Science fiction novels at their very best. Many of them are classics, now often overlooked, though we do have some present day recommendations.
 

Douglas Adams

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: a trilogy in 5 parts.
Based on an even-funnier radio series, THHGTTG takes the bewildered Arthur Dent on a freewheeling tour of space courtesy of an alien called Ford Prefect and an electronic thumb. Hilarious stuff. The whole 5 books in one. Click the author's name for individual books, the radio series scripts, and CDs of the radio series that started it all.

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency.
The humour is not as strong as in the Hitchhiker books, but the SF is probably better, there's some neat ideas (like the Krikkit stuff in Hitchiker, some was lifted from unused Adams scripts for the Dr Who TV series). Adams' enthusiasm for Apple Macs comes through strongly. Dirk is a very strange PI - but you'd have to be to cope with a sofa that's stuck on your stairs and a wild horse in the bathroom. Enjoyable and readable.

The Long, Dark Teatime of the Soul.
Dirk returns to solve problems that start with a passenger exploding at Heathrow and go on to bring in the old Norse Gods of Asgard, who frankly aren't well pleased about things. There's a spot of love interest and it all runs along quite smoothly - probably slightly better than the original Gently book.

The Long, Dark Teatime of the Soul

Brian Aldiss

Frankenstein Unbound.
A wonderful idea, brilliantly executed. Space/time breakdowns transport Joe Bodenland to 1816 from 2020. After he meets Victor Frankenstein he can't decide if Frankenstein is real, or that reality itself is collapsing. He meets Mary Shelley, whose half-written book is gathering dust in an attic. Jo can't decide if he's been sent as Frankenstein's conscience or Mary's muse. The ending on the arctic wastes is a bit of a let down, but the rest is brilliant. See Bio section for references to the original Frankenstein.

The Heliconia Trilogy.
Probably Aldiss's most popular work, the Heliconia trilogy follows life on a bizarre planet with a 3,000 year cycle round its sun, Freyr. Winner of the John Campbell Award this is of the epic mould, each book covering one season (which, as you'd imagine, are pretty long). Good, solid stuff.

Non-stop.
Aldiss' first SF book, back in 1958. Certainly not his best, so it's rather a shame that it's this, rather than Frankenstein Unbound or The 80 Minute Hour that is still around. Even so, it's a well-written, enjoyable tale about life on a long distance generation ship, where the reality of what is happening has broken down and tribalism taken over.

Kingsley Amis

The Alteration.
Although known better as a general writer, Amis has always had a soft spot for SF. This is a masterly tale of present-day England, but without the Reformation. A choirboy is due to be castrated to keep his treble voice and a whole range of forces vie for control of his future, from the Yorkshire Pope to the Ambassador of the protestant New England.

Isaac Asimov

Forward the Foundation -
Asimov's last Foundation book (though he had more planned), fitting just before the original Foundation in the chronology. Late Asimov, with the greater concentration on people and relationships, and a clever mixing of the Foundation theme and his robot books. New 26 May 98

Foundation -
The first of Asimov's sweeping trilogy. A far future galactic empire is crumbling. Mathematician Harry Seldon sets up a Foundation, on the surface to keep a store of knowledge; in fact to continue to develop the science of psychohistory and to guide the galaxy through the dark ages to the new light.

Foundation and Empire -
The trilogy continues. Although written nearly forty years ago, there's still plenty to admire. The characters may be a little juvenile sometimes, but it's an easy read with an impressive breadth.

Second Foundation -
Final part of the trilogy. There are a number of sequels, tying Foundation into the robot civilization series, but they don't match the originals.

I, Robot -
The original robot collection is still  fresh. If the witty banter between the two robot testers grates a little, everything else runs smoothly with some clever thoughts on the implications of the 3 laws, and plenty that runs beyond robots themselves - like Asimov's speculation on how a managed world economy might change matters. Robopsychologist Susan Calvin is there as a linking thread, and to prove the robots are more human than some people. New 23 July 98

J. G. Ballard

The Drought.
Rain is a thing of the past. Radioactive waste has stopped the sea evaporating. On a scorched Earth, a new type of water becomes a menace. Although on the surface a disaster novel, like all Ballard's books, this one takes place more in the mind that the world. Certainly bleak, not an easy read, but interesting.

