8 ms·

For sci-fi recs: I recently read The Three-body Problem by Cixin Liu (a trilogy) and thought it was really good. Also just started another sci-fi trilogy with

by pbnjay 8y ago

For sci-fi recs: I recently read The Three-body Problem by Cixin Liu (a trilogy) and thought it was really good. Also just started another sci-fi trilogy with A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge which has some really fun and interesting (if hand-wavy) ideas about deep space physics.

zengid 8y ago
I just started Death's End! Great books so far, though The Dark Forest felt very slow compared to The Three-body Problem.
mercutio2 8y ago
Wow! You managed to juxtapose my favorite and least favorite science fiction. I’ve never read anything bad by Vernor Vinge. I could not find a single thing to like about The Three Body Problem. I’ve heard it gets better after the first book, but I loathed the first book so thoroughly I wasn’t willing to try any more. What did you like about it? It seemed like there was practically zero plot, and the science bits seemed unconvincing.
- mojoe 8y ago
  Not op, but I'm a big fan of both authors. I enjoy Vinge more, but I wouldn't say his science is any more plausible than Liu Cixin's (with the exception of "A Deepness in the Sky"). I actually enjoyed "The Dark Forest" and "Death's End" more than the Three Body Problem. All three books have some fun, novel ideas. While the plot arc is not very traditional, it is complex and interesting -- lots of characters with vastly different motivations interacting in interesting ways. The main plot driver over all three books (that the universe is a dark forest) is highly plausible.
- dswalter 8y ago
  I agree that the first two three body problem books (I've just finished dark forest) have some weak points on character development and dialogue. But I've really enjoyed them so far because the books have surprised me at least a dozen times.
- spapas82 8y ago
  You need to read the 2nd book of the "Three Body Problem" trilogy ("The Dark Forest"). It will explain and improve most ideas found in the 1st book and, when it explains the whole "Dark Forest" concept I guarantee that you'll be amazed (don't research the concept before reading the book). I also didn't like the 1st part very much but I was blown apart after reading the 2nd. The third was not as good, so at least read the 2nd one
- vagab0nd 8y ago
  Personally, the first book is my favorite out of the 3. I think if you know a bit of the history of the Cultural Revolution, you'd enjoy it more. The way he combined the plot with that part of the Chinese history is amazing.
  - mercutio2 8y ago
    I took several classes in Chinese literature in college. One semester was specifically on the Cultural Revolution. I don’t think my dislike stemmed from an insufficient (for an American) knowledge of the Cultural Revolution. The characters ranged from caricatures to boringly malevolent, the plot dripped out like an icicle half a degree above freezing, and the aliens, which were at least interesting, got about 20 pages of attention. I just don’t get the hype.
fao_ 8y ago
The Three Body Problem is one of my main reasons for learning Chinese :) Vernor Vinge single handedly became one of my favourite writers (along side Clarke and Lem) with his short story True Names. I didn't find Rainbow's End as easy a read, I'll probably reapproach it after finishing The Star Diaries or Snow Crash, though.
- Yizahi 8y ago
  You should read this essay then: http://pinyin.info/readings/texts/moser.html http://pinyin.info/readings/texts/moser.html
  - fao_ 8y ago
    That's funny. The course I've been doing (dominochinese.com) has approached Chinese from a different angle and it's ridiculously accessible. I remembered and understood more Chinese in a week, than I ever understood of another language (I have attempted learning German, Russian, and Japanese -- in many different learning styles). The perspective given by the course shows to me that Chinese is one of the most sensible languages on earth. And the fact that we can trace the lineage of the language back to the Bronze age is one hell of a bonus! Of course traditional learning methods (by rote, etc.) are not going to work for a pictographic language, but mnemonic learning is greatly aided by the story and history of the symbols therein.
    - sah2ed 8y ago
      > Of course traditional learning methods (by rote, etc.) are not going to work for a pictographic language, but mnemonic learning is greatly aided by the story and history of the symbols therein. Upvoted just for your last sentence. I've found that this is true for correctly learning certain topics that appear to be impenetrable to me when using standard reading materials. So what I do now is try to read up on some historical materials to help me understand how the original ideas evolved to what they have become today, before re-attempting to read modern texts. Familiarity with the topic's history prepares the foundation on which I can mentally hang together the topic's most important ideas, in a way that is coherent for me for future recall.
mojoe 8y ago
Those two are fantastic, and if you like Vernor Vinge check out "A Deepness in the Sky" -- I think it's his best work, and is much more plausible (centered around slower-than-light travel). I have a few more recommendations in that vein here: http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html
- davedx 8y ago
  I really liked the concepts of the story in Deepness, but it took so long to progress I got bored of it. :(
- kenjinp 8y ago
  omg I love your website!
  - mojoe 8y ago
    Thank you!
- arethuza 8y ago
  Not sure that "plausible" is the word I would use - they are both set explicitly in the same universe with the same "physics" - Deepness just being a bit more subtle about it as the characters don't know about the Zones of Thought - but the Zones are central to the book and the ending. Edit: Having said that, the concept of "focus" in Deepness is utterly terrifying - particularly as it seems very plausible and, as is noted in the book, some people might willingly submit to it (relevant to HN!).
hasseio 8y ago
Try his Marooned in Realtime next. Excellent murder mystery!
djaychela 8y ago
Another vote for Vernor Vinge here - Loved a Deepness in the Sky and A Fire Upon the Deep. Lately it has taken me AGES to get through any fiction, but I read both of them in short order - really compelling SciFi with interesting ideas, and presented in a great way (where you often don't know the details of the protagonists and assume they are human initially until details progressively inform you otherwise).
psalminen 8y ago
Tom Holt - Doughnut is a really fun, easy sci-fi read I recently enjoyed.
gandhium 8y ago
Since nobody recommended them yet: Alastair Reynolds's "Revelation Space" and "Poseidon's Children" are wonderful sci-fi series.

