Review of "Death's End (The Three-Body Problem)" on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
OUTSTANDING.
English language
Published Sept. 6, 2018 by Head of Zeus.
Death's End (The Three-Body Problem)
3 stars
(21 reviews)
Review of "Death's End (The Three-Body Problem)" on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Interesting but not compelling.
So it probably was due to reading this in four or so different chunks, but for all the acclaim this didn't really grab hold of me. But that's the peril of reading this as a library check-out. I'll at least give the second a try, to see if getting through it in one attempt makes it work better.
The first book in a trilogy, where the deaths of a number of prominent scientists is linked back to a strange online game showing the struggles off a society that is attempting to live with three stars, and uncovering the canal behind it and their plans.
Review of "Death's End (The Three-Body Problem)" on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
When an SF book wins so many awards for best novel, it must be really good. That's certainly what made me pick up Liu Cixin's Three-Body Problem. And the first scene was really vivid: that body dangling on the fence!
I know very little about Chinese politics and the thought that here was a book - trumpeted as hard science fiction - that would also introduce me to an award-winning story set in China was really seductive.
But it's not a great novel if you measure great novels by well-drawn characters engaged in an enthralling, imaginative story. That's what I demand in a good read.
Most of the characters barely rise above the stereotypical. The plot meanders, lacks pace and slows down completely in repetitive representations of situations to draw out scientific points. The Three-Body video game: nobody in their right mind would play that, it's just so dull. …
When an SF book wins so many awards for best novel, it must be really good. That's certainly what made me pick up Liu Cixin's Three-Body Problem. And the first scene was really vivid: that body dangling on the fence!
I know very little about Chinese politics and the thought that here was a book - trumpeted as hard science fiction - that would also introduce me to an award-winning story set in China was really seductive.
But it's not a great novel if you measure great novels by well-drawn characters engaged in an enthralling, imaginative story. That's what I demand in a good read.
Most of the characters barely rise above the stereotypical. The plot meanders, lacks pace and slows down completely in repetitive representations of situations to draw out scientific points. The Three-Body video game: nobody in their right mind would play that, it's just so dull. The action scenes involving the police: not so hot.
The book seems more invested in explaining scientific ideas (some interesting, some not) - and bending plot, characters and everything else to that aim - rather than having the understanding of scientific ideas fall naturally out of the story as a byproduct of great characters and situations.
jkb reviewed Death's End (The Three-Body Problem) by Cixin Liu
Review of "Death's End (The Three-Body Problem)" on 'Goodreads'
A hard read but worth it
I found this story very complex and steeped in a bit of history of the People's Republic of China. That made it a bit of a difficult read but as the story slowly progressed I became quite engrossed in it. I can say I'm very interested to read the sequel to this story.
