5 Sci-Fi Series I Want to Read After I Finish The Expanse & You Get to Pick Which One It Is

Mike talks about a handful of Sci-Fi series he is interested in starting after completing The Expanse in 2023 and asks for viewer feedback on which one he should read first.
Channels mentioned this episode: ‪@MediaDeathCult‬ & ‪@TheLibraryofAllenxandria‬
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#MikesBookReviews #scifi #sciencefiction

[@mikesbookreviews]

Hey bookworms! Yes, I realize I said “Mona Lisa Smile” instead of Mona Lisa Overdrive. That was a movie I was forced to see multiple times by an ex and I guess it has burned into my brain. Thanks for watching!

[@alynam82]

😄

[@JARHuygebaert]

Choose "Old Man's War", you won't regret it. Still one of the best books I've ever read, and my favorite sci-fi novel.

[@texaspipeman8973]

What a pathetic looser! Jk I actually enjoy that movie

[@alynam82]

😄😄

[@Speed202]

@@JARHuygebaert have you read any of the sequels?

[@thebrothersgwynne]

Adrian Tchaikovsky is a great writer. We have only read Children of Time, but both loved it! I think you would love the spiders in it 👀 Will & Ed

[@stephenmorton8017]

he's in for a surprise considering his preconception.

[@olesrensen1863]

Dog of war I think you will like Mike, doubt Hammilton is up your alley

[@seymourtoa]

Go for the Children series...and please, please take us along the way with you. I've heard Moid talking about it before and I'm going to be starting the series. He had a schweet interview with Tchaikovsky too.

[@Ribshack2012]

I've only read Children of Time so far, but it was fantastic and I really want to get into Children of Ruin and Children of Memory

[@whutzat]

Children of Ruin isn't as good, but still worth a read, and looking forward to the third one.

[@MrMeshyMe]

Children of Time and Commonwealth are both amazing. Night's Dawn is my fav though! They're all good though, so I'd be happy to hear your reviews of any of them. Have fun!

[@XmadBear27]

The Children series from Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of the best written sci-fi out there! You're gonna have a blast! The third one is coming soon ;-)

[@HeyYallListenUp]

I've only read Speaker for the Dead and Xenocide of the books you mentioned. They are very different from Ender's Game, but still as brilliant in my opinion.

[@thewatchfemme4051]

I haven’t read all of these series but I few I have. I think you’d really enjoy the Ender books, they are radically different from the first book, the Bean series is more closely linked to Battle School and the aftermath, but Ender’s journey is amazing and I still think about some of the concepts and settings of those books after many years. Also, please do read the Children of Time books, they’re amazing! And try not to cry too hard when The Expanse finishes. 😉

[@jonathonwhitington402]

The Children of Time series is my vote. It's fantastic, and I'm eagerly awaiting Children of Memory on about a month.

[@dmbfreak123]

Old man’s war for sure! I’m currently on book 5 and the series is fantastic.

[@michaelwinters2574]

Nice opinion on books AND metal!

[@xWursty]

You really can't go wrong with Tchaikovsky. The man's writing is amazing.

[@stevehoran6011]

I just picked up the Children of Time trilogy after hearing multiple recommendations for it, so I’d say that one

[@paulcain548]

Pandora’s Star had me hooked from the opening. Still remember it years later 👍🏻

[@jeans4108]

Children of Time ❤️ it’s amazing. I enjoyed Ruin too but it’s very much a middle book. Children of Time is the best sci-fi book I’ve read in years (and I’ve read the entire Expanse 🙂). Just a mind blowing book with big sci-fi concepts. It’s what I read sci-fi for. Can’t wait for the third book.

[@breenyoung4986]

Ender's Shadow is a brilliant book. Hope you continue that far.

[@joylynn0620]

I vote for the Peter F Hamilton books. I've always wanted to read something by him and would love to hear your thoughts.

[@dino123spamoni]

Neuromancer is an awesome book! Its fairly difficult to read despite being short because of weird words and structure. The main character is always in a daze so it is written in a similar confusing style. It took me two times to fully understand the book just fyi so maybe reading it as a trilogy might be a little tiring. Both times i read it i expected to fly through the books but i slowly revert to short sessions because of how wordy and taxing the world is. That being said thats also the books biggest strength. The rich detail and vivid world. I haven't read the sequels so take that as you will but definitely plan on getting to them one day. Love the channel Mike!