by pbnjay 8y ago

zengid 8y ago

I just started Death's End! Great books so far, though The Dark Forest felt very slow compared to The Three-body Problem.

mercutio2 8y ago

Wow! You managed to juxtapose my favorite and least favorite science fiction. I’ve never read anything bad by Vernor Vinge. I could not find a single thing to like about The Three Body Problem. I’ve heard it gets better after the first book, but I loathed the first book so thoroughly I wasn’t willing to try any more. What did you like about it? It seemed like there was practically zero plot, and the science bits seemed unconvincing.

mojoe 8y ago
Not op, but I'm a big fan of both authors. I enjoy Vinge more, but I wouldn't say his science is any more plausible than Liu Cixin's (with the exception of "A Deepness in the Sky"). I actually enjoyed "The Dark Forest" and "Death's End" more than the Three Body Problem. All three books have some fun, novel ideas. While the plot arc is not very traditional, it is complex and interesting -- lots of characters with vastly different motivations interacting in interesting ways. The main plot driver over all three books (that the universe is a dark forest) is highly plausible.
dswalter 8y ago
I agree that the first two three body problem books (I've just finished dark forest) have some weak points on character development and dialogue. But I've really enjoyed them so far because the books have surprised me at least a dozen times.
spapas82 8y ago
You need to read the 2nd book of the "Three Body Problem" trilogy ("The Dark Forest"). It will explain and improve most ideas found in the 1st book and, when it explains the whole "Dark Forest" concept I guarantee that you'll be amazed (don't research the concept before reading the book). I also didn't like the 1st part very much but I was blown apart after reading the 2nd. The third was not as good, so at least read the 2nd one
vagab0nd 8y ago
Personally, the first book is my favorite out of the 3. I think if you know a bit of the history of the Cultural Revolution, you'd enjoy it more. The way he combined the plot with that part of the Chinese history is amazing.
- mercutio2 8y ago
  I took several classes in Chinese literature in college. One semester was specifically on the Cultural Revolution. I don’t think my dislike stemmed from an insufficient (for an American) knowledge of the Cultural Revolution. The characters ranged from caricatures to boringly malevolent, the plot dripped out like an icicle half a degree above freezing, and the aliens, which were at least interesting, got about 20 pages of attention. I just don’t get the hype.

fao_ 8y ago

The Three Body Problem is one of my main reasons for learning Chinese :) Vernor Vinge single handedly became one of my favourite writers (along side Clarke and Lem) with his short story True Names. I didn't find Rainbow's End as easy a read, I'll probably reapproach it after finishing The Star Diaries or Snow Crash, though.

Yizahi 8y ago
You should read this essay then: http://pinyin.info/readings/texts/moser.html http://pinyin.info/readings/texts/moser.html
- fao_ 8y ago
  That's funny. The course I've been doing (dominochinese.com) has approached Chinese from a different angle and it's ridiculously accessible. I remembered and understood more Chinese in a week, than I ever understood of another language (I have attempted learning German, Russian, and Japanese -- in many different learning styles). The perspective given by the course shows to me that Chinese is one of the most sensible languages on earth. And the fact that we can trace the lineage of the language back to the Bronze age is one hell of a bonus! Of course traditional learning methods (by rote, etc.) are not going to work for a pictographic language, but mnemonic learning is greatly aided by the story and history of the symbols therein.
  - sah2ed 8y ago
    > Of course traditional learning methods (by rote, etc.) are not going to work for a pictographic language, but mnemonic learning is greatly aided by the story and history of the symbols therein. Upvoted just for your last sentence. I've found that this is true for correctly learning certain topics that appear to be impenetrable to me when using standard reading materials. So what I do now is try to read up on some historical materials to help me understand how the original ideas evolved to what they have become today, before re-attempting to read modern texts. Familiarity with the topic's history prepares the foundation on which I can mentally hang together the topic's most important ideas, in a way that is coherent for me for future recall.

mojoe 8y ago

Those two are fantastic, and if you like Vernor Vinge check out "A Deepness in the Sky" -- I think it's his best work, and is much more plausible (centered around slower-than-light travel). I have a few more recommendations in that vein here: http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html

davedx 8y ago
I really liked the concepts of the story in Deepness, but it took so long to progress I got bored of it. :(
kenjinp 8y ago
omg I love your website!
- mojoe 8y ago
  Thank you!
arethuza 8y ago
Not sure that "plausible" is the word I would use - they are both set explicitly in the same universe with the same "physics" - Deepness just being a bit more subtle about it as the characters don't know about the Zones of Thought - but the Zones are central to the book and the ending. Edit: Having said that, the concept of "focus" in Deepness is utterly terrifying - particularly as it seems very plausible and, as is noted in the book, some people might willingly submit to it (relevant to HN!).

hasseio 8y ago

Try his Marooned in Realtime next. Excellent murder mystery!

djaychela 8y ago

Another vote for Vernor Vinge here - Loved a Deepness in the Sky and A Fire Upon the Deep. Lately it has taken me AGES to get through any fiction, but I read both of them in short order - really compelling SciFi with interesting ideas, and presented in a great way (where you often don't know the details of the protagonists and assume they are human initially until details progressively inform you otherwise).

psalminen 8y ago

Tom Holt - Doughnut is a really fun, easy sci-fi read I recently enjoyed.

gandhium 8y ago

Since nobody recommended them yet: Alastair Reynolds's "Revelation Space" and "Poseidon's Children" are wonderful sci-fi series.