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Persepolis Rising

(The Expanse #7)

James S.A. Corey (Goodreads Author)

4.36 · Rating details · 38,550 ratings · 2,246 reviews

In the thousand-sun network of humanity's expansion, new colony worlds are struggling to find their way. Every new planet lives on a knife edge between collapse and wonder, and the crew of the aging gunship Rocinante have their hands more than full keeping the fragile peace.

In the vast space between Earth and Jupiter, the inner planets and belt have formed a tentative and ...more

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ebook, 608 pages

Published December 5th 2017 by Orbit Books

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Dec 29, 2015 Kevin Kelsey rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2017

Posted at Heradas

"Your empire's hands look a lot cleaner when you get to dictate where history begins, and what parts of it count."

This one changes things. I assumed that the pace was going to quicken, since Persepolis Rising is moving us into the final three Expanse novels, but I am in awe at how much this book moved the series forward from where we left off in Babylon’s Ashes . We are now nearing the end of the long Expanse arc that began with Leviathan Wakes in 2011, and it is th ...more

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Nov 10, 2017 Bradley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2017-shelf, space-opera, sci-fi, 2018-shelf, worldbuilding-sf

Re-Read 12/5/18:

Since reading all these books in a row, I can now honestly compare all the books against each other without long waits in between. Conclusion?

Yeah, this latest one is definitely one of my favorites. All that buildup about protomolecules and what killed the alien civilization is finally coming to a head. The questions are asked seriously. And now we're getting big hints about things to come.

The extinction of the human race?

Possibly. :) But really, I just wanna see the Roci all de ...more

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Sep 28, 2020 Petrik rated it liked it · review of another edition

I have a Booktube channel now! Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRjh...

3.5/5 stars

This was another good volume in The Expanse, but I must say that the series is starting to overstay its welcome to me.

“I actually read history. It’s like reading prophecy, you know.”

Persepolis Rising is the seventh book in The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey, and I’m glad to say that it signaled the beginning of the end of the series. Now that I’m seven books into the series, I think I will now a ...more

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Jan 02, 2019 Mario the lone bookwolf rated it it was amazing

Shelves: corey-james-s-a

So some time has passed and a new setting has to be established and what is better for that than new colonies, a fragile peace between Mars, Earth and the belt, a new enemy rising and waiting in the background, and the general preparation for the big showdown of the series.

It´s always hard to avoid spoiling, so I will cherrypick colonizing, getting old in space in Sci-Fi in general, and the Lovecraftian old ones from this part.

Colonizing thousands of star systems doesn´t just significantly boos So some time has passed and a new setting has to be established and what is better for that than new colonies, a fragile peace between Mars, Earth and the belt, a new enemy rising and waiting in the background, and the general preparation for the big showdown of the series.

It´s always hard to avoid spoiling, so I will cherrypick colonizing, getting old in space in Sci-Fi in general, and the Lovecraftian old ones from this part.

Colonizing thousands of star systems doesn´t just significantly boosts the probability of humankind surviving wars with extraterrestrials, local catastrophes such as supernovas, or extermination wars if some human fractions go haywire and turn genocidal, it also increases the chance of attracting attention. Not to talk of all the plot options that for instance Dr.Who and the two Star franchises used for expanded universes. The authors are now in the position of choosing the best ideas Sci-Fi has given us so far and to mix it together to an unforgettable space opera cocktail that really kicks in. Just one more, barkeeper, please, can´t get enough. Of course, colonizing can´t take place without repeating errors of history by establishing the best and worst forms of government. Again. In space. Coming from enlightened democracies, but thinking that´s so boring, so why not try a dictatorship once again, sounds fun, autocracy rocks.

But what if it´s more difficult, like, let´s say, on earth were many small principalities may have a loose, democratic union, but are too weak and militarily not coordinated enough to fight the invasion of a global superpower. Beamed to space, humankind is the principality and the superpower are possible alien invaders. What sense does it make if all the democratic, helpless mini-states get invaded and exterminated one after the other if one benevolent dictator could unite them to form a strong union against the invaders and have a real chance against them? Is it better to become extinct with the right to vote or to survive in a not sooo evil autocratic state?