[@WordsinTime]

I have read books from all 5 of these series and think they’re all worthwhile. I think that Old Man’s War is probably the safest choice for you, but Children of Time is my personal favourite. Neuromancer is great, but a bit of a confusing read. Old Man’s War is fun and fast-paced. The humor is a bit hit or miss, but I think you might like it. I have read 3 Ender books and liked them all but I think Ender’s Game is the best. Children of Time is so good I haven’t continued it because I don’t know how the sequels could live up to the first book. It follows 2 narratives that take a while to progress, but I thought the way it came together in the final 1/3 of the book was phenomenal. I am currently reading Judas Unchained and I am enjoying the duology, it reads like an epic fantasy series. Each book is 1,000 pages long and there’s a lot of description, but I think it is also rewarding. I hope you enjoy whatever you pick!

[@brandon8667]

Read children of time. It's such a fast read, I could not put it down. I recommended it to my brother & he burned through it too. Children of memory is good. There's some povs I craved over others but it's good.

[@nickstiles1946]

Hey Mike! These all sound great & I'll be along for the ride regardless, but I'm gonna go with the Children of Time series as that's one I've been kicking down the road as well!

[@paradoxicalbum4489]

The Commonwealth Saga should definitely be what you read next because the Void Trilogy that follows it is even more in your wheelhouse.

[@stephencartwright8355]

Just finished the ender saga. Again it's very different that Ender's game but would be interested to see your take on it. They aren't terribly long books either.

[@proxci4234]

Ender's game universe dose not get worse it just changes a little but it is still better than almost all other's

[@invaderzod8092]

I haven’t read the full Sprawl trilogy but Neuromancer was absolutely mind blowing. William Gibson is an actual prophet and enough proof to convince me that crystal balls work. The writing quality isn’t exceptional and the characters aren’t the best in the genre but this doesn’t mean that they’re bad and the strength of this book is in its brilliant predictions and Gibson’s incredible ideas. I still struggle to believe that this book came out in the 80s and he came up with this world and these ideas before even Blade Runner came out (the similarities are mostly visual, not thematic). If I told you this book came out in the year 2000 or later most people would believe it but nope, he wrote it 25 years earlier.

[@dugefreshhh9743]

Didn’t the book Blade Runner was based on come out in the 80’s? I’m a sci-fi noob🤣

[@bungle.mr81]

@@dugefreshhh9743 noup that's "Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? By Philip K. Dick. "Neuromancer" is by William Gibson and still there is no movie adaptation of it.

[@lepragunner1586]

I'd looove to know your thoughts on the Commonwealth Saga since some of my favourites episodes from Love, Death + Robots are based upon short stories by Peter F. Hamilton

[@mikesbookreviews]

Oh really? That's rad.

[@FrostyMourne92]

Old Man's War. I've got two more books to finish this series and I'd love to hear your opinion.

[@chucklitka2503]

I'm amazed, or perhaps just amused, that Ender's Game is almost always the favorite SF book for guys who are now in their 40's. I haven't read any of the books you mentioned, so I can't help you choose. Good luck!

[@Edventured]

Iain M Banks’ Culture Series and Peter F Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn trilogy are magnificent (the former for imaginative space opera, the latter for speculative sci-fi horror).

[@whutzat]

CHILDREN OF TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG YES Children of Ruin isn't as good, but worth reading. The next one upcoming looks good.

[@katienewton2063]

You have to check out Ender's Shadow, it's Ender's Game told from the perspective of Bean. I liked it even more than the original and I think it has some of the things you mentioned that EG lacks

[@Jane-w]

This list just demonstrates how much of a non-sci fi reader I am (not intentionally). Old Man's War is one I've had on my radar for awhile but no immediate plans to read. I've just bought the Children of Time trilogy so it's one I can jump into when I'm in the mood. And Ender's Game is one I'm also hoping to pick up and try this year, but just the first book at this stage.

