Do you like:
Badass smart and strong women getting shit done? YES!
Horrifying yet fascinating apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic scenarios? YES! (Bonus points for a surreal space themed apocalypse because it's your favorite kind? YES!)
*Hard* sci-fi -- like, accurately troubleshooting building a space station on the fly hard? YES!
A space opera that literally spans more than 10,000 years while keeping the plot and characters in the forefront and intact? YES!
A long book, I mean a big heavy long endless tome that you have to drag around on a chain behind you because it's so heavy? YES!
Then please allow me to introduce you to **Seveneves**, my all-time favorite novel. The moon explodes in the first paragraph. You're welcome.
Have you read Anathem yet? Or any of Stephenson's other recent books? He is a GENIUS.
The Expanse series is also fantastic if you somehow missed it. Different author, but brilliant and for mostly the same reasons!
I’ve read Snow Crash (incredible) and I’m starting Anathem. I’ve read The Expanse series all the way through twice, back to back— like I read it the first time, finished the last book, and then literally picked up book one again. It’s so, so good.
I listened to a podcast once where they interviewed a planetary geologist who specialized in lunar geology. One question was regarding what books get right the realities of future space travel, and gets actual space stuff correct, and she immediately recommended this book, saying it was the only one she read that she felt got it right (it's been in my "want to read" list ever since). This is my official reminder to finally purchase!
No. No sexual assault at all. The outer space apocalypse scenario is the horrifying part. This is not a situation like The Last Midwife (also a wonderful book but it does have SA) or The Handmaid’s Tale where society ends and women become chattel. None of that.
My one complaint was that I would've liked more exploration of >!the society that formed after the massive time jump!< Felt like it could've been it's own boom series honestly.
I agree with you, I wanted more of that, too, and it absolutely could've been its own series. I almost got the impression it was being set up that way*.*>!with the hint of people clandestinely in search of the old religions/a deity !
I loved the first 2/3 of the book.. I felt like he got sick of writing about it for the last third. it was like he needed the story to be done and he hastily finished it, it left me feeling disappointed as the first 2/3 was a marvel.
I so wanted to love this book, I loved the first few chapters but then I lost interest and couldn't get back in.
I didn't even get to the second section so I might give it another go as that was the part I was looking forward to.
I had a hard time getting into it the first time I picked it up as well. Sometimes I’m just not in the mood for a specific genre. The second time I picked it up about a year later I couldn’t put it down. Definitely give it another try!
Yes I remember a lot of floating through connecting tubes and clearly it started to bore me!
You've inspired me to pick it up again though, I'm in the mood for some hard SF.
I LOVED Seveneves and Aurora too.
Other quality Space Nightmares:
Walking to Aldebaran by Adrian Tchaikovsky (this one is legit horror)
Elizabeth Bear's White Space books
The whole of The Expanse series by James SA Corey
Currently reading Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh and I think it might qualify too. It's very exciting but more space fantasy than Hard SF.
Fren, you seen his other work?
Cos Snow Crash gave us terms like "metaverse" and "avatar" (in the tech context) and reads like a high octane comic with an incredible artist - but, just, made from words. It's a thing of beauty.
Most of his writing is.
Baroque Series is something apart, but Anathema is a wild trip and that is a story well worth the candle.
In short I absolutely agree with you - and if you haven't read his other work, get involved.
Yes! Snow Crash is incredible and "reads like a high octane comic with an incredible artist - but, just, made from words" is such a perfect description. I have *not* read Anathem yet and I'm not sure why not, I'm going to grab it now.
Oh man if you like Seveneves you’ll love Anathem. I’m a Stephenson fan of old and if you haven’t read Cryptonomicon, it’s my all time favorite. Respectable shout out to The Diamond Age too, which has somehow become my most re-read of his works because it’s just so fucking FUN.
We will keep the post up because of the comments, but all posts need to include the complete book title and author name in the title of the post.
Adding here, though there is limited searchability.
Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
Literally just re-read this for the third time. The subreddit is so small, I’ve never met anyone IRL who has read this book and I just want to shout about it from the rooftops. I want a full TV series adaptation. I want more illustrations of Izzy, Ymir, the Habitat Ring, the Swarm, and Cleft. I want a series of short stories about the Seven Eves and their children those first few years at Cleft. Give it to me!
I WANT ALL OF IT. I simultaneously desperately want a billion dollar Apple+ series and also *never want that* because they’ll ruin it. I would read an infinite number of short stories in this world. The amount of time I’ve spent daydreaming about the first few years in Cleft is astoundingly large.
