The Dark Forest, by Cixin Liu

The Dark Forest by Liu Cixin

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


There are a lot of glowing reviews on here, which makes me wonder if these reviewers actually read books. Shades of Edward Bulwer-Lytton! The Three Body Problem was not that smooth either, but Ken Liu's translation gave it a bit more help than Joel Mortensen's workmanlike effort. Not to mention the fairly obvious misogyny and stereotyping pointed out elsewhere. Should I mention here that Cixin Liu is one of Vox Day's (of Hugo trolling Rabid Puppies fame) favorite authors? He tells a story the old fashioned way.

That means there are some ideas in it that are relatively fresh, or at least give us a different, uniquely modern Chinese perspective. The idea that the political officers are an overworked and vital part of Earth's defense is something you wouldn't find an American author writing. Liu makes a case for this.

There are a lot of ideas in all, more than the book really needs. I am going to go ahead and read Death's End, hopefully we get something decent for persevering.



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The Sudden Appearance of Hope, by Claire North

My Goodreads review -The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is my first experience with Claire North, and I'll look forward to reading more. The book has a logical clarity that really works well with the literary experience. North has come up with an excellent form of invisibility, in that having people forget they have seen you is just as good as not being seen in the first place.

The story is really just a vehicle for this exploration. How Hope Arden gets by in life ties into really overly efficient self-help software, but even though the author makes it clear that Hope is really invested in the outcome, the story line and the exploration end up sitting side by side rather than integrating. The book is all told in the first person, and we really get a sense of the voice of someone who can talk with others, interact with them, but never be real to them.

We even get some interesting exploration of the boundaries of the phenomenon. Can you remember that you have interacted with someone you can't remember? Not easily, you have to make a lot of notes and in some way doubt your own sanity.

The book is well-written and a deep exploration. I would recommend it to anyone really trying to get into the gears of building speculation, because they are somewhat exposed here, in a good and artful way.



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I think it's a real contender for the 2017 World Fantasy Award.