Space Opera Fans discussion

Most human space empire usually are good and try spread freedom and equality to all other alien races.

I'm looking for a series which the human empire are evil where they conquer and may even enslave or genocide other alien races. But not evil for evil sake. Maybe the protagonist/Human required to enslave others for survival or whatever valid reason.

Something similar to the Colonial Defense Forces (CDF) from Old Man's War by John Scalzi can also be an example.

However the CDF is not necessarily evil, but they aren't shy with genocide either.

The Terran Empire of the Honorverseis pretty evil. No real genocide but lots of economic slavery and exploitation. And no aliens.

I'm working on just that... But it'll take a few books before the evil aspect comes to the forefront. I like that you emphasize that it shouldn't be evil for the sake of evil as I find that generally unrealistic and annoying. In the books I'm working on, it's a mix of fear and paranoia coupled with perceived hostility from the other side that causes things to gradually escalate.

Betsy wrote: "The Terran Empire of the Honorverseis pretty evil. No real genocide but lots of economic slavery and exploitation. And no aliens."

I love Space Opera genre and I know Honorverse is one of the best and well known series in the genre, but I'm still haven't read it yet. Mostly I'm intimidated by the huge number of books. And I'm still scarred by David Weber Safehold series. Haha

So Honerverse is still in my "Want To Read" list, maybe one day I'll manage to soldier up and start reading it. And is the protagonist, Honor Harrington in The Terran Empire faction?

Vidar wrote: "I'm working on just that... But it'll take a few books before the evil aspect comes to the forefront. I like that you emphasize that it shouldn't be evil for the sake of evil as I find that general..."

Hopefully you can finish your book soon.

Hate to drop a plug here, but my 2nd novel, To Summon The Blackbird, is exactly that, but a stand-alone book, not a series.

Isaac wrote: "And is the protagonist, Honor Harrington in The Terran Empire faction?"

Simple answer - no.

This is an interesting question, because it’s not a trope I’ve seen much of. The best example I can think of is the Terran Empire from the Mirror Universe in Star Trek.

Three
Dark Mirror
Shards and Shadows
Rise Like Lions
Star Trek: The Mirror Universe Saga

Trike wrote: "This is an interesting question, because it’s not a trope I’ve seen much of. The best example I can think of is the Terran Empire from the Mirror Universe in Star Trek.

Three
[book:D..."

I haven't watch or read any from the Star Trek franchise, can I just dive in straight reading these books you suggested. Or do I need other books first to understand the Star Trek world.

Possibly relevant: the Family Law series by Mackey Chandler. It’s not an exact match, and the main character is a good human. The human confederation or whatever the heck it is still has separate countries on Earth and USNA is a real bully. At least one of the alien planets they discovered is treated as slaves, and another one has its treaty flagrantly abused to the point where they declare war (and the human bureaucrats think it’s a joke).

Isaac wrote: "I haven't watch or read any from the Star Trek franchise, can I just dive in straight reading these books you suggested. Or do I need other books first to understand the Star Trek world."

I haven’t read those specific Trek books, so I don’t know if you need the background from the show.

I would definitely recommend watching the episode “Mirror, Mirror” from the original series, which is the origin of the Mirror Universe. I also quite liked the two episodes from Enterprise, which tied into the original series. I didn’t care for Enterprise, so those were the only ones I watched beyond the first few in the series, and I had no trouble following what was happening,