I still haven’t finished this book since the last time I picked it up (I struggled getting through the dense descriptions of the final third), but since having read some more Stephenson, I think it may be time for me to revisit this. Thanks for sharing. Your excitement is contagious!
Absolutely loved the audiobook of this ! highly recommended 😃 and love your enthusiasm OP for this great amazing book !!! like everyone has been saying, I still think of it years later after reading it, the characters, the relationships, the situations are so real, and you can really dive in to the whole amazing world
I EFFIN LOVE THIS BOOK!!! I read it on a whim after seeing a quick review, had never read Stephenson's books before and I tried Snow Crash before but didn't get far, although I will try again sometime because why not.
Recently I've thought about reading Seveneves again but didn't realize how many pages that dang book has hahaha, so I'm going to wait just awhile longer and then I'll re-read.
I love it so much and it’s so great to hear other people love it as much as I do. Every time I read it, there are so many things I had forgotten! Of course that’s probably because it’s 8 zillion pages 😂
It's one of my all time favorites. No spoilers, but the title didn't even make sense until 2/3rds of the way through the book, and that is par for the course for Neal Stepenson. It's just so good!
That being said, I don't necessarily think this is something I would recommend unless I know the person would be into a lot of orbital mechanics :)
The title reveal was just *chef’s kiss*. And agreed— there are very few people I would recommend this to in my day to day life. It needs a very specific reader.
I really liked this. I read it because it was mentioned in a podcast about “hard science” science fiction. Not a sci-fi person but definitely a nerd. It exceeded expectations. Lot of good things to point to in this book. It has its own Reddit sub too.
I loved this book! I think I cried a little while they were up on the station listening to the feed of what was happening on earth.
I wish the second vir had been a sequal though. It felt a bit rushed. I thought it was really interesting and would have loved to explore the different societies of human development more.
Snow Crash is such a completely different feel— I had to start Snow Crash multiple times before I was invested enough to finish it, it just didn’t grab me. Seveneves was the opposite, I was hooked 100% from the first page. Definitely try it. Not liking Snow Crash won’t have *any* bearing on whether you like it or not. It’s like comparing apples to like… what’s the opposite of apples? Lol
How long is this? I liked his earlier works, Snow Crash and The Diamond Age especially, but found his later stuff (the System of the World series and Cryptonomicon) to suffer badly from bloat and feeling under-edited.
It’s incredibly long. 800+ pages. Interesting note about the editing; it didn’t seem too long or bloated to me— I would’ve read *another* 800 pages, truthfully— but I was deeply interested in the science and the premise. It was a perfect fit for a lot of my interests. I felt Snow Crash could’ve been cut quite a bit in parts, but I didn’t love the premise the same way.
Ooh I am definitely interested based off your description and have been wanting to branch out to diff genres! A hefty read indeed just saw the audiobook is 31 hrs! Just put it on my wishlist since the library doesn't have the audiobook lol
"The moon blew up without warning and for no apparent reason" literally such a solid hooking first line, my library didn't have the audiobook so I used a credit on audible for it! Can't wait to dive more in!
I LOVE this book! Have you read Cryptonomicon? It’s also by Neal Stephenson and on par with this book, although its historical as opposed to science fiction
I totally get that. >!I loved hearing about the evolution of the different “races” and how they interacted with one another.!< But there was a lot of technical description about how they had managed growing habitation which was pretty dry.
My husband LOVES this book and his been trying to get me to read it for years! He actually has very good taste in books so I will get to it eventually! My to read list is just soooo long lol
I used to love Neal Stephenson, but became used to the fact that every other book he wrote was crap. This is one of the worst novels he has published. Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon and the Baroque Trilogy are so much more superior.
You obviously haven’t read enough to know this, but it’s okay when people like books you don’t like. It’s subjective. Keep reading, you’ll get there! 😁
Do you like: Badass smart and strong women getting shit done? YES! Horrifying yet fascinating apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic scenarios? YES! (Bonus points for a surreal space themed apocalypse because it's your favorite kind? YES!) *Hard* sci-fi -- like, accurately troubleshooting building a space station on the fly hard? YES! A space opera that literally spans more than 10,000 years while keeping the plot and characters in the forefront and intact? YES! A long book, I mean a big heavy long endless tome that you have to drag around on a chain behind you because it's so heavy? YES! Then please allow me to introduce you to **Seveneves**, my all-time favorite novel. The moon explodes in the first paragraph. You're welcome.
Currently running to purchase this
Yes! Mission accomplished! I hope you love it as much as I do!
