More like Surface Detail

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DuneUniverse
universe78 books1963
Set in other star systems.
“The desert planet, where empire runs on a single substance: the spice melange, which folds space, prolongs life, and unlocks prescience, and which exists nowhere else in the known universe.”
from the catalogue
Start with Dune →
includes Dune, Dune Sequels, Dune Prequels, Heroes of Dune, Background of the Dune Universe
Jean le FlambeurSeries
series3 books2010
Set in space and other star systems.
“Jean le Flambeur is a master thief broken out of a virtual prison to pull off one more impossible heist, in a solar system reshaped by uploaded minds, post-human factions, and economies built on memory and privacy themselves.”
from the catalogue
Start with The Quantum Thief →
Singularity SkySeries
series2 books2003
Tense in tone, about technological singularity, set in space and other star systems.
“Charles Stross uses the setup for a mix of space opera, economics, and diplomatic intrigue.”
from the catalogue
Start with Singularity Sky →
Implied SpacesNovel
Walter Jon Williamsstandalone novel2008
Reflective in tone, set in space and other star systems.
FoundationUniverse
universe123 books1940
About robots.
“There is a science that reads the future of quadrillions the way an astronomer reads the orbits of stars.”
from the catalogue
Start with Foundation →
includes Foundation, Second Foundation Trilogy, Trantorian Empire, The Collected Fiction of Isaac Asimov, The Positronic Robot Stories, Foundation (Original Stories)
CommonwealthUniverse
universe12 books2002
Science fiction and space opera, set in far future.
“Step aboard the train at the Second Chance terminal and ride the wormhole to another star.”
from the catalogue
Start with The Dreaming Void →
includes Void Trilogy, Commonwealth Saga, Chronicle of the Fallers