# Good Sci-Fi?



## HappinessIs (Jan 16, 2014)

Hi fellow writers, I'm taking a break from research (filling out my novel, accuracy) and have turned my focus toward a first attempt at a post-apocolyptic story (NOT about zombies.) Just finished "The Rain" by Joseph Turkot and enjoyed it immensely. He's the author that recommended I join this forum. Are there any other stories about The End that you would recommend? Reading the genre provides inspiration, as this is something new for me. Thanks for your feedback.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

There are tons of post-apocalyptic fiction, much of it good. Depends on why you enjoy, as it's a rather broad category.

Examples:
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Shatter Me by Tehereh Mafi
The Mad Max films
The Stand by Stephen King
The McCall Initiative series by Lisa Nowak

On television, even something as lightweight as NBC's Revolution fits the category.

You'd do well to be a bit more well-read in the category before jumping in with both feet yourself, so that you're at least aware of some of the conventions and expectations of the genre.


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## dkgould (Feb 18, 2013)

I know you'll get a ton of responses, but I have to plug my favorites.  For non-zombie indie apocalypse Morgan Nyberg's Since Tomorrow is one of my favorites.  It's extremely stark and realistic.

For classic non-zombie apocalypse I'd say either On the Beach by Nevil Shute.

There's scads and scads more and lots of them are excellent  those are just my favorites


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## D.L. Shutter (Jul 9, 2011)

If you want to get all Lit-ish you can try Cormac McCarthy's "The Road". It's an exceptionally bleak post-nuke future and a tough read but really captures that "best of...worst of" human dynamic that I think so many writer's try for with post-apoc.


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## CraigInOregon (Aug 6, 2010)

*sigh*


Can anyone start a "recommend any books?" thread anymore without someone bringing up Cormac McCarthy?

I find his novels tedious. A minority opinion, I know, but...


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## Aducknamedjoe (Apr 25, 2013)

Oooh!  The Postman by David Brin, not at all like the movie.

Also, The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov does post apocalyptic on a galactic scale, which is a cool angle.


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## Skye Ronan (Oct 31, 2013)

_Breakers_ by Ed Robertson is pretty good. _Yesterday's Gone_ is also pretty entertaining. I tried to watch the movie adaptation of _The Road_. I had to turn it off. Disturbing.


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## Sam Kates (Aug 28, 2012)

CraigInTwinCities said:


> *sigh*
> 
> Can anyone start a "recommend any books?" thread anymore without someone bringing up Cormac McCarthy?
> 
> I find his novels tedious. A minority opinion, I know, but...


I for one would find it impossible to talk about good apocalytpic books without mentioning _The Road_. Bleak, harrowing, pessimisitc, yes, but I found it utterly compelling. And I thought I was in the minority. 

Another one that left a lasting impression on me: _Riddley Walker_ by Russell Hoban.

ETA: typo


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## Paul K (Jan 11, 2014)

My favourite would be "Chasm City" by Alastair Reynolds. Perhaps not truly post-apocalyptic, but the city most of it takes place in definitely qualifies. I absolutely love the world building in this book. 

Actually, I would also recommend "Terminal World" by the same author.


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## Edward W. Robertson (May 18, 2010)

Heh, thanks Skye. 

I liked _A Canticle for Leibowitz_ a heck of a lot. I'm currently reading Nick Coles' _The Old Man and the Wasteland_ and it's quite a book; was originally self-published, but later got picked up by HarperCollins, and it's easy to see why. I liked Chris Randolph's _Stars Rain Down_, too. More future/space opera, but there's definitely a big ol' apocalypse in it.


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## phildukephd (Jan 6, 2013)

The post-apocalyptic concept can make interesting reading, but most of the scenarios are either very unlikely or impossible. It IS fiction. As for zombies, you are either alive or dead, and the dead stay dead. A DEADLY contagious virus might leave a few people alive, but they would soon descend into savagery, and die out. With a thermonuclear war everyone left would die from the radiation. Or starvation. This and other aspects of the hydrogen bomb and its mass detonations are presented in "Folly Of the Hydrogen Bomb."

IMO the popularity of zombies lies in the fact that it's OK to kill them various grisly ways, because they are so nasty, and not "really" alive. The vicarious pleasures of killing (them) carry the concept, and are the basis of its popularity. People who would never allow themselves the pleasure of imagining they are killing people, vicariously enjoy killing zombies.

But then, almost all entertainment is based on forbidden pleasures, is it not?


