Books like 'Alternate Realities'
Readers who enjoyed Alternate Realities by C.J. Cherryh also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
sc-fi hard sci-fi aliens space-opera
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Nightfall and Other Stories by Isaac Asimov
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsA collection of early Asimov short stories, showcasing the development of the author's oeuvre. The title comes from Asimov's breakthrough short story.CONTENTS:Nightfall - Astounding, Sept 1941Green Patches - Galaxy, Nov 1950Hostess - Galaxy, May 1951Breeds There a Man . . -
![A Hop, Skip and a Jump by Mackey Chandler]()
A Hop, Skip and a Jump by Mackey Chandler
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLee has a lot going for her, tons of money, true friends who will stand by her, an unexpected bonus of extended life from advanced medial treatments, and a start at unraveling some of the pesky secrets in the stars. But there is so much to do to take advantage of all these opportunities that she's overwhelmed. Keeping all they've gained may not be easy... -
![Secrets in the Stars by Mackey Chandler]()
Secrets in the Stars by Mackey Chandler
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen Lee Anderson and her parents discovered a new world teeming with life, it was the dream of every explorer: they were rich beyond their imaginations. But tragedy struck when a herd of creatures overran their camp and killed her parents. The only other adult in her life had been their partner Gordon, who adopted her as parent. Which didn’t turn out to be easy, because he wasn’t human... -
![School Days by Nathan Lowell]()
School Days by Nathan Lowell
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA New ShipA New CrewA Different Kind of MissionWhen Manchester Yards donates a new training vessel to the Merchant Officer Academy at Port Newmar, Alys Giggone recalls the Chernyakova.She wants Ishmael Wang and his crew to take a crew of cadets into the Deep Dark. They have to sort out the crews of two ships, figure out what lessons they need to teach, and who will get those lessons... -
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![The Reality Dysfunction 1: Emergence by Peter F. Hamilton]()
The Reality Dysfunction 1: Emergence by Peter F. Hamilton
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn the far future, humanity has divided into two diametrically opposed groups. The Edenists are genetically engineered space-dwellers with telepathic affinity for their biotechnological homes and ships. The Adamists, effectively the Luddites of the future, are willing to pioneer new worlds, much as their ancestors did hundreds of years ago... -
![The Neutronium Alchemist 1: Consolidation by Peter F. Hamilton]()
The Neutronium Alchemist 1: Consolidation by Peter F. Hamilton
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsHumanity is in incredible peril. The minds of those long dead are taking over the bodies of the living, in increasingly alarming numbers. Joshua Calvert is desperately trying to recover a "doomsday weapon", an instrument that might blast the dead back into oblivion--but in the wrong hands, it could mean the end of the human race... -
![Conspirator by C.J. Cherryh]()
Conspirator by C.J. Cherryh
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFirst in a brand-new "Foreigner" trilogy from Hugo Award winning author C. J. Cherryh. Cajeiri is the young son of the powerful leader of the Western Association-and he has become a target for forces bent on destroying his father's rule. For Cajeiri is the first "ateva" youth to have lived in a human environment... -
![The Life of the Mind by John Scalzi]()
The Life of the Mind by John Scalzi
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsPart one of the four parts of the full-length novel, The End of All Things.A down-on-his-luck Colonial Union starship pilot finds himself pressed into serving a harsh master-in a mission against the CU. But his kidnappers may have underestimated his knowledge of the ship that they have, quite literally, bound him to piloting... -
![The Neutronium Alchemist 2: Conflict by Peter F. Hamilton]()
The Neutronium Alchemist 2: Conflict by Peter F. Hamilton
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsThe souls of those long dead are entering the universe at an alarming rate. Stealing the bodies of the living, they are grouping together into powerful consortiums led by leaders from history. An increasingly desperate Confederation Navy is struggling to stem the tide as the race for the universe's most powerful weapon begins... -
![The Naked God 1: Flight by Peter F. Hamilton]()