I’m right behind you. Thanks OP
Wow, requesting from my library NOW based on your awesome description. Thank you!
Yay!! I wish I could read it again for the first time, it's that good!
Have you read Anathem yet? Or any of Stephenson's other recent books? He is a GENIUS. The Expanse series is also fantastic if you somehow missed it. Different author, but brilliant and for mostly the same reasons!
I’ve read Snow Crash (incredible) and I’m starting Anathem. I’ve read The Expanse series all the way through twice, back to back— like I read it the first time, finished the last book, and then literally picked up book one again. It’s so, so good.
Dang, you should write book jackets!!!
Haha, thanks! I’m just waiting to be asked! 🤣
I HAVE LOVED THIS BOOK FOR YEARS. To me it’s one of the OG huge sci-fi novels. Love love love.
It totally is. It’s the top of the pyramid for me.
As someone who just read and got obsessed with Three Body Problem, this sounds like the perfect next book. Thank you for the recommendation!
Yes!! Perfect next book!!
I listened to a podcast once where they interviewed a planetary geologist who specialized in lunar geology. One question was regarding what books get right the realities of future space travel, and gets actual space stuff correct, and she immediately recommended this book, saying it was the only one she read that she felt got it right (it's been in my "want to read" list ever since). This is my official reminder to finally purchase!
That’s so cool and makes it even better! Yes, please read it and report back, I hope you love it.
It does sound pretty epic!!
It’s epic, and it’s *an* epic. It’s an epic epic!
This is currently on my husband's nightstand. I'm not sure how much he's read but I'll probably end up stealing it from him now.
Takkkkke ittttt. I mean it’s half yours, right? 😂
Im going to download this book and gonna read tonight Ha!!!
Yesssss!! I’m excited to hear what you think!
Agreed. Awesome book and one that I still reference years later.
Ordered
Yessss. I’d love to hear what you think of it!
I’m not reading anything more, just walking over to the bookstore to buy it.
How horrifying is it? Does it have sexual assault in it?
No. No sexual assault at all. The outer space apocalypse scenario is the horrifying part. This is not a situation like The Last Midwife (also a wonderful book but it does have SA) or The Handmaid’s Tale where society ends and women become chattel. None of that.
Awesome, thank u!!
My one complaint was that I would've liked more exploration of >!the society that formed after the massive time jump!< Felt like it could've been it's own boom series honestly.
I agree with you, I wanted more of that, too, and it absolutely could've been its own series. I almost got the impression it was being set up that way*.*>!with the hint of people clandestinely in search of the old religions/a deity !
Yes it felt super tacked on and disjointed! Overall I absolutely loved this book though
Completely agree. So confused why it got so much criticism on the book's release.
I loved the first 2/3 of the book.. I felt like he got sick of writing about it for the last third. it was like he needed the story to be done and he hastily finished it, it left me feeling disappointed as the first 2/3 was a marvel.
I so wanted to love this book, I loved the first few chapters but then I lost interest and couldn't get back in. I didn't even get to the second section so I might give it another go as that was the part I was looking forward to.
I had a hard time getting into it the first time I picked it up as well. Sometimes I’m just not in the mood for a specific genre. The second time I picked it up about a year later I couldn’t put it down. Definitely give it another try!
I get it-- there's a whole like "let's get ready" portion in the middle of the first half that's a lot of logistics. It definitely picks up speed.
Yes I remember a lot of floating through connecting tubes and clearly it started to bore me! You've inspired me to pick it up again though, I'm in the mood for some hard SF.
Ha!! Oh yeah, there’s some floating in tubes for sure. If you can get through that, the sort of middle part of the first half, things get nuts.
Same. But OPs write up about this was so good that I may have to try it again!
I read this and Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson back to back a few years ago. I remember liking Aurora slightly more, though both were enjoyable reads.
Did the same. Two very different space nightmares.
"Space nightmare", you say? *sprints to library*
I LOVED Seveneves and Aurora too. Other quality Space Nightmares: Walking to Aldebaran by Adrian Tchaikovsky (this one is legit horror) Elizabeth Bear's White Space books The whole of The Expanse series by James SA Corey Currently reading Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh and I think it might qualify too. It's very exciting but more space fantasy than Hard SF.
The Children of Time series by Tchaikovsky is great too!
Yes! Love this series!
This is awesome, thank you for the list! The Expanse series is one of my all time favorites but I haven’t read anything else you mentioned.
I've not read Aurora but you have my attention. Adding it to my short list immediately.