The idea that the crew got old and we see how they evolved is a fine twist, the influence of youth and seniority, of wisdom and curiosity, playing with age tropes, is always a productive endeavor and tends to be combined with a bit of time travel or parallel universes. But we are in the Expanse universe, so no too unrealistic technologies (for humans), just a boost for the character development and the question of how living longer and longer until immortality enters the stage may influence human life. Might get handy if it happens when the colonies or habitats are already found of finished because otherwise, it could get a bit overcrowded on earth.

The mystery about what might be lurking in the shadow is a basic element of many genres and human nature in general and horror trivializes it down to a terrifying, but not so world-shattering happening with local spooky events. Except if one is in the haunted, abandoned mental asylum stupid friends thought would be fun to illegally enter at the anniversary of when one escaped inmate butchered a whole family. In Sci-Fi, the evil spirits and ghosts are just the appetizer for the real dark monster in the background, lurking for eons, possibly immortal, emotionless or too highly evolved for useless feelings, bodyless entities, motivated by conquering, destroying, and from time to time studying and dissecting the one or other experimental animal. Assimilate, exterminate, resistance is futile.

Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:
This series has some of the most amazing and massive tropeinity I´ve ever seen.
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...
https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph... ...more

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Jun 08, 2017 Kemper rated it really liked it

Shelves: expanse, 2017, sci-fi, 2020-reread

Once you get seven books deep into a series it gets really tricky to review because you can’t talk about even the basic story set-up without spoiling stuff for anyone who hasn’t read the previous books. Since I’m really trying to encourage any sci-fi fan to check out The Expanse I don’t want to just spoiler tag the whole thing either. So how to discuss in a way that won’t ruin it for the newbs yet still be an informative review?

Weep for me, people of Goodreads!

Here’s what I can safely say to eve Once you get seven books deep into a series it gets really tricky to review because you can’t talk about even the basic story set-up without spoiling stuff for anyone who hasn’t read the previous books. Since I’m really trying to encourage any sci-fi fan to check out The Expanse I don’t want to just spoiler tag the whole thing either. So how to discuss in a way that won’t ruin it for the newbs yet still be an informative review?

Weep for me, people of Goodreads!

Here’s what I can safely say to everyone: The plan is for this to be a nine book series, and it’s essentially a three act structure with three books per act. So we’re starting the end run with this one, and that’s clear from the jump. A lot of time has passed since the last book, and our main characters can now claim senior discounts. In fact, some of them are even thinking about retirement. However, one of the lingering plots from an earlier book comes back in a big way and all of humanity might find itself under the boot of a dictator if something isn’t done. And all of this struggling among people scattered among the stars continue to take place as a potential alien threat simmers in the background.

Since this is essentially set-up for the final phase of the overall story there’s a lot left up in the air, but like the previous books it’s also an entertaining self-contained sci-fi tale by itself. At this point we’ve been living in this universe for a good long while so that we know all the ins-and-outs of it as well as what to expect from the story. What continues to be fresh and engaging is that the co-authors who make up the James SA Corey name come up with new spins on moving forward so that it hasn’t become stale and formulaic.

For example, this is a book in which a whole lot of people find themselves under the authority of an autocratic ruler with an army of true believers who believe anything he says. (Sounds familiar.) As you’d expect the story becomes about a resistance rising up among the conquered people, but what’s interesting is that there’s no immediate way to win. No Death Star to blow up, no magic computer virus, no chosen one to lead them to victory. Beating these guys will mean a long term strategy of resistance and a whole lot of blood will be shed in the process.

