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What is the worst experience you've had reading a book? (lemmy.blahaj.zone)

submitted 3 months ago by Interstellar_1@lemmy.blahaj.zone to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

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[-] GrabtharsHammer@lemmy.world 51 points 3 months ago

Well it's a series, but Three body problem. It should have been right up my alley, but I got so tired of every decision by every character being stupid that I couldn't be bothered to read the last fifty pages of the last book.

Even if I charitably assumed the point of the book was to show that people are weak and stupid, the series was such a ham-handed strawman as to undercut its own commentary. And even worse, it had just enough interesting ideas to lead me to believe it was going somewhere worthwhile, but it never did.

It's been years and I'm still pissed off that I wasted a week on it.

[-] v0rld@lemmy.world 23 points 3 months ago

It's not just that characters make stupid decisions, the same characters keep making the same mistakes and nobody ever learns from those mistakes or grows as a character. It's so extremely frustrating.

[-] MoonManKipper@lemmy.world 11 points 3 months ago

Agreed- the series is massively overrated

[-] nilaus@lemmy.world 6 points 3 months ago

Same. Gave up after trying for a year and a half. Made it through half the series.

[-] inb4_FoundTheVegan@lemmy.world 6 points 3 months ago

I enjoyed those, but you're not wrong. The author cited Foundation as his inspiration for the books, and it suffers from all the same problems. Interesting concepts told with cardboard cutout ridiculous one dimensional characters.

[-] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 9 points 3 months ago

Well, two dimensional at the end

[-] GrabtharsHammer@lemmy.world 5 points 3 months ago

Heyo!

[-] Cocodapuf@lemmy.world 3 points 3 months ago

Yeah, I recommend people don't read that book, but do read the one chapter about the aliens, what is it, second to the last chapter of the book? That chapter is some of the best sci Fi I've ever encountered, the rest of the book... you can skip it.

[-] JimmyMcGill@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago

Can you name the chapter specifically? I guess it will spoil a lot of the first book no?

[-] Cocodapuf@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

It looks like that was chapter 33, Trisolaris: Sophon

If you want to jump in and read that chapter, all you need to know is this:

!the aliens are on a planet in the alpha centuri/proxima centuri trinary star system, the closest stars to the sun. Also, apparently the three suns means it sucks there and they're desperately looking for a new star system.!<

[-] Cryophilia@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

Thank you, I'll read that chapter!

[-] sanguinepar@lemmy.world 3 points 3 months ago

Not read the book, but isn't it meant to be quite dramatically different in some aspects? I'm sure I heard that all those annoying young adults characters were invented for the show? Someone who knows can correct me on that.

Agreed though that the show was a pile of crap. I enjoyed the first couple and quite enjoyed the last in the season, but the in between was pretty awful.

[-] GrabtharsHammer@lemmy.world 3 points 3 months ago

I couldn't tell you, TBH. I have only read the series of books.

[-] sanguinepar@lemmy.world 1 points 3 months ago

Oh, sorry, I totally misread your post I thought you had seen the show but not read the books. My bad!

[-] Contravariant@lemmy.world 2 points 3 months ago

I'm surprised you got tired of the stupid decisions if I'm honest.

I wasn't aware the characters were making any.

this post was submitted on 01 Aug 2024

142 points (95.5% liked)

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