Alfred Bester

  The Demolished Man -
First winner of the Hugo award for best SF novel, this is a story of a murder committed in a society that makes murder impossible, thanks to monitoring by telepathic Espers. In itself the the cleverness of the murderer and the Esper who tracks him down are great, but what really makes the book is the pace, the excitement, the hard-edged fireworks of Bester's style which makes a comfortable bridge between a film noir detective like Philip Marlowe and cyberpunk. Extraordinary.  New 1 September 2001

The Stars My Destination (aka Tiger! Tiger!) -  
Bester eclipsed his first novel, The Demolished Man, with this remarkable tale of Gully Foyle, transformed from semi-literate bum to anti-hero and freak in a wonderful, lurid, collapsing 25th century world that was obviously the inspirational ancestor of the likes of Blade Runner. Get past the slightly turgid, pseudo-historical introduction and you're away. Now admittedly in some ways this book shows its age (most notably in its attitude to women, though even this is partially plot driven). But you have to remember it was written in 1956. And you can forgive Bester a lot. At the heart of the book is the jaunte, the ability to transfer yourself from place to place by mental power, an accidentally discovered ability that has transformed and divided society.

The main characters are human, but anything but loveable - all are driven, either by the urge to revenge or the search for power or the desire for money. Most are killers. It's no conventional book - nor should you look for a conventional happy ending. The book itself is mostly a powerful page turner, with some spectacular originality in presentation that leaps from the page in psychedelic profusion when the "hero" has a temporary confusion of his senses. Scintillating, breathtaking and wonderful. The book was originally published in the UK under the title Tiger! Tiger!, but now seems to be universally known by its (much weaker) US title, The Stars my Destination. This is one of our regular dips into the history books to bring up a novel that should be on the shelves of anyone interested looking for the best that science fiction has to offer. Updated 19 October 2004

  Psychoshop (with Roger Zelazny)  

This fascinating book was started by Bester and finished by Zelazny. Bester really invented modern science fiction, moving away from the cardboard characterizations of the earlier authors. His books sizzle, glitter, scintillate. You can see much of this in Psychoshop, yet it's overlaid with Zelazny's wit and charm. What's it about? At its most basic, a psychic pawnbroker's shop based around a black hole that has been trading in physical and mental capabilities for over 2000 years. But there's much more to it - and to the main characters - than first seems the case.  New 27 August 2001

James Blish

Cities in Flight 1 -
Blish is sadly mostly remembered now for TV SF novelisations. Cities in Flight comprises four novels. The Earth has depleted resources. Three key inventions - the Dirac radio, allowing simultaneous transmission throughout the universe, and the Spindizzy, a drive of enormous power, and anti-ageing drugs - allow whole cities take off to cruise the galaxy in search of work.

Cities in Flight 2 -
The four novels are grouped into two books in the US version (all in the single volume in the UK). The first novel was aimed at teenagers, but bear with it as the rest aren't. The combination of really original technical concepts, decent characters and some tight situations (the last problem is the end of the universe) make these books well worth hunting down.

A Case of Conscience.
An interstellar missionary is faced with a terrible dilemma. The natives he is supposed to convert have a very real, tangible belief: should he try to change them? The masterpiece of Blish's adult writing.

Jorge Luis Borges

Labyrinths

Stories replete with mind-bending originality that enables the reader to see the world in a whole new way - not usually classified as science fiction, but a classic example of what good science fiction is. When readers talk of Borges' work they mention mystery, magic, metaphysics and other things that don't begin with M. They point out there's as much meat in a Borges story as in a novel written by anyone else. In the end, there's only one answer to finding out what Borges' books are - read them. New 5 July 2001

Ray Bradbury

Fahrenheit 451 -
One of the few science fiction novels taken seriously by the literary types, F451 has a haunting quality like all Bradbury's best work. In his cosy totalitarian future, firemen cause fires, not put them out. Houses are fireproof: their job is to burn books. But what happens when a fireman, tired of the full-wall TV, starts to read and becomes obsessed with a woman who knows about books?