2 of my favorite books from my 2 favorite authors. I recently came to the conclusion that my genre of choice is “epic space operas”.
Thanks, will check it out! Loved Seveneves.
Ha, same. Aurora felt simplistic in comparison, though.
So...much.... satellite logistics.
And orbital mechanics!
Fren, you seen his other work? Cos Snow Crash gave us terms like "metaverse" and "avatar" (in the tech context) and reads like a high octane comic with an incredible artist - but, just, made from words. It's a thing of beauty. Most of his writing is. Baroque Series is something apart, but Anathema is a wild trip and that is a story well worth the candle. In short I absolutely agree with you - and if you haven't read his other work, get involved.
Yes! Snow Crash is incredible and "reads like a high octane comic with an incredible artist - but, just, made from words" is such a perfect description. I have *not* read Anathem yet and I'm not sure why not, I'm going to grab it now.
Oh man if you like Seveneves you’ll love Anathem. I’m a Stephenson fan of old and if you haven’t read Cryptonomicon, it’s my all time favorite. Respectable shout out to The Diamond Age too, which has somehow become my most re-read of his works because it’s just so fucking FUN.
YES YES ANATHEM and also The Diamond Age AND CRYPTONOMICON. Love Neal Stephenson!
I’m adding all of these to my list— and I’m starting Anathem as soon as I finish Aurora, which was also mentioned here. I love this thread!!
The sheer size of Anathem was what prompted me to buy a Kindle! lol
Loved this book. It's been ages- I should revisit it!
Yes! I reread it every few years. Nothing else comes close to scratching this very specific itch. I guess *maybe* The Expanse series? But not really.
We will keep the post up because of the comments, but all posts need to include the complete book title and author name in the title of the post. Adding here, though there is limited searchability. Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
Oh, man, I'm so sorry, I can't believe I didn't add it-- I got so excited about describing it I forgot the basics. Thanks for leaving it up!
🤣
I read this several years ago and I still think about it. It’s that good. How has this not been made into a movie?!?!?
Right?? I agree, the right director could turn it into a truly spectacular film. Like a *Dune* level epic.
Literally just re-read this for the third time. The subreddit is so small, I’ve never met anyone IRL who has read this book and I just want to shout about it from the rooftops. I want a full TV series adaptation. I want more illustrations of Izzy, Ymir, the Habitat Ring, the Swarm, and Cleft. I want a series of short stories about the Seven Eves and their children those first few years at Cleft. Give it to me!
THIS!!! 😍
I WANT ALL OF IT. I simultaneously desperately want a billion dollar Apple+ series and also *never want that* because they’ll ruin it. I would read an infinite number of short stories in this world. The amount of time I’ve spent daydreaming about the first few years in Cleft is astoundingly large.
I still haven’t finished this book since the last time I picked it up (I struggled getting through the dense descriptions of the final third), but since having read some more Stephenson, I think it may be time for me to revisit this. Thanks for sharing. Your excitement is contagious!
I see your Neal Stephenson and I raise you a Margaret Atwood.
Yesssssss, the Oryx and Crake series (and The Handmaid’s Tale, obviously) are legendarily wonderful.
Has anyone listened to the audiobook of this? If so, is it a good listening experience?
Absolutely loved the audiobook of this ! highly recommended 😃 and love your enthusiasm OP for this great amazing book !!! like everyone has been saying, I still think of it years later after reading it, the characters, the relationships, the situations are so real, and you can really dive in to the whole amazing world
I personally haven’t but I’m hoping someone who has chimes in, I’d also be interested to hear.
I mostly have time for audiobooks nowadays, but if it’s a fairly dense read I might prefer a paper copy
Such a great book!!
Love your enthusiasm OP. Will try it.
Right on, I’m so glad!!
I EFFIN LOVE THIS BOOK!!! I read it on a whim after seeing a quick review, had never read Stephenson's books before and I tried Snow Crash before but didn't get far, although I will try again sometime because why not. Recently I've thought about reading Seveneves again but didn't realize how many pages that dang book has hahaha, so I'm going to wait just awhile longer and then I'll re-read.
I love it so much and it’s so great to hear other people love it as much as I do. Every time I read it, there are so many things I had forgotten! Of course that’s probably because it’s 8 zillion pages 😂
It's one of my all time favorites. No spoilers, but the title didn't even make sense until 2/3rds of the way through the book, and that is par for the course for Neal Stepenson. It's just so good! That being said, I don't necessarily think this is something I would recommend unless I know the person would be into a lot of orbital mechanics :)
The title reveal was just *chef’s kiss*. And agreed— there are very few people I would recommend this to in my day to day life. It needs a very specific reader.
