Recently finished The Stars my Destination -known as Tiger Tiger in the UK- I absolutely love it, but it seems to be a major YMMV book. On one hand the characters are interesting, it introduces several interesting technological/social advances (most notably widespread psychic teleportation, or "jaunting"), and has some really fun language. On the other hand it is not the place to look for likable characters. In particular the protagonist is a murderer, a rapist, and has horrible english, albeit often in an amusing way. The actual plot is about a previously apathetic space "sailor" seeking revenge on a ship that left him stranded in a wreck after seeing his distress calls. There is also a major subplot about the several groups trying to retrieve a secret weapon his ship was carrying. Its widely known for the following passage.

You pass me by. You leave me rot like a dog. You leave me die, Vorga ... Vorga-T:1339. No. I get out of here, me. I follow you, Vorga. I find you, Vorga. I pay you back, me. I rot you. I kill you, Vorga. I kill you filthy