The Dark Forest (The Three-Body Problem Series, 2) Paperback – August 16, 2016

It's hard to know where to begin talking about The Three-Body Problem trilogy (officially known as the Remembrance of Earth's Past series), a truly staggering piece of science-fiction written by Chinese author Cixin Liu and translated to English by Ken Liu and Joel Martinsen (Liu did books 1 and 3, while Martinsen did 2). A trilogy that spans literally thousands of years, deals with quantum physics, game theory, sociology, religion, space exploration, space colonization, and more, all driven by the nature of first contact with alien intelligence - there's a lot going on in this series, and that's before you start realizing just how much Cixin (reminder: Chinese names are traditionally written with the family name first and the given name second) truly takes on the advanced science of his ideas. And yet, when you finish it, you realize that you've read something truly incredible - a piece of hard science-fiction whose ambition, scope, richness, and ideas are impossible not to find yourself thinking about for days afterward.Once you read The Dark Forest, the series' second volume, Cixin's ambition for this saga starts to come into focus. The question of first contact is settled, and the nature of the alien's approach is known: this is to be a takeover of our planet. But how can we deal with a race so much more advanced than our own, constant surveillance by extra-dimensional forces, and fractured elements of humanity working against us?If The Three-Body Problem was a first contact novel done as hard science-fiction, The Dark Forest is an alien invasion novel, albeit one in which the actual invasion is still many, many years away. It's the first time Cixin starts using hibernation to leap through decades and even centuries, spanning huge chunks of time as humanity changes and evolves in the face of an arrival which will change everything. As humanity struggles to find ways to either defend itself or show that it means no harm, the race has to deal with its own fears of inevitable defeat or a desire to retreat from the only planet we've ever known.It's not as if The Three-Body Problem wasn't already ambitious, but The Dark Forest is on a whole other level, dealing with interplanetary fleets, lightspeed travel, quantum computing, and more, watching as they evolve over huge swaths of time. But more than that, the novel is a deeply philosophical one, discussing the nature of life in the universe, questions about human nature and how we react in the face of threats, how we work together (or not), and game theory in how we try to handle uncertain intentions in allies and foes alike. Indeed, the central metaphor that gives the book its title (which doesn't arrive until near the novel's end) is a stunning one that helps you understand that what Cixin is writing about isn't just this particular alien invasion, but about the nature of all life in the universe and how we attempt to define ourselves in the face of reality.That Cixin does this while, again, mixing in such a compelling story (focusing especially on the "Wallfacers", a small group of people tasked with covertly planning humanity's resistance against the invasion) is nothing short of remarkable. The Dark Forest builds beautifully off of the questions and ideas raised in The Three-Body Problem, but turns them into something else entirely, changing the questions from "how do we initially react" to "how would we redefine ourselves in the face of such news". Far from suffering from any sort of "middle book syndrome," The Dark Forest is incredible, engaging with incredible concepts but never neglecting the human characters that anchor its massive scope nor the ticking clock at its story's core.To explain this series is a difficult challenge, to put it mildly. This is a series that spans a huge amount of time, deals with advanced scientific concepts in complex terms, grapples with rich philosophical and political ideas, debates questions without easy answers, and gives you a scope that can be daunting. It's a story of alien invasions, yes, but one in which the action sequences we're so used to are replaced with existential dread, a rethinking of our own lives, and a fear of the unknown that's hard to quantify. It's also the story of people caught up in these times, trying to give themselves a good life while never forgetting the larger questions of their era, and juggling their own fears with fears for humanity. In other words, it's what hard science-fiction is great at - thoughtful questions, big ideas, and speculation, all of which change the way you think about the world.This series is a truly incredible achievement, one that honestly left me a bit staggered and reeling as I attempt to think about it all, but one that I love all the more for what it accomplishes. If you're a hard science-fiction fan, or simply someone who loves dealing with the complex ramifications of common ideas, this is a must read series. I've never read anything like it in my life, and I'm a richer person for the ideas it's inspired me to think about.

From reading the user reviews here, I gather that this is not a book for everyone, which was also true with the first book in the series, The Three-Body Problem. However, I found this second installment to be as engrossing as the first, and in some ways, even more so. The translation of this book is more colloquial for English speakers than last time, and I quickly adjusted to the change in tone (although I liked the first book's translation too).Liu has a fertile imagination. He masterfully melds science fact with science fiction. He writes plot like Mozart wrote operas. His style runs the gamut from dry and declamatory to wildly evocative and romantic. He has human nature pegged, especially our habit of idealizing and handing our power over to dictators -- religious, political and social -- and the way this causes us to betray our higher ethics and values. His hypotheses on the consequences of space travel -- cosmic sociology -- are mind-blowing.This sounds abstract, but I'm avoiding spoilers. The Dark Forest is not abstract. It's concrete, loaded with complex characters, intrigue, irony and tragedy. The plot has many unexpected twists, but is easy to follow. We get to experience what space travel might actually be like for human beings a few centuries on. It's fascinating. It's not Star Trek, it's a lot more rough and tumble. Liu's solution to the problem of traveling at hyper speeds on a space vessel is truly amazing.This is a four-star review rather than five-star because the depiction of women is terrible. As a female sci-fi fan, I've had to accept that sexism is common in the genre. Liu's female characters were better represented in the first book, but the fantasy lover who turns up in The Dark Forest is like a blow-up doll that a guy might purchase at a porn store for personal use. Patriarchal stereotypes are not archetypes, they are an offensive shorthand designed to diminish the autonomous humanity of women. Still, I loved the book. Liu is brilliant despite his less-than-evolved perspective on women.When I learned what the title refers to, I was very moved. The explanation pulled together the many plot threads in an astonishing way. I disagree with those reviewers who claim that Liu got lost mid-story and had to write his way out of a tangled mess. On the contrary, the story's architecture was pre-determined and well constructed, and I had no trouble following it or finishing it. Travel through The Dark Forest and hang on for book three. It's quite a ride.