A review by iamjudgedredd
The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu

dark hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Everything that I liked about The Three Body Problem was basically absent in this sequel, which was a crying shame because those heights were just never achieved in this one. None of the interesting historical/cultural setting, a wide cast of new characters that are wafer thin plot movers, and a formulaic structure make the first 300 pages a slog. The payoff wasn't worth that. 

I still like the main themes, and interesting set ups, and the last 150 pages were much better, but I'm hoping that the trilogy picks up and ends on a high in the next one. 

I was also unhappy with the translation in this one. It feels different, and much more course than book one. 

This sounds very negative, but I did enjoy it, but it was probably a lot more work than it should have been.