On the heels of that is that these bad guys don’t exactly act like villains. Yes, they’re smug jerkfaces whose utter self-confidence make them insufferable, but they’re also pretty sincere about going about it a way that isn’t a brutal occupation. These are smart folks who have studied history and know that the best way to stop an insurgency is to keep it from starting by keeping people from being disgruntled in the first place. Plus, their stated goal is to unite the squabbling factions of humanity into a single force so they hope to get everyone on their side through the politics of persuasion.

That’s the really insidious thing about this one. A big theme in The Expanse as stated by one character in an earlier book is that a fair percentage of humans are always going to be assholes. What’s been shown over and over again is that people are always willing to fight among themselves about the old grudges rather than put them aside to band together even when it would be in their own best long-term interest. It’s been the biggest stumbling block that the heroes have struggled against over the course of the series. And here’s finally someone who has the power to actually make that happen, and he isn’t acting like an insane dictator. Hmmmm…maybe he isn’t that bad....

Another new aspect in this is that since we know the end is coming that no one is safe. It adds some tension and drama to the action because it really does seem like all our favorites aren't going to make it this time. (view spoiler)

It’s another great entry in the series, and my only real complaint is that I kind of got bummed while reading because I know how few there are left. I’ll also plug the excellent TV series based on the books that the SyFy Channel airs and is getting ready to start its third season which is well worth checking out. ...more

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Jan 01, 2018 Jack +Books & Bourbon+ rated it it was amazing

I admit that I went into Persepolis Rising thinking that this was the last book in The Expanse series. I continued to think that way until about 2/3’s of the way through, when I realized that there was still too much plot to effectively be resolved in the remaining pages. Ultimately it made the majority of the book bittersweet for me, as I truly thought this was the last adventure I’d have with the Rocinante and her crew. Thankfully we have two more books to go…though that just means I have more ...more

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Dec 16, 2016 Niki Hawkes - The Obsessive Bookseller rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-library-catalogue

The only thing I hated about Persepolis Rising is how long it’s going to make me wait for the next book.

I always come away from an Expanse novel reeling. Sometimes from massive events, but often just from the profound depth of character. This series continues to illustrate what it is to be human and I can’t help feeling deeply affected by the sentiment within each novel. A short interaction between two characters in this book (maybe 3 pages worth?) had the power to become one of the most memorab ...more

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Dec 05, 2017 prcardi rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, pg-13, space-opera, series, lgbtq

Storyline: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 1/5

Corey gambled. Given the popularity of the series and the television adaptation, I hadn't expected them to take any risks. Granted, it was nothing radical, but starting with the whole "x years later" segue has tradeoffs. The obvious danger is that you skip over intervening years and developments fans have anticipated. The upside is that you can do some pretty neat tricks with character development and reveals. There are some dazzling optio Storyline: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 1/5

Corey gambled. Given the popularity of the series and the television adaptation, I hadn't expected them to take any risks. Granted, it was nothing radical, but starting with the whole "x years later" segue has tradeoffs. The obvious danger is that you skip over intervening years and developments fans have anticipated. The upside is that you can do some pretty neat tricks with character development and reveals. There are some dazzling options available when you're moving forward with the now present timeline while simultaneously dropping revealing clues about the skipped intervening years. Unfortunately, Corey didn't take advantage of those options. We meet up with our aged favorites, and time doesn't seem to have affected them (achy joints aside). They have the same debates, misgivings, and life dramas they battled the last time we saw them all. They have the same strengths and flaws. They're the same people, and their lives in the intervening period just doesn't matter for the story. The technological advances of the colonies, post-Babylon's Ashes, would itself have been worth writing a book about. Here the authors settle for sparsely-described advances that could have been explained away in far simpler (and more plausible) terms. Here, too, it was if so little had changed. The solar system changes on this side of the gates were different, if awkward. Little of it seeming to follow from the corporate schemes, Earth cataclysm, or massive depletion of space craft and resources that were so significant in the previous volumes. It seemed like there must have been another book between Babylon's Ashes and Persepolis Rising (in fairness, I have not read the short stories or novellas, thus perhaps it was explained there). Corey's gamble on the chronology just does not appear to have paid off. Readers suffer all the penalties of the choice without getting any of the benefits.