[@Avzigoyhbasilsikos]

Speaker for the dead is very good and I think it’s better than Enders game imo. That quartet is excellent !

[@markb3534]

Definitely on board for Commonwealth saga. Picked up the HC books at my local used book store a couple of months back. Still in the bull pen. ;)

[@CurlyHoward42]

I suggest Gibson. It's a trilogy in that they all take place in the same universe, but the books aren't really connect by characters. Moid interviewed Tchaikovsky. You should check it out.

[@akellerhouse83]

I loved Children of Time. It was so good. I haven't read Ruin yet, but it's happening next year. I also loved Guns of the Dawn by Tchaikovsky. It's more low fantasy. I just read Leviathan Wakes last week. I will definitely read the rest of the Expanse. I couldn't put it down.

[@AlexNitsu]

The only thing I read here is the Old Man's War and the subsequent books, and they were great palate cleansers for me. Not the best thing I've ever read, but still fun with some good emotional moments. Funny you should have mentioned Children of Time, as it's the next book I'm reading. I tried one book by Tchaikovsky before - Redemption's Blade, and it was kinda below average for me. So I hope Children of Time will be as amazing as everybody says.

[@bretts8070]

I really enjoyed Ender's Game back when I read it, and I read Speaker for the Dead and was blown away too. I remember not enjoying books 3 and 4 as much, but I did appreciate the journey, and you just can't predict where he takes the character from reading the prior book, so they definitely each feel like their own complete stories in their own right, which is a positive IMO. I've been eyeballing the Gibson books for a long time and will be grabbing those especially if you're reading them to join along in the fun. I'm not familiar with the other series mentioned but will be looking into them too as I crave more sci-fi in my life. Also on my list to tackle: more Dune (I've read the first one, and definitely want to read at least Messiah before the next film comes out, even if that story isn't tackled til the 3rd movie), the Honor Harrington series by Weber, the X-Wing series by Stackpole and Allston, Altered Carbon, the books by Cixin Liu, and I've probably forgotten a few others that I've been eager to try out. Have fun narrowing it down!

[@radudumanovschi3387]

I would choose Old men's war. Sounds interesting.

[@tdrdavies2]

You should definitely read the Sprawl trilogy. And I've read Children of Time which is fantastic.

[@Henri79]

I'm still hoping you would give Endymion a chance even though you had mixed feelings about the Fall of Hyperion. The journey as a whole is well worth taking :)

[@BooksWithBenghisKahn]

Out of all of these I've only read the Old Man's War series (the whole thing), and it's just purely mediocre, and after a few years completely forgettable. The first book was by far the best, and it should've been a standalone, cuz the series got wayyyyyyyy too dragged out with so little meat on the bone to tear off in the first place. I'd love to see you jump on Children of Time which I also want to try, or the Commonwealth Saga which I just picked up from a used bookstore today!

[@davidlarramore1990]

Children Of Time (Tchaikovsky is a wonderful writer with cool ideas), Old Man's War (Down to earth and a good sense of humor), The Commonwealth (Peter F. Hamilton is hardcore, fast paced, highly literate), Culture (Iain Banks is straightforward, accessible, interesting space opera).

[@michaelwinters2574]

Moid is right. I’d recommend the same based on your past experiences in regards to science fiction books. It’s not as hard as some “hard” science fiction, but, it’s not exactly light like the Old Man’s war stuff. Just my opinion 1-Commonwealth 2-Children 3-OMW 4-Ender’s 5-Neuromancer

[@larryladeroute971]

Necromancer and Old Man's War series' you can breeze through the way you read. Read them both. Then add that Hamton series for something more challenging...I would then consider Revelation Space for 2024...Alastair Reynolds has more than a couple books...

[@johnmahon5699]

To be fair, Moid has yet to read the Night's Dawn Trilogy. With your liking of horror, both Rev Space and NDT would work. PFH and AR are both british hard SF authors who got big in the 90's. I would say go down the Wiggle path less traveled. They are short books, and children of the mind was conceived prior to Ender's Game. It's very different as Ender is an adult in this book. Card is an interesting storyteller with a wide variety of different stories from Ender's Game to Seventh Son, Songmaster to The Planet Called Treason, and from Treasure Box to Walkers. TLDR: if you want complicated worldbuilding: Commonwealth. If you want Weird and Wild: Ender.