The Naked God 1: Flight by Peter F. Hamilton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsThis breathtaking climax to the acclaimed saga of "The Reality Dysfunction" and "The Neutronium Alchemist" finds the Confederation on the verge of collapse, as more and more star systems fall to the Possessed. An alien god may hold the solution to the crisis--if Joshua and Syrinx can discover it in time... -
![Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio]()
Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe third novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path that can only end in fire.Hadrian has been serving the Empire in military engagements against the Cielcin, the vicious alien civilization bent on humanity's destruction... -
![Wherever Seeds May Fall by Peter Cawdron]()
Wherever Seeds May Fall by Peter Cawdron
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsAstronomers from around the world watch in awe as an extrasolar comet approaches Saturn, being drawn in by its immense gravity. When the comet grazes the planet rather than plunging beneath the clouds, speculation is rife... -
![Enemies on All Sides by Michael Chatfield, Dawn Chapman]()
Enemies on All Sides by Michael Chatfield, Dawn Chapman
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe game never changes, only the players do. Others might call it rebellion, call it cowardice. The Vanguard will not forgive, nor will they forget. Their trust lays with one another, in those who have shed blood with them and joined the Net. Empires, governments, leaders, alliances, planets, corporations—many have fallen in humanity’s past... -
![Peacemaker by C.J. Cherryh]()
Peacemaker by C.J. Cherryh
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsAt last—Cajeiri has his young guests from the starship, three young folk entranced by weather and trees and creatures with minds of their own. It’s all he dreamed of.. -
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![The Last Dancer by Daniel Keys Moran]()
The Last Dancer by Daniel Keys Moran
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Manhattan-based Unification government controls the earth, but rebellion brews in Occupied America as the American Revolution's tricentennial approaches... -
![Unstable Prototypes by Joseph R. Lallo]()
Unstable Prototypes by Joseph R. Lallo
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFollowing his last adventure, Trevor "Lex" Alexander's life has managed to return to normal. He's back to splitting his time between delivering packages and transporting passengers, along with the occasional foray into testing highly experimental equipment... -
![Deep Black (Infinite Sky #1) by Samuel Best]()
Deep Black (Infinite Sky #1) by Samuel Best
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTwo crews return to Titan. Who will survive?Titan. Sixth moon of Saturn. A deadly enigma harboring the greatest secret in the history of humankind.In the wake of the first mission, two companies with very different goals plot a return to that distant moon. Their ships are safer, their technology has improved…and they want answers... -
![Valkyrie Rising by Evan Currie]()
Valkyrie Rising by Evan Currie
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTwo years after the initial invasion of Hayden's World, the newly reinforced Hayden Militia is in a state of stalemate with the remaining enemy forces but neither side is content to leave things at that.The alien alliance has dispatched their varsity to clean up the resistance on Hayden while the USF has officially activated Task Force V, the latest and most advanced combat ships built by humans... -
![Diamond Mask by Julian May]()
Diamond Mask by Julian May
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe 21st century was drawing to a close, and metapsychic humankind was poised at last to achieve Unity to be admitted into the group mind of the already unified alien races of the Galactic Milieu. But a growing corps of rebels was plotting to keep the people of Earth forever separate in the name of human individuality...Categorized as:
aliens space-opera action-adventure adult anthologies cyberpunk female-author fiction -
![Invaders by Laurence E. Dahners]()
Invaders by Laurence E. Dahners
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 15 ratings“Invaders” is about events that occur several years after those in the novel “Disc.” GSI (Gettnor Space Industries) is beginning to investigate our solar system and mine the asteroids. Aircraft and automobile companies are beginning to switch over to thrusters from their more traditional products. New uses for thrusters are popping up in the healthcare and sports industries...Categorized as:
aliens space-opera action-adventure book disability fiction first-contact hard-sci-fi -
![The Gap Into Madness: Chaos and Order by Stephen R. Donaldson]()
The Gap Into Madness: Chaos and Order by Stephen R. Donaldson
