3 Body Problem to Receive New Illustrated Collector’s Edition

Liu Cixin’s Remembrance of Earth’s Past trilogy earned major critical acclaim, capturing Hugo and Locus awards before inspiring Netflix’s 3 Body Problem adaptation, which is slated to return for its second season this year. The hard sci-fi series originally arrived in China between 2006 and 2010. Following Ken Liu’s English translation for Tor Books in 2014, the novels went on to sell millions of copies worldwide. The Folio Society is now releasing a deluxe illustrated collector’s edition.

Titled The Three-Body Problem Trilogy: Remembrance of Earth’s Past, the single-volume release collects The Three-Body Problem, The Dark Forest, and Death’s End across 1,344 pages. Artist Matt Griffin, known for his work on Star Wars and Dune books, contributed three black-and-white title spreads alongside 15 full-color illustrations. The limited edition also features an author introduction never before published in English, accompanied by a bookplate hand-signed by Liu and Griffin.

The series draws its name from an astrophysics model tracking three gravitationally bound bodies, historically the Sun, Earth, and Moon. In the story, the alien Trisolarans inhabit a planet governed by three erratic suns and cannot predict the cataclysmic climate shifts threatening their survival. After establishing contact with humanity, some aliens seek Earth’s assistance, while others plot an invasion. For the edition’s endpaper linings, Griffin generated authentic three-body orbital simulations using software from MIT.

“Starting with the Chinese Cultural Revolution and spanning some 18 million years into the future, Liu Cixin’s masterpiece is as broad as it is compelling,” Folio Society editor James Rose wrote in a press release. “A tale of humanity’s struggle, and that of a civilization fighting for its very existence, this dares to answer the question: ‘Are we alone in the universe?’ Beautifully and brilliant evoked in Matt Griffin’s artwork, this is the ultimate edition of a science-fiction phenomenon. Fans of the series, anyone interested in sci-fi and hard science, and new readers alike will be awestruck by this edition.”

The Folio Society will release The Three-Body Problem Trilogy: Remembrance of Earth’s Past on Sept. 8 at 11 a.m. ET for $780 on its official website. High prices have not deterred buyers in the past, as the publisher’s $2,200 edition of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire sold out within three hours last month.

Source: Polygon