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A review by greatlibraryofalexandra
The Supernova Era by Cixin Liu, Joel Martinsen
adventurous
challenging
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? It's complicated
3.0
The first "miss" I've read by Mr. Liu. Great concept, and I did like a lot of the reflection on psychology, humanity, and history - like I do in most of Liu's work - but this book was so endless and the meat of it was so boring. I also found it constantly difficult to suspend disbelief, which feels like an unimaginative complaint about a Sci/Fi fantasy novel, but even its thematic predecessors like Lord of the Flies performed better than this in terms of realism.
I found it as bizarre to read as Stephen King's imagining of a world in which Kennedy had not been killed in the sense that it was trying too hard to be edgy and unique rather than doing the nuanced work of actual imagination. Highlights were reading about the US from a Chinese point of view (as always), but overall I thought this one was a slog, a bit nonsensical, and aimless at the core. Liu's afterword gives it a bit of oomph, but I wouldn't recommend this one.
I found it as bizarre to read as Stephen King's imagining of a world in which Kennedy had not been killed in the sense that it was trying too hard to be edgy and unique rather than doing the nuanced work of actual imagination. Highlights were reading about the US from a Chinese point of view (as always), but overall I thought this one was a slog, a bit nonsensical, and aimless at the core. Liu's afterword gives it a bit of oomph, but I wouldn't recommend this one.