I'm not a big sci-fi reader… I remember Red Dwarf (the tv show) fondly (but only vaguely) from my high school years, but hadn't watched it since then.

I found the book at a used book sale and expected it to be a bit dated and not very well-written, but in fact it's very funny and charming (although there's a very obvious debt to Douglas Adams) and even more surprisingly, there are very prescient ideas about virtual reality and technology that seem ahead of their time even by science fiction standards. There are themes of sociology, economics, politics, and futurism that hold up very well. I wish I'd bought the next book when i saw it, because i'll probably never find it now. : )

Given that this novel's target audience must be fans of the show, it is disappointing redundant with the first two series. That despite the fact that respect for continuity is the much the same as it is on the screen. Inconvenient plot points from the show are altered when it suits a longer form. I cannot, however, hold that against the book when I'm happy to ignore it on tv. Still, something like 75% cribbed material led me to skip over sections.

For diehard fans, the audiobook is fun if for no other reason than experiencing the satire scifi tropes through a different medium.

The high point has to be the far more existential treatment of the "Better Than Life" story which ends the novel. It seems apparent that "Grant Naylor" had to insufficiently shoehorn their compelling story into 29 mixtures. If you want more, here you are.

So hilarious and the audiobook version spoken by Chris Barrie is absolutely masterful. Only four stars because it doesn't pass the Bechdel test.

I was going to write a review for this book that I last read a few years ago, but I thought sod it, it must be time for a re-read.

This is where it all started, one of the greatest SciFi series ever, a brilliant cast of characters and funny as hell story. I've watched the series so many times now that when reading the books the characters voices come so easily to me. During this reading I kept getting glimpses of Douglas Adams writing, never noticed that previously, but the explanations about space travel and the descriptions of Red Dwarf reminded me of Hitchhikers guide.

There are so many great lines; "They're dead Dave" will have me laughing no matter how many times I hear/read it.

Brilliant comedy SciFi that has gotta be read by everybody.

Everything I love about Red Dwarf, with a few holes filled in, and more besides. ❤️

Good as always. Dave Lister the last man and his friends get in wacky hijinx and then just when they’re about to get home, they get trapped in better than life.

I love Red Dwarf but I thought there would be a lot more content than there was on the show.

Comedy, of all things, does not often age well. Literary adaptations of comedic television shows less so. My 15 year old self might have been delighted at this, however, nostalgia was not enough to carry this work forward. The first half written like a manic second rate Douglas Adams the book sort of careened into a slightly fleshed out screenplay by the somewhat maudlin end.