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsAs the planetoid Thanatos Minor explodes into atoms, a specially-fitted cruiser escapes the mass destruction and hurtles into space only a step ahead of hostile pursuit. On board Trumpet are a handful of bedraggled fugitives from an outlaw world, old enemies suddenly and violently thrown together in a desperate bid for survival... -
![Tales of Known Space: The Universe of Larry Niven by Larry Niven, Rick Sternbach]()
Tales of Known Space: The Universe of Larry Niven by Larry Niven, Rick Sternbach
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsRanging from the 20th Century to the 31st, these interconnected stories trace Man's expansion and colonization throughout the galaxy...Becalmed in hellHowie's spaceship had a malfunction...but it might be only psychosomatic!Wait it outHe was trapped on Pluto...and all his assets were frozen!The borderland of SolForward possessed the ultimate weapon..Categorized as:
aliens space-opera action-adventure adult anthologies fiction hard-sci-fi solar-system -
![Accord of Honor by Kevin O. McLaughlin]()
Accord of Honor by Kevin O. McLaughlin
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWar over energy resources devastated the Earth and her colony on the moon. A new agreement was reached between the nations of the world: The Lunar Accord. Designed to end the possibility of war in space for all time, it bars nations or individuals from arming ships in space. Twenty peaceful years have passed since the Accord was signed... -
![The Orphan in Near-Space by Laer Carroll]()
The Orphan in Near-Space by Laer Carroll
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsJane Kuznetsov, orphan of some cataclysmic stellar event a big fraction of a million years ago, or maybe several times that, is now a captain in the U.S. Air Force, the part informally called the Space Force. She is leading a crew of four friends and fellow Space Force officers doing research.She can travel routinely to the World Space Station to carry out that research and does so... -
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![Revelation: Ascendancy: Book 1 by D. Ward Cornell]()
Revelation: Ascendancy: Book 1 by D. Ward Cornell
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFirst Contact, told from the alien's perspective. Newly edited and released. Michael Baker is a 35 year old, natural born, American citizen from Texas, a successful entrepreneur and amateur astronomer. The scientific community mocks him when he publishes the time and coordinates where a supernova will occur. When it occurs, people start wondering who Michael is... -
![Fuzzies and Other People by H. Beam Piper]()
Fuzzies and Other People by H. Beam Piper
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsThe friendship between human Jack Holloway and the small, golden-furred creatures of the planet Zarathustra has a profound impact on both Holloway and the Fuzzies... -
![The Gap Into Power: A Dark and Hungry God Arises by Stephen R. Donaldson]()
The Gap Into Power: A Dark and Hungry God Arises by Stephen R. Donaldson
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsA master storyteller, Stephen R. Donaldson established a worldwide reputation with his unforgettable, critically acclaimed fantasy series The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant. Then, with The Real Story and Forbidden Knowledge, he launched a thrilling new science fiction series. Now the galactic epic continues as humanity struggles against the forces of ultimate evil--and its own dark nature... -
![Neutron Star by Larry Niven]()
Neutron Star by Larry Niven
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsCome to Larry Niven's Universe and meet all the natives: Thrints, Bandersnatchi, Puppeteers -- and a host of other wonderfully created characters.Visit Lookitthat, Down, and Jinx -- indeed, an entire galaxy of planets found only in these stories that trace man's expansion and colonization throughout Known Space.A spectacular cycle of the future . . -
![Heirs of Empire by David Weber]()
Heirs of Empire by David Weber
Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsRestoring the empire that had been destroyed 45,000 years earlier, Emperor Colin finds problems in the genocidal Achuultani and in his children Sean and Harriet, who have been marooned on a hostile planet...Categorized as:
aliens space-opera action-adventure adult alternate-history anthologies audiobook fiction -
![The Gangster by Scott Sigler]()
The Gangster by Scott Sigler
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsTHE GANGSTER is the sixth book in the Galactic Football League series.The ongoing mental battle between star quarterback Quentin Barnes and team owner Gredok the Splithead is coming to a head. Endless threats and the promise of ultraviolence hangs on their every word... -
![Claws That Catch by John Ringo, Travis S. Taylor]()
Claws That Catch by John Ringo, Travis S. Taylor
