I've only read some of his shorter works, and I think one of his novels is in my 'to read' pile. I know he kind of came up with the whole singularity concept, which has always fascinated me. I'll have to see if I can find "Fire Upon the Deep" and give it a read.

Yes, these are both brilliant books, head and shoulders above much of what's being written in American sf. You might want to have a peek at some of the newer British crop, such as John Meaney (www.johnmeaney.com) or Alastair Reynolds, too. And Martin Sketchley, who's even newer, and Justina Robson. All doing really excellent science fiction that's a bit freer of the kinds of marketing restrictions that sometimes hamper the success of US writers.

I really liked both those books (Fire and Deepness). He has an amazing way of creating alien races that are truly alien. Haven't read Across Realtime.

Ironically i first read this post while in the middle of reading "Across Realtime" and intended to answer when i finished, but forget for awhile. Just finished up "Deepness in the Sky" for the second or third time, which reminded me :)

I'm unclear, have you read "Across Realtime" or not? I couldn't decide if you were asking for recomendations or wanted to compare opinions.

I liked all three stories associated with "Across Realtime," but i do kind of wish that i hadn't managed to read them in the exact opposite of chronological order :) "Marooned in Realtime" was a _lot_ easier to find than the others, and i found "The Ungoverned" included in something else before an ex stumbled across a copy of "Across Realtime" in a used bookstore.

I did think "Marooned in Realtime" was a lot better than the previous two, but that might just be due to all the spoilers from "Marooned in Realtime" ruining some of the suspense.