The book's worst impressions come when considering what might have been. For those thinking that this final trio of books was going to be something new, for those that thought the middle three titles were delaying efforts, you'll find this volume surprisingly familiar. It seems like we've done all this before. There was a time when the new releases in this series were more than military space operas. Vomit zombies, transforming planets, and portals - these were the kind of features that make science fiction so wondrous. Those that thought Corey had planned to return to that kind of science fiction are bound to be disappointed. Similarly, the authors have toyed with some quasi-philosophical ideas about the nature of legitimate force and freedom of information. Readers hoping that our authors were slowly working toward something profound will also suffer disappointment. There was even a time when each new book mixed in a new genre or theme: detective noir, personal vendetta, squatter's rights, etc.. What we get here is something we've gotten before.

The readers who will enjoy this the most are the ones that enjoy a straight-forward action-adventure. Those who cling to and look forward to all the banter of the Rocinante family will find delights herein. There's even some pretty good moments exploring new characters and the role of ideology. I especially liked the contrasts between perspectives in a fog of war situation. It was all minor embellishment, however, for more of the same - more of the same of the last two books. I obviously had misread the direction of the series and thought Corey had bigger aims. On the positive side, nothing and no one gets ruined here. The series is safe. I'll read on when the next two books come out, but I'm all out of optimism. ...more

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Dec 09, 2017 Margret rated it it was amazing

Holy shite that was good. SO GOOD

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Feb 04, 2017 Mogsy (MMOGC) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science-fiction, review-copy

5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2017/12/19/...

What do you do when your epic space opera series is seven books in, you’ve already put your readers through some of the most intense storylines they can imagine, and now you need to do something even bigger and better to usher it into the next phase with style? Well, you hit the “soft reset” button, so to speak. Not exactly starting things over, but there is certainly a sense we’re getting a new beginning of sorts in Perse 5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2017/12/19/...

What do you do when your epic space opera series is seven books in, you’ve already put your readers through some of the most intense storylines they can imagine, and now you need to do something even bigger and better to usher it into the next phase with style? Well, you hit the “soft reset” button, so to speak. Not exactly starting things over, but there is certainly a sense we’re getting a new beginning of sorts in Persepolis Rising. That’s the impression I got anyway, when I opened the book, and the first line literally started with “Almost three decades had passed…”

I confess, at first there was a momentary feeling of panic. Were we really skipping ahead thirty years? That’s one heck of a time gap between this book and the last, and never has this series seen such a huge jump forward. But it’s true; Persepolis Rising returns to our heroes who are now quite a bit older, maybe a little wiser, and the solar system and the new colony planets beyond the ring gates are enjoying a protracted period of peace not seen since before the arrival of the protomolecule. That being said, life has not been easy for the fledgling colonies. Survival depends on the flow of supplies through the gates, and some planets have attempted to gain an advantage by cheating the Transport Union systems. Minor as they are, these transgressions cannot be tolerated, lest things descend into chaos, so Transport Union President Drummer hires teams like Holden and the crew of the Rocinante to lay down the law.

Decades of doing such odd jobs can take their toll though, and now that Holden and Naomi are getting on in years, they’re thinking it’s time to call it quits. But of course, it’s inevitable that a momentous decision like that will precipitate something big, and indeed, Holden’s retirement has barely begun when an old foe makes his return. For close to thirty years, this enemy has been hidden away on the lost colony world of Laconia, developing new technologies and amassing the strength required to invade the solar system and make all of its Union worlds a part of their new empire.

The Expanse series definitely has a special place in my heart. For years I have followed these characters, come to know them and love them. It would be impossible overstate my relief at finding them all here in Persepolis Rising, even after the passage of almost three decades in the timeline. We’re talking the entire crew of the Roxi—Holden, Naomi, Alex, Amos, Bobbie, Clarissa—and even my favorite foul-mouthed UN politician Chrisjen Avasarala. Older they may be, but in all the ways that matter, they are still the same. It felt very much like returning home to good friends.

