Book picks similar to
The Fifth Element by Terry Bisson
science-fiction
sci-fi
fiction
aliens
The Kraken Wakes
John Wyndham - 1953
Strange fireballs race through the sky above the deepest trenches of the oceans. Something is about to show itself, something terrible and alien, a force capable of causing global catastrophe.
The Fifth Head of Cerberus
Gene Wolfe - 1972
It is said a race of shapeshifters once lived here, only to perish when men came. But one man believes they can still be found, somewhere in the back of the beyond.In The Fifth Head of Cerberus, Wolfe skillfully interweaves three bizarre tales to create a mesmerizing pattern: the harrowing account of the son of a mad genius who discovers his hideous heritage; a young man's mythic dreamquest for his darker half; the bizarre chronicle of a scientists' nightmarish imprisonment. Like an intricate, braided knot, the pattern at last unfolds to reveal astonishing truths about this strange and savage alien landscape.
In the Days of the Comet
H.G. Wells - 1906
But mankind is too busy hating, stealing, scheming, and killing to care. As luminous green trails of cosmic dust and vapor stream across the heavens, blood flows beneath: nations wage all-out war, bitter strikes erupt, and jealous lovers plot revenge and murder. The earth slips past the comet by the narrowest of margins, but all succumb to the gases in its tail. When mankind wakes up, everyone is completely and profoundly different. An ill-fated romance between Willie Leadford and Nettie Stuart unfolds in a world buried in misery and bent on its own destruction. After the earth passes through the comet's tail, suffering, pettiness, and injustice melt away. Willie, Nettie, and everyone around them are reborn. They now see themselves and their world in a dramatically new and wonderful way.
In the Ocean of Night
Gregory Benford - 1977
Ordered to destroy the comet, he instead discovers that it is actually the shell of a derelict space probe - a wreck with just enough power to emit a single electronic signal...2034: Then a reply is heard. Searching for the source of this signal that comes from outside the solar system, Nigel discovers the existence of a sentient ship. When the new vessel begins to communicate directly with him, the astronaut learns of the horrors that await humanity. For the ship was created by an alien race that has spent billions and billions of years searching for intelligent life...to annihilate it.In the Ocean of Night is a 1977 hard science fiction novel by Gregory Benford. It is the first novel in his Galactic Center Saga. It was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1977. It was first published as a novelette in the May/June 1972 edition of Worlds of If Science Fiction.
Defending Elysium
Brandon Sanderson - 2008
An image of humankind escaping into space. An image of human merchants trading and cheating, of human tyrants capturing the Varvax, Tenasi, and Hommar. Images of wars, of fighting, of a paradise destroyed."Oddly enough, the ones who made first contact were an outdated, nearly bankrupt phone company. Second contact was made by the United Governments Military when they accidentally shot down a Tenasi ambassadorial vessel. The Phone Company negotiated Earth out of danger following the Tenasi incident. The Phone Company had brought FTL communication to humankind.And Phone Company operative Jason Write has sworn to keep the galaxy safe from the barbaric humans who would ruin the Elysium that the galactic races currently enjoy.
Flash Gordon
Arthur Byron Cover - 1980
Hans Zarkov, attempts to prevent Ming the Merciless of Mongo from destroying the earth.
Robotech: The New Generation: The Invid Invasion
Jack McKinney - 2007
The mission seems nearly impossible, but don’t count out these unlikely heroes just yet!SYMPHONY OF LIGHTIt’s the final, explosive showdown. Scott and his ragtag team must face the Invid Regess and her warrior race that will fight to the death to keep its prize. However, a shocking, unforeseen turn of events changes everything in the ultimate prelude to the Shadow Chronicles!
Aliens: Labyrinth
S.D. Perry - 1996
Only no one really knows it - or at least, no one who counts. Certainly Colonel Doctor Tony Crespi has no idea; he is simply eager to work with the infamous Doctor Paul Church, who believes that a mutated strain of alien can be made to obey human will.Church's captive creatures live in a warren of tunnels. Inside that labyrinth, Crespi and Lieutenant Sharon McGuinness are about to find the true meaning of Church's experiments. With a chamber of all-too-human horrors at its dark heart, the labyrinth is a death trap - designed by a man who is attempting what no other person in the universe would dare: to bring human and alien together as one!
