Micro Mention "Babylon's Ashes"

"Babylon's Ashes" by James S.A. Corey has my absolute favorite moment in all of the expanse—and that's the moment when Avasarala is screaming at her personal trainer. I remember saying that if Shohreh Aghdashloo didn't get a similar moment to it in the final season, I would be supremely disappointed.

Sadly, as much as I liked the show's final season, we didn't get the personal trainer scene, which is the real tragedy, in my opinion. Well, you know, other than there is no more show and still a good number of novels of material to cover. Too soon?

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Micro Mention "Nemesis Games"

"Nemesis Games" by James S.A. Corey represents yet another seachange moment in The Expanse series, a series of stories known for those moments. It's a story about how a little bit of vainglorious stupidity mixed with a lot of anger can get a lot of people killed.

This is the story that, in my opinion, sets the tone and contributes the most to how the latter half of this excellent series would be shaped. The earlier novels are certainly related and flow from one to the next, but they still feel like self-enclosed containers. Each book has its own story that is distinct in time and place. Starting with "Nemesis Games," though, the macro, overall story, becomes the A plot, and that feeling of discreet, individual stories strung together fades away.

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Micro Mention "Cibola Burn"

If "Abaddon's Gate" told us why "The Expanse" series is called "The Expanse," then "Cibola Burn" by James S.A. Corey gives us a glimpse of what that means.

I think I'm a minority opinion on this one, but I liked that this story was a bit of a detour from the main action of the series. We get to explore an alien world with the Rocinante crew. And sure, there was still the geopolitical struggle going on between the belters and inners, in miniature. But what really took me in is the creepy setting of a colony on a world with a dead civilization. Ever since I played "Mass Effect," that shit has been my jam.

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Micro Mention "Abaddon's Gate"

I'll admit that when I first read "Abaddon's Gate" by James S.A. Corey, I didn't know if I liked it quite as much as the first two books in The Expanse series, but with a bit of time and retrospective, it has really grown on me. 

It introduced one of my favorite Expanse side characters, Bull, who recently made it into season five of the show. Not trying to spoil the show too much here, but with how they used Bull in season five, I have no idea why he isn't in season six. 

They had a need that his character filled. He clicked right into the story, and then poof, he's gone after the last episode of season five. No explanations were given. The need his character filled is still there. They just decided, "eh, Holden can do it." No, Holden can't do it! Holden is the captain, and captains can't do everything on the ship, or else there would be no point in having a crew and being a captain!

Sorry, I get fired up about this injustice to my boy Bull.

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"Leviathan Falls" by James S.A. Corey--Fiction Review

We’re finishing off my favorite series that I’ve read in the past two years, obscurists. Today we’re talking about “Leviathan Falls” by James S.A. Corey, the ninth and final novel in The Expanse series. Get your anti-aliens from beyond space and time security blankets on because it’s going to get bumpy.

***The Non-Spoiler part of this review***

What I love about this book:

I have loved this series since about the middle of the first book, “Leviathan Wakes.” I remember diving into the second book immediately after finishing the first because I just had to know where Corey would go after the deeply unsettling setting of Eros. Oh, how things would change since that first novel by the time we get this novel “Leviathan Falls” yet still be so compelling.

I bring that first novel up because one of the chief things I like about this book is how it mirrors the first novel. It’s as if the whole series describes a perfect parabola leading to an ending a lot like the beginning but different—history doesn’t repeat, but it does rhyme. 

The Expanse has always been a pretty intense series, but this novel takes the prize. The stakes could not be higher, and everyone is on edge from beginning to nearly the end. But while its nail-biter of a plot unfolds, “Leviathan Falls” still makes time to chew the fat on some of the biggest ideas in sci-fi.

We also get to see more of a story where Naomi is more in charge overall rather than Holden, which I found interesting. Holden is still captain of the Rocinante, and Naomi is still ostensibly the XO. But, she is also the leader of the underground and resistance against the Laconian empire, which makes her more of an Admiral than just a mere executive officer. The dynamic could lead to tension, but I love how Naomi and Holden have been together for so long that they make it work without a single hiccup to distract from the primary plot.

