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coolfijiwater's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Murder, Torture, and Suicide
Minor: Genocide
qtcarolyn's review against another edition
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide
nannahnannah's review against another edition
3.0
Wow, okay.
I don’t know if you’ve heard this, but a lot of people have said, “Where’s the science in all the science fiction nowadays?”. Well … if that’s you, then read this book. I felt like I needed a degree in astrophysics to truly understand it.
Physics … isn’t real?
Back during the Cultural Revolution (mid 1960s) in China, scientist Ye Wenjie is supposed to be sent to a labour camp to be re-educated, but instead she goes to a highly-classified government site created to find alien life.
Then, in the present, we have Wang Miao (nanotech scientist), who also manages to get wrapped up in a similar government project. Or -- literally, kidnapped by cops to be introduced to it. But instead of seeking alien life, they’re exploring the fact that certain scientists keep committing suicide, and they think there’s something out there devoted to destroying mankind.
Wang Miao’s got a lot on his hands, and it only gets worse when he discovers a strange video game called The Three-Body Problem, clearly made for academics. In it, players must solve the puzzle of the game’s world: it has three suns, and the creatures on the planet keep dying when the suns create Chaotic Eras that destroy civilizations.
I may have described this incorrectly, but it’s because I had a difficult time understanding things. It’s written like an academic paper, and I had to read each page twice to understand where things were going. Maybe I’m stupid? Or maybe this book is catered to certain people. Could be both.
While the plot was massive and sprawling, the prose was stilted and awkward. I hope it’s the translator, but I can’t really know. There were character development cop-outs, like one character saying, “I didn’t do this, because I’m quite a lazy man”; “You see why I didn’t do that, right? Because I’m so lazy”, etc. He said he was lazy to justify everything like ten times in that one scene, and I don’t know if that was supposed to be humor? But it just came off as … well, lazy.
There was also some laugh-out-loud sexism, showing this was clearly written by a stereotypical man. Not only were there very few women (except for one of the villains), Wang’s wife and children seemed to disappear halfway through the book. They were never mentioned again. Then there were three female officers who killed Ye’s father back during the Cultural Revolution. They’re now thirty, right? And when they came back, Ye described them as “very, very old, now thirty, one with a stooped back”, etc. This is where I laughed. Literally laughed. I’m now twenty-nine. I guess I’m “very old” as well. When this protag is probably the same age, and he’s fine, but when you’re a woman and thirty, you’re very old and have a stooped back because you’re thirty, etc. Hilarious.
Anyway, when the aliens actually “showed up” they weren’t exactly as menacing as I thought they’d be. The stakes didn’t rise, and the threat seemed very far away. The climax felt the same. Don’t get me wrong, everything was interesting but not very dramatic. I think for me, all the science got in the way. This may be spoilers, but a big part of what was supposed to bring the suspense was the unfolding of a proton. For me, that means absolutely nothing. Maybe someone who actually knows something about science would feel differently, haha!
So I just have to say I felt very lukewarm about everything. I think this book is one of those science fiction novels written for academics to enjoy.
I don’t know if you’ve heard this, but a lot of people have said, “Where’s the science in all the science fiction nowadays?”. Well … if that’s you, then read this book. I felt like I needed a degree in astrophysics to truly understand it.
Physics … isn’t real?
Back during the Cultural Revolution (mid 1960s) in China, scientist Ye Wenjie is supposed to be sent to a labour camp to be re-educated, but instead she goes to a highly-classified government site created to find alien life.
Then, in the present, we have Wang Miao (nanotech scientist), who also manages to get wrapped up in a similar government project. Or -- literally, kidnapped by cops to be introduced to it. But instead of seeking alien life, they’re exploring the fact that certain scientists keep committing suicide, and they think there’s something out there devoted to destroying mankind.
Wang Miao’s got a lot on his hands, and it only gets worse when he discovers a strange video game called The Three-Body Problem, clearly made for academics. In it, players must solve the puzzle of the game’s world: it has three suns, and the creatures on the planet keep dying when the suns create Chaotic Eras that destroy civilizations.
I may have described this incorrectly, but it’s because I had a difficult time understanding things. It’s written like an academic paper, and I had to read each page twice to understand where things were going. Maybe I’m stupid? Or maybe this book is catered to certain people. Could be both.
While the plot was massive and sprawling, the prose was stilted and awkward. I hope it’s the translator, but I can’t really know. There were character development cop-outs, like one character saying, “I didn’t do this, because I’m quite a lazy man”; “You see why I didn’t do that, right? Because I’m so lazy”, etc. He said he was lazy to justify everything like ten times in that one scene, and I don’t know if that was supposed to be humor? But it just came off as … well, lazy.
There was also some laugh-out-loud sexism, showing this was clearly written by a stereotypical man. Not only were there very few women (except for one of the villains), Wang’s wife and children seemed to disappear halfway through the book. They were never mentioned again. Then there were three female officers who killed Ye’s father back during the Cultural Revolution. They’re now thirty, right? And when they came back, Ye described them as “very, very old, now thirty, one with a stooped back”, etc. This is where I laughed. Literally laughed. I’m now twenty-nine. I guess I’m “very old” as well. When this protag is probably the same age, and he’s fine, but when you’re a woman and thirty, you’re very old and have a stooped back because you’re thirty, etc. Hilarious.