[@adrianburchell8075]

The only Peter F Hamilton books I read is the Greg Mandel trilogy, Mindstar Rising, Quantum Murder and The Nanoflower, great reads. If you want a new long series I recommend the Honor Harrington series, 20 odd books. Have you read China Mieville's Perdido Street Station?

[@jeroenadmiraal8714]

I won't sugarcoat it: I think the Sprawl series will be hard and leave you very confused. My recommendation would go to the authors of the British Space Opera revival of the 90s: Peter F Hamilton, Alastair Reynolds and Iain M Banks.

[@LittleLibrarian]

Continue Enders Game! Also I highly recommend checking out Warchild by Karin Lowachee, it was my favorite book of 2022 and it has Enders game vibes but darker.

[@verosnotebook]

Old Man’s War series is really good but be aware that it follows different people so not like The Expanse (just have the last book to read in that one 😊). Tchaikovsky writes so much and such different tales. My favourites are Children of Time, Guns of the Dawn, and Elder (novella). I would also recommend Arkady Martine’s Teixcalaan duology (if you like Le Guin and Cherryh), and Emma Newman’s Planetfall series dealing with mental health in a scifi setting. Have fun😊

[@joseph_b319]

Hey Mike. Awesome shirt!!!! I wore that shirt when i went to go see the double feature of JP and Dominion. The Neuromancer has been collecting dust on my TBR pile. I love 80s computing and atmospheric Japanese settings. I got Children of Time for Christmas, and it sounds terrifying. I learned of that book from a great channel Words in Time, a great sci-fi booktube channel. Happy reading and have a happy new year. 📚📚📚🎉🥳🎊

[@Drivenby]

Mike PLEASE PLEASE LISTEN TO ME. You need to read A fire uppon the deep and A deepness in the sky. They are TOP LEVEL Sci fi. Im talking about Dune / Hyperion level. Theres a lot of techo babble in the first book but trust me it pays off in spades. Children of time rips off 50% of the plot from that series imho. I could not enjoy that book because of that. Theres a 3rd book that imho I liked a lot but ends if a cliffhanger and he has never returned to it. Its been like 12 years since. Basically zones of thought series > anything by scalzi > anything with "children" in the title > anything by orson. I have not read neuromancer. But please trust me man!

[@Rogue_VI]

Neuromancer: If you haven't read any cyberpunk, then you will probably like it better than I did. A lot of ideas felt like old hat to me because it wasn't my first experience with the sub-genre. Overall, I was a little disappointed. Old Man's War: I enjoyed it. Loved the concept. Best thing ever? No. But definitely enjoyable. Ender Quartet: Not a fan. Speaker for the Dead and following books are not written in the same style, so that was a bit jarring. Definitely slower and, imo, not as interesting. Children of the Mind is terrible. The Shadow series is much better, written in the same style as EG. The First Formic War trilogy was good. Children of Time - One of my favorite's last year. Your thoughts mentioned in the video are not really what it's about. Children of Ruin was almost as good. Commonwealth - Excellent choice. Night's Dawn is good, but Commonwealth is better. Overall, there are about 8 books, but they are broken up into duologies/trilogies.

[@sluper12345]

I'd go with Gibson or Tchaikovsky. IMHO, the best Tchaikovsky book I've read is his brilliant fantasy stand alone "Guns of the Dawn". Read Nights Dawn a while back. Did not like it. At all. Wish I was better at DNF:ing. There is a character, let's just say he's a gangster and leave it at that not to spoil things, who is introduced at one point in the series, and at that point Hamilton jumps the shark in a spectacular manner. For some reason I still went on to try the Commonwealth series but DNF:ed after book 1. I LOVE Alastair Reynolds. But why not try one of his stand alone novels to see what you think? His latest book "Eversion" is one of his very best and rather short (about 300 pages). "Century Rain" a really cool time travel story combining hard sci fi with a hard boiled detective story. Most AR fans would say "Pushing Ice" is his best stand alone, but I'm a bit lukewarm on that one. Wasn't the biggest fan of Ender's Game, but Speaker for the Dead (the 2nd book in the series) is really really good!

