A review by eveningreverie
The Redemption of Time: A Three-Body Problem Novel by Baoshu

adventurous reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Enjoyable, but adds a layer atop the original trilogy that requires a Herculean amount of disbelief suspension to take in. Fanfiction through and through, in all the worst ways (awful “real-life” tie-ins, unnecessary comments about other real media that is clearly the fanfic author venting, unnecessary sexualization of previously fairly chaste characters) and the best ways (thoughtful “what-if”s relating to the main series, attention to detail allowing for important story moments to be directly connected, large-scale spectacle).

Absolutely, bar none, the worst book in the Three-Body universe, but it does do a few things right and allows me to feel like I’m living in a universe I loved to read about that much longer, even if I do think I’ll try hard to forget pretty much everything about it.