I love no-nonsense science fiction that isn't just fantasy in space. No heros, no laser swords, no cybernetic ninjas. Just a gritty world filled with violence, sex, and characters that could die at any time. If a character is wearing shot while wearing body armor, I want to know the details on the gun, the bullet, the body armor, and the trauma the character sustains from it. If robots are used for law enforcement, I want to know the details on their weapons systems, optical arrays, and method of movement. Also, no alien names like "Kt'Ale'i" or "Bazooglethorpe". I'm reading English, not Lovecraftian.
This thread is timeless, thanks for bumping it. I love to imagine the future, so anything except straight war novels tend to draw me in. I don't care if there is a war, but it has to be more than just the battle.
Just curious what you mean by 'progressive.' I realize you may have explained it further on in your message, but if so, it went over my head.
For me, I usually prefer my Sci-Fi without aliens, or at least human-centric. No lasers, no humans living to 500, no people sharing sentience with a spacecraft. I want nitty-gritty, believable worlds with interesting people in a new frontier.
I like hard science fiction, like the stories in Carbonide pens (Not sure if that's the correct name). I also like the technology heavy stories and ones that focus on wars and violence versus romance.
I mostly agree with many of you regarding the type of Science fiction, but I seem to be favoring books that have comedy as well. Like Grant-Naylor's Red Dwarf. I love that story.
I like almost-grounded sci-fi; the H Beam Pipers (not so much Space Viking, mostly just the stuff that came before that on the timeline) and the Andre Nortons and the E E Smiths, that kind of thing. You know, plausible, but still not actually possible. I love "colonial" science fiction, dealing with human colonies on other planets and the like, because the situations and environments, as well as the politics, can be so varied and interesting while still not stretching my suspension of disbelief.