[@emosongsandreadalongs]

Some great choices here, Mike. Neuromancer won the Hugo and the Nebula awards. Speaker for the Dead won the Hugo, Nebula, *and* Locus awards and is maybe my favorite book of all time.

[@r.danielwilliams6817]

Ender's Game series gets my vote, although I enjoy his Ender's Shadow series focusing on Bean a little more than the 3 after Ender's Game. Two other Sci-fi recommendations: David Weber's "Mutineer's Moon" trilogy Steve White's "The Disinherited" trilogy

[@davidveskadiaga3004]

Gibson is excellent because of his way with words and worldbuilding, if the cyberpunk part bothers you try his Blue Ant trilogy. The Old Man's War is a lot of fun. I liked Tchaikovsky's Shadow of the Apt series and Guns of the Dawn, but the other things I've tried by him didn't click with me; then again, I haven't read Children of Time so I can't say.

[@MediaDeathCult]

All potentially great, it's difficult to predict which will appeal to you the most but my vote would be Children Of Time. Note: Before tackling Revelation Space I recommend House Of Suns

[@andrewturner4873]

Is House of Suns part of Revelation Space? Or what is the reason for recommending it before Revelation Space

[@MediaDeathCult]

@@andrewturner4873 It's a stand alone novel, not connected, the perfect taster before committing to a larger series

[@chimpster4331]

The commonwealth saga is probably better than Night's Dawn, or at least more consistent (especially the ending). BUT.... the Night's Dawn trilogy is absolutely wild and I just absolutely love it despite its flaws. I would still say to go for Night's Dawn I think.

[@Siderite]

Gibson, for sure. Haven't read Children of Time, yet, but I hear it's great. Then Ender's Game. That being said... The Commonwealth Saga is my favorite space hard sci-fi series. I would read it last, though.

[@Grimscribe732]

I think out of these five I'd either go with the Sprawl/Neuromancer Trilogy or the Children books by Tchaikovsky. Simply depending on what you're more in the mood for. Both are absolutely great, and milestones for SciFi as a whole. As for the Ender Saga, I think the two best books are Ender's Game (#1) and Speaker for the Dead (#2) even though they are completely different from each other. However, there certainly is a good chance that someone who really enjoys Ender's Game won't like Speaker for the Dead - simply because it is almost a different genre and so much of the initial formula is changed.

[@gypsyboomer]

Necromancer is by far the best of the series. Old Man's War is an easy read and a weak recommend. Ender and Speaker are very good, could not finish the others. Tchaikovsky is a TBR. Strongly suggest Amber by Zelazny and someday, somewhere I will get someone to read the Safehold series by Weber. Happy New Year!

[@francissreckofabian01]

I'm having a 2nd go at the Reality Dysfunction / Night's Dawn. I might finish it this time? I just finished the Revelation Space book. I'll probably continue. In the middle of the Uplift series. I expect to finish it. I am also trying Turtledove's World War series again. Not sure I'll finish it. These are old series. I am way behind. I love SF but "pew pew pew" doesn't do it for me. It's gotta have interesting ideas. Oh yeah, one more book in the Hyperion series. The 3rd Ender book is not . . . ok. I won't be reading any more..

[@andrewheim9481]

Common Wealth Saga is the best you listed. Also recommend Great Northern Road by Hamilton. Gibson is also great, a classic well worth your time. Old man is fun but not deep very good not great. I have not read the Children books. Regarding Ender, avoid the sequels. The Shadow books are okay, but the sequels are garbage. Check out your fellow Texan, Red Fury Books for his take, which I totally agree with.

[@spdepew]

I have a BIG issue with Children of Time. The entire book I felt like I had read it before. If you have read Deepness in the Sky or Fire Upon the Deep by Vinge, you might understand what I mean. No problem with the book, story or writing AT ALL! I just couldn't get past the similarities.

[@gene2621]

I just bought Old Man's War due to watching this video, thanks Mike and have yourself a happy new years 2023 to your family from mine many new years blessings to you.