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## AngryGames (Jul 28, 2013)

The Road is very, very awesome. And bleak. And depressing. And fantastic. I love McCarthy. Most of the time, anyway.

The Day After is the quintessential Cold War MAD scare piece that we 80's kids grew up on.

And then there's possibly the most depressing movie ever made about post-apocalyptic scenarios:


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

Elle Casey's Apocalypsis 

I could only read book one because it got too gruesome toward the end and it seemed the next book would be even more so, but book one was riveting.


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## MatthewAlanThyer (Jan 13, 2014)

There is a lot of very good stuff out there written during an oft forgotten heyday, early post-apocalypse fiction let's call it (because it's not sci-fi even when it occurs "in the future"), that I believe anyone who is interested in writing should familiarize themselves with prior to reading the latest batch of specfic that focuses on what happens after everything stops.

Start with these classics:

"A Canticle for Leibowitz", Walter M. Miller
"Mister Touch", Malcome Bosse
"Lucifer's Hammer", Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle 

There are more, but those are all master works in my opinion.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

Some of my favorites:

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood (more distopian, but another favorite)
The Postman, David Brin (another favorite re-read, and I liked the movie. Sue me.  )
Once Second After, William Forschen (spelling?) (this is a hard book to read, because of how bad things get for people)
The Swan, Robert McCammon
The Stand, Stephen King (have read both the edited and longer versions, more than once)
Lucifer’s Hammer, Larry Niven (re-read at least twice. Hm. There's a pattern here.)
Alas, Babylon!, Pat Frank (my absolute favorite, I've read it over and over)
On the Beach, Neville Shute (and I love the movie with Gregory Peck. Swoon.)
The Gate to Women's Country, Sheri S. Tepper (another favorite)
2250 A.D. (AKA Starman's Son), Andre Norton (yep, you guessed it, read it several times)

I'm another that doesn't care for The Road. It was too confusing, and honestly too vague for me to enjoy.


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## David Peterson (Feb 8, 2014)

How about The Day of the Triffids? A classic where most of the world is suddenly struck blind in a world with giant, genetically engineered, carnivorous plants. Not as ridiculous as it sounds.

Other than that, I'll add my vote for Swan Song, The Stand, and The Road (if you really want to go dark).


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

I'll 4th or 5th The Stand.


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## Paul Hardy (Mar 11, 2011)

Let's add some Britishness! John Wyndham's _The Day Of The Triffids_ has been mentioned, but he did more than one end-of-the-world book. There's also _The Chrysalids_, in which psychic youngsters from a puritan society long after WW3 realise they're not alone in the world, and _The Kraken Wakes_, which sees an assault from deep-sea dwelling aliens upon the world (look up the concept of the 'cosy catastrophe' for more on Wyndham)

Horror fans might enjoy James Herbert's _Domain_, the third in his Rats trilogy, which shows his mutant rats taking over after London is nuked. Definitely starts with a bang. No need to read the first two in the trilogy. He also wrote _1948_, which shows an alt-history apocalypse: the Nazis use a bioweapon at the end of WW2 that wipes out all but a few survivors.

Or there's always the comedy approach: Robert Rankin's _Armageddon: The Musical_, which has to be read to be believed; while those with a hankering for something literary may enjoy Doris Lessing's _Memoirs of a Survivor_.

If you're writing a PA story, be very careful about how you deal with the apocalypse itself. Whatever kind of apocalypse it is, it's the biggest event in human history and can easily overload the rest of the story, making everything else seem dull and uninteresting in comparison. IMHO, this is what happens in _The Stand_ - an incredible beginning is never matched by the rest of the book. It's usually better to start after the apocalypse (eg _The Road_, _A Canticle for Liebowitz_), and deal with it in flashback or through stories told/discovered by the characters.

I have some experience writing postapocalyptic stories. But then I'm British, so I don't want to blow my own trumpet (although the link is in my sig!)


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## Miss Sheila (Feb 15, 2014)

I'm going to throw a vote in for _The Old Man and the Wasteland_, too. Very much unlike the majority of indie fiction in the genre.

_The Pure Trilogy_ by Julianna Baggott is good, light reading too, if you don't mind weird and not-entirely plausible.

_The Windup Girl_ by Paolo Bacigalupi might also make it to the list, though be aware it may contain "trigger material" regarding abuse.

_Ship Breaker_ by Paolo Bacigalupi is another light read you might enjoy.

Have you ever tried reading graphic novels? A lot of folk discount them as being too geeky or for children, but some of the best storylines of the genre take place in graphic novels.

