I mostly bounce between Sci-fi/ Fantasy, History/Biography, and Historical Fiction. It keeps my feet on the ground and my head in the clouds. Favorite authors include Kurt Vonnegut, R. Scott Bakker, & Tolkien.
Dune by Frank Herbert
Herbert's novel takes place in the distant future amidst a feudal interstellar society where noble houses in control of individual planets, owe allegiance to the Padishah Emperor. We follow Paul Atreides, whose noble family accepts the stewardship of the desert planet Arrakis. Arrakis is the only planet with oracular spice melange, singularly considered the most vital substance in the universe and is incredibly coveted.
The story explores the multi-layered interactions of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion, as the factions of the empire confront each other in a struggle for the control of Arrakis and its spice
Abbadon's Gate by James S. A. Corey
James Holden and his crew on the salvaged Martian warship Rocinante played a role in two major events in human history: saving the Earth from the first direct proof of alien technology discovered in our solar system, and saving as many people as they could when a new form of the technology appeared on Jupiter’s moon Ganymede. As part of the first incident, the alien technology crashed on Venus, where it churned for months doing something unknown while the solar system watched. When complete, the semi-intelligent collection of chemicals flew away from Venus and built what could best be described as a Stargate, called the ring, beyond the orbit of Uranus.
The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott. Bakker
The first book in R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing series creates a remarkable world from whole cloth-its language and classes of people, its cities, religions, mysteries, taboos, and rituals. It's a world scarred by an apocalyptic past, evoking a time both two thousand years past and two thousand years into the future, as untold thousands gather for a crusade. Among them, two men and two women are ensnared by a mysterious traveler, Anasurimbor Kellhus—part warrior, part philosopher, part sorcerous, charismatic presence—from lands long thought dead. The Darkness That Comes Before is a history of this great holy war, and like all histories, the survivors write its conclusion.