What's the Name of That Book??? discussion

I would like to read some good books with female leads in sci-fi genre that are not pure erotica. I mean, some sizzling hot bed scenes are OK, but I don't want books where sex is the main plot device. Or worse, the only plot device...
For example - some authors whose books I liked (a lot):
Rachel Bach
R. Lee Smith
Ann Aguirre
Linnea Sinclair
and a few of those who just didn't do it for me:
Evangeline Anderson
Ruby Dixon
Laurann Dohner
Eve Langlais

Any help would be really appreciated:)

Golden Witchbreed
The D'neeran Factor
Crystal Singer
The Engines of God

Thanks for recs:)

Shards of Honour
Touched by an Alien Yeah, I know how it sounds...
The Valmont Contingency
Glow

Friday
To Sail Beyond the Sunset
Rite of Passage
Sassinak

Thanks for all this recommendations:). They look pretty interesting. I've already read most of Anne McCaffrey's and Elizabeth Moon's books as well as David Weber's. I also have some vague recollection of reading William C. Dietz's books but it looks like back then I was a bit too young to understand them fully (what an understatement... I was like 11 and librarian looked at me funny when I checked them out;D).

Sheri S. Tepper might be worth a look. I really liked The Visitor. The late Octavia E. Butler is another one who comes to mind. I only read her Lilith's Brood (Xenogenesis) series, but I think she wrote others with female leads.

If you find some of these I think you'll like them. Note, quite a few were written long enough ago that you have to forgive some very dated plot points- i.e. A problem that arises because there is no availablepayohone for example. But they are interesting with female leads and attempts to imagine a future. Some are spot on, some oddly completely wrong. The stories are good within their own worlds.

1. Wilhelmina Baird: Crashcourse, Clipjoint, Chaos Come Again psikosis...
https://g.co/kgs/N9USch

2. Melissa Scott: Trouble and her Friends, Dreamships, many others
https://g.co/kgs/LE8JGV

3. Ck cherryh: in particular Rimrunners https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Cherry writes so many awesome books- I love her sci fi. Harder time with the more fantasy worlds. Not all of her protagonists are female but Rimrunners Bet Yeager is fabulously satisfying. Closest in feel to the Elizabeth Moon books maybe, but grittier.

I also liked her shared universe series Merovingen Nights. The first book "Angel with a Sword" is hers and has an awesome female protagonist. Science fantasy-ish. Set in the distant future on a world with low technology and a society similar to medieval Italy. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merov...

4. The Diamond Age- Neil Stephenson. Long and complex and in a different category than most of these others. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_D...

5. Kate Johnson: the UnTied Kingdom. Light alternate world story, but fun.

6. Connie Willis: doomsday book. And if you like it you'll love Blavkout and All Clear
https://www.amazon.com/Doomsday-Book-...

7. YA, Michelle Gagnon's trilogy starts with Don't a Turn Around https://g.co/kgs/WTeCAi

8. Another YA, Gabrielle Zevin's Birthright series starting with "All these things I've Done" https://g.co/kgs/4eCd6P

9. John Barnes : Orbital Resonance

10- I second "Rite of Passage" mentioned by someone earlier.

11. Really Interesting ya/mg story called Enchantress from the Stars by sylvia engdahl https://www.amazon.com/Enchantress-St...

I have more ideas but I'm tired. Let me know if my tastes ring true for you.

Nimisha's Ship, which you may have read. Also, I never got to read it in the end, but one of Iain M Banks books, Surface Detail has a female lead I think.

And there is a series with multiple authors that you can search for by using '3013:', it is actually erotica, but in this instance the 'I read the playboy mag for the articles' actually fits. The stories and characters are pretty good, and quite often the sex is just in the way, so it's easy to skim/skip.

Sully wrote: "Sheri S. Tepper might be worth a look. I really liked The Visitor. The late Octavia E. Butler is another one who comes to mind. I only read her [book:Lili..."

A few (or likely more than that;) years ago I tried to read Grass by Sheri S. Tepper but I had only some godawful Polish translation that put me off so much that I DNF it. Though I think I should give her books one more try now that I discovered the Amazon:). Octavia E. Butler also looks very promising so thanks:).

Deede wrote: "If you find some of these I think you'll like them. Note, quite a few were written long enough ago that you have to forgive some very dated plot points- i.e. A problem that arises because there is ..."

I think that these look good. I already read most of C.J. Cherryh books and some of John Barnes' (but the case is like with Dietz's - I was perhaps a bit too young to understand fully what was going on). I am not sure if I would like The Diamond Age though. I hated Neal Stephenson's The Baroque Cycle passionately (I even bought it as paperbacks because I was so sure they would be good... now they're stacked up somewhere in my house, if I ever run out of toilet paper they would be finally put to good use). It seems that he just rubs me the wrong way;).