It was while reading this book, however, that it really hit me just how far we’ve come since Leviathan Wakes. As much as I’ve enjoyed the earlier installments, they feel almost simplistic and jejune now compared to some of the more intricate plot lines since Cibola Burn. Clearly, we’re well beyond the days of vomit zombies, though I was also happy to see that the protomolecule still had a role to play in Persepolis Rising. The difference is, the concept has now been adapted and expanded on a scale that affects thousands of worlds and a countless number of people, and if you thought things couldn’t get any bigger and badder than what we’d already seen in the last couple books, think again.

But as I’ve stated before in my reviews of the previous novels, the reason why I keep coming back to this series is because of the characters and their relationships. If the crew of the Rocinante felt like they were a family before, they’ve only gotten even closer since the last time we saw them together, and if I have one regret about the thirty-year time skip, it’s that we’ve missed all those interactions between them in the intervening period. Still, some things haven’t changed, thankfully. Holden is still a hopeless do-gooder. Bobbie is still a total badass. Avasarala is still a master maneuverer. I loved how we got to fall back into the old conversations and routines like no time has passed at all.

Plus, let’s not forget the other side of the story. To me, the fact that the focus is not solely limited to the “good guys” is what makes The Expanse a special series. This time, Persepolis Rising includes the perspective of Governor Singh, a young and inexperienced officer tasked to bring the rebellious inhabitants of Medina Station into the fold of the Laconian Empire. Grossly underqualified for the job he must do, Singh is a tragic figure who engenders feelings of both dislike and sympathy due to his duo roles as severe authoritarian in public versus the loving family man he is in private. Believing wholeheartedly in the Laconian cause, he will become the ruthless soldier he needs to be if it means securing a better future for his young daughter.

Before this, I wouldn’t have thought it possible to be more excited about The Expanse, but authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck AKA James S.A. Corey have managed to fire me up once again. Their decision to jump ahead so many years after the previous novel may have been a bold move, but it’s one that ended up paying off, giving the series the shakeup it required. More than just a brilliant sequel, Persepolis Rising is also a beginning, and indeed, in a series that is supposed to include nine novels, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume this is the first book of a concluding arc. Regardless, whatever happens next is bound to be exciting, and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. ...more

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Feb 28, 2018 Gary rated it really liked it

Thirty years after defeating the Free Navy and negotiating and end to the various conflicts between the belters and the inner planets, the crew of the Roci is still doing work for hire for the organization that spawned from the ashes of the OPA. Hovering at retirement age, Jim and Naomi agree to sell the ship to Bobby so they can enjoy their golden years together, just in time for the known universe to go sideways and shit all over their plans. Yes, the one loose end from Babylon’s Ashes comes b ...more

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Jun 09, 2019 Hannah Greendale rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: adult, fiction, science-fiction, space-opera

Calling time of death on The Expanse. This series is far too inconsistent.

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Apr 19, 2018 Veronique rated it really liked it

Shelves: stars-4-0, r2018

“Because we’re human, and humans are mean, independent monkeys that reached their greatness by killing every other species of hominid that looked at us funny.”

It took me a while to get into this new instalment of the Expanse (mostly real life rearing its ugly head) but once the narrative got going, I was hooked! :O)

As we’ve grown accustomed to, the narration is divided between several narrators, each providing an important point of view, with the one constant being Holden. However, and this is ...more

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Jan 12, 2016 William rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: extraordinary-books

Wow. (expletive)! Ten-stars! The best of the superb series.

What a fabulous book. Powerful, spare, poignant, full of hard sci-fi at a blistering pace. More than any other Expanse book, the authors here investigate deep and dangerous human motivations, and the nature of the Roci as a family after almost 40 years together (first book occurs 2350 AD, this book about 2388 AD). The book also delves deeper than any previous book into the human attraction to demagogues.

