Sci-fi and Heroic Fantasy discussion

I have read Transition by Ian Banks but wasn't keen. So I wonder if there are any decent books out there that use the multiverse as a theme or setting?

I love the film Source Code, The Butterfly Effect etc that deal with the idea of multiple worlds or universes.

I am currently writing my own novel using the notion of a multiverse and wondered how popular it is amongst sci fi writers and readers.

A couple of thoughts:


Amber by Roger Zelazny
Amber is a 10-book series all total. It provides an infinite number of alternate universes, all of which are "shadows" of Amber. The royalty of Amber is able to shift through these universes at will.


World of Tiers by Philip José Farmer
Has a finite number of alternate universes.


The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter
There are lots of parallel worlds (possibly infinite), and suddenly people mysteriously are told (via the internet) how to step through them with parts from Radio Shack.

Michael Moorcock ties most of his heroes together in a multiverse. The Chronicles of Corum, Elric of Melniboné, & the Rune Staff, to name 3. There are others.

There's Piers Anthony's Adept books which are about 2 linked universes.

And then there is Heinlein's later works about Lazarus Long, Number of the Beast probably explores it the most.

Heads up though because many people today find both authors to be sexist and Heinlein shows multiple partner sex/marriage and incest (he's never graphic in description though) which some people find offensive or uncomfortable.

I second trying Michael Moorcock. His concept of the Eternal Champion is one of the greatest in Heroic Fantasy and - at its time - was totally original. Depends on whether you like his style, which is solid but hasn't got flourish as such. I love it.

I agree about The Chronicles of Amber. Also, His Dark Materials takes place in a multiverse.

I think Amber might be the best of the bunch for most people to read, but Zelazny loved the idea & included it in many of his novels & stories.

He never intended to publish Creatures of Light and Darkness. It's wicked weird, but good. A blend of myths, SF, & plain strange.

He also wroteDonnerjack which is 2 universes intersecting, but one is virtual space, so has a multitude of dimensions within it.

Roadmarks is more about time, but again has multiple dimensions. This was also experimental. The book is broken into chapters (I & II) which are really time lines Of Red, the hero, & the rest of the cast, respectively. The few who can travel 'the road' through time & various realities. Supposedly, Zelazny wrote both sections linearly & then tossed the #2 chapters into the air & stuck them in between chapter 1 sections in random fashion. It makes the time flow really work.

Thanks all. That is quite a selection to go through. I'll have to keep an eye out for them. Roadmarks sounds good and I am trying to create a sense of temporal confusion for the character in my novel at the moment so will check out that one as soon as I can.

I have to add Sanderson's Cosmere - his books are all connected, though not as visible as in World of Tiers or Amber.

Poul Anderson's Operation Chaos and Three Hearts and Three Lions brush on it; A Midsummer Tempest hits it a bit more.

Planetary, Vol. 1: All Over the World and Other Stories

I have always loved this series.

Well, Harry Turtledove has buckets of material, though for my taste, he always goes one book too long in his story arcs. At least. But they're well-researched.

A short story collection Roads Not Taken: Tales of Alternate History edited Dozois and Schmidt is a great "primer" for the sub-genre.

And my publisher will smack me upside my head if I don't mention that my own book, Home on the Strange-a Brewster & Brewster Adventure is built upon a parallel wild west Earth.

OH!

I forgot the best of the best! Not fiction, but scholarly musing and speculation.

What If? 2: Eminent Historians Imagine What Might Have Been

Fantastic reading for a fan of alternate Earths. It crushes me there isn't a #3, #4 and more!

I can recommend a couple of authors who have used the multiverse concept. They are older publications, though. I don't think I've read anything recently that explored the idea, but back in the 70s and 80s it was pretty common. I remember reading the Amber books and the Adepts, but those have been covered.