[@kyleboon11]

I’ve read most of these except children of time, and I only read the first Neuromancer book. I’d rank it like this: 1) commonwealth sage 2) ender quintet 3) Neuromancer 4) old man’s war

[@evanb6862]

I'd say either continue Ender's saga, or Tchaikovsky. I read Speaker recently, and while different from Ender's Game, still found it very enjoyable. Xenocide is on my list. And the Children of Time concept just fascinates me. I really want to pick those up as well.

[@fithfath3615]

I've read the Old Man's War series and would highly recommend it. I've got Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained lined up for this year as well as The Children series. Like you I stopped at Ender's Game for fear of what follows it being disappointing. Neuromancer is on my list to try also. For pure entertainment I'd suggest Old Man's War.

[@cinnamonguns5952]

I would say Peter F Hamilton's Common Wealth. I haven't read it yet, but I have read his Nights Dawn Trilogy and Fallen Dragon. I enjoyed both. The Common Wealth Saga is on my TBR list. With all that said I keep meaning to tell you, your copies of Nights Dawn Trilogy are slightly out of order on your bookshelf. The first book is in the third spot.

[@Marcus-id5ur]

Pretty sure Moid hasn't read Nights Dawn, but his suggestion isn't bad. Nights Dawn is more sprawling, commonwealth probably more accessible for most people. Hamilton gets my vote. Haven't read the Children books yet but I am a fan of the Apt series so probably can't go wrong there. Old Man's War borrows more from Starship Troopers than Ender. I'm not a fan but if you view them as palate cleansers, can be enjoyable enough I guess.

[@BookPigg]

Ender's Saga- A must read for enders game fans. Speaker for the dead is my favorite. IMO the Ender's series has it all and does it well; Characters, Plots, Politics, religion, philosophy, aliens.....you get it. Old Mans War- These are so fun while still making you think. My favorite of the Scalzi I have read. I think you would love the characters in this series. You would blow through these fast also. Children- Great Hard sci-fi. I prefer Adrian's space opera series The Final Architecture. Children of Ruin was too difficult for me to follow at the time I was trying to read it and I DNF'd it. I do plan to go back to that series though. I wouldn't really rank this below Old Mans War (very different styles of SF). I suspect I will have a greater appreciation for the series when I can give it more attention. Sprawl- I haven't started this one yet. My son just read Neuromancer and he said he liked it but he is going to read it again right away so he can understand it more. He has not been able to explain anything about it to me. Hamilton- I have not read any yet. I will watch out to hear your thoughts if you choose him.

[@Verlopil]

Gibson - do you like post-modern literature? If you don't, the Gibson can be hard going Old Man's War - I think Forever War is something to read before reading that, so have you read the Haldeman? But I did like this and think you would too. Ender's Game - You can't really appreciate, IMO, Ender's Game without reading Speaker for the Dead. That's a great series and is what I'd recommend. Children of Time - I just read this. I have to tell you, I'm an outlier on these who thought they were not that good. Why? The characters. The ideas are amazing. The characterization was something he didn't appear to care about. The humans were just terribly boring. The aliens were more interesting, but their characters were like humans in alien bodies. But everyone else I've found loves them. Hamilton - I haven't read these.

[@ndgall788]

Speaker for the Dead is 100% worth reading, but I don’t know that I’d recommend reading the two that follow it. Maybe read Speaker and Ender’s Shadow and call it quits, honestly.

[@colin1818]

Before reading the series "Revelation Space" you should read a stand-alone by Alastair Reynolds. The go-to is usually "House of Suns" and with good reason. Moid typically recommends it (Reynolds is his favorite author) and I'll second that.

[@rodneylopez5073]

Normally, I would say go with the Ender Quartet, but the next three books, while EXCELLENT, are such a departure from the story of Ender's Game, I'm not sure you'd like them. Card has stated in interviews that he wanted to write the story of the last three books, but needed to write Ender's Game first. So, my recommendation is Gibson's Sprawl trilogy.

[@bushiedo2570]

A series I kind of consider sci-fi is the "Metro" series. Metro 2033, Metro 2034, and Metro 2035. The synopsis is a nike went off in Moscow and to survive people are living in the subway system to survive. Check it out and see if it interests you. Love the channel. Keep up the great work.

