![]() ![]() That’s just my opinion.Īs far as comparable works, well, as a gamer I definitely saw parallels to two video game franchises: Mass Effect and Dead Space. That does not mean it was a bad read at all, and I don’t regret a moment of my time spent, or the money to purchase it. The action sequences were still very enjoyable and well worth the read, but aside from Bobbie’s badass Marine skills and the politician’s foul mouth, you can almost skip Caliban’s War and head straight into Abbadon’s Gate. I already knew what was happening to a certain extent, so the drive for answers was much more blasé. The main storyline of the novel, which involves the Roci’s crew searching for a scientist’s lost daughter, felt like another twist on Leviathan Wake’s plot, except on a lesser scale. There was lots of action and numerous moments when I again feared for the Roci and her crew. There was a lot more humor in it (though there’s humor in all three books, like laugh-out-loud funny), and I thoroughly enjoyed the addition of Bobbie the Martian Marine, and the foul-mouthed, candy-loving Indian politician. My own novel, currently in revision with my agent, has a lot to do with that theme.Īll right, I’ve left out Caliban’s War, so let me back up and correct that. It doesn’t take long before a few bad choices become atrocities. That was the huge power behind Abbadon’s Gate, and in it I found a connection to much of my own work: the way good people can start on a path to doing evil things. ![]() Even when we’re facing the prospect of potential annihilation as a species, as a solar system, we can’t get over our petty differences. And, even though there’s lots of physics and gritty science involved, the root of the story is still about humanity. Yet in Abbadon’s Gate the authors ruthlessly kill several characters, just to remind readers that this danger is real. Did any of them die? I’m not going to reveal that here.Īs for the other two novels, I felt significantly less horror with books two and three ( Caliban’s War and Abbadon’s Gate). I knew any one of them could die, and considering the direness of their situation, totally expected it. In Leviathan Wakes it heightened my fear for Holden, Miller, and the crew of the Roci. That tension keeps the pace moving throughout all three novels. The authors proved early on in Leviathan Wakes that they could kill characters with unexpected quickness, and that danger descended on main characters with equal speed. That weak sensation in the knees, the hollowness in my stomach, the anxiety for these characters was that intense. It was a little like the feeling I get when I’m in a precarious position high off the ground and I can’t help but think about falling to my death. The main character, good-hearted blabbermouth Holden, and the sardonic, jaded detective Miller won my affection pretty quickly and when they-and the crew of the Roci-were in danger, I actually felt nauseous with fear for them. The unexpected twists of the narrative took my breath away from very early on.īut what made the story truly outstanding in those scary moments was my connection to the characters. Without spoiling the novel for those who haven’t read it, there are some horrific elements to this tale that easily outpaced most scary movies I’ve seen. At the time I read it I was unemployed, so I could afford to stay up late at night reading it, which turned out to really impact my enjoyment and immersion in the story. Leviathan Wakes had everything I wanted in a book as well as a few things I didn’t expect that absolutely drove me wild. Of the three novels so far-it seems that there are plans for further novels in this series, though it was originally only slated as a trilogy-my favorite is probably the first: Leviathan Wakes. The books are very believable, the characters (even some of the antagonists, or “bad guys”) likeable, and the plot is fascinating. Reading The Expanse trilogy has been a roller coaster for two-ish years. So returning to a good old space opera to remind me how cool (and scary) physics and planetary science is, was a refreshing change! They didn’t deal with physics and planetary science, they dealt with social injustice, interpersonal relationships, magic…and there’s nothing wrong with those topics. Most of the titles I read while in college were historical fiction, fantasy, or contemporary in nature. So while I’ve read Dune and works by Ben Bova and Stephen Baxter, I’ve also read plenty of other genres. ![]() ![]() The saying is you are what you eat, and writers tend to be what they read in much the same way. ![]()
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