What I don’t love about this book:

There are a lot of samey metaphors and phrases that come out of different characters’ mouths who aren’t remotely similar or even share similar geography. And sure—I get it—how many ways are there to describe dark gods from beyond space and time or god emperors? But, it feels like it should at least be more than one. It’s a quibble, but for a series that does individual characterization so well, it was disappointing to me that all those wonderful characters—with all their distinct voices and styles—all started sounding the same on literally the most significant issue in this universe. 

I don’t want to get into spoiler territory, but “Leviathan Wakes” doesn’t take enough time wrapping up all the loose threads and story arcs of all the major supporting characters introduced in this series. It doesn’t even finish off the stories of all the characters prominent in this novel. It wraps up the story for the main core characters—sorta—well, really only definitively for two characters the others just kind of end, and we never see them again in the narrative.

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Author’s Website: https://www.jamessacorey.com/

***The Spoiler part of this review***

***Ye be warned to turn back now***

The quick and dirty synopsis:

After the battle at Laconia, where the underground led by Naomi Nagata successfully beat the Laconian navy on their own home turf—the crew of the Roci is laying low. Naomi managed to recover her lover and the captain of the Rocinante James Holden during that conflict. Holden also brought with him Teresa Duarte, daughter to Winston Duarte, High Consul of the Laconian Empire. She wanted to escape her father’s empire after his mind was shattered during events before this novel.

Micro Mention "Caliban's War"

"Caliban's War," the second novel in The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey, is still firmly in what I mentally categorize as the sci-fi horror section of the series. The Protomolecule is still so new and creepy that it dominates the narrative—and I love it.

I actually just finished the whole novel series a few days back, and it's hard to capture how satisfying the entire series was to read. By the time I got to the later books in the series, it was startling to think about how much ground Corey covered in these books. 

True to its namesake, the book series's scope gets bigger and bigger as it goes on, and the events in "Caliban's War" are what set the story down the road it takes and where we end up is, well, unexpected.

I expect that I'll be working on a full review of "Leviathan Falls" the last book in this series, soon. So keep checking in for that.

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Micro Mention "Leviathan Wakes"

I picked up this novel because I wanted to get into the expanse show, and per my usual preference, I like to read the source material before watching the show. That said, "Leviathan Wakes," by James S.A. Corey, is one of my favorite sci-fi novels I've read in years.

This series is firmly space opera, and it's the kind of multifaceted political struggle that appeals to a lot of my sci-fi leanings, which I talk about more in my full review and again on my podcast. I really like this series.

But what I really want to bring up today is the audio experience. I know I bring up I'm a fan of audiobooks quite a lot on this blog, but the narrator for this book, Jefferson Mays, is amazing. There is just something about the tempo and quality of his voice that makes any sort of dry humor hilarious. 

It isn't inherently a funny book or series. It's a very life and death kind of serious story, but the number of times Corey got me to laugh in this and future books in this series—well, I lost count long ago. Mays, as narrator, enhances this quality with a sly sense of timing and oft deadpan tone. 

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Talking In Obscurity, "Leviathan Wakes," by James S.A. Corey

Or Download This Episode Here: 

https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/n6nk9b/Leviathan_Wakes_Edited60t8d.mp3

So it's the end of July, Obscurists! Steven and I are back to discuss one of my favorite books I read during the pandemic, "Leviathan Wakes" by James S.A. Corey. 

This is the first book in "The Expanse" series, and it's a mixture of Hard Sci-Fi meets neo-noir and all-out horror. There is also a show on Amazon Prime based on these books, which I love as well.

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Author's Website: https://www.jamessacorey.com/

Micro Mention "Tiamat's Wrath"

I haven't finished "The Expanse" novel series yet, mainly because the last one isn't out yet, but I can firmly say that "Tiamat's Wrath" is my favorite of the series, right up there and tied with the first novel "Leviathan Wakes."

Without giving too much away about this book or the series—I think it's pretty safe to assume that people have inferred that years and years have taken place after eight novels. Ok? Ok. So, a darkhorse favorite character of mine is Old Man Holden, as I call him. I know—I know there's Amos Burton or Chrisjen Avasarala, and I love them both, but it's Holden who comes out on top for me. How do I justify space Jon Snow as my favorite character? Well, it all has to do with his "The Dancing Bear" chapters in this book. Without spoiling too much, you find out that Holden in his old age isn't just funnier—he's far craftier too.

