Editor in Chief Bill | 01 Jan 2016 6:24 p.m. PST |
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John the OFM | 01 Jan 2016 6:46 p.m. PST |
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Ed Mohrmann | 01 Jan 2016 6:48 p.m. PST |
Starship Troopers The next 4 would be any of Drake's 'Hammer's Slammers' novels |
JimSelzer | 01 Jan 2016 6:50 p.m. PST |
Space Vikings by H Beam Piper Hammer's Slammers by David Drake Watch on the Rhine by John Ringo Starship Trooper By Robert Heinlien Any Honor Harrington By David Weber |
Coyotepunc and Hatshepsuut | 01 Jan 2016 6:54 p.m. PST |
Uller Uprising, by H. Beam Piper. |
RavenscraftCybernetics | 01 Jan 2016 6:55 p.m. PST |
The Starfisher Trilogy Forever War Armor The Darkwar Trilogy Footfall |
Norman D Landings | 01 Jan 2016 7:11 p.m. PST |
In no particular order: Forever War (Joe Haldeman) Starship Troopers (Heinlein) Legion of the Damned (Wm. C Dietz) Excession (Iain M Banks) Dune Frank Herbert I dithered over maybe 'Janissaries' (Jerry Pournelle – modern-day troops transported to a historical setting) or 'The High Crusade' (Poul Anderson, Medieval troops transported to a high-tech setting) Peter F. Hamilton's space battle and firefight sequences in the 'Night's Dawn' series were brilliant – but I don't think it constitutes dedicated 'Military Sci Fi'. David Drake is purposely absent – thought his vision of future warfare was strangely dated and I never got on with his writing style. |
John the OFM | 01 Jan 2016 7:13 p.m. PST |
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rorymac | 01 Jan 2016 7:49 p.m. PST |
Any of the above plus the three Fifth Foreign Legion novels. |
15th Hussar | 01 Jan 2016 7:54 p.m. PST |
The "Small Colonial War" trilogy by Robert Frezza. |
Saber6 | 01 Jan 2016 8:21 p.m. PST |
I'll just list Authors Frezza Pournelle Drake Piper Dickson |
miniMo | 01 Jan 2016 8:28 p.m. PST |
The Thrawn Trilogy, Timothy Zahn |
artaxerxes | 01 Jan 2016 8:29 p.m. PST |
Pournelle's Falkenberg's Legion series and the Dorsai series by Gordon R. Dickson. |
Bill McHarg | 01 Jan 2016 8:41 p.m. PST |
This Corner of the Universe by Britt Ringel. Hands down the best spaceship combat story I have ever read. The first 15 pages are a little strange, but then he gets assigned to take his frigate into a system where there is only a mining operation, to protect the mining company from people trying to hijack the ore. The rest of the book is a terrific story with the best combat scenes I have ever read. The best part is its the first book of a 5 book series, and its completed so you can read your guts out. |
79thPA | 01 Jan 2016 9:30 p.m. PST |
Does "Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen" count? Star Guard |
Wackmole9 | 01 Jan 2016 9:36 p.m. PST |
Starship Trooper By Robert Heinlien and then anything by H Beam Piper |
Bashytubits | 01 Jan 2016 9:47 p.m. PST |
What is wrong with you guys? The high crusade as well as Fred Saberhagens Bolo series. Drake does a bunch of good stuff, hammers slammers, ranks of bronze. |
McWong73 | 01 Jan 2016 10:30 p.m. PST |
Starship Troopers and Hammer's Slammers. |
Dynaman8789 | 01 Jan 2016 10:34 p.m. PST |
Starship Troopers. Ender's Game. Nothing else really comes close, not sure why since many of them are excellent books. I've not yet read The Forever War however so perhaps it would be on the list. |
wrgmr1 | 01 Jan 2016 11:05 p.m. PST |
The Forever War Enders Game |
Asteroid X | 01 Jan 2016 11:49 p.m. PST |