As usual with my reviews, please ...more

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Mar 07, 2018 Mike rated it it was amazing

Shelves: reviewed, science-fiction, epics, space-opera

It is tough enough to write a series to a seventh book let alone writing a good seventh book. And after the amazing climax of Babylon's Ashes I really had no idea where the duo of James S.A. Corey would take the story.

Turns out they decided to boldly go thirty years into the future, which is a pretty gutsy move in my book. On the one hand this choice allowed the colonization effort to be greatly advanced, the rogue Martian fleet to develop their own society, and for new institutions to grow in t ...more

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Oct 19, 2020 Sud666 rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi

The events of this book take place roughly thirty years after the events of the Free Navy Conflict of the previous novel. While the trinity of stupidity that is the Mars-Belters-Earth troika manages to destroy itself and humanity along with it, a new power has been quietly rising.

Through the gates comes the Laconian Empire. Using advanced technology, fueled by the knowledge of the protomolecule, the Laconians bring a powerful warship into the system and begin the process of taking over the Sol s ...more

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Sep 29, 2016 Rob rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: author-male, science-fiction, not-a-bookclub-club, own, audio-book, read-2017

Executive Summary: After a slow start it finished really strong but wasn't quite as enjoyable as the last two were for me. 4.5 Stars.

Audiobook: Jefferson Mays once again does a good job. He does a few voices, but mostly he's just a solid narrator who is easy to understand and reads with good volume and inflection.

Full Review
Well I had no idea there was going to be a 30 year time jump. I was initially upset about it, but as the book went on I see why they did it. In order to tell the story th ...more

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Jan 21, 2018 Efka rated it really liked it

Shelves: sci-fi

There's not much to say about this book, really. It's number 7 in the series, and by this moment most (everyone, actually?) of the readers already know what to expect and who's who and all those twists and little secrets that makes the plot tick and so on and on and on.

So, yeah, Persepolis Rising kept the all the best traits of the series, with all the familiar faces and all the familiar surroundings... Just fast-forwarded some thirty years, added some silver on guys' temples - unless they're A ...more

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May 26, 2018 Scott Hitchcock rated it really liked it

Shelves: sci-fi, expanse

Book 1: 5*
Book 2: 4.5*
Book 3: 4.25*
Book 4: 3.5*
Book 5: 4.5*
Book 6: 4*
Book 7: 4.5*

If not for a really slow start where I was wondering if this series had finally run its course this may have been the best in the series. Years in the future our protagonists have all aged and the Protomolecule is back and more dangerous than ever as humanity tries to tame the usual and potentially fatal.

I loved that there wasn't closure at the end of this one. The crew of the Roci not quite intact. Avasarala and t ...more

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Jan 29, 2017 Silvana rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: space-the-final-frontier, sci-fi, reading-with-friends, mine-mine-mine, kindle-google, dead-trees, military-sf

When I read the previous six novels in the series, it only took less than three days for each. They were, mostly, page-turning, full-action, high-emotion, roller coaster rides.

Persepolis Rising is different. It is more somber, thoughtful. The kickass actions, tight plotting and twist-and-turns are still there, don't you worry, but they are not what define the book, even the series anymore. The world (space, slow zone, what-have-you) has changed, the characters have changed, there is a distinct ...more

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Dec 06, 2018 Trish rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Everything changed, and it went right on changing. A terrible thought when things were good, a comforting one now.

In this 7th installment of the series, a lot changes. First off, we have a time jump of almost 30 years from the last book. This means that the Roci as well as her crew have aged. However, this also enables us not to get bogged down with details but to actually see some development in human society throughout Sol. Earth still exists but it's more like a farm, providing food for p ...more

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Dec 23, 2016 Tudor Ciocarlie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017-my-best-of

Others have said it and I will say it: Persepolis Rising is the best book of the series. But for me is also the best novel that I’ve read in 2017. The level of writing craftsmanship that this book radiates is incredible. From the prologue to the epilogue, every chapter is a perfect roller-coaster with a length of exactly 22 minutes (in the audiobook format). Every word, every sentence have their place, but the construction has nothing artificial about it and the writers are using it to portrait ...more

