Science Fiction

Some of my all time favorites are the Spinward Fringe series by Randolph Lalonde, The Intrepid Saga from the Aeon 14 universe, and the Imperial Radch Trilogy from Ann Leckie.

A Memory Called Empire was really good, but it wasn't a space battle shoot-em-up, more like large scale political intrigue and murder mystery.

@Izzy brought up Tchaikovsky's Final Achitecture and @ScrumblesPAbernathy mentioned Children of Time series, loved those. Right now I'm on the second of his Bioforms books, Bear Head. After that it's back to Idris and The Lords of Uncreation.

While it probably doesn't qualify as space opera, I have to throw in The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. I just fucking love Murderbot and ART.

There's always the Bobiverse, The Culture Series, and The Cluster Saga, too.

Alastair Reynolds and Peter F. Hamilton.

The Vorkosigan Saga by Bujold is considered to be some of the best space opera in the entire genre, definitely recommend giving it a try. Start with Warriors Apprentice if Shards of Honor isn’t to your liking.

I really love the Culture series.

The Quantum Magician and The Final Architecture are great space operas in my opinion. They both have really large stakes, a large number of factions and species with varying politics and exciting space combat. They are both incredibly different though.

There are so much fantastic space opera out there. Some high-points for me, but depends on what you want out of a space opera:

• Alistair Reynolds, “revelation space” and its’ series
• James Alan Gardner: “expendable” and its’ series
• Timothy Zahn: lord, he has probably dozens
• Allan Cole & Chris Bunch: Sten series
• Simon R. Green: Deathstalker series
• Alan Dean Foster: A Call To Arms and trilogy
• Brandon Sanderson
• John Scalzi did a trilogy a couple of years ago
• John Varley’s “Seven Worlds”(?) series.
• Vernor Vinge: Fire Upon the Deep
• Ken MacLeod’s “Fall Revolution “ series
• Kim Stanley Robinson “Mars” Series
• The Expanse

For shows, Battlestar Galactica is always great. I just started watching Caprica and loving it so far. It might not be an “opera”, but it does so much to fill out the Battlestar Galactica universe.

I also just started reading The Expanse series and would definitely recommend it, even for someone like me who’s not an avid reader.

Saga of the Seven Suns was good from my recollection. I wonder when he'll revisit, Kevin J Anderson is prolific

isnt Expeditionary force a space opera? at least Skippy would like it to be.

For me, the favorite of the genre to date are the Mass Effect games, Star Wars (the good ones, at least), Asimov's Foundation books, Stanislav Lem's Solaris book and, even if it's more grimdark than space opera, Warhammer 40k. I still have to delve into The Expanse but I don't have the time yet

Space Opera has got to be my favorite genre, but it feels like we have so precious few that actually nail it. Mass Effect, and Star Wars are ones that instantly come to mind, Starship Troopers is an excellent piece that also falls into the same vein.