_V for Vendetta_ by Alan Moore is a post-apoc dystopian classic. The movie touches on a little of its greatness, but not all (that's Hollywood, for ya).

_Y: The Last Man_ series by Brian K. Vaughan is another one of the masterpieces.

Another off-beat suggestion. Try watching some English-dub anime. Again, don't dismiss them. Sure, they're cartoons, and the dialogue is often hokey, but the storylines are unique:

Akira
Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040
Origin: Spirits of the Past

I'm sure there's a bunch more suggestions I'm forgetting just at the moment.


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## ChrisWard (Mar 10, 2012)

Best sci-fi I've ever read is The Inverted World by Christopher Priest. It's rightly considered a classic of the genre. I read it because I heard it had a great twist ending and it didn't disappoint. Masterful stuff. Another sci-fi I really like but is totally different is Destiny's Road by Larry Niven.


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## Sam Kates (Aug 28, 2012)

Paul Hardy said:


> It's usually better to start after the apocalypse (eg _The Road_, _A Canticle for Liebowitz_), and deal with it in flashback or through stories told/discovered by the characters.


In your opinion. I enjoy seeing the apocalyptic event unfold so like both types of story equally. So long as they're well told...


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## Guest (Feb 15, 2014)

Wool- Hugh Howey
Jim Butcher books (though it's urban fantasy)
But I'd go to traditional first to get a feel for the genre, then move on to the deeper material. Asimov would be my pick for that.


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## Zardog (Feb 7, 2014)

I'd say _Swan Song_ was probably my favorite, but Matheson's _I am Legend_ still holds up well.

I also know about this other series where genetically altered chickens were used to reduce humanity's surplus numbers.


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## Deke (May 18, 2013)

Tangent: Why is there so much apocalyptic fiction now? It's everywhere on TV. I haven't seen so much of this genre since I was a kid in the seventies.


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## Edward W. Robertson (May 18, 2010)

#1 guess: anxiety from the 2008 crash being processed through stories.


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## redacted (Dec 16, 2013)

The Postman by David Brin is outstanding. The movie was horrendous. Edward Robertson's Breakers series is also very good. I'm still waiting for them to turn that thing into a TV mini-series.


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## Flopstick (Jul 19, 2011)

Paul Hardy said:


> Let's add some Britishness! John Wyndham's _The Day Of The Triffids_ has been mentioned, but he did more than one end-of-the-world book. There's also _The Chrysalids_, in which psychic youngsters from a puritan society long after WW3 realise they're not alone in the world, and _The Kraken Wakes_, which sees an assault from deep-sea dwelling aliens upon the world (look up the concept of the 'cosy catastrophe' for more on Wyndham)
> 
> Horror fans might enjoy James Herbert's _Domain_, the third in his Rats trilogy, which shows his mutant rats taking over after London is nuked.


I would also recommend these. In a slightly different vein, I also heartily recommend Hello America, The Drowned World and The Crystal World by J.G.Ballard. He also wrote The Wind From Nowhere, but he disavowed that one and it's not easy to find. Which reminds me, I must track down a copy.


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## Annette_g (Nov 27, 2012)

AngryGames said:


> The Road is very, very awesome. And bleak. And depressing. And fantastic. I love McCarthy. Most of the time, anyway.
> 
> The Day After is the quintessential Cold War MAD scare piece that we 80's kids grew up on.
> 
> And then there's possibly the most depressing movie ever made about post-apocalyptic scenarios:


I had nightmares for weeks after seeing Threads - they showed it to us in school, I forget for what class though!


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## KevinH (Jun 29, 2013)

_The Stand_ by Stephen King - hand's down his best book in my opinion. Enjoyed _The Postman_ by David Brin as well.

Also, I'm going to reach back and suggest a couple of oldies-but-goodies that may not be on many radar screens: 1) Hothouse by Brian Aldiss, and 2) while it's not exactly apocalyptic, the mesmerizing dystopian novel _Logan's Run_ by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson (I wish they'd do a remake of the movie).


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## dkgould (Feb 18, 2013)

KevinH said:


> _Logan's Run_ by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson (I wish they'd do a remake of the movie).


I thought I heard Ken Levine was hired to rewrite the script sometime last year so maybe they will!


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## KevinH (Jun 29, 2013)

dkgould said:


> I thought I heard Ken Levine was hired to rewrite the script sometime last year so maybe they will!


That would be awesome


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## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

I just finished reading Jo Walton's Among Others - I cannot recommend it highly enough. but it's not dystopian... not really.


