she needs to choose a side before every reality pays the price."--Provided by publisher.

Paul's picture

Truly a sweeping epic, Infinity Gate is a face paced read, packed with lots of action and many memorable characters. Taking a different approach to how the multiverse works, there is no effective space travel and movement between realities, using what's termed Step technology, takes travelers to the exact same spot on a variant Earth to where they departed from on there own version Earth. Thrown into the mix are different cultural, historical, and evolutionary paths on each world, some fairly similar, others wildly different. To keep everything from getting out of hand, there is a very larger and extensive government/control structure in place, the Pandominion, which calls all the shots and has a well developed enforcement army. Unfortunately, there is also another force out in the multiverse that has a very different approach to things, especially the idea of sentience. -Paul

Star Wars. The Mandalorian, Season 1 book cover

Star Wars. The Mandalorian, Season 1

Rodney (Producer) Barnes

COMIC Star Wars Mandalorian Season 1
Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Adventure

"Din Djarin, the armored bounty hunter known to friend and enemy as simply the Mandalorian, has agreed to track down a target for a mysterious ex-Imperial client who offers to pay in Beskar, a rare metal revered by Mandalorians. But when Djarin locates the target--an adorable green toddler--all bets are off! Will Djarin follow his Mandalorian code and turn over the Child? And if he doesn't, what will the consequences be?"--Back cover of Season 1, part 1.

Mykle's picture

This is a beautiful comic version of the hit series. Learn to love Baby Yoda all over again! -Mykle

Gideon the ninth book cover

Gideon the ninth

Tamsyn Muir

SCIENCE FICTION Muir Tamsyn
LGBTQ+, Science Fiction

Muir's Gideon the Ninth unveils a solar system of swordplay, cutthroat politics, and lesbian necromancers. Her characters leap off the page, as skillfully animated as arcane revenants. The result is a heart-pounding epic science fantasy.

Bailey's picture

This was unlike anything I've ever read before and left me thinking every time I put it down. Not only is this about lesbian necromancers in space, it's hilarious and full of twists as Gideon finds herself part of deadly challenges amidst a suspicious cast of characters. You can expect not to fully understand what's going on to start, but your understanding of the world and the plot grows as time goes on, much like the characters themselves begin to shift perspectives as the nature of the challenges they face become more apparent. -Bailey

Ancillary justice book cover

Ancillary justice

Ann Leckie

SCIENCE FICTION Leckie Ann
Science Fiction

On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest. Once, she was the Justice of Toren - a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy. Now, an act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with one fragile human body, unanswered questions, and a burning desire for vengeance.

Brian's picture

Have you ever had a book on your "To read" list, and think to yourself--"Why do it take me so long to start this one?!?!?" "Ancillary Justice" was one such title. I've had my eye on it for a long time. Someone told me that it's a "Murderbot Diaries" read-alike (it kind of, sort of is), so it jumped to the top of my list. It's a fantastic Sci-Fi series opener with interesting characters and a great premise. Seriously, I want to start the next book right now, but I feel like I should ration them out. I highly recommend this to Sci-Fi fans. -Brian