Barbara Hambly has been a favorite of mine for a very long time. The Windrose Chronicles are sadly dated (do kids today even know what a floppy disc is/was?)but entertaining if you can keep yourself in the time frame and realize they didn't have wi-fi or cell phones, and that computer tech was still in its infancy and extremely cumbersome. The books used what was cutting edge tech in their day. The first in the series, The Silent Tower, was published in 1986. This series is a delightful read if you can suspend your disbelief. There's a lot of bouncing between worlds. Antryg Windrose is one of my favorite fictional wizards.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Also by Hambly is the Darwath series. The first in this set is The Time of the Dark. This was Hambly's first novel and isn't as polished as some of her later books, but is really quite good with uber-creepy bad guys and a fascinating blend of magic and science and politics.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...


Guy Gavriel Kay's Fionavar Tapestry series is another to check out. The concept: Fionavar is the original universe and all the other universes are reflections of it, with mythic events repeated over and over in each of the worlds. This is classic epic fantasy/folklore pulling from Celtic, Scandinavian, and Native American traditions. Note that GGK was Christopher Tolkien's assistant and was fresh off of working on The Silmarillion when he wrote this series, so it has a distinct Tolkienish flavor.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

One that I haven't read yet but might fit this bill is Bright of the Sky and its sequels by Kay Kenyon. According to the Amazon description, "In a land-locked galaxy that tunnels through our own, the Entire is a bizarre and seductive mix of long-lived quasi-human and alien beings gathered under a sky of fire, called the bright." I understand there's at least some moving between universes. I've liked other works of Kenyon's and this one's been on my TBR for awhile.

Something I'll add to my earlier list:


The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley

I'm not sure if putting a book on the list actually qualifies as a spoiler. :) It took me a while to figure out there was more than one universe to this story, and even longer to chart who's in which. Anyway, this sprawling, complex & brutal fantasy story definitely has a multi-verse.

Next up, a list of murder mysteries in which all 13 suspects are guilty. (Ooo, ooo, I know this one,... :)

Michele wrote: "There's Piers Anthony's Adept books which are about 2 linked universes.

And then there is Heinlein's later works about Lazarus Long, Number of the Beast probably explores it the most.

Heads up ..."

I remember reading the Apprentice Adept series by Piers Anthony. It was when I was pretty young, so I'm not sure if I read all of them - but the ones I did get to were good.

One of the universes is sci-fi, and the other fantasy. The way it used music was weird, and the way the people in the fantasy world talked I found very odd - but again, I was really young when I read them.

G33z3r wrote: "Something I'll add to my earlier list:


The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley

I'm not sure if putting a book on the list actu..."

I'm reading this now myself and was going to suggest it for this topic. I don't think that revelation really qualifies as a spoiler; that aspect of the story is discussed in every published review I've read and the title itself sort of implies it.

I was having trouble keeping track of the who's who and the where's where of things also and was getting a bit frustrated, but at about halfway through the book it's starting to come together for me and I'm getting very caught up in it now.

Andy wrote: "G33z3r wrote: "Something I'll add to my earlier list:


The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley

I'm not sure if putting a book o..."

It sounds like a great read. I will look out for it.

Andy wrote: "The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley

I'm reading this now myself..."

It has a good chance of being our October Contemporary Novel discussion topic, so I'm going to withhold further comment until then (or until it isn't an upcoming discussion, whichever.)

Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant series is pretty spectacular work in my opinion if you haven't read them yet, they are well worth the time.

The main character is a writer here on earth who has somehow contracted leprosy, losing his friends, family and is the town pariah. On a rare trip to town he is involved in an accident and is transported to an alternate world where he is healthy and whole, but so disbelieving of this sudden occurrence that one of the first things he does after his arrival goes completely against his very nature.

I'm more of a science fiction reader, but do occasionally read fantasy, and I have read all the Thomas Covenant books. Definitely recommended.

George wrote: "I'm more of a science fiction reader, but do occasionally read fantasy, and I have read all the Thomas Covenant books. Definitely recommended."
Sorry guys & gals . . . I read - no, make that "tried to read" - Thomas Covenant about 25 years ago . . . gave up about 2/3 of the way through. Second rate rip-off of High Fantasy - very poor stuff indeed. I won't write a proper review without trying to read it again - but as you may guess, this is very unlikely to happen!

