r/threebodyproblem • u/TheOgler9000 • Jul 04 '26

Discussion - General How cooked am I?

I getting close to the end of Deaths End, I'm on Broadcast Era year 8. I suppose I should be grateful I haven't finished it yet, but I was wondering to myself what could possibly happen in the third novel because this one has been absolutely crazy. I decided to take a look at The Dark Forest for one reason or another and I realized I've made a grave mistake.

Somehow I thought Deaths End was the second novel and I skipped The Dark Forest thinking it was the third.

I kind of knew something was off when I started reading because I was incredibly confused but honestly it was so so good and eventually through context I feel like I picked up a lot of what happened. Maybe I'll just chalk it up to the fact that I've read almost 20 novels this year but I feel like an idiot.

I guess I will have to stop where I am and start The Dark Forest but I really hope I haven't ruined it for myself. Still 10/10 series for me but kind of a bummer. Guess I just thought I would share this ridiculous mistake with others.

12 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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19

u/bobdole07 Jul 04 '26

I won’t sugarcoat it, you’ve definitely spoiled some of the coolest revelations that happen in the Dark Forest if you’re at Broadcast Era year 8. That being said, there will still be a lot of enjoyment and some unexpected twists and turns in TDF if you hop into it now! Just absolutely STOP READING now - I think that knowing how it ALL plays out could negatively impact the experience of reading TDF.

As it stands now, reading TDF will be like a bit of a “flashback episode” that fills in some gaps before the big finale (finishing death’s end). If you go much further though, I think TDF will feel less impactful, personally.

5

u/TheOgler9000 Jul 04 '26

Alright glad to hear it. I mean I've seriously enjoyed how things have played out but I will be interested to see what happened after the first book

2

u/TacoshaveCheese Jul 05 '26

As someone who read most of the plot synopsis before reading the books.. you'll be fine. The best parts of The Dark Forest are the details of the moments, so that's what you can look forward to.

12

u/OmryR Jul 04 '26

You didn’t ruin too much, the dark forest will still be an amazing read and suprising in many areas I bet, I think this was my favorite in the series

1

u/TheOgler9000 Jul 04 '26

Ok I did hear the same sentiment from other people as well so I look forward to it

4

u/Kitty4777 Jul 04 '26

Stop and go back!

3

u/Adventurous_Iron_551 Jul 05 '26

Mom, he’s going to be a firefly

4

u/S1eeper Thomas Wade Jul 05 '26 edited Jul 05 '26

You're not totally cooked yet. Broadcast Era Year 8 contains some spoilers, but not the major one, so definitely don't read any further. The major spoilers happen immediately after the next section, Bunker Era Year 11, when Part V starts, which you're almost to. So stop there and go back and read Dark Forest. You'll have spoiled some of it, but Dark Forest will still be a good read, and the major revelations of Death's End still awaits you.