The Three-Body Problem
The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixinby Liu Cixin
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 16 of 179 science fiction novels by recommenders
People recommend it as a mind-bending science fiction novel with striking concepts, though critics say its physics and sociology are implausible and the later plot is weak.
People recommend it as a mind-bending science fiction novel with striking concepts, though critics say its physics and sociology are implausible and the later plot is weak.
36 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 28
- criticize it
- 8
- approval share
- 78%
Recommended in 10 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 28 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 3.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 10 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Mind-bending, original science fiction concepts
“one of the most fascinating and mind-bending considerations in the book”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “Physicists Solve a Muon Mystery. Now, Old Results Don't Add Up” “DF is only one of many amazing concepts in TBP”
Comment from 31 Mar 2026 in “The Cognitive Dark Forest” “the books which are astonishingly good”
Comment from 25 Sep 2026 in “Gravity seems holographic. What does that mean for reality?” - Comment from 16 Jul 2026 in “Book Prizes Don't Work How You Think”
Enjoyable, memorable read overall
“I enjoyed Three Body Problem a lot more than I thought I would.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” “I just finished the fantastic Three Body Problem series”
Comment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?” “I really enjoyed the book series.”
Comment from 19 Nov 2025 in “Show HN: Browser-based interactive 3D Three-Body problem simulator” - Comment from 15 Oct 2026 in “Why are we even doing all this?”
- Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Ask HN: Please recommend sci-fi books similar to "children of time" or "anathem"”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Implausible science and physics
“the "science" in it was so profoundly absurd that I couldn't motivate myself to read any further”
Comment from 5 Oct 2026 in “Blindsight (Watts Novel)” “this is implausible. If scientists started getting weird results, they'd be thrilled , not suicidal!”
Comment from 30 Jul 2026 in “Physicists Solve a Muon Mystery. Now, Old Results Don't Add Up” “But it's "science" is just bullshit, both the physics and the sociology.”
Comment from 6 Oct 2026 in “Blindsight (Watts Novel)” - Comment from 25 Sep 2026 in “Gravity seems holographic. What does that mean for reality?”
- Comment from 22 Apr 2026 in “FBI looks into dead or missing scientists tied to NASA, Blue Origin, SpaceX”
Later dark forest plot weak
“It's the later plot with the "dark forest" that makes no sense.”
Comment from 7 Aug 2026 in “Tiny Black Holes May Be Exploding Stars Across the Milky Way” “It just struck more as a Marvel style ending than an Arthur C Clark style ending.”
Comment from 26 Sep 2026 in “Gravity seems holographic. What does that mean for reality?”
Other science fiction novels people recommend
The four most recommended other science fiction novels, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Hail Maryby Andy Weir | 117 | 24 | 83% | 12 | — | Approved |
| There Is No Antimemetics Divisionby qntm | 98 | 34 | 74% | 9 | 1.5 yrs6 owners | Approved |
| Blindsightby Peter Watts | 96 | 27 | 78% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Duneby Frank Herbert | 82 | 25 | 77% | 12 | — | Approved |
| The Three-Body Problemby Liu CixinThis page | 28 | 8 | 78% | 10 | — | Approved |
What people said
32 of the 40 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“it's really stuck with me”
“I agree with the Three Body Problem's take on this”
“But it's "science" is just bullshit, both the physics and the sociology.”
“the "science" in it was so profoundly absurd that I couldn't motivate myself to read any further”
“There was a lot of xenophobia going on in that book and the positive characters were all Chinese.”
“I just finished the fantastic Three Body Problem series”
“The 3 body problem is also great!”
“It just struck more as a Marvel style ending than an Arthur C Clark style ending.”
“revealed the author's complete ignorance of basic particle physics”
“the books which are astonishingly good”
“I tried to capture the essence and feelings that I had when reading them”
“While I love the books as much as everyone else”
“It's the later plot with the "dark forest" that makes no sense.”
“And I also hated the sophons.”
“one of the most fascinating and mind-bending considerations in the book”
“this is implausible. If scientists started getting weird results, they'd be thrilled , not suicidal!”
“I do think that The Ninefox Gambit, The Fifth Season, The Three Body Problem are all just as strong”
“three body problem is awesome!”
“That part was genuinely the least plausible part of those books to me.”
“The metaphor, as it relates to the Three Body Problem books, has some issues and is pretty misleading.”
“DF is only one of many amazing concepts in TBP”
“I think it's even greater than its Netflix adaptation”
“that was actually a very good guess”
“Even a cursory analysis at the time of writing would have ruled out Alpha Centari.”
“Highlights include Leviathan Wakes/The Expanse, The Three-Body Problem, Children of Time”
“gems like book 4 of the three body problem, written by a different author than the original”
“I really liked Ken Liu's translation of T3BP.”
“humanity aren't The Bad Guys With Agency”
“Three Body Problem as well for detecting signal.”
“I enjoyed Three Body Problem a lot more than I thought I would.”
“Seriously there was so much wrong with that book.”
“I really enjoyed the book series.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.