This is an hard one! I do not know if I can reduce it to 5 novels individually, but maybe by author, as well. Joe Nobody's series of futuristic military novel series, 'Holding Their Own' is definitely in my Top 5. Heinlein's 'Starship Troopers' would also be in my Top 5. A. American's 'Home' series is in my Top 5. G. Micheal Hopf's 'New World' series may also be a solid contender! James Wesley Rawles also writes the 'Patriots' future military novels. I just started Raymond L. Weil's 'The Lost Fleet' so I can't really say too much about it one way or another, other than it seems okay. Now, if only Alistair Maclean would have written sci fi … |
d88mm1940 | 02 Jan 2016 12:27 a.m. PST |
"Armor", by John Steakley is the best. Elizabeth Moon's Ky Vatta series is so good that I had to buy the last one in hardback because I couldn't wait for the paperback version. The old school Dorsai series was great for its time. The Bolo stories are unforgettable. "On the bounce'… |
Huscarle | 02 Jan 2016 5:01 a.m. PST |
Falkenberg's Legion (& sequels) Forever War Starship Troopers On Basilisk Station does Poul Anderson's Flandry novels count? If not, then either the Man-Kzin Wars or Bolo series. |
Mute Bystander | 02 Jan 2016 7:37 a.m. PST |
In no particular order BOLO Starship Trooper Beast Master (all four books, in hardback) Russian Amerika Star Ranger Also rans:: Star Guard The Sioux Spaceman Hammer's Slammers The Forever War Other than Burroughs' Beyond the Farthest Star ( which is okay at best) those are what I have on my bookshelves for SF. West of Honor The Mercenary Peace Company |
Legion 4 | 02 Jan 2016 9:25 a.m. PST |
Hammer's Slammers series and Starship Troopers (the book of course … not that abdominal movie !) … |
John Treadaway | 02 Jan 2016 11:03 a.m. PST |
Ummmm ooooh let me see…. Apart from the answer y'all know I'm gonna give: Forever War Starship Troopers And – for laughs – Bill the Galactic Hero John Treadaway hammers-slammers.com PS : my favourite Slammers story is probably The Sharp End but they're all pretty good in my estimation |
mad monkey 1 | 02 Jan 2016 1:10 p.m. PST |
Reading that now for the umpteenth time. Hammers Slammers novels Markus Kloos Frontline series Starship Troopers Space Viking Old Man's War Many more… |
Stealth1000 | 02 Jan 2016 1:32 p.m. PST |
Lost fleet The nameless war trilogy Star wars novels Black fleet crisis Elizabeth Moon's Ky Vatta |
brass1 | 02 Jan 2016 1:56 p.m. PST |
1. A Small Colonial War (Frezza) 2. Passage At Arms (Cook) 3. Old Man's War (Scalzi) 4. Armor (Steakley) 5. Forever War (Haldeman) #1 is the first in a trilogy; the others are almost as good as the first. #2 is Das Boot in space. I also recommend Cook's Starfisher Trilogy and The Dragon Never Sleeps. The Dread Empire's Fall series by Walter Jon Wiliams is excellent. LT |
15mm and 28mm Fanatik | 02 Jan 2016 7:46 p.m. PST |
I think we need to break it down into the two main categories: grunt combat and fleet actions. |
Ironwolf | 02 Jan 2016 10:21 p.m. PST |
Armor by John Steakley Starship Troopers The Clone Series by Steven Kent Battletech Warrior series by Stackpole From my younger days. Helmsman Series by Bill Baldwin |
Balthazar Marduk | 03 Jan 2016 12:26 a.m. PST |
Ender's Game, Ender's Shadow series, Necropolis and The Bolo anthology by David Weber. That's my five. |
Only Warlock | 03 Jan 2016 8:27 a.m. PST |
Bolo, Hammer's Slammers, Armor (John Steakley), Starship Troopers, Passage at Arms. |
Lardie the Great | 03 Jan 2016 9:39 a.m. PST |
Phil Richards, Jay Allen, John Ringo, Robert Heinlein and someone else…. Phil Richards' Union series really recomended. Jay Allen's Crimson Worlds Ground war and space combat. John Ringo's Posleen War classic stuff. |
Sargonarhes | 03 Jan 2016 7:05 p.m. PST |