The Quotable Doctor Who: Wise Words from Across Space and Time
Cavan Scott - 2014
Now for the first time, fans can enjoy a plethora of their favorite memorable quotes and wisest words spoken throughout the series from the first episode to the most recent season starring Matt Smith. The Official Quotable Doctor Who is an insightful and unique look into the exciting universe of Doctor Who like never before!The quotes will be compiled into nine chapters that each focus on a reoccurring theme or subject from the series. The book includes hundreds of the series' most quoted words on the human race, tools, power, corruption, war, space travel, historical celebrities the Doctor and his encounters, and many more. It will also feature running artwork by popular Doctor Who Magazine illustrator Ben Morris. This book truly is a must have for the ultimate Doctor Who fan.
Willow
Wayland Drew - 1988
The mark of the one who would cause the downfall of Queen Bavmorda, and end her evil reign. If she survived...The ProphecyThe legend told the Queen that a child would be born who would destroy her. That prophecy was the Queen's greatest fear...and now it was about to come true. Unless she could stop it...The Power of MagicWillow Ufgood had always wanted to be a magician, to be wise and respected in the community. His dreams were about to come true...but in ways he could have never imagined.
Ladyhawke
Joan D. Vinge - 1985
Punished for loving each other, Navarre must become a wolf by night whilst his lover, Lady Isabeau, takes the form of a hawk by day. Together, with the thief Philippe Gaston, they must try to overthrow the corrupt Bishop and in doing so break the spell.
Touched by an Alien
Gini Koch - 2010
When she stepped out of the Pueblo Caliente courthouse, all she was thinking about was the work she had to get caught up on. Then her attention was caught by a fight between a couple that looked like it was about to turn ugly. But ugly didn't even begin to cover it when the "man" suddenly transformed into a huge, winged monster right out of a grade Z science fiction movie and went on a deadly killing spree. In hindsight, Kitty realized she probably should have panicked and run screaming the way everyone around her was doing. Instead she sprinted into action to take down the alien. In the middle of all the screeching and the ensuing chaos, a hunk in an Armani suit suddenly appeared beside her, introduced himself as Jeff Martini with "the agency," and then insisted on leading her to a nearby limo to talk to his "boss." And that was how Kitty's new life among the aliens began...Touched by an Alien is the thrilling first installment of the Alien novels.
Legion of the Damned
William C. Dietz - 1993
Dietz's acclaimed Legion of the Damned series... There is one final choice for the hopeless, the terminally ill, the condemned criminals, the victims who cannot be saved: becoming cyborg soldiers in the Legion. Their human bodies are destroyed and they are reborn as living weapons. But when aliens attack the Empire, the Legion must choose sides.
Doctor Who: Eleven Doctors, Eleven Stories
Eoin ColferCharlie Higson - 2013
Eleven Doctors, eleven stories, eleven unique interpretations of the Doctor, his terrifying alien enemies and his time-travelling adventures.
Machineries of Joy
Ray Bradbury - 1964
The Machineries of Joy • (1962)The One Who Waits • (1949) Tyrannosaurus Rex • (1962) The Vacation • (1963)The Drummer Boy of Shiloh • (1960)Boys! Raise Giant Mushrooms in Your Cellar! • (1962)Almost the End of the World • (1957)Perhaps We Are Going Away • (1962) And the Sailor, Home from the Sea • (1960) El Dia de Muerte • (1947)The Illustrated Woman • (1961)Some Live Like Lazarus • (1960) A Miracle of Rare Device • (1961)And So Died Riabouchinska • (1953)The Beggar on O'Connell Bridge • (1961) Death and the Maiden • (1960)A Flight of Ravens • (1952)The Best of All Possible Worlds • (1960) The Lifework of Juan Diaz • (1963)To the Chicago Abyss • (1963)The Anthem Sprinters • (1963)