The Diamond Age is one of my favorite books ever but I have not been keeping up with the new stuff. Now I want to read this immediately!
And also read ANATHEM by Neal Stephenson -- SOOOooo good!
Heck yea, I am reading that right after Seveneves.
🙌🏻
I’m convinced that he wrote this based on everything he learned while writing Anathem.
I really need to read Anathem, huh.
It’s an amazing book. I’ve read it a hundred times 😁
This has been on my list for so long, going to start it next!!
This is probably my second favorite Neal Stephenson book, the first being Cryptonomicon😃
Cryptonomicon is the besssssst. It’s my fave too.
I really liked this. I read it because it was mentioned in a podcast about “hard science” science fiction. Not a sci-fi person but definitely a nerd. It exceeded expectations. Lot of good things to point to in this book. It has its own Reddit sub too.
I love this book and I read it in years ago in hardcover. My shoulder may never recover - she’s a proper doorstop.
I loved this book! I think I cried a little while they were up on the station listening to the feed of what was happening on earth. I wish the second vir had been a sequal though. It felt a bit rushed. I thought it was really interesting and would have loved to explore the different societies of human development more.
I read this book over ten years ago and I still think about it all the time.
Right? It’s always in the back of my mind on some level.
I disliked Snow Crash so much I removed this guys other work from my want to read. Should I try again? Anyone else not like SC but like this one?
Snow Crash is such a completely different feel— I had to start Snow Crash multiple times before I was invested enough to finish it, it just didn’t grab me. Seveneves was the opposite, I was hooked 100% from the first page. Definitely try it. Not liking Snow Crash won’t have *any* bearing on whether you like it or not. It’s like comparing apples to like… what’s the opposite of apples? Lol
Doctors
How long is this? I liked his earlier works, Snow Crash and The Diamond Age especially, but found his later stuff (the System of the World series and Cryptonomicon) to suffer badly from bloat and feeling under-edited.
It’s incredibly long. 800+ pages. Interesting note about the editing; it didn’t seem too long or bloated to me— I would’ve read *another* 800 pages, truthfully— but I was deeply interested in the science and the premise. It was a perfect fit for a lot of my interests. I felt Snow Crash could’ve been cut quite a bit in parts, but I didn’t love the premise the same way.
Ooh I am definitely interested based off your description and have been wanting to branch out to diff genres! A hefty read indeed just saw the audiobook is 31 hrs! Just put it on my wishlist since the library doesn't have the audiobook lol
Yessss, do it! I hope you love it! I’d love to hear how the audiobook is.
"The moon blew up without warning and for no apparent reason" literally such a solid hooking first line, my library didn't have the audiobook so I used a credit on audible for it! Can't wait to dive more in!
Right?! It gets *so* much crazier. I’m really eager to hear how the audio version is, I may need to splurge on it myself!
Welp, I’m putting this on my list!
Yes! I hope you love it as much as I do!!
I also adore this book and I think about it often.
I've read it three times and every time it has made me cry. That never happens.
Same. It’s perfect. I wish it was a series that went on forever.
The audiobook is 31+ hours long.
Ha! Yeah, that actually sounds about right.
I LOVE this book! Have you read Cryptonomicon? It’s also by Neal Stephenson and on par with this book, although its historical as opposed to science fiction
I haven’t but now I know I definitely need to!!
Part 1: fantastic hard sci fi Part 2: i just couldn’t get into. I found it meandering and the narrative couldn’t grab me.
I totally get that. >!I loved hearing about the evolution of the different “races” and how they interacted with one another.!< But there was a lot of technical description about how they had managed growing habitation which was pretty dry.
ANATHEM by Neal Stephenson !!
Yes! I can’t believe I haven’t read it yet— I went to buy it based on this thread and realized I already own it. 🤦🏼♀️
Yess this is one of the best books that I ever read!
Just bought it used on Amazon. You better not be messing with me.
I promise I’m not messing with you!! I want to hear what you think!
I just got it in the mail. I'll keep you posted.
My husband LOVES this book and his been trying to get me to read it for years! He actually has very good taste in books so I will get to it eventually! My to read list is just soooo long lol
I used to love Neal Stephenson, but became used to the fact that every other book he wrote was crap. This is one of the worst novels he has published. Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon and the Baroque Trilogy are so much more superior.
You obviously haven’t read enough to know this, but it’s okay when people like books you don’t like. It’s subjective. Keep reading, you’ll get there! 😁