Legend of Galactic Heroes (at least it will be once it's translated and released in English) Starship Troopers Lensman The Dirigent Mercenary Corps Mobile Suit Gundam (yes there was a novelization of it as well.) |
Paint it Pink | 04 Jan 2016 8:15 a.m. PST |
How does one compare say the Cruel Sea with All Quiet of the Western Front? I ask because that's the same problem one has when asking for the top Mil-SF novels. There's been a lot of good suggestions here. My five are (subject to being able to change my mind and purely based on number of times I've re-read them), and in no particular order are: 1. The Heritage Trilogy by Ian Douglas. 2. Tales of the Starwolf by David Gerrold. 3. Starship Troopers by Robert A Heinlein. 4. The Honor Harrington series by David Webber (first five). 5. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. Others which I think are good and have read more than once:
1. The Forever War by Joe Haldeman. 2. We All Died at Breakaway Station by Richard C. Meredith. 3. Dorsai series by Gordon R Dickson. 4. The Posleen series by John Ringo. 5. The Freehold series by Michael Z. Williamson Others I've read once and may read again at some point:
1. The Orphanage series by Robert Buettner. 2. Old Man's War series by John Scalzi. 3. The Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell. 4. The Sten series by Chris Bunch & Allan Cole. 5. A Small Colonial War trilogy by Robert Frezza. 6. The War Strider series by William H. Keith jr. 7. Hammer Slammers by David Drake. 8. Passage At Arms by Glen Cook 9. The Dread Empire's Fall series by Walter Jon Wiliams. 10. The Compleat Bolo by Keith Laumer (put here because it's a collection of short stories and this volumes compiles them all and I've only read the collection once but have read some of the stories more than once – it's confusing). And I could go on. What I will say is that a lot of Mil-SF is only mildly military. Warning the link is to TV Tropes and you may lose hours of your life perusing the links within. link |
boy wundyr x | 04 Jan 2016 9:10 a.m. PST |
Sticking just to novels (rather than series): - The Warrior by David Drake - Rolling Hot, also by Drake - Sten by Chris Bunch - Star Risk Ltd., also by Bunch - Starship Troopers I think maybe I need to branch out on my reading, although there are some good stories that I didn't think really qualify as novels (e.g. most of the Bolo stuff I've read has been in the short story format). And I do like the Heirs to the Empire trilogy by Timothy Zahn in the now-retired expanded Star Wars universe. |
Oberlindes Sol LIC | 04 Jan 2016 6:16 p.m. PST |
Keith Laumer's Bolo stories are high on my list. Gordon Dickson, Tactics of Mistake. I was a fencer when I first read it, so it really resonated. It's held up since then, too. I agree with the other comments above. |
Tiberius | 05 Jan 2016 12:19 a.m. PST |
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CAPTAIN BEEFHEART | 05 Jan 2016 5:00 a.m. PST |
Not to mention the many short stories that can be found in anthologies in and out of print. |
Hafen von Schlockenberg | 06 Jan 2016 2:27 p.m. PST |
John Treadaway,since you listed them both,you are aware,aren't you,that the original Bill,the Galactic Hero was a satire aimed directly at Starship Troopers? First published in Galaxy Magazine as "The Starsloggers". That story and 1984 enabled me to understand,and survive,high school. |
John the Greater | 06 Jan 2016 3:01 p.m. PST |
I have always wanted to game the warfare from The Faded Sun by C. J. Cherryh. |
Dasher | 12 Jan 2016 12:51 a.m. PST |
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