The Illustrated Man -
A wonderful conceit: a tattooed man whose tattoos come alive, each telling a different story. Without this linking theme this would still be an excellent collection, ranging from the loneliness of space, to the savagery of children, but the theme gives it an extra something.

John Brunner

  The Jagged Orbit -
This is probably Brunner's best known book. Not quite up to Shockwave Rider, but excellent nonetheless. It's a dark story, though not so negative as Stand on Zanzibar. It brings together Brunner's frequent concerns with the power of the military and industrial worlds with a Mafia plot. Race wars threaten to tear the US apart, while the military industrial complex makes its billions - not a happy bunny plot, this.  Out of print in US, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store button.  New 10 February 2002

  The Productions of Time-  
A very dark one this, but particularly successful in its claustrophobic horror. An alchoholic actor who is trying to make a comeback after treatment gets a part in an avant garde play where the actors largely improvise - but it begins to seem that the director has not so much a play in mind as the destruction of his actors. With a mix of psycho-modification and time travel it's a remarkable plot (and not too long, unlike some of Brunner's megabooks). Out of print, but plenty of used copies.  New 10 February 2002

  The Sheep Look Up -  
Even more depressing than Stand on Zanzibar in its treatment of a horrible future, this plot uses the dangers of pollution to show us how the world could be ruined The seas are foul, the rivers choked, the land poisoned by excessive use of insecticide. No one move outside without a filter mask - the sun is permanently obscured. Brunner takes us through a year of future history in a nightmare world that could still be uncomfortably close to the truth. Out of print in US, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store button.  New 10 February 2002

  The Shockwave Rider -
Arguably Brunner's best, Shockwave Rider combines the rather miserable environment of a bad news novel like Stand on Zanzibar with a sizzling adventure storyline that manages to give it an upbeat feel despite the surroundings. One of the reasons the novel works so well (apart from the prefiguring of the then unimagined Internet) is the way the background is based on the predictions of Alvin Toffler's non-fiction bestseller, Future Shock. Out of print in US, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store button..  New 10 February 2002

  Stand on Zanzibar-
One of the longest SF novels around, this is a real dystopian nightmare of a book. The title refers to the world's expanding population, which at various points in time have been imagined as being able to stand altogether on various islands, Zanzibar fitting the scale of overpopulation Brunner imagines. Strong use of mixed media images, and intertwined stories combine to make this a sometimes frustrating, often fascinating masterpiece. Out of print in US, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store button..  New 10 February 2002

  Times without Number -  
A good, time-based story from Brunner involving 'time wars' and an alternative history that like Keith Roberts' Pavane has the Catholic church in control (in this case after a counter-revolution). Although some have compared it unfavourably with Pavane and Amis's The Alteration, it was a precursor, and is a good enough story to be enjoyable in its own right.  New 10 February 2002

  The Wrong End of Time -  
As a teenager one of my favourite's, this is a rollicking action adventure in the best 'individual takes on a whole army using technology and a wry sense of humour' vein. Okay, it may be unashamedly populist, but it's great fun. The future USA is a fortress, ruled by fear. A young Russian is smuggled through its defences with a terrifying message. An alien ship has entered the solar system and threatens to boil the Earth's mass into raw energy. Nothing like stacking up the odds!  Out of print, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store/shop button.  New 10 February 2002

Arthur C. Clarke

2001 -
The book of the most remarkable film of the 1960s. With 2001 looming large it's tempting to compare it to reality, but that's not the point. A strange black monolith is discovered on the moon. Its broadcast is tracked to one of Jupiter's moons - and the Jupiter probe has its mission re-written. The trouble is, the only one who knows what's going on is the onboard computer HAL, and he's insane. There are several sequels, in the general SF library.

2010 -
The less impressive sequel to 2001 (see Clarke's page). The Leonov, a joint soviet/US team heads out to Jupiter to try to find out what happened and recover whatever survived. They encounter the super monolith, HAL, a transformed Dave Bowman - and a new sun.

