Categories
Books

The Dark Forest

I finished Cixin Liu’s The Dark Forest (paid link) today, and it blew me away.

I wasn’t sure he could follow The Three-Body Problem (paid link),and the first 80% of the book was a solid four stars — I thought that was about the best I could hope for, given how amazing and surprising and wonderdul TTBP was.

That last 20% was a complete surprise, a nuclear fireball of pure jaw-hanging-open whoa that kept me reading in the bath for much longer than I’d planned. I couldn’t stop until I’d finished it.

It’s different than the first book, especially in its structure. More straightforward, with less of an undercurrent. But so good. I can’t wait for the final volume, but I’ll have to as it’s not out in translation until April 2016.

Digging Yore? Check out my book!

The Unlucky Isles [affiliate link], the first system-neutral guidebook for my Godsbarrow fantasy campaign setting, is available in print and PDF.
Categories
Books

Cixin Liu’s The Three-Body Problem

The Three-Body Problem (paid link) was amazing.

The hook is great. The story it promises puts a twist on a premise I’ve seen before, but it’s solid.

But underneath that story, unfolding throughout the book, is a story that went nowhere I expected it to, in the best way possible.

Reading it reminded me of watching The Wire (paid link). I came for an excellent cop show, but every season I got so much more. The Wire peels back layers as it goes, and The Three-Body Problem is like a delicious motherfucking layer cake of wonders.

Its Hugo is well-deserved.

Digging Yore? Check out my book!

The Unlucky Isles [affiliate link], the first system-neutral guidebook for my Godsbarrow fantasy campaign setting, is available in print and PDF.