Awesome but strange

I very much enjoyed listening to the book. this is my third book that I've read from the author and I'm not disappointed. The plot line follows certain logic and there are many instances of unsaid horrors and side events that kind of support the story. for example, the book never really says that most nations collapsed but it did only mention top super powers. even the great usa is implied to be down to 5 states (with their five star flag) also, if it wasn't for the Chinese quantum AI, China would have also probably dissolved into 1000s of pieces of smaller kingdoms. I kind of don't buy into the whole "30 years later and there is a colony in mars". sure, lots of work and money was probably invested because of the fact that the kids really wanted to see mars but yea, I would have thought that there should have been at least a few decades or centuries of a super mediaval dark age because kids can't really take care of themselves in such massive groups.


anyway, it's a good story if you already like this kind of literature.

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Interesting but not great

It is something else.
The culture influence is really interesting, seeing how the author envisions the world.
Close to a young adult novel but a great idea.
The end was a little... disappointing and there is a huuuge missed opportunity in my opinion.
There is this incredible AI that pretty much makes the entire story move along in the middle but then it is gone. Just gone.
I did expect that to be more of a pivot point but it feels like the writer just changed his mind in the middle of the story and went in another direction.

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the general idea of the story

yet another great book from a wonderful author well thought out and filled with wonderful characters

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Great start - loses its way - never comes back

Earliest of the author's major works - so he was still finding his feet.
Some great ideas - but quickly gets preposterous.
Ignore unless you are on a mission.

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1 person found this helpful

Just great

This has a great concept and some interesting subjects broached. Makes you if are getting any of it right?

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Starts off well but ...

The premise is fascinating and I was hoping for an interesting read. However the very masculine take on things was very disappointing. It's given me plenty of food for thought though!
The narrator of this and Liu's other works is very flat, I would hesitate to chose him again unless it was a 'must read' book.

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5 people found this helpful

Pure, brilliant and chilling sci-fi

A well told tale of what if.....
The author, as ever, creates characters of scary authenticity and goes beyond the nth degree in another wonderful exposee on the human condition.

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Children run the world!

A novel of alternate history.

As I was reading this I almost began to feel this could’ve been Lord of the flies set in the future. A very good read.

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An insight into Chinese thought

If this book is typical of those from Chinese authors then it serves as a window into how the people of that country think. For that reason this and the other books from this author are useful and in a way interesting.

The book itself is to be blunt awful. It reads like a bad children’s book. The concept is flawed, the plot is underdeveloped and the characters lack any depth at all.

Yet is recommend it for that window into there thought. For that it does have some value.

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4 people found this helpful

Like it’s written by two different authors

The idea and the beginning of this book are great. Liu did it again, I thought. But the children era started and the book turned into a mindless trash. It’s like author never knew any kids and has no idea how they act.

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