Looking through my kindle and bookshelves I realised I have virtually no female authors – any good recommendations ?
Usual reads are Peter Hamilton, Neil Asher and that sort of thing

Anne McCaffrey

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ursula_K._Le_Guin

and of course,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Shelley

For starters I’ll give you
Ursula K Leguin. Should be in every SF fans library. Left hand of Darkness is a stone cold classic but her other works Lathe of Heaven etc are also excellent.

footflaps +1, surely the greatest?

Margaret Atwood (though to my shame I’ve not actually read any of her work)

Andre Norton and C. J. Cherryh also worth checking out.

Mr Woppit – Member
Anne McCaffrey

I’m not sure I’d call her “good” – while the dragon stuff is fairly entertaining it’s pretty light-weight and cheesy…

Read Ursula K Leguin “the lathe of heaven” and won’t be bothering with any more.
Margaret Atwood’s “Handmaid’s tale” looks so depressing I gave that a miss.
Anne McCaffrey – Dragon series is as above – “fairly entertaining it’s pretty light-weight”

If you after more modern recommendations:
Ilsa J. Bick: Ashes trilogy though “young adult” seems pretty good (not got the 3rd book yet)

Wasn’t particularly taken by Ann Leckie’s “Ancillary Justice”, but it wasn’t a bad book either.

C J Cherryh has written some outstanding sci fi, the Company Wars series is gritty politics and warfare from the P.O.V. of dockers, miners, and pilots. The Faded Sun series is good too.

Elizabeth Moon wrote a good series about a “disgraced” officer turned merchant captain.

Cherie Priest has written some entertaining Steam Punk.

Trudi Canavan wrote a nice series about sorcerers – don’t be put off by her calling them magicians, it’s not about conjuring at working men’s clubs.

D.C. Fontana

Le Guin’s classic stuff pre-1980 is exceptional, landmark work. Another female pioneer of SF is James Tiptree Jr – pen name of Alice Sheldon. Excelled in the short story format.

CJ Cherryh also great, as mentioned – very people driven stories that could be set in any genre really.

Julian May (a woman) has put out some good page turners – along the lines of Anne McAffrey. Lightweight but fun to read.

Connie Willis is well regarded, wins a lot of awards, but I find her stuff dull myself.

Trudi Canavan wrote a nice series about sorcerers

Again, lightweight but entertaining – in fact I think the first trilogy was aimed at the “young adult” market. (Nothing wrong with that, of course, just something to be aware of).

Another fantasy suggestion: Robin Hobb, definitely adult fiction.

Big list here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Women_science_fiction_and_fantasy_writers

Julian May

There’s the 4-part Saga of the Exiles – then the related books:
Intervention
Jack the Bodiless
Diamond Mask
Magnificat

Good recommendations… Avoid Robin Hobb.

Ann Leckie is a rising star. Winning awards.
Lauren Beukes – Zoo City is desperate social commentary.

Cheers All, I have now downloaded a selection to expand my horizons

OK, I may be a bit controversial here but isn’t the quality of the writing more important than the sex of the writer?

I’ve never even considered whether the author was male or female when reading a book before now…

Avoid Robin Hobb.

Really? Was just about to get the Assassin’s Apprentice as it’s free on Kindle just now.

Really? Was just about to get the Assassin’s Apprentice as it’s free on Kindle just now.

I thought it was OK, certainly not something I’d actively avoid.

OK, I may be a bit controversial here but isn’t the quality of the writing more important than the sex of the writer?

Hard to tell if you’ve never actually read any books by female authors, though! There might be a difference, there might not.

OK, I may be a bit controversial here but isn’t the quality of the writing more important than the sex of the writer?

In a word, yes, but ….

I was trying to expand my horizons and felt that as most of the authors that I followed are the well know ones that routinely get touted around – hence why I know them and have read them – are male, it would a good way to find out more that I liked – i will certainly not read more than one of theirs if I don’t like them, but good to spread your wings

I was trying to expand my horizons and felt that as most of the authors that I followed are the well know ones that routinely get touted around

Apart from the female authors, another good tactic is to find one of the many “top 100 SF books” type lists, and read your way through it.

I did just that ^ & got lots of other books by the authors I liked from the 100, was entertained by stuff I didn’t expect to be, and was firmly put off other authors…. and totally left baffled by a couple of the books

Anyways off to try CJ Cherryh, as I love a new author (to me) recommendation

PS: While looking for the name of a female author I’d read, it turns out she was a man, and I always forget Julian May was a woman. So really it doesn’t matter to me.

Mary Gentle… Kind of in that weird no man’s land between fantasy and sf, but I loved Ash.

Mary Gentle wrote one of my all time fab books : the Golden Witchbreed

Read it

and totally left baffled by a couple of the books

Sounds interesting – which ones?

+1 Golden Witchbreed. Must try find a new copy of that

Off-hand Mogrim:
Flatland by Edwin Abbott Abbott
It’s not very often I just give up on a book, I’ll read books just to finish them, but this one just wasn’t for me.

Valis by Philip K. Dick, was just bizarre

I too am a Mary Gentle fan, though it’s Rats & Gargoyles and Ash that really hit the spot for me.

I am currently enjoying Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice.

I’m reading Valis at the moment, been consuming Dick at an alarming rate recently!

Valis is definitely at the weirdest end of his scale, but I’m loving it, in the home straight now and everything’s coming together beautifully.

Flatland

– Great book, really enjoyed it

been consuming Dick at an alarming rate recently!

Just couldn’t resist it could you. 😆

Andre Norton, bit old school/dated but some lovely stories and concepts.

Sargasso of Space, Plague Ship, Post Marked the Stars and The Zero Stone are my favourites.

Another name not mentioned, and it’s a mighty one – Doris Lessing. Not too many Nobel Laureates have gotten involved with SF, but Doris went all the way in with her Canopus in Argus series. Briefing for a descent into Hell is another.

It’s difficult stuff tbh – a lot of spiritual and environmental themes that have dated quite badly (IMHO), but the writing hasn’t – it’s as timeless and weighty as you’d expect. Makes for a strange mix – certainly a unique voice in SF.

66deg – Member
Just couldn’t resist it could you.

😀

It’s best pulled out when having serious discussions about books.

I need help.

Octavia E Butler

Garry_Lager – Member

Julian May (a woman) has put out some good page turners – along the lines of Anne McAffrey. Lightweight but fun to read.

Funnily enough I read her first books back in the 80s and assumed she was a woman. (Based on the style of writing I think). Picked up one in a bookshop recently, looked at the name and wondered why I had thought he was a she. Now I’m told she is actually a he and I was correct in the first place. Am confused but vindicated! 🙂

Elizabeth Bear
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Barbara Hambley
Kate Griffin
Andre Alice Norton
Most of those writers are predominantly fantasy, but nothing wrong with that if it’s harder edged, none of your rainbow unicorns and fey, pointy-eared elves!
Kate Griffin has done some great Young Adult stuff as Catherine Webb, which has a flavour of Roger Zeleazny, and is also writing more SF-type stuff, not unlike Neil Gaiman, as Clair North

Another vote for Margaret Atwood.
“Oryx and Crake” and the “Year of the Flood” are great for a prediction of the very near future.

I’ll add Linda Nagata to the list along with Jen Foehner Wells.