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## colegrove (Dec 6, 2012)

Like several others, I vote for _The Postman_.

Also, try

_Daybreak 2250_ by Andre Norton
_Farnham's Freehold_ by Robert Heinlein


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## 31842 (Jan 11, 2011)

Angelfall by Susan Ee was fantastic! Post-apocalyptic, dystopian awesomeness!



And I'm sure you've probably read it, but if you haven't, Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle adds a comedic edge to humanity's demise:


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## Melody Simmons (Jul 8, 2012)

Now here is something different - an Apocalyptic SciFi Romance. Trust me it is good. It made it to No 1 position on Kindle for SciFi Romance. It is a strong combo of thriller/apocalyptic themes and romance:

http://www.amazon.com/Hunters-Claim-Alliance-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00HS5DYDA/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1392574351&sr=8-11&keywords=susan+smith









(Okay okay I designed the cover but I also read the book and it WAS really good!)


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Hi, to the new folks--

Didja know we have a forum where we discuss books we've read not written? I'm going to move this there!

Betsy
KB Mod


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## Micah Ackerman (Feb 16, 2014)

As far as books that I recommend. Justin Cronin "Passage" series is fantastic, but the vampire monsters aren't really on the same plain as a nuclear holocaust of deadly virus. I loved Cormac McCarthy's "The Road" but it's not the easiest read it's a lot of prose which I liked, but I'm not sure everyone would. Stephen Kings "The Stand" is great another one I like is "The War After Armageddon" By Ralph Peters, but that is as much a military thriller as it is post-apoch. "The Eleventh Plague" by Jeff Hirsch is a decent first person account, but that's for a YA audience, still it's a good read.

Hugh Howey's "Silo" Series is fantastic. If you're not hooked by "Wool" than I'm not sure what to say.

Just some of my favs
Micah


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## TWErvin2 (Aug 7, 2010)

Sheila_Guthrie said:


> Once Second After, William Forschen (spelling?) (this is a hard book to read, because of how bad things get for people)


 I'd recommend this one too. It's a near-term post-apocalyptic novel that reasonably could occur (Electro Magnetic Pulses from nuclear detonations in the upper atmosphere) and the resulting breakdown of communication, transportation, production, etc.

Link: *One Second After * by William R. Forstchen


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## Alessandra Kelley (Feb 22, 2011)

John Christopher (who famously wrote the post-alien invasion White Mountains trilogy) wrote his first book, _The Death of Grass_ in 1956.

A virus wipes out all species of grass on Earth within weeks. (Think about that. That's all grains and the major food source for some very important animals.) Civilization falls apart. It's quite bleak.

It was called _No Blade of Grass_ in the US.


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## Chad Winters (Oct 28, 2008)

I'm reading 
I love it....very well done and addicting

Just finished Neil Asher's  which was also very good


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## LSBurton (Jan 31, 2014)

Dan Simmons has a couple that fit, though they're not perhaps the end of OUR world. His 'Olympus' and 'Ilium' depict thousands of years into the future, where humanity has progressed far enough that well ... it's all a little hard to describe, but deals with the Iliad, 'Victorian' people guarded by robots, Shakespeare, orbital space stations, and robots from Saturn. Which ... somehow all makes sense in context.

His book Hyperion as well describes not the end of our world, but the end of a future era, and the opening of the time tombs, which have been progressing backwards in time from a point somewhere in the future.

Other than that, there's plenty of fine recommendations here in this thread.


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## vrabinec (May 19, 2011)

Cherise Kelley said:


> I'll 4th or 5th The Stand.


Yeah. That's such a vivd picture of the apocalyptic event happenning, that I think it has become the standard to match. I was lucky enough to read the extended version with all the stuff the editor clipped, and they had some awesome illustrations in there, too. Really a remarkable book. And I'm not exactly a King fan.


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## PCorkey (Feb 2, 2014)

When I was around 11 I discovered "The Girl Who Owned a City" by O.T. Nelson. I read and reread it and it has stayed with me ever since. It's about children surviving in a world where everyone over 12 has died of a plague. I recently discovered that the author had a philosophical agenda in writing it (he was an adherent of 'Objectivism', Ayn Rand's belief system), but, as with similar issues attending the Chronicles of Narnia, I don't much care. Neither does my inner child. There are some cool, fascinating, mind-bending ideas in this book. 

"A post-apocalyptic book for kids!" sez one amazon review. What more could you ask for?


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