Recommendations based on "Galaxias (-)"

Iain M. Banks is a true original, an author whose brilliant speculative fiction has transported us into worlds of unbounded imagination and inimitable revelatory power. Now he takes us on the ultimate trip: to the edge of possibility and to the heart of a cosmic puzzle. . . .Diplomat Byr Genar-Hofoen has been selected by the Culture to undertake a delicate and dangerous mission. The Department of Special Circumstances—the Culture's espionage and dirty tricks section—has sent him off to investigate a 2,500-year-old mystery: the sudden disappearance of a star fifty times older than the universe itself. But in seeking the secret of the lost sun, Byr risks losing himself.There is only one way to break the silence of millennia: steal the soul of the long-dead starship captain who first encountered the star, and convince her to be reborn. And in accepting this mission, Byr will be swept into a vast conspiracy that could lead the universe into an age of peace . . . or to the brink of annihilation.

The story of our future begins with the Foundation.Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American ReadFor twelve thousand years the Galactic Empire has ruled supreme. Now it is dying. Only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future—a dark age of ignorance, barbarism, and warfare that will last thirty thousand years. To preserve knowledge and save humanity, Seldon gathers the best minds in the Empire—both scientists and scholars—and brings them to a bleak planet at the edge of the galaxy to serve as a beacon of hope for future generations. He calls this sanctuary the Foundation.But soon the fledgling Foundation finds itself at the mercy of corrupt warlords rising in the wake of the receding Empire. And mankind’s last best hope is faced with an agonizing choice: submit to the barbarians and live as slaves—or take a stand for freedom and risk total destruction.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem, Reamde, and Cryptonomicon comes an exciting and thought-provoking science fiction epic—a grand story of annihilation and survival spanning five thousand years.What would happen if the world were ending?A catastrophic event renders the earth a ticking time bomb. In a feverish race against the inevitable, nations around the globe band together to devise an ambitious plan to ensure the survival of humanity far beyond our atmosphere, in outer space.But the complexities and unpredictability of human nature coupled with unforeseen challenges and dangers threaten the intrepid pioneers, until only a handful of survivors remain . . .Five thousand years later, their progeny—seven distinct races now three billion strong—embark on yet another audacious journey into the unknown . . . to an alien world utterly transformed by cataclysm and time: Earth.A writer of dazzling genius and imaginative vision, Neal Stephenson combines science, philosophy, technology, psychology, and literature in a magnificent work of speculative fiction that offers a portrait of a future that is both extraordinary and eerily recognizable. As he did in Anathem, Cryptonomicon, the Baroque Cycle, and Reamde, Stephenson explores some of our biggest ideas and perplexing challenges in a breathtaking saga that is daring, engrossing, and altogether brilliant.

The biggest SF series of the decade comes to an incredible conclusion in the ninth and final novel in James S. A. Corey's Hugo Award-winning Expanse series.NOW A MAJOR TV SERIES FROM AMAZON PRIMEHUGO AWARD WINNER FOR BEST SERIES'Interplanetary adventure the way it ought to be written' George R. R. MartinThe Laconian Empire has fallen, setting the thirteen hundred solar systems free from the rule of Winston Duarte. But the ancient enemy that killed the gate builders is awake, and the war against our universe has begun again.In the dead system of Adro, Elvi Okoye leads a desperate scientific mission to understand what the gate builders were and what destroyed them, even if it means compromising herself and the half-alien children who bear the weight of her investigation. Through the wide-flung systems of humanity, Colonel Aliana Tanaka hunts for Duarte's missing daughter. . . and the shattered emperor himself. And on the Rocinante, James Holden and his crew struggle to build a future for humanity out of the shards and ruins of all that has come before.As nearly unimaginable forces prepare to annihilate all human life, Holden and a group of unlikely allies discover a last, desperate chance to unite all of humanity, with the promise of a vast galactic civilization free from wars, factions, lies, and secrets if they win.But the price of victory may be worse than the cost of defeat.'A thrill ride of a tale . . . This is a deeply satisfying and fitting conclusion to one of the best space opera series in many years' Booklist (starred review)The Expanse series:Leviathan WakesCaliban's WarAbaddon's GateCibola BurnNemesis GamesBabylon's AshesPersepolis RisingTiamat's WrathLeviathan FallsMemory's Legion: The Complete Expanse Story CollectionPraise for the Expanse:'The science fictional equivalent of A Song of Ice and Fire' NPR Books'As close as you'll get to a Hollywood blockbuster in book form' io9.com'Great characters, excellent dialogue, memorable fights' wired.com'High adventure equalling the best space opera has to offer, cutting-edge technology and a group of unforgettable characters . . . Perhaps one of the best tales the genre has yet to produce' Library Journal'This is the future the way it's supposed to be' Wall Street Journal'Tense and thrilling' SciFiNow

When George finds a way to escape the spacecraft Artemis, where he has been trapped, he is overjoyed. Surely now he can return to Earth. But when George touches down, he knows immediately that something is wrong. There's a barren wasteland where his home town used to be, intelligent robots roam the streets, and no one will talk to George about the Earth that he used to know. With the help of an unexpected new friend, can George find out what - or who - is behind this terrible new world, before it's too late?

With eight short stories and novellas--including three original to this collection--Galactic North imparts the centuries-spanning events that have produced the dark and turbulent world of Revelation Space.

Andrew Keane, formerly a Northern colonel in the American Civil War, was now leading a mixed force of humans snatched from assorted periods in history on a desperate flight from an enemy more horrific than any nightmare. The alien Merki hordes, to whom all the humans brought to this distant world were cattle to be harvested at will, were mobilizing to destroy the humans in a payment for the assassinaton of their revered warlord. And, his own military lines overextended, Andrew saw no alternative except to retreat, burning the land behind him as he went.

The stunning conclusion to the acclaimed and prizewinning Railhead trilogy.What happens after the adventure of a lifetime? For Zen, it's a safe, comfortable life of luxury. But it's not what Zen wants. He misses the thrill of riding the rails, of dodging danger, and of breathing the air of different planets. Most of all of course he misses Nova - lost to him forever in adistant world. But then one day a mysterious message arrives - and that's all Zen needs to head right off, ready for anything. Except that no one could be ready for what he finds . . . Thrilling, thought-provoking, and breathtaking, this finale to the Railhead trilogy weaves a web of wonder, full of characters and events you will never forget.

Untouched By Human Hands......are the stacks of boxes confronting two starving explorers on an alien world. Some of their contents are digestible--and some of them are hungry!...are the "surplus female" pens of a distant planet--where wife killing is required by law, and mendacity is an act worse than death....is the Altar of Baz-Matain--until it appears in New Jersey, just north of Hoboken....is filled with fear, surprise, ruthless humor and an almost fanatical devotion to delight, as Robert Sheckley, the greatest science-fantasy writer of recent years, reaches out his hands to you.

The out-of-this-world new adventure from bestselling author of THE DANGER GANG and THE CHRISTMASAURUS, Tom Fletcher. George, Neila and Bash are the worst band on Earth. George wants them to be brilliant - but Neila has stage fright, and Bash is too distracted by his obsession with stars, aliens and faraway planets. But what they lack in talent and confidence, they make up for in heart. They're determined to blow their friends away at their school Battle of the Bands contest. But the moment they start to play... They're beamed up into space!!! Now the kids face an even bigger challenge- Battle of the Bands, but the intergalactic version. They're competing against alien bands from every galaxy! And if they don't win, they might never make it home again... Can the worst band on Earth become the best band in the universe?