Reincarnation fiction recommendation

This has been an interesting thread. I had no idea there were so many books that incorporated variations of this concept!

I think of reincarnation as a religious theology, not so much a sci-fi device. The only book where I've seen the concept incorporated is in the prequels to "The Mists of Avalon", by Marion Zimmer Bradley. But then, this is a basically pagan-oriented series of books. It illustrates a religious perspective on past lives.

I'm interested in the perspective on some of the other books mentioned here. :)
 
How about Octavia E. Butler's Wild Seed, and the other books in that series? It does deal with it in a sense. The character Doro has the power to take for himself the body of any person whenever his current body dies. It's a brilliant novel, though Doro is more akin to a god (or a demon).

I've read dozens of books in the Spiritist genre, which of course doesn't qualify as SF, but should probably appeal to anyone who believes in or is interested in reincarnation. These books are, in the tradition of Allan Kardec's books, dictated by spirits (if you believe in that sort of thing - I do).

Sorry if I go into a religious tangent here, but I get the impression that Spiritism is vastly ignored in most other countries outside Brazil, and since in some places, especially in the USA, there's apparently a lot of interest in reincarnation, I'd love to see other people get to know about all this.

Anyway, preacher mode off. If anyone's interested in any of this, just google Francisco Candido Xavier, and read up on him and other mediums.
 
Would the ability of the Bene Gesserit Reverend Mother in Dune count; her Other Memory or genetic memories of all her female ancestors?

I guess the Trill in Star Trek and Goa'uld in Stargate are similar too.
 
Well, I have one. The problem is... it's a French book. Perhaps it was translated. Or I could translate it... kidding.
It's a terrific story.
The protagonist reincarnates in a completely different body (a baby) each time, and each time she/he retains her/his memories. These are your specifications, aren't they?

Malhorne, by Jérôme Camut (Ed. Bragelonne, Paris, 2004)

Here is the publisher's blurb.

Malhorne comes from the dawn of mankind.
He crossed the borders of death and lived many lives through history.
Now he’s about to reveal himself to the world.
Anthropologist Franklin Adamov discovers a statue deep in the amazonian forest. A statue of a Caucasian man with a sword in his hands. It comes from the XV century and on the sword is written: « Malhorne ».
Franklin knows it’s impossible to find such a thing in this place.
But it’s just the first hint of the enigma.
A bit later, a foundation gets in touch with Franklin. A rich businessman offers him all the money he needs in order to solve this enigma. Because another statue has been located very far from the first one and it’s exactly the same.
The hunt begins. The name « Malhorne » leads to New-England (USA) and a young man is found in an asylum. Then he starts to tell his tale: he’s been living for centuries waiting for the right time to show up. For he has a message to give.
There are seven statues on the planet and he made them all. Each one is a part of a puzzle whose solution is the origin of humanity.
MALHORNE is a gripping quest, a tale of initiation through history, cultures and religions all over the world. A thriller dealing with tolerance and the meaning of life.
 
The best fantasy series I have come across with Reincarnation as the central theme are the Deverry books by Katherine Kerr. There are 14 books so far, with the final installment still to come. It is set in an alternate world called Ammwn, with the human ancestors of the characters being descended from Gauls fleeing the Roman conquest.

The initial story of the first 4 books (the Deverry Series) has a "present day" storyline that ends in a young noble lord (Rhodry Maelwaedd) inheriting his brothers Rhan (domain), after the brother had exiled him, forcing him to become a mercenary (Silver Dagger). The rest of the story revolves around Nevyn (a human dweomer master (magician) is trying to correct a mistake he made in his youth, which resulted in the woman he loved, her brother, their unborn child, and the brother's best friend all dying. Soon after he swears a vow that he would never rest untill he had made it up to her, and it takes him a further 400 odd years to unravel the resulting tangles of wyrd (fate/destiny), through numerous reincarnations of the primary souls involved.

The writing style is quite unusual, as much of the story is in the form of "flashbacks", each of which reveals more of Nevyn's past, and the further connections between the characters in their past lives.

I highly recommend these books.
 
I like Feersum Endjinn by Iain M. Banks. This book has multiple-point-of-view (there are 4 POV in the story if I remember correctly). The setting takes place at far future when people can be resurrected several times. IMHO, this bokk has entertaining plotlines.
 

Similar threads


Back
Top