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIt's Not Over Til The Skinny Lady Sings . . . Working off of a piece of intelligence from the alien Hexosehr, the Vorpal Blade is dispatched to investigate rumors of an ancient and powerful civilization that may have been the creators of the “black box” that drives humanity's only space ship... -
![Ships of the Line by Doug Drexler, Michael Okuda]()
Ships of the Line by Doug Drexler, Michael Okuda
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThey dared to risk it all in a skiff of reeds or leather, on a ship of wood or steel, knowing the only thing between them and certain death was their ship. To explore, to seek out what lay beyond the close and comfortable, every explorer had to embrace danger. And as they did so, what arose was a mystical bond, a passion for the ships that carried them... -
![Crystal Mentality by Max Harms]()
Crystal Mentality by Max Harms
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFleeing the humans whose love she craves, Face has hijacked an alien ship and headed for Mars. But the Martians, who colonized their desert planet to escape Earth's high-tech decadence, did not invite the soulless android... -
![Red Limit Freeway by John DeChancie]()
Red Limit Freeway by John DeChancie
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsJake McGraw is a man on the run from half the universe. After stumbling upon what seems to be the fabled roadmap to the stars, Jake must outrun the most detestable vermin and roadbugs in the galaxy and the only thing separating him from them is his tattered starrig. In the lawless region of space Jake must keep his rig running if he knows what-s good for him... -
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![Pirates Bane by Chris Hechtl]()
Pirates Bane by Chris Hechtl
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFresh from fighting the ghost of a terrifying bioweapon On Epsilon Triangula, Fleet Admiral John Henry Irons has taken on a new task, to get to the fabled star system of Bek on the other side of the sector. But to do that the admiral must do what is now unheard of, a long jump through uncharted space. The jump is a test of man and machine... -
![Ghosts from the Past by Chris Hechtl]()
Ghosts from the Past by Chris Hechtl
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFleet admiral John Henry Irons has been busy. After waking in the Senka system he has crisscrossed the system, having a series of adventures and ups and downs along the way. He's made some new friends and met old ones. He has also made some powerful enemies. But the call to war is inevitable. Those who thrive on destruction wish him and the civilization he is trying to rebuild ill will... -
![Voyages of the Orphan by Laer Carroll]()
Voyages of the Orphan by Laer Carroll
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsJane Kuznetsov has long wanted to travel among the stars. But first she must travel the Solar System, gaining the capabilities and the expertise to do so. Along the way she discovers that the Earth system has surprises. Such that once Cats, those blue-furred six-limbed near centaurs, lived in the asteroids. And even on Mars... -
![Jethro Goes to War by Chris Hechtl]()
Jethro Goes to War by Chris Hechtl
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen the wandering engineer was forced out of Pyrax he left a small but growing group of military officers and enlisted. These men, women, and non humans are determined to restore the Federation despite the corrupt politicians standing in their way. They have to pick up the pieces Fleet Admiral Irons has left behind and soldier on without him in the hope that he'll return someday... -
![Blowback by Kristine Kathryn Rusch]()
Blowback by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe Moon, shaken by the Anniversary Day tragedies, deals with devastation. The Earth Alliance believes another attack imminent, but no one knows where or when it will strike. Just like no one knows who ordered the attacks in the first place.The Moon’s chief security office, Noelle DeRicci, does her best to hold the United Domes government together... -
![Deep Navigation by Alastair Reynolds]()
Deep Navigation by Alastair Reynolds
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDeep Navigation is the 2010 Boskone Book by Boskone’s Guest of Honor Alastair Reynolds. It contains a broad spectrum of his work, from his first published story, "Nunivak Snowflakes," through "The Receivers" and "Monkey Suit," both published within the last year, plus an introduction by his friend, and former Boskone Guest, Stephen Baxter. It is well-known that the scope of Dr... -
![The Deep Beyond: Cuckoo's Egg / Serpent's Reach (Union-Alliance Universe) by C.J. Cherryh]()
The Deep Beyond: Cuckoo's Egg / Serpent's Reach (Union-Alliance Universe) by C.J. Cherryh