[@MartinUnderwood]

Children of Time is absolutely fantastic, and is probably my favorite read of the year. Children of Ruin was great as well, but that first one, wheeeew. Amazing. I really like Scalzi, and I enjoyed Old Man's War (I only read the first), but I don't think he hit his stride with his humor and snark until Redshirts. Read the Children series.

[@Catcupid]

True. You do not talk about science fiction enough. 💫 I read Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky this year and I loved it, so I am looking forward to reading more of his stuff in 2023. I started reading the Culture series by Iain M Banks because of Mood, and I just read the fifth book this year. You would probably enjoy all the different things you can pick apart for reviews since they are basically standalone novels in the same universe. Also very varied, since I hated the first book and loved the second one for example.

[@alassesinda]

I would recommend that if you want to transition from fantasy to sci-fi then nothing is better than Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamilton, it is amazing in my opinion! But of course if you are only considering the Commonwealth Saga by Peter F. Hamilton then by all means go ahead with it! But I would recommend following up Commonwealth Saga with the Void Trilogy and the Chronicle of the Fallers.

[@Eclecticbooks]

@mikebookreviews definitely read Old Man's War. I think the humor and premise will make it a great read for you. Then Redshirts for a palate cleanser standalone by Scalzi.

[@Thorbearius]

I have only read the Enders’ Game books (1-4). The sequels are different, but very interesting. I really liked them.

[@djsuth7727]

All solid choices, but the later Ender books definitely pale in comparison to the first one. I've recommended the Night's Dawn trilogy to you before, and as a huge Peter Hamilton fan, I'd still recommend that one ahead of the Commonwealth Saga. I'm also going to throw in Iain Banks' Culture novels ... most sci-fi fans consider this series a masterpiece.

[@Dylan13Collins]

Old man's war was fun, but nothing revolutionary or intriguing like I prefer my sci fi books (I only read the first one). I'm excited to see what you think of Xenocide! I'm definitely tempted to read it. Children of Time you will love! I think it's just a trilogy, but I'm not sure. I've read the first 2 and they were great! I was hoping the second would have gone a few steps further, but the first one is immaculate!

[@calebmauer1751]

The Children of Time would be my first pick. It's a relatively recent book but it has that real classic feel to it like Ursula K LeGuin or someone like that could have written it, while having a more modern take on the technology. Old Man's War is a really fun series, a lot of action and humor but it also can get serious without being too dramatic about it. The Ender sequels I remember liking but I read them a long time ago. It had some cool concepts and speeches, but after reading his book Treason recently I'm thinking they probably weren't half as good as I remember (also don't read Treason). I'm not sure Neuromancer would be your thing, but it's hard to tell. I'm surprised Moid didn't push The Culture on you though, those books have everything you could want from a sci-fi series, with loads of great characters (many of them sentient machines), great humor, well written action, and big ideas that are really well explored. Of all the sci-fi and fantasy universes I've ever read books from, The Culture universe is the one I would choose to live in.

[@LilMsNat]

Hiya Mike! I think the Neuromancer and Old Man's War sound awesome! Did I mention I got Joe Abercrombie 1st Law Series & Best SErved Cold. First up is The Blade Itself 🤞

[@Mschiller815]

My vote would be for Neuromancer. Published after Blade Runner came out but writing before that, the author was worried people would think he ripped it off (they are not really the same thematically altho it does tough on some aspects, just that visually the world of Blade Runner is similar to Gibson’s sprawl). Neuromancer though is really the grandfather of modern cyberpunk coming way before even the internet and personal computers was common in the majority of households so while some of the tech might seem antiquated now it’s actually mind blowing that he thought of it then. Much like H.G. Wells, Gibson was thinking of things way before they happened. The other Sprawl books are good but Neuromancer is the gem. Also want to throw in that the Altered Carbon series is the prime rib to Gibson’s caviar. That series is rip-roaring and worth a shot in the future. Happy reading!

[@planet6288]

You’ve been operating this channel the whole time, and never read Neuromancer?!?!?! What???