Anyway, when the aliens actually “showed up” they weren’t exactly as menacing as I thought they’d be. The stakes didn’t rise, and the threat seemed very far away. The climax felt the same. Don’t get me wrong, everything was interesting but not very dramatic. I think for me, all the science got in the way. This may be spoilers, but a big part of what was supposed to bring the suspense was the unfolding of a proton. For me, that means absolutely nothing. Maybe someone who actually knows something about science would feel differently, haha!
So I just have to say I felt very lukewarm about everything. I think this book is one of those science fiction novels written for academics to enjoy.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism
Minor: Suicide
beereads27's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Murder and War
Minor: Suicide and Colonisation
thecasualbooknerd's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Science fiction in the truest, purest sense of the words; truly a feat to have an intergalactic story so rooted in science and immersive in terms of character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, War, and Gun violence
Moderate: Alcoholism and Murder
Minor: Grief, Death, and Suicide
ekcd_'s review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
It’s all spoilers this whole thing.
Where to start?
The characters are utterly forgettable and there is not a single redeemable or meaningful relationship between any of the characters or any facet of the story. They only existed so they could talk to each other as a way to move the plot along. Without the characters the whole book could be reduced to one, drunken rant about “like what if aliens lived on an unstable planet?” He put characters in so it wouldn’t just be a really bizarre lecture
This book reads as 350 pages of history and philosophical waxing and then 50 pages of shitty alien fan fiction that is really just the author patting himself on the back for creating analogies that are complicated enough for readers to think him smart but are ultimately meaningless.
By rooting a story in the present and then layering in completely absurd scientific magic over it really removed me from the story. The physics and math were really inaccessible and honesty glossed over that whole chapter.
Nothing in this story or it’s writing made me care about any of the individuals, civilizations, communities or social movements that were used.
I am gobsmacked that so many people praise this book so highly. I love science fiction and read it almost exclusively. The only thing keeping me from rage quitting half way through was rage reading so I could review this book without people saying “you didn’t finish it so you can’t comment on it”
It gets a 1.5 because I was able to finish it quickly (thank god)
Well screw you, fans of this book, I read it and I disliked it!
Where to start?
The characters are utterly forgettable and there is not a single redeemable or meaningful relationship between any of the characters or any facet of the story. They only existed so they could talk to each other as a way to move the plot along. Without the characters the whole book could be reduced to one, drunken rant about “like what if aliens lived on an unstable planet?” He put characters in so it wouldn’t just be a really bizarre lecture
This book reads as 350 pages of history and philosophical waxing and then 50 pages of shitty alien fan fiction that is really just the author patting himself on the back for creating analogies that are complicated enough for readers to think him smart but are ultimately meaningless.
By rooting a story in the present and then layering in completely absurd scientific magic over it really removed me from the story. The physics and math were really inaccessible and honesty glossed over that whole chapter.
Nothing in this story or it’s writing made me care about any of the individuals, civilizations, communities or social movements that were used.
I am gobsmacked that so many people praise this book so highly. I love science fiction and read it almost exclusively. The only thing keeping me from rage quitting half way through was rage reading so I could review this book without people saying “you didn’t finish it so you can’t comment on it”
It gets a 1.5 because I was able to finish it quickly (thank god)
Well screw you, fans of this book, I read it and I disliked it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, Violence, Suicide, Police brutality, Hate crime, Gun violence, Genocide, Death, Confinement, Colonisation, Classism, and Blood
Minor: Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Classism, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Violence, War, and Xenophobia
I don’t regret reading this because at least it gives me something concrete to point my unhinged anger at. Going to drink some tea and read something that I know is good and purejojo50's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Suicide
savvylit's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
The Three-Body Problem was by far my favorite of the trilogy. The pacing was perfect. The philosophy and physics were thought-provoking while remaining accessible. There was quite a lot of intrigue, too, which lent the book the quality of a complex puzzle.
Additionally, the next two books in this series were overtly misogynist & this one was not. I think this book would be a great standalone novel.
Additionally, the next two books in this series were overtly misogynist & this one was not. I think this book would be a great standalone novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Gun violence, and Grief
jessthanthree's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide, Murder, Torture, and Violence
budge's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Fascinating and gripping, keeps you guessing until quite near the end. It has an intriguing plot which switches about in time and between reality and virtual reality. The two main characters are easy to identify with but having said that, the zoomed out perspective is quite bleak at times because it's not afraid to look at humanity analytically as a stage of evolution. The physics involved takes a bit of effort (if you stopped at A level in 1983) but it's really cleverly explained and opens up a whole new way of thinking about pretty much everything, which is very exciting.
I didn't realise until the end that there are two more in the series, what a treat!
I didn't realise until the end that there are two more in the series, what a treat!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Minor: Suicide