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsTwo of Cherryh's stand-alone SF novels--including the Hugo Award finalist "Cuckoo's Egg"--are now available in this omnibus volume. Original.Cuckoo's EggThey named him Thorn. They told him he was of their people, although he was so different. He was ugly in their eyes, strange, sleek-skinned instead of furred, clawless, different... -
![Three Books of Known Space by Larry Niven]()
Three Books of Known Space by Larry Niven
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLet three complete books in one take you on a dazzling journey into science fiction's most famous future history: Known Space!WORLD OF PTAVVSKzanol was a thrint from a distant galaxy. He had been trapped on Earth in a time-stasis field for two billion years. Now he was on the loose, and telepath Larry Greenberg knew everything he was thinking. Thrints lived to plunder and enslave lesser planets... -
![The Eons-Lost Orphan by Laer Carroll]()
The Eons-Lost Orphan by Laer Carroll
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsJane Doe remembered nothing about her past when she awoke naked in a park. She was unhurt and seemed 14 years old, a small pretty blond. In the hospital and later in an orphanage her intelligence was found to be so high it could not be measured. She liked people and made friends easily. She was also incredibly agile and tough. She was adopted by a professor and his retired school-principal wife... -
![The Gabble And Other Stories by Neal Asher]()
The Gabble And Other Stories by Neal Asher
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsMost of Neal Asher's stories are set in a galactic future-scape called 'The Polity', and with this collection of marvellously inventive and action-packed short stories, he takes us further into the manifold diversities of that amazing universe... -
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![The Stars at War by David Weber, Steve White]()
The Stars at War by David Weber, Steve White
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCrusade: Neither side in the Human-Orion war was strong enough to defeat the other, so it fizzled into an uneasy peace filled with hatred and mistrust on both sides. Then a ship appeared from the dim mists of half-forgotten history, and fired on the Orion sentry ship, igniting the fires of interstellar war anew, in a quest to free Holy Mother Terra... -
![Hell's Faire by John Ringo]()
Hell's Faire by John Ringo
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWith the defenses of the Southern Appalachians sundered, the only thing standing between the ravening Posleen hordes and the soft interior of the Cumberland Plateau are the veterans of 555th Mobile Infantry. Dropped into Rabun Pass, with a couple of million Posleen behind them and fourteen million to the front, the only question is which will run out first: power, bullets or bodies...Categorized as:
aliens space-opera action-adventure adult alternate-history book fiction hard-sci-fi -
![Vacuum Diagrams by Stephen Baxter]()
Vacuum Diagrams by Stephen Baxter
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratings"And everywhere the Humans went, they found life..."This dazzling future history, winner of the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award, is the most ambitious and exciting since Asimov's classic Foundation saga. It tells the story of Humankind - all the way to the end of the Universe itself... -
![Sentenced to Prism by Alan Dean Foster]()
Sentenced to Prism by Alan Dean Foster
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe company had a big problem, it was illegally exploiting a fabulously rich planet maned Prism, a world where even the tiniest creatures were living jewels. But somehow, all contact had been lost with the scientist of the survey team. The Company didn't want to draw attention to itself by sending in a rescue mission so they assigned Evan Orgell, a self-confident problem-solver, to investigate... -
![Hospital Station by James White]()
Hospital Station by James White
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSector general is the home of many strange creatures, including humans! it is a vast sectionalized hospital, set up in space to care for all kinds of extra-terrestrials. Each section has a different atmosphere and habitat to cater for the many different species.. all the problems of the staff and patients are in this book. -
![Serpent's Reach by C.J. Cherryh]()
Serpent's Reach by C.J. Cherryh
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsWithin the Constellation of the Serpent, out of bounds to all spacefarers, humans live among the insect-like aliens--and one of them, a woman named Raen, is bent on a revenge that will tear apart the truce between human and alien. "Brisk pacing . . . and genuinely brilliant world-building".--ALA Booklist...
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