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The original was posted on /r/printsf by /u/DumbButConfident on 2023-08-14 21:01:30.

Are there any hard science fiction novels about humans making radio contact with aliens, but the distances are so vast that it is impossible inconceivable to ever meet them? Where even two-way communication takes hundreds of years? Something like Contact by Carl Sagan but without the Machine?

I guess the themes might be similar to novels where humanity finds alien artifacts but no living aliens. But I’m specifically interested in stories that feature very slow two-way communication with living aliens, just no actual physical interaction.

I can see where such a novel could be pretty unsatisfying, but it seems like such an obvious (and realistic) idea that there must be something out there.

Edit: Thank you for all of the great suggestions. I’ve added a lot of books to my list!