 | The Anubis Gates (Fantasy Masterworks) by Tim Powers
Buy new: £6.71 / Used from: £3.95 The first one I got for her years ago and still one of the best. Jam-packed with great scenes and concepts. She went out and bought more Tim Powers after this.
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 | Only Forward by Michael Marshall Smith
Buy used from: £1.25 A modern SF classic (and I don't use that lightly). My sister enjoyed it. Her son enjoyed it and my father enjoyed it. Cracking pace and cracking ideas.
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 | The Stars My Destination (S.F. Masterworks) by Alfred Bester
Buy new: £4.92 / Used from: £1.60 Alfred Bester wrote few novels. This one still feels fresh. If you haven't tried him, either this, the short stories or 'The Demolished Man' are highly recommended.
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 | I Am Legend (S.F. Masterworks) by Richard Matheson
Buy new: £4.48 / Used from: £0.78 Another older SF classic. Forget the films, read the book. (And this is a freaky cover!!)
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 | Vurt by Jeff Noon
Buy used from: £1.78 The only 'failure' on the list. She just couldn't get into it. Personally I loved the style and rhythm of the writing. And the story is good too!
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 | His Dark Materials Boxed set: "Northern Lights", "The Subtle Knife", "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
Buy new: £15.24 / Used from: £10.97 Astonishingly good. This is the one on the list that she would probably have got for herself sometime, I just beat her to it!
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 | Replay (Fantasy Masterworks) by Ken Grimwood
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £3.07 The best 'If I had my time again' novel. A bit more character based than the previous books. My sister was disappointed that there was so little else by Mr. Grimwood.
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 | Passage by Connie Willis
Buy used from: £1.44 OK. It's not Connie Willis' best novel (could have used a stern editor), but I chose this so that my sister could discover 'Doomsday Book' etc. for herself. I'm not sure it worked!
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 | Flowers For Algernon (S.F. Masterworks) by Daniel Keyes
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £2.17 Another incredible story. The sustained writing effect used in it still leaves me awe-struck.
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 | Perdido Street Station by China Mieville
Buy new: £4.83 / Used from: £0.84 Idea after idea after idea. This book is a head-rush. Of the series, this is still the best in my opinion.
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 | American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Buy new: £5.07 / Used from: £1.99 If you want a good story, well-written :- Neil Gaiman is your man! Again, my sister went out and bought more.
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 | Flash Forward by Robert J. Sawyer
Buy used from: £2.35 This and the next book were part of the same gift! Robert Sawyer isn't well-enough known in the U.K., but he's a great exponent of what is known as hard-sf. This is an unusual time-based story.
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 | Calculating God by Robert Sawyer
Buy new: £4.21 / Used from: £1.51 Another intriguing idea from Robert Sawyer.
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 | The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer by Neal Stephenson
Buy new: £5.96 / Used from: £0.49 Xmas 2008. A choice between this or 'Snow Crash', I felt this would be better. And both are better than the horribly overwritten historical novels 'The Baroque Cycle'
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 | 100 Must-Read Science Fiction Novels by Stephen E Andrews
Buy new: £3.78 / Used from: £1.07 Xmas 2008. A reasonable set of novels covering the genre quite well. I wouldn't necessarily read them all, but it has still shown me other directions for SF.
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