Author Gush: Cixin Liu and The Dark Forest

Slow Is Smooth and Smooth Is Fast

Some of you may recall I wrote a glowing testimonial of Three Body Problem awhile ago.

Well, Cixin Liu is back, baby! - and this time he's tackling the human spirit as well as mathematic principals and existential dread.

I never thought I'd see the phrase "cosmic sociology" as badass but here we are.

Picking up almost immediately after Three Body Problem, The Dark Forest deals with the aftermath of humanity's discovery that not only are we are not alone but that our new neighbors do not come in peace. From the onset you really get a sense for the confusion, panic, and desperate need of humanity to have a plan when faced with such a threat, nearly tasting the despair as we realize our every move and conversation is being monitored by an enemy far beyond our understanding.

We can't see or touch them, but they can see and touch us, and Cixin does a great job of describing just how we as a species would handle being forced to confront our being kicked down a few rungs on the evolutionary food chain. There's debates, proposals, and restructuring of government galore, but societal poltiking, while certainly a prominent feature, is not the main draw of this book.

Oh, no. It's the Wallfacer Project.

As stated, the enemies of humanity can see and hear every word we speak or type so the only thing that's truly secure is our own thoughts. To that end the Wallfacer project names four men of varying intellectual skills and prowess to be given nearly unlimited power to create a plan to save humanity with the unique caveat that they can't tell anyone (and especially not each other) what they are doing.

Seems a little bonkers no? Well you'd be right.

Some men seem to get to work while otgersmake little or no progress or abuse their power to obtain wealth and luxury while claiming it's all part of the plan- right up unti you meet the Wallbreakers.

Alien sympathizers tailored to each individual Wallfacer, the Wallbreakers study each Wallfacer in an attempt to decipher their plan before revealing themselves to said Wallfacer and informing them their plan has been broken and leaked to both the enemy and the public at large (which usually results in reactions as extreme as the plans themselves).

This constant, invisible game of chess not only adds a layer of tension that continues through the whole book but also grounds some of the more fantastical portions.

You see, humanity knows a Wallfacer may need more advanced tech than what is currently available so they can get the ball rolling and jump into cryosleep before being awoken once a certain milestone has been achieved.

This not only allows for some amazing leaps in setting but also presents a wonderful exploration of character as we are allowed to see different individuals reaction to the vast changes they are forced to adapt to.

And they do have to adapt, dear reader.

The enemy is beyond us to where we are as so many ants before a mighty dragon. But fuck me if these ants don't have guts.

If Three Body Problem was an exploration of humanity's reaction to finding out we are not alone in the universe then The Dark Forest is the story of what our species is willing to do to survive in it. The best of humanity is shown along with the worst. We are shown our capacity for beauty as well as savagery but most of all we are shown our will to endure. To adapt to adversity and overcome all obstacles by our ingenuity and sheer fucking resolve.

And that's some goddamned good science fiction right there.

So in case it wasn't obvious I quite recommend The Dark Forest, dear reader. Luo Ji is my boy and Da Shi is a strong contender for dark horse best supporting character I never saw coming.

If you're in the market for a good piece of sci-fi, do yourself a favor and don't sleep on this one. I dare say you won't regret it.

PS don't let the lack of any traditional chapters scare you off. Once you get used to tge "vignette system" (if you know you know) it goes quite smoothly