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Feb 24, 2020 Jamie rated it really liked it

The Expanse takes a major turn with Persepolis Rising, and I found it not entirely satisfying. The jump ahead in time nearly 30 years at the outset came as a shock, though the same crew remains at the center of the action with only some changes on the periphery. Mainly I find myself disappointed that the story primarily continues to center on the infighting among humans. True, the sides have evolved and changed considerably, but I guess I was hoping for more alien and protomolecule secrets and t ...more

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Dec 27, 2016 MadProfessah rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, 2017-read

Persepolis Rising is the 7th book in The Expanse series written by James S.A. Corey. The series has been adapted into a high-quality television series that airs on SyFy, but unlike other well-known speculative fiction adaptations (like Game of Thrones and American Gods) I think that in the case of The Expanse the book version is better than the filmed version. This is primarily because the books are written in such a fast-paced, action-packed, visually stimulating way that reading them is basica Persepolis Rising is the 7th book in The Expanse series written by James S.A. Corey. The series has been adapted into a high-quality television series that airs on SyFy, but unlike other well-known speculative fiction adaptations (like Game of Thrones and American Gods) I think that in the case of The Expanse the book version is better than the filmed version. This is primarily because the books are written in such a fast-paced, action-packed, visually stimulating way that reading them is basically like riding a rollercoaster or watching a Hollywood blockbuster.

If you have not read these books yet it is hard to know what I can say to convince you to do so without revealing spoilers. The first point I would make is that these books are the very best that the space-opera genre has to offer. The books are set in a future where humanity has made significant inroads into colonizing our solar system, with self-sustaining settlements on various solar objects (Mars, the Moon, Ganymede, multiple asteroids). The second point I would make is that the primary characters that the series are centered around are nuanced, interesting and diverse. The third point is that the overarching plot of The Expanse is quite compelling and includes multiple surprising twists.

One animating plot development for the series as a whole involves the arrival/discovery of an alien substance called the "protomolecule" which has a destabilizing impact on the fragile power balance between the largest political forces in the solar system: Mars, Earth and the Outer Planets Alliance (OPA).

In Persepolis Rising, the story has skipped ahead 3 decades from the shocking (and thrilling) plot developments in the prior book Babylon's Ashes. Obviously, this time jump has a profound effect on the main characters but there are even more surprising developments which basically re-order the power dynamics in the solar system after 30 years in which the political calculus had been changing slowly and inexorably in a certain direction.

This sort of makes sense, because the authors of the Expanse series (James S.A. Corey is a pseudonym for Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham) have stated that it will be 9 books long, consisting of three sets of trilogies, which would make this 7th book the first book in the final trilogy. Thus it is not surprising that there a lot of things are put in motion in Persepolis Rising which will presumably need to be resolved in future books. (There are definitely some satisfying resolutions of sub-plots as well.) Even more important is that we start to get more information about the protomolecule itself (and the creatures who created it) which does give support for the idea that we are hurtling towards the conclusion of the entire story.

Overall, Persepolis Rising is one of the best entries in The Expanse series. It is tautly plotted, incredibly thrilling and emotionally resonant. I knew it would probably be one of my favorite reads of the year so that even though I pre-ordered it for arrival on its day of release, I waited until the holiday season to read the book and ended up devouring it in one day (it was absolutely impossible to put down)! And maybe that's the most convincing thing I could say to encourage you to start reading this incredible series of books. Enjoy! ...more

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Jan 17, 2018 Emily rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: a-own-it, sci-fi

I think this is my favorite of the series so far. When I realized it was a 30 year time jump forward, I thought I would hate it (I didn't want to read about old Holden and crew), but it was necessary to the story (and everyone is still bad ass). Finally big things start to happen! I read Cibola Burn 3-4 years ago, so I didn't remember much about the events of that book, but I did remember that it left a lot of unanswered questions that were never touched on again.... until this book. With just 2 ...more

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Jun 14, 2018 Olivia rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi

With Persepolis Rising, The Expanse performs a thirty year time jump into the future, revealing new ideas, new plot points and an interesting world building development.