2061 -
And so it continued.. With the return of Halley’s Comet and the implications of Jupiter’s conversion into a mini-sun examined, 2061 brings back HAL and Bowman once more. The technical details of Clarke’s future continue to be refined with, for instance, cold fusion drives for the ships.

3001 -
(Probably) the final sequel, 3001 ties up many loose ends. It brings back astronauts Frank Poole and Dave Bowman along with computer HAL - even if the last two are merged into a program running in the great monolith on Jupiter’s moon Europa. Most of the book is taken up with the two themes of Frank Poole’s defrosting after a millennium in space and the attempt to prevent the monolith from destroying the solar system. Both are managed with Clarke’s usual mixture of smoothness and naivety.

3001

The City and the Stars -
This story of the last city on the Earth, which has survived for a thousand million years, sees a rogue individual invested with a sense of wonder, wanting to go beyond a city where no one has any interest in anything but the status quo. Rather wooden characters, but a genuine, heart-lifting quest that survives despite its age.

Rendezvous with Rama -
When an enormous alien artefact enters the solar system it causes more than a little chaos. A probe is sent to discover Rama's secrets, giving plenty of opportunity for strange discoveries and surprises. It's a real surprise this wasn't hasn't been made a film, as it's classic material. As usual, don't expect too much of Clarke's characters, but do expect, as they found on looking into Tutankhamen's tomb "something wonderful".

William Gibson and Bruce Sterling

  The Difference Engine.
There is something very attractive about the Victorian world - and especially Victorian England - to the writers of alternative history. The vibrant enthusiasm for new technology and science of the time makes Victorian times an ideal setting, while the contrast of awful social conditions gives the opportunity for a novel with depth. Gibson and Sterling's The Difference Engine is the definitive work of its kind. It has all the storytelling power and exuberance of a H. G. Wells novel, combined with modern knowing awareness. New 8 March 2004

Joe Haldeman

Forever War.
An  apt choice with Heinlein's Starship Troopers having been made into a blockbuster film, because this is a conscious reworking of ST to have  real people and more likely situations. Here there's no glory in killing, most engagements with the enemy are over in seconds, and time dilation means that any survivors return to find the world so changed that they have little choice but to re-enlist. In bare summary it sounds miserable, but it's not - there's even a happy ending, at least for the survivors. Is available in UK (click Author's name for details) but as expensive multi-volume.

Robert Heinlein

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress -
Arguably Heinlein's best novel, at the peak of his writing before he got overly sentimental (and his books got over-long). A rebellion on the moon colony is aided by a massive computer network, which has become an intelligent being. The parallels with the American war of independence are obvious, but not overplayed. An excellent read.

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress

  Frank Herbert

Dune
Published July 1968 Few science fiction books have had the same impact as Dune. If your only experience is the film, forget it - the book is a whole different ball game. Herbert conjures up the complexity of a future culture beautifully, making a superb melange of existing influences. The detail of the book and the subtly interwoven themes will delight you for many readings. If Dune isn't on your shelf, it ought to be.  New 1 September 1999

Daniel Keyes

Flowers for Algernon.
The deeply moving story of Charlie Gordon, a man whose extremely low IQ is boosted by experimental drugs until he becomes a genius - only to regress again. Written in the first person in the form of a diary, the story of Charlie's rise and knowing fall, with the precursor of test mouse Algernon is unmatched in SF literature (and rarely rivalled anywhere else).

Alexei Panshin

Rite of Passage.
In 2198, one hundred and fifty years after the wars that destroyed earth, mankind survives on colonies and the seven giant Ships that once ferried people to the stars. As a rite of passage into adulthood, children from the Ship are sent for a month to live or die on a colony world. Panshin captures the feelings of Mia Havero as she approaches and encounters her trial with unusual sensitivity for an SF novel. Out of print, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store/shop button.

Fred Pohl

Gateway -
A cynical view of how we might treat alien technology. Gateway has us discovering an abandoned Heechee spacecraft. It's used in a galactic treasure hunt, gathering artefacts. However, it's not a pure adventure as the hero is not exactly the swashbuckling type as he spends much of his time talking to a computerised therapist.

