this post was submitted on 13 Feb 2024
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Does anyone know any Hard Sci Fi books about humans surviving without any hospitable worlds? (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
submitted 9 months ago by GlitchyDigiBun@lemmy.dbzer0.com to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml
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I'm looking to get inspiration for my own writing. I need a hard sci fi series where earth (and earthlike worlds) are too rare, inaccessible, and/or previously spoiled beyond ability to sustain life. Bonus points if it is set on a multi-generational space station or starship without any other options and goes into detail about life support, living space, mineral mining and expansion of the station to accomodate a growing population, and daily life of it's residents.

If anyone remembers Drifter Colonies from Titan A.E., that's what's in my head.

I'm looking for The Martian levels of realism, and I'm fine with a bit of "Unobtanium" clichΓ©s if they're not core to the story.

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[–] AFKBRBChocolate@lemmy.world 7 points 9 months ago (2 children)

People already mention the Mars series by Orson Scott Card, the Expanse series by Corey, and Seveneves by Stephenson, which are all fantastic and all fit your request well. Two others you might consider are:

  • The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlein. Very old school classic that features a moon colony fighting with earth.
  • Beggars in Spain by Kress. Most of it is on a near future earth, but the last hunk of it involves a segment of people relocating to a space station.
[–] littlebluespark@lemmy.world 5 points 9 months ago (2 children)

To be fair, and no spoilers, but I'm not sure The Expanse qualifies for this request, technically. (As a huge fan of the books and series both)

[–] AFKBRBChocolate@lemmy.world 5 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Corey goes into pretty good detail about how they made Eros, Ganymede, and the generation ship livable. Seems like they qualified.

[–] littlebluespark@lemmy.world 1 points 9 months ago* (last edited 9 months ago) (1 children)

Clearly, that's not the aspect I was hinting at. >!The first part of the request is the relevant section, not the "bonus points", all due respect: "earth (and earthlike[sic] worlds) are too rare, inaccessible, and/or previously spoiled beyond ability to sustain life."!<

[–] AFKBRBChocolate@lemmy.world 1 points 9 months ago

Hmmm, I just read that to mean there was some reason people had to terraform or create an artificial habitat, not that it had to be that specific plot point.

[–] skulblaka@startrek.website 5 points 9 months ago (1 children)

The belters make a pretty solid example of what it sounds like OP is looking for. The entire setting doesn't match to a T but there's enough interaction with inhospitable environments to be worth looking into, I think.

[–] nightwatch_admin@feddit.nl 3 points 9 months ago (1 children)

Do you mean the Mars series by Kim Stanley Robinson?

[–] AFKBRBChocolate@lemmy.world 3 points 9 months ago

Lol, I do! Not sure why I was thinking about OSC. Maybe just another writer known by three names.