Books with that "Traveller feel"

[Finarvyn]

One of my favorite scifi books is NOT IN OUR STARS by Jefferson Swycaffer, which I understand is a book somehow connected to Traveller. I'm curious: are there any other good books which have a "Traveller feel" to them?

I guess I'm thinking about something less shiny than STAR TREK; maybe more like BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (the new one).

Seems like most of the scifi books on my shelf are too "Space Opera" in nature, like the LENSMAN books by E.E."Doc" Smith -- good books but they just don't seem gritty enough.

Anyone have any good suggestions?

 

[Supplement Four]

Check out this LINK.

 

[GypsyComet]

And this one: http://www.TravellerRPG.com/CotI/Discuss/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000090

 

[rogermccarthy]

To my mind most of the old SF novels that originally inspired Traveller by Andre Norton, H Beam Piper, EC Tubb etc have not worn well as fiction and seem very juvenile compared to more recent SF.

The exceptions would probably be Poul Anderson's Polesotechnic League and Flandry/Terran Empire books which are classic free trader and military/espionage SF.

Isaac Asimov's Foundation series has also worn rather better than most fifties SF.

Harry Harrison's Stainless Steel Rat series brilliantly did rogues in space.

For more recent books Elizabeth Moon's Vatta Wars series (three novels so far) are very Classic Traveller free trader campaign.

Also would recommend CJ Cherryh's Alliance-Union and Chanur series.

While most of his SF work is very ultra-tech Iain M Banks's Consider Phlebas and the Use of Weapons are both great space operas and surprisingly Travelleresque in places.

I personally find their hard-right politics hard to stomach but Jerry Pournelle's Falkayn books does mercenaries very well and his and Larry Niven's the Mote in God's Eye (but not the goddawful sequel) is effectively Star Trek done right.

David Weber's Honor Harrington series is vey popular naval SF but to my mind way too derivative (Honor Harrington is just Horatio Hornblower in space complete with an enemy slavishly modelled on the French Republic and starships with sails and broadsides).

 

[rogermccarthy]

To be more specific:

Elizabeth Moon:
Trading in Danger,
Moving Target (Marque and Reprisal in the US), Engaging the Enemy

CJ Cherryh:
Downbelow Station,
The Chanur Saga

Iain M Banks:
Consider Phlebas,
Use of Weapons

Jerry Pournelle:
The Prince (an OOP 4 novel compilation from Baen - various other permutations available)

Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle
The Mote in Gods Eye

 

[Andrew Boulton]

Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan series.

Larry Niven's Known Space books.

 

[Golan2072]

Kim Stanely Robinson's Mars trilogy (Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars).

Dan Simmons' Hyperion Saga.

 

[Roger Calver]

For an licensed Traveller book..FORCE OF DESTINY.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250074576333

 

[ElHombre]

No one's mentioned Jack McDevitt yet. His books are always good for Traveller adventure ideas as well as giving a nice feel of what a Trav universe would be like.

 

[GypsyComet]

Originally posted by alte:
To my mind most of the old SF novels that originally inspired Traveller by Andre Norton, H Beam Piper, EC Tubb etc have not worn well as fiction and seem very juvenile compared to more recent SF.

Piper and Tubb are, in their own ways, pure Pulp. Nothing wrong with that, but it isn't the gritty gun ⌧ we see too much of these days. Tubb is a little *too* Pulpish for me, frankly, but Piper is core inspiration for early Traveller and for me to this day.

Norton usually put young people at the center of a story, though not always. What she did do all the time, however, was concentrate on the story. No lengthy descriptions of the tech, no loving depictions of a favorite gun, and no foul language or graphic violence. No gratuitous sex either. Suitable for kids? Certainly. Automatically "juvenile". No. Obviously "Your mileage may vary".

 

[Jame]

I would also vote for the Chanur saga, if I could get the first three as individual books (I hate omnibuses, especially of fiction).

