I'm far from being an expert on contemporary science fiction literature; heck, I'm not that well versed even in the classics of science fiction. Around 2002 or 2003, I was in a group of friends who met regularly to play board games, watch science fiction television shows and chat about comic books. It was from that group that I first learned about Vernor Vinge when they strongly promoted his books to me. It's the only time the group really converged to vouch for a particular author. My friends loaned me his Hugo Award-winning novels A Fire Upon the Deep (1992) and A Deepness in the Sky (1999).
I was hooked; I learned there was a reason why my friends liked to use "Vinge" as a verb (as a replacement for "binge"). His works were dense and highly literate, yet very approachable; not just plot-driven but also very character-driven; heady science fiction concepts (particularly in ideas of relativity).
Those two novels were part of what were called Vinge's "Zones of Thought" books - set in the same universe but with barely any recurring characters. After I enjoyed reading their copies, my friends hooked me up with his short fiction anthology (the Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge) but for some reason they didn't talk up the rest of his works. I did eventually pursue his earlier novels the Peace War (1984) and Marooned in Realtime (1986). I was also pleased to pick up his new novels as they were published - Rainbows End (2006) and Children of the Sky (2011).
I'm disappointed that there won't be any additional works from such a fine author. He's certainly left behind a short but fascinating bibliography. Hopefully he'll be remembered by science fiction fans at large; he'll certainly be remembered by me. Rest in peace, Mr. Vinge.
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