I still don't like the covers of these books, though. I'm sure some extremely talented, well-paid artists created them, and I feel bad about that, but I never know what the fuck is going on in them. Maybe I'm just thick. 

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Micro Mention "Auberon"

With “Auberon” done, I have to say the man with the Titanium arm is the best—think of the arm-wrestling tournaments. But now I’m out of The Expanse novels and novellas, so it’s time to return to screaming futilely at the sky until James S.A. Corey finishes the next one.

Of the expanse novellas, "Auberon" is my clear favorite. It takes a minor character I liked from the main series and greatly expands on his golden years as a mob boss with an entire colony world under his thumb. Normally, you'd think that would make him the bad guy of the story, and maybe it does from some people's perspective. I, however, felt that this short story had a "Casablanca" feel to its narrative.

Anyway, I know I bang on about this a lot, but an element I really enjoy about the audiobook version of this story is the intro and outro music, before and after the story. A lot of audiobooks do this, and usually, it's just a nice garnish, but in Auberon's case, I really feel like it adds to the atmosphere of this short Sci-Fi story.

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"Leviathan Wakes," by James S.A. Corey--Fiction Review

Happy Friday obscurists, it’s May the 15th —the 15th is always a happy day for me because it is always a new book(s) day for me. Today’s review is of the first novel in “The Expanse” series, “Leviathan Wakes” by James S.A. Corey, a science fiction space opera. There are arguments to be made that it could be classified as science fiction/horror, but I personally think of it as Space Opera with horror elements.  

***The Non-Spoiler part of this review***

What I love about this book:

A lot—it’s in space, there are big titanic spaceship battles, there is a scary biological weapon that at first transforms people into zombie-like husks that mutate further into horrible glowy abominations. It’s got that “Game of Thrones” feel with several parties all following conflicting motivations/political machinations. Oh, and it’s quite funny here and there.

For this first book, there are only two perspective characters, and they have dueling outlooks on life. Holden is the idealist, and Miller is the pragmatist. I’ve only read the next three novels in this series as of today, but you never get that dichotomy again with the perspective characters. So in this first novel, since the perspective characters are separate at first, you get a feeling for the scope of the world and then that scope contracts—ironic for a series called “the expanse”—when they meet. After they part ways, the world opens up again, or you could say expands, get it—get it? No, that’s not why the series is titled that, but it’s a funny little observation.  

I love the attention to detail to the practical realities of life in space, especially over generations. People who were born in, and lived their entire lives in near null gravity, would be strikingly different in physiology to people who live on Earth. My admiration also extends to the realities of life on ships operating in space. Save for little details like the protomolecule or the Epstein Drive—not that Epstein—everything is presented hard science fiction style as practical outgrowths of technology we have today or can at least describe the mechanics of how they would function. There is no gravity other than what can be generated by either enough mass, constant acceleration, or spin—like reality, so far as we know.   

What I don’t love about this book:

Maximum pettiness here, but I hate the cover art, and I continue to hate the cover art for every subsequent novel in this series. The perspective is always odd, and I can never get a sense of what is going on, or the full definition of the objects shown. For me, if you’re not going to go with a clear moment from the story for your cover art, then make it meaningfully symbolic, or have a picture of a character so your audience can go: “hey, that’s so-and-so.”

Also, the ships are described as ugly, which is probably more of an accurate assessment of ship design in a zero-g environment than star wars’ x-wings. But still—I don’t like it, I like my sleek aerodynamic starships even though logically why would you design something to be aerodynamic when it operates in an environment where there is no air.

It may seem like I’m reaching for things that I don’t like about this book, and that’s because I am. “Leviathan Wakes” is one of those novels that hit on nearly every sweet spot for me for a story to have, so it’s a struggle just to find things I don’t like. There isn’t any element of the story that I hate. 

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Author's Website: https://www.jamessacorey.com/

***The Spoiler part of this review***

***Ye be warned to turn back now***