We are all guilty of cursing the human race as a whole when upset. "People are awful", "People are just terrible these days", "Humans were the worst thing to happen to Earth!", or sometimes just the old classic "Ugh, people". But have you ever lost so much faith in the human race that you would take a gamble on unknown aliens doing a better job at ruling the planet? 
 I read The Three-Body Problem without reading the book description or any reviews. Going in blind was likely the best decision I could have made - each chapter is just another layer that builds up, slowly but surely, to an incredible story that will only continue to be relevant as the years go on. A 'what if' from the cultural revolution combines with more poignant scientific questions that both give enough depth to be interesting but are simple enough to be understandable without rereading paragraphs a few times with a head scratch. Cixin (Helped by Liu's fantastic translating) never speaks down to the reader, instead elevating their understanding effortlessly page by page. 
 I would say this book does suffer from a slow drag around three quarters in, but this lasts only a handful of chapters before all is revealed and the pace picks up once again to its ending. I am looking forward to reading the next in the series.