Well, I did say I was mainly an SF reader (and author), and I have no idea what High Fantasy is. I liked the books well enough to read all of them and to keep them in case I want to reread them some day. Different strokes, I guess. There are some really popular authors that I don't get.

George wrote: "Different strokes, I guess..."
Yes, absolutely - all a mater of personal tastes. That is what makes life so complex - and sometimes frustrating!

My wife & I both read both Thomas Covenant trilogies as the books came out & I still have them. I have no idea why. Neither of us would ever read them again. They were long, drawn out, & REALLY depressing. Perhaps they held the same fascination as a train wreck.

Jim wrote: " I still have them. I have no idea why ..."
Beautiful illustration of the 'different strokes' points George and I were agreeing on, above: I just checked your profile. We have considerable overlap, and an 86% match - but I rated Lies of Locke Lamara at 5*, and you classified it as 'could-not-finish'
Individual tastes are a very complicated problem!

You're absolutely right, Alan. Tastes change, too. At one time, we might have eaten 'Lies' up. Obviously not now. It was given to me by a long time GR friend that also shares similar tastes in fantasy. She loved it while neither my wife nor I could get into it. We just didn't like the character nor the circuitous route the story took.

The Thomas Covenant series, for me, are hands down the best series I've ever read. I can certainly understand why it's not everyone's taste, but I've reread the lot of them (there are 3 series out now), and I'm sure will do so again. Yes they're depressing, because that's what the books are all about, but ultimately despair was always beaten. Absolutely brilliant.

Each to their own.... :-)

Preferring hard science fiction, I wouldn't put the Thomas Covenant series on the top of my list, but I did read them all and enjoyed them. Given my preferences, CJ Cherryh's Foreigner series is more my speed, for example.

Thomas Covenant is one of my favorite literary characters of all time. I read the original trilogy in high school, and I've reread it and the second trilogy (not as good as the first) multiple times over the years. I have not read the recent additions because I didn't think I could ever recapture the pure love I felt for the first books. Saltheart Foamfollower is another of my all-time fave characters! And now, I'm feeling a great urge to reread them all!

I agree with your assessment of Donaldson's two trilogies. I was very disappointed by the second, but I forced my way through it.

Rereading favorite books is an interesting experience. What I get out of the books changes—sometimes dramatically. Could it be that I have (gasp!) changed?

William wrote: "I agree with your assessment of Donaldson's two trilogies. I was very disappointed by the second, but I forced my way through it.

Rereading favorite books is an interesting experience. What I get ..."

There were actually three trilogies. I agree that the second wasn't as good as the first, but I thought the third was an improvement.

I agree with that. The third series was far better than the second; though the first remains my favourite.

I've seen some new books out by Donaldson. Is that what you are referring to? I was so put off by the second series, I haven't bothered to read him since. Maybe I'd better give him another go.

Jeff wrote: "I agree with that. The third series was far better than the second; though the first remains my favourite."

No. The third trilogy was in the same series, although Thomas Covenant was not really the major character. Donaldson also did a two volume fantasy set and a set of science fiction novels, but they were all in a different universe than the Covenant novels.

He concluded the "Final Chronicles of Thomas Covenant" in the last couple of years. This was a series of four books. I really enjoyed them. I'm not quite sure what it is about the second series that didn't quite do it for me. Something about loads of desert, the stranding on the sea that seemed to on for ages... Something that made the world devoid of the Land's beauty.

That was restored (to a certain extent) in the final series. There was still plenty of frustrating turns of events, but overall I found it highly satisfying.

George wrote: "Jeff wrote: "I agree with that. The third series was far better than the second; though the first remains my favourite."

No. The third trilogy was in the same series, although Thomas Covenant was ..."
Actually, maybe I should have said yes. The other two sets are older than the third Covenant trilogy, the last of which is only a year or two old.

Thank you. I will check it out.

George wrote: "Jeff wrote: "I agree with that. The third series was far better than the second; though the first remains my favourite."

No. The third trilogy was in the same series, although Thomas Covenant was ..."

I enjoyed the other fantasy series--The Mirror of Her Dreams and A Man Rides Through. I did not like his scifi books.