The Merchants' War -
A late sequel to the Space Merchants (see below), Pohl and Kornbluth's classic. With Earth dominated by the advertising agencies, the small Venus colony is trying with limited success to free itself from rampant consumerism. Ruthless ad agency man Tennison Tarb is posted to Venus to undermine the rebels, but he falls prey to a new form of advertising and becomes addicted to a soft drink, finding his career crumbling about him. Not quite up to Space Merchants, but still and excellent combination of humour and an adventure romp. New 27 March 98

Frederik Pohl & Cyril M. Kornbluth

Gladiator at Law -
A classic Pohl and Kornbluth theme of the successful middle manager thrown on the scrapheap in a society which is very unpleasant under the surface. Norvell Bligh designs the spectacles at the arena, where human suffering has become an entertainment. When his contract is terminated, he find himself in the nightmare district of Belly Rave, having to fight for his life. Along with a failed advocate and the unrecognised heir to the Lavin billions he leads a fight against the corporate might of GML. Fresh, fast and furious. New 27 March 98

The Space Merchants -
Simply one of the best ever, the Space Merchants shows us a world where advertising has taken over and a few unscrupulous corporates rule. Most of the people are reduced to near-mindless consumers. Copy writer Mitchell Courtney is given a tough job - selling the terrible hell-hole of Venus to potential colonists. But a subversive conservation group and a rival ad agency also want Venus and Courtney finds control slipping away. It's a hilarious black comedy with action adventure thrown in, and wonderfully prefigures both the modern concern over globalization and the hi-tech advertising of Blade Runner and Minority Report. New 10 July 2003

Terry Pratchett
(this is just a small slice of Prachett - click his name for the full list)

Guards, Guards
The first of the Discworld novels featuring those rich source of joy the guards of the night watch. We begin with Captain Vimes, Sergeant Colon and the unspeakable Nobby, but soon they are joined by the unlikely innocence of Carrott and the unusual capabilities of Angua (she's a werewolf in her spare time). Excellent stuff all the way down to the fine detail, like the motto over the Watch house: FABRICATI DIEM, PVNC)

Moving Pictures
Definitely a highlight of the Discworld series (so strange it isn't on the US list). Pratchett's target is Holywood in the early days, but in what is probably his darkest fantasy, the Discworld equivalent proves to be a real monster. Not too different from the real world. Still plenty of laughs, though.

Going Postal
The wonderful thing about Terry Pratchett is his ability to combine the familiar, so we get a warm glow, with enough novelty and unpredictability to keep the pages turning, and with Going Postal he has done it again big time. Pratchett's description of the rebirth of the Post Office, a collapsed relic, and its fight against the semaphore towers (clacks) is masterly. Best of all, though, is the hero Moist's superb grasp of conmanship - the constant push towards the edge, and his ability to promise the impossible then deliver in an unexpected way is a delight. This is, without doubt, one of the best Discworld books, for once not driven so much by its cast of rich characters as by Pratchett's usual sharp insight into human nature.  New 5 January 2005

Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Good Omens
A brilliant collaboration with Neil Gaiman, this tale the supernatural sees a good natured tussle between and angel and a devil over the anti-Christ. Unlikely? Well, it is set in Wales. A delightful book, very different from Pratchett's usual style, but an excellent counter to run-of-the-mill satanic horror stuff.

Robert Rankin
(this is just a small slice of Rankin - click his name for the full list)

The Antipope.
The first in the Brentford trilogy sees likeable layabout Jim Pooley and professionally unemployed ladies man John Omally pitted against the forces of darkness, with more than a little help from the mysterious Professor Slocombe. Although it's often difficult to empathise with Rankin's characters, there's rich humour in these books, especially with the juxtaposition of the very ordinary streets of Brentford and some very extraordinary happenings.

The Brentford Triangle.
Once more Pooley and Omally, aided only by the Professor and a few swift pints at the Flying Swan save the world, and specifically Brentford, in this case from a particularly nasty case of alien invasion. Effortless madness that's a joy to read..