MJ wrote: "Nimisha's Ship, which you may have read. Also, I never got to read it in the end, but one of Iain M Banks books, Surface Detail has a female lead I thi..."

I don't think that I can survive another encounter with Banks prose anytime soon but within a year I think I will be ready to check him out;). As for this erotica series - it sounds more promising. Really:). If there is anything more than only sex going on the pages - count me in:).

Anna wrote: "MJ wrote: "Nimisha's Ship, which you may have read. Also, I never got to read it in the end, but one of Iain M Banks books, Surface Detail has a female..."

I've always shied away from Sci-fi for some reason. I think it's all the completely made up words and beyond bizarre names. But then I hate the ones that exchange known words for similar too... Stim or caff for coffee. My brain starts screaming at me to check if a teenager wrote it :/. I have less problems with most fantasy tho for some reason. I find if the characters and story aren't strong enough to grab me and distract me from the 'inventive phrasing', then there's no hope.

The 3013: is good. The first one is probably the hardest 'to get through' in terms of erotica ott. Have you ever changed from a big computer screen down to a little one...? I find myself leaning closer and trying 'to see around the edges' to the rest of the page I can't see. It's similar with these books at times, I'm trying to see around the sex to get back to the story!

I'd echo some of the recommendations already made. Also, two lesser-known recent SF novels (by indie authors) with strong, kick-butt female protagonists are Wreaths of Empire by Andrew Seddon and Dakiti by E. J. Fisch. I gave both books five stars. (Andrew is a Goodreads friend of mine, but this book earned its stars on its merits; I try to review honestly, and not all of his books have gotten five stars from me.)

From the examples you've given I've read only Rachel Bach. I absolutely loved the main character as well as the alien forms in City of Pearl and the next 5 books thought I would not compare her books as Rachel's. I would Second Elizabeth Moon though. This one: First Flight has a female lead but can't say it was that good, not memorable.

Here are few more I have listed as to read (most of those at least). Can't guarantee but suspect are with a female lead:
Artemis
On Basilisk Station
Necrotech
A Soldier's Duty
Undercity - one book!
God's War
Emissaries from the Dead
Diving into the Wreck
Cally's War
Ascension
Solitaire
Survival

P.S. If you rae looking for some different reads The Gate to Women's Country By Sherry S Tepper is amazing but is dystopia rather then sci-fi (since it's post apocalyptic), but I would highly recommend it.
Also the Xenogenesis by Octavia Butler. I beleive you can still find the short story bloodchild (not the collection) for free online (On amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B... ).

Ellie's comment above, about possibly finding Octavia Butler's excellent short story "Bloodchild" for free online, prompted me to do a search for another of her stories, "Speech Sounds," which I personally like even better. It's also SF (I consider post-apocalyptic fiction to be a branch of SF) and has a strong female protagonist, Valerie Rye. It can be read for free at this link: http://boblyman.net/englt392/texts/sp... . Note: it has some violence and unmarried (but not explicit) sex.

I'll toss in a few additional

Steal Across the Sky and Nothing Human by Nancy Kress.

This Alien Shore by C.S. Friedman

Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chaing. This is a book of short stories. Some from a female POV, some from male, and some mixed. All of them are pretty much excellent though.

Shards of Honor by Loid McMaster Bujold. The first book in the Vorkosigan series. The first two are from a female's POV. The rest of the series from male, though the series is jammed packed with strong female characters.

Dragon's Egg by Robert L Forward - mixed POV, some male, some female.

Blind Lake by Robert Charles Wilson. I believe this was a primarily female POV, bt my memory is a little foggy.

The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord
I haven't gotten around to reading this one myself yet but its on my list.

The Quiet Invasion by Sarah Zettel

A Thousand Words for Stranger by Julie E. Czerneda

Not usually my thing, but a mix of erotica and SF is the Skolian Empire series by Catherine Asaro. The first book is Primary Inversion. The books change points of view. Some female, some male, some mixed. But the overall story arc is cool even when ignoring the sex.

Just remembered this one as well: Jennifer Government

These are so similar to what you listed that you may have already read them:

Jayne Castle's Harmony series Ghost Hunter
Robin D. Owens Celta's Heartmates series Heart Mate
Susan Grant Contact
Patti O'Shea Ravyn's Flight
Kathleen Nance Day of Fire
Crimson City series by several authors Seduced by Crimson
P.N. Elrod's The Hanged Man
Marissa Meyer's Cinder

Sorry another one: Crossover

Edit - more: Valor's Choice. The Price of the Stars

Re Ellie's comment (as part of message 16) about Olivia Butler's "Bloodchild" possibly being available for free online, it is, and here's that link: http://boblyman.net/englt392/texts/bl... .

Thanks for all recs so far, they are all great:). I think that these would keep me occupied for a few months at least:).