And someone should reprint the H. Beam Piper books NOT IN OMNIBUS FORMAT; I've never seen any at all around anywheres.

 

[Mysterion]

I also recommend Cherryh's "Chanur" books. Especially if you want to do an Aslan-based campaign.

My recommendation is for the book "Space Angel" by John Maddox Roberts. It's about a young apprentice signing on a free-trader type ship and the adventures that ensue. OOP for quite awhile, I think, but keep your eye out at the used bookstore for it.

I would also recommend David Weber's "Honor HArrington" books for anyone running Imperial Navy characters.

 

[FreeTrav]

When I've read SF and thought 'Traveller!', I've generally been reading from the following collections (most of which have been named earlier in this thread):

Elizabeth Moon: Vatta's War

C.J.Cherryh: Chanur

Jerry Pournelle: _CoDominium_ universe, including the Motie collaborations with Larry Niven.

H.Beam Piper: The Terro-Human Future History series

David Drake: Republic of Cinnabar Navy (Daniel Leary/Adele Mundy)

It should be noted that they're not necessarily all Traveller! in the same way, but they all do strike a chord that says "I could see this happening in a Traveller universe".

 

[Ganidirsii O'Flynn]

Awhile back, a gent named Othin said he was starting a Traveller campaign and was wondering where to start. While my reply was longer, one clip was applicable here.

<CLIP>
A little side reading is always good too. Stick with solid, non-liscenced sci-fi (skip the StarWars/Star Trek/Shadowrun/BattleTech, etc, novels), and try to keep an open mind about what you want to borrow for YOUR Traveller Game. Here's my top ten books for Traveller Refs (in no particular order):

*Honor Harrington series, Dave Weber
*Hammers Slammers series, Dave Drake
*Downbelow Station, CJ Cheryyah
*Starcruiser Shennandoah seris, Roland Green
*Starship Troopers, Robert Heinlein
*The Fuzzy Papers, H. Beam Piper
*Startide Rising, David Brin
*Neuromancer, William Gibson
*Marching Through Georgia, SM Stirling
*Hardwired, Walter Jon Williams
<END CLIP>

 

[mbrinkhues]

I'd like to add:

Andersons "Polysotechnical League" and "Dominic Flandy" (Both play in the same universe)

"Voice of the Whirlwind" by Walter Jon Williams for a nice view on STL space travel and bases

The "Expanded Wing Commander" universe actually has some good elements

"Interstellar Patrol" by Christopher Anvil has more than a few "Scout" elements

If you can read german some of the old ZBV novels make good inspiration for a "meet the Ancients" based campaign or a "Recovery from the crash of 1130" campaign.

 

[FreeTrav]

Oddly enough, while I find many interesting (and Traveller-compatible) ideas in the Honor Harrington series, it doesn't make me say "Traveller!" the way the others do. I'm not quite sure why, though I'm beginning to suspect that it's because of the higher level of political exposition that Weber puts into that series as compared with (for example) Drake's RCN. On the other hand, Cherryh wasn't exactly light on the politics in Chanur, but that still rings the Traveller! bell for me.

 

[MR TEK]

Please add Anne MacCafree, (I think with Elizebeth Moon, Damn I hate having my collection stored away.)

Dinasuar Planet through Sasinak. (there may have eve been one or two in the set since then.)

 

[stofsk]

Traveller works under the concept of 'ordinary heroes in extraordinary situations'.

Honor Harrington, love her or hate her, is not an ordinary hero. (she's a goddamn Mary Sue is what she is arglebargle humbug...)

 

[MR TEK]

By the way the later Dragon riders series, When we discover Pern was a failed coliny gets close too.

Jack Chalker, Loards of the diamond and Well of Souls do too, but get a little metaphiscal, or at least science to the point of appearing metaphysical.

 

[Stainless]

Chris Bunch's "Star Risk" novels are fun as well.