East of Ealing.
Dark forces move into Brentford, bringing barcodes on the forehead (as foretold in the Book of Revelation). Luckily Pooley and Omally are there to save the day. Throw in a robot shopkeeper, an excess of sprouts and the usual Rankin mix of humour, the occult and mayhem. Click Rankin's name for many more books by this prolific author.

A Dog Called Demolition.
An excellent bit of Rankin. For quite a while chapters start with whimsical poems, well worth reading (as you'll find when they stop). There's all the usual Rankin farce and painful punning, but underneath this is quite a horrific story of invisible parasites which ride on the shoulders of every human. An evil variant makes the hero, Danny Orion, a mass murderer before transferring to a hand-made dog. There's only Danny, his magical friend Mickey Merlin and a half-man, half-cockroach to save the world.     New 13 January 1999

The Greatest Show off Earth
Raymond's had a rough couple of days. Snatched from his allotment by a flying starfish from Uranus and sold as a delicacy in a Venusian food market, it seems that his luck has changed when he is rescued by a travelling circus. But it's no ordinary circus - Professor Merlin's circus travels the solar system in a Victorian steamship doing impossible things, and Merlin wants Raymond to release two hundred people from Saturn and save Earh from extinction, all by Friday. Meanwhile, back on Earth, Raymond's friend Simon has trouble with Satanic chicken worshippers. Some of Rankin's best moments though occasionally goes over the top (ahem).

The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived
Norman is dead. His dad fell out of the sky and flattened him. Now he finds himself reluctantly employed at the Universal Reincarnation Company, shuffling papers with the best of them. The trouble is, God decided to close down Hell, Heaven is overcrowded and the extension isn't finished. Until then , the URC just has to recycle those souls. But now there's something wrong. Someone is preincarnating, being reborn again and again. Nasty goings on in one of Rankin's better books, handling these most extreme circumstances with his usual ease.

Keith Roberts

Pavane.
It's a classic, dating back to 1966, but it has matured with age rather than going off. Roberts is the doyenne of alternative histories. In the case of Pavane, the event is the Reformation - in Roberts' world England remained a Catholic country, and the world is in the grip of a strongly controlling Catholic church, which has not allowed the development of technology beyond steam power. Good rounded characters, an excellent storyline, great ideas and it's written well.  Updated 10 January 2003

Molly Zero.
An evocative story of a totalitarian future. An innocent, searching for the truth, Molly finds the world outside the Blocks where she has been brought up alien and frightening. Initially seeming to portray a bleak world, the book has some neat twists.

Theodore Roszak

Flicker -
Not written by an SF writer, but science fiction nonetheless, this is a superb study in paranoia, as art film enthusiast Jonathan Gates discovers a dark secret lying behind the work of forgotten film-maker Max Castle. Combining a macabre detective story with the remaining influence of a medieval heresy it's gripping stuff (if rather long). Out of print, but copies available from Amazon Marketplace (under 'More Buying Choices') after clicking the store/shop button. New 1 April 98

Eric Frank Russell

Next of Kin.
A classic bit of jollity, Russell's hero manages to recover a conquered Earth from rather dim aliens using only a piece of bent copper wire and an imaginary supernatural intelligence called Eustace. This 1950s confection is still very readable.

Geoff Ryman

The Child Garden.
A fascinating portrayal of a future where genetic engineering of viruses to cure cancer has resulted in a world that dies at 35. Viruses are used to educate in this socialist future, turning children into tiny adults. A broad, surprisingly enjoyable book. Loses it a little at the end, but still excellent.

