Hard science fiction is a category of science fiction characterized by concern for scientific accuracy and logic. The term was first used in print in 1957 by P. Schuyler Miller in a review of John W. Campbell's Islands of Space in the November issue of Astounding Science Fiction. The complementary term soft science fiction, formed by analogy to hard science fiction, first appeared in the late 1970s. The term is formed by analogy to the popular distinction between the "hard" (natural) and "soft" (social) sciences, although there are examples generally considered as "hard" SF, such as Isaac Asimov's Foundation series, built on mathematical sociology. Science fiction critic Gary Westfahl argues that neither term is part of a rigorous taxonomy; instead they are approximate ways of characterizing stories that reviewers and commentators have found useful.
Science fiction is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universes, and extraterrestrial life. It has been called the "literature of ideas", and it often explores the potential consequences of scientific, social, and technological innovations.
Alastair Preston Reynolds is a British science fiction author. He specialises in hard science fiction and space opera. He spent his early years in Cornwall, moved back to Wales before going to Newcastle University, where he read physics and astronomy. Afterwards, he earned a PhD in astrophysics from the University of St Andrews. In 1991, he moved to Noordwijk in the Netherlands where he met his wife Josette. There, he worked for the European Space Research and Technology Centre until 2004 when he left to pursue writing full-time. He returned to Wales in 2008 and lives near Cardiff.
Richard Kingsley Morgan, is a British science fiction and fantasy author of books, short stories, and graphic novels. He is the winner of the Philip K. Dick Award for his 2003 book Altered Carbon, which was adapted into a Netflix series released in 2018. His third book, Market Forces, won the John W. Campbell Award in 2005, while his 2008 work Thirteen garnered him the Arthur C. Clarke Award.
Victor Gollancz Ltd was a major British book publishing house of the twentieth century and continues to publish science fiction and fantasy titles as an imprint of Orion Publishing Group.
Revelation Space is a 2000 science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds. It was the first novel set in Reynolds's eponymous universe. The novel reflects Reynolds's professional background: he has a PhD in astronomy and worked for many years for the European Space Agency. It was short listed for the 2000 BSFA and Arthur C. Clarke Awards.
In science-fiction criticism, a Jonbar hinge or Jonbar point is the fictional concept of a crucial point of divergence between two outcomes, especially in time-travel stories. It is sometimes referred to as a Jon Bar hinge or change-point.
Century Rain is a 2004 noir science fiction alternate history mystery novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds (ISBN 0-575-07436-1).
William C. Dietz is an American science fiction writer, principally of military science fiction novels and video game novelizations.
Zima Blue and Other Stories is the first collection of short works by Alastair Reynolds. It was published in September 2006, by Night Shade Books. It includes ten stories, most of them long out of print. None of the stories in it are set in Reynolds's well-known Revelation Space universe, although Galactic North, a collection of most of Reynolds's Revelation Space short stories, was released soon after.
The Revelation Space universe is a fictional universe which was created by Alastair Reynolds and used as the setting for a number of his novels and stories. Its fictional history follows the human species through various conflicts from the relatively near future to approximately 40,000 AD. It takes its name from Revelation Space (2000), which was the first published novel set in the universe.
Tor.com is an online science fiction and fantasy magazine published by Tor Books, as well as an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates, a division of Macmillan Publishers. The imprint has also operated under the name Tordotcom Publishing since 2020. It publishes articles, reviews, original short fiction, re-reads and commentary on speculative fiction.
The Quantum Thief is the debut science fiction novel by Finnish writer Hannu Rajaniemi and the first novel in a trilogy featuring the character of Jean le Flambeur; the sequels are The Fractal Prince (2012) and The Causal Angel (2014). The novel was published in Britain by Gollancz in 2010, and by Tor in 2011 in the US. It is a heist story, set in a futuristic Solar System, that features a protagonist modeled on Arsène Lupin, the gentleman thief of Maurice Leblanc.
Blue Remembered Earth is a science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds, first published by Gollancz on 19 January 2012. It describes the efforts of two adult siblings to solve a mystery in the pseudo-utopian 2160s. The novel is the first of the Poseidon's Children trilogy, which follows humanity's development over many centuries, with the intention of portraying a more optimistic future than anything Reynolds had previously written. The second book in the trilogy, On the Steel Breeze, was released on 26 September 2013, and the trilogy's finale, Poseidon's Wake, was released on 30 April 2015.
On the Steel Breeze is a science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds, which was first published by Gollancz on 26 September 2013. It is the second part of Reynolds' future history Poseidon's Children trilogy, following his 2012 novel Blue Remembered Earth. On the Steel Breeze was followed on 30 April 2015 by the concluding novel of the trilogy, Poseidon's Wake.
The Anomaly is a 2014 British science fiction action thriller film co-written, directed by and starring Noel Clarke and also featuring Ian Somerhalder and Luke Hemsworth. The film was panned by critics.
Delilah S. Dawson is an American author, primarily of fantasy and science fiction. She writes fantasy as Lila Bowen, and has written erotica as Ava Lovelace.
Beyond the Aquila Rift is a 2016 collection of science fiction short stories and novellas by British author Alastair Reynolds, published by Gollancz, and edited by Jonathan Strahan and William Schafer. It contains works previously published in other venues. The collection features several stories connected to Reynolds's previous stories and novels. "Great Wall of Mars", "Weather", Last Log of the Lachrymosa, and Diamond Dogs take place in the Revelation Space universe, Thousandth Night takes place in the same universe as House of Suns, and "The Water Thief" takes place in the Poseidon's Children universe.
Elysium Fire is a 2018 hard science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds. It is a direct sequel to Aurora Rising, taking place in the Revelation Space universe. Reynolds has stated that the novel requires no previous knowledge of Aurora Rising, functioning as a standalone work.
Bone Silence is a 2020 hard science fiction novel by Welsh author Alastair Reynolds. This is the third and final novel in the Revenger Trilogy series, with the prequels being Revenger and Shadow Captain. The book was released on January 9, 2020, by Gollancz.