[@andreanoaro6470]

Hey Mike, I would go with moid's rec and read the Commonwealth Saga. Love everything that man has recommended that I have pic up so far. and if its just a prank, Its just 2 books right. and it will make for a funny story!!! wishing you and your fam the best year to date man! keep up the grate work!

[@dominicpinchott7432]

Sadly I found the Mars and Opd Man's war series to drop off a quality cliff after a few books. Both were very disappointing ultimately. They are both fairly close to YA and don't have enough art to make up for the narrative shortcomings.

[@colin1818]

Regarding the Ender Quartet. Speaker for the Dead is phenomenal. Like, one of my favorites of all time. It's great. It is nothing like the first book - but in a good way. But the 3rd and 4th books are really really bad. Xenocide (the 3rd) starts fairly solid and I felt like it had been mislabeled (people frequently like to attack Orson Scott Card for reasons other than his written works). But it ends with a really bad deus ex situation which is continued in the 4th book. It feels like a missed opportunity and I will not read past Speaker ever again.

[@Crabdust1]

The Commonwealth Duo is so bloated. There's a few great moments, but not worth the time IMO. Reynolds is always solid and Children of Time/Ruin really stuck with me.

[@michaelvcelentano]

Honestly, go with Ender. Sprawl didn’t really do it for me, it was a little too loose and disconnected. Old Man’s War was great for the first three books and then peters out. If you like Scalzi, read Interdependency, it’s a great palate cleanser! I would maybe do Foundation series? Read the whole thing and loved it!

[@aprilp7744]

This is the first video I've seen of yours and I'm very interested! I read Old Man's War YEARS ago when I was a teen and it has been my fave sci-fi series ever since. I'm also interested in the other books you're thinking about reading, but what drew me to the video was the fact that you're reading The Expanse. It's one of my fave TV shows and I'm thinking about reading those as well.

[@aliubed3162]

OMG Mike can’t believe you’ve not read children of time yet not that I can blame you; what with the amount of books you read but to be honest I’ve not read it yet either although it’s high on my reading list “you just can’t read fast enough” although I did read a few pages way back when and I was blown away and would’ve finished the entire book in one sitting if not for the fact that it was so written against my beliefs but boy is that book written in magical gold; remember when you said you’ll fly through the faithful and the fallen book4 which I’m now on book 1. Thanks to you; well you’ll fly through this series. William Gibson First book I’ve read “the sky above the port was the colour of Television” but his cyberpunk words I understood very little. Although whatever I did manage to make sense of was golden poetry as well but definitely won’t be going back to him. I’ll definitely recommend children of time and I myself am going to read it aswell; definitely one of the most gripping writing and story telling, he’s different from King “can’t say better”

[@johnsunlight]

Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained feature one of the best alien species in Sci-Fi. Great Series. (Commonwealth Saga by Peter F Hamilton)

[@brandongibson3907]

The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead to a dead channel.---------Go with the Sprawl Trilogy

[@MriInterocitor]

Of those, I'd go with the Sprawl trilogy. I found it most engaging and rewarding, particularly if you read or watch some vintage noir right before.

[@Dapperballoon]

When it comes to Ender, Speaker is by far my fav (it's like a fantastic ep of star trek) I struggled to get through the latter half of Xenocide and Children of the Mind was the worst book I read in a while, I could only get through half of it. Plus I feel uncomfortable about Cards political views. My vote for you to read next is the Children of Time series. It's a fascinating idea once you realize what the books are about and it's written so well.

[@adamborst]

Probably the least useful feedback you'll get, but all the series sound good. Perhaps it's my demographic, but Old Man's War seems really interesting. I'd also like you to get into Ender, mainly so I can use your experience to remember what actually happens in that series since I cannot recall. Lastly, I'd probably put Neuromancer as the first overall, if only because it's something that is classic science fiction. It's really hard to choose here because you've seemingly got all things that are interesting. Good luck on whatever ends up shaking out as the leader of this pack!

[@irishknight6893]

Wow Mike I would be very excited if you read The Neuromancer or Old man’s war series, I would be very interested in either or both of those series:) also children of time sounds very interesting! I pick any of those 3 :)