Sadly, I wasn't enamoured with the first half or so, but the story picks up towards the end becomes incredibly tense, fast-paced and interesting. I would have wished for more character development, since most characters felt the same as they did in the last book, despite having aged thirty years.

It's still a good read, and I thin ...more

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Dec 11, 2019 Algernon (Darth Anyan) rated it liked it

Shelves: 2019

[7/10]

I’ve always rejected the great-man idea. The belief that human history was formed by singular individuals instead of broad social forces? Romantic, but ...” He waved a hand vaguely, like he was stirring fog. “Demographic trends. Economic cycles. Technological progress. All much more powerful predictors than any one person. And yet here I am.

Book seven of the Expanse marks the start of a new story-arc within the greater scope of mankind’s expansion from the Solar System to the galaxy. C ...more

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Nov 15, 2017 Kate rated it it was amazing

Shelves: out-in-2017-and-read, favourites-read-in-2017

Flippin' marvellous and, as usual with this fantastic series, different from the others.

...more

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Jan 20, 2018 Ashley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: space-opera, violent-and-epic, war, audiobooks, political-plots-and-maneuverings, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, sci-fi, espionage

A fun thing to do with this series is to predict the way the story will go based on the piece of mythology, history or religion featured in each title. Another fun thing to do is realize how wrong you were in your predictions, after the book has had its way with you.

It’s still fun afterwards, though. I bet the authors have a grand ole time coming up with these titles.

Some spoilies below, so if you want to go in blind, maybe don’t finish this review.

Persepolis was the capital city of the first Pe A fun thing to do with this series is to predict the way the story will go based on the piece of mythology, history or religion featured in each title. Another fun thing to do is realize how wrong you were in your predictions, after the book has had its way with you.

It’s still fun afterwards, though. I bet the authors have a grand ole time coming up with these titles.

Some spoilies below, so if you want to go in blind, maybe don’t finish this review.

Persepolis was the capital city of the first Persian empire, which was eventually conquered by Alexander the Great. Going in to Persepolis Rising, I don’t know, I guess I assumed the title was referring to some theoretical rise of a new human empire, but like, a more symbolical kind. I didn’t think there would ACTUALLY be a new human empire, and that empire would be hostile. I guess I should have also seen it coming that the seeds for this empire were laid in the last book (and the last novella), with Duarte stealing a large part of the Martian fleet.

I also didn’t think there would be such a large time jump! Holy shit!

I feel like this book is going to be one of those where you look back after the series finishes and you appreciate it more, but I was just so thrown by it, I had a hard time getting my bearings. It sort of reminds me of the way I felt reading books one and two for the first time. Not sure where it’s going, and kind of just this baseline of distress. (And this book added into the mix a heavy dose of the bittersweet that comes with knowing things end.) One of the reasons I loved books three through six so much is that I felt they had a start to finish clear trajectory. The storytelling felt almost inevitable to me. But there’s also a place for creatively controlled chaos in a narrative, chaos that feels discombobulating at the time, but after the fact, makes sense. I just don’t think I’ve reached that point yet, though the end of the book made long strides to getting me there.

I mean, I feel like it is impossible for me to talk about this book the way I want to without spoiling the hell out of it. Ultimately, I guess I can say that while it was not as immediately as enjoyable (and the middle bits felt kind of wallowy and depressing), it was a very important piece of the larger story Corey is telling. And likely I will be just as surprised by what’s coming next as I was during every book in this series at some point.

One thing I will say, though, as this is more Bobbie’s book than anything, NOT ENOUGH HOLDEN.

[4.5 stars] ...more

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Mar 08, 2018 RG rated it it was amazing

Still holds your attention even with the time jump. Im jealous of the people beginning this series

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