Bob Shaw

Other Days, Other Eyes.   
Shaw's masterpiece of idea fiction, this book takes the brilliant concept of slow glass - glass that takes months or even years for light to travel through - and explores the consequences from window farms overlooking beautiful views to windows as witnesses to murder. It's great stuff. We are now even seeing a technology that might make slow glass possible! See Light Years for more details. Out of print now, but there are plenty of used copies available from the Marketplace link by clicking on the UK shop button (many shipping worldwide). Updated 11 February 2004

The Ragged Astronauts.
A delightful concept - faced with a terrible plague, a low technology world with no metal conceives of a daring plan of evacuation to their sister world, so close in orbit that their atmospheres intermingle. These are astronauts with a difference - using hot air balloons. Excellent stuff. See Shaw's entry by clicking his name above for the sequel. New 25 April 1998

Mary Shelley

Frankenstein
Mary Wollstonecroft Godwin's original (she's usually referred to as Mary Shelley, but at the time of its writing, Shelley was still married to his first wife) is a remarkable book. Not only because of the filmography it has produced, but the fact it was written by a 19-year-old. It bears no relation to most of the films. Here the creature is intelligent, vocal (in fact, verbose) and overwhelmed by his lack of a soul. Slightly heavy going, but a must if this genre interests you. Pure science fiction; forget the horror connotations.

Frankenstein.
Bargain version (extremely cheap)

  Chris Walley

  Shadow at Evening -  
The first book in the Lamb in Space series (see below), where we see the apparent perfection of the utopian world and see the entry of the invaders that will begin to cause its decay.  

  Power of the Night 
We really need to start with what this second entry in the Lamb in Space SF trilogy isn't. The cover proclaims it 'a fantasy in the tradition of C. S. Lewis and Tolkien'. That's about as wrong as you can get. It's far more SF than fantasy. A much better parallel is Asimov's Foundation trilogy. On the negative side, like Asimov, Walley is no master of dialogue (which is a shame, because, again like Asimov there's an awful lot of talking - very little actually happens in the first 200 pages), and his characters only stray an inch  out of the two-dimensional. On the plus side, also like Asimov, there are some really good ideas, and it combines SF concepts with an exploration of large scale social behaviour. It has that same feel of being involved in a sweeping change in a society that is set in its ways and dependent on overarching social engineering. Not available in the US yet, but not too expensive to ship from the UK. New 15 February 2004

H. G. Wells

The First Men in the Moon.
The lightest of Wells' science fiction books, full of intentional humour - and probably the first book ever in this category. There's enough of a story to keep you interested, and the descriptions of the sub-lunar world are fascinating, but surprisingly in a book this old it is the light touches that keep you coming back. New 17 July 2001

The Time Machine.
It had to be here, really! Not Wells' greatest bit of fiction as it drags a little and the allegory in the description of the far future is laid on a little thick - even so it's a seminal work (as they say) and ought to be in every collection. New 17 July 2001

War of the Worlds.
The original alien invasion story, Wells triumphs by putting the cold alien intelligence alongside the everyday suburbia of his day. Despite being nearly 100 years old, gets better all the time.

  Roger Zelazny

Bring me the Head of Prince Charming (with Robert Sheckley)
 This delightful fantasy, co-authored with another of the best of the exponents of humour in fantasy and SF, follows the exploits of the demon Azzie Elbub in his attempts to win the millennial game between good and evil by recreating the story of Prince Charming and Sleeping Beauty but giving it a unexpected twist.  New 17 July 2001

Doorways in the Sand 
This is a fascinating book that combines adventure, humour and remarkable cleverness. The way the chapters begin with a cliff-hanging flash-forward is first puzzling, then enjoyable, then mildly irritating, but Zelazny never fails to pull out new surprises, there's a welter of clever references and it's funny without ever being a comedy. Excellent. Out of print, but plenty of used copies from Amazon.com Marketplace.  New 8 June 2000/Updated 11 February 2004

Donnerjack (with Jane Lindskold)
 Zelazny's last book and one of his best. A superb confection where the true world and virtual reality operate alongside each other with equal validity. Immensely rich, satisfying, it's a fitting epitaph for this superb writer. Buy it!  New 5 June 2001

  This Immortal  
Certainly amongst the top five of Zelazny's superb output, this Hugo award winning novel is a delight. Conrad Nomikos, a typical Zelazny hero, is very long lived (was he really the origin of one of the Greek Gods? you have to decide). His job is to preserve the Earth, now effectively a nature reserve largely owned by aliens. But his agenda goes far deeper. It's a deceptive page-turner, with enough adventure to keep a Michael Crichton fan happy, but a lot more too.   New 17 April 2002