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Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse, #1)

James S.A. Corey

Start date: May 7, 2014

Finish date: June 9, 2014

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Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
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last updated May 22, 2014 04:20AM

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Mar 10, 2022 Kaila rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, 2022, portland-reddit-book-club, space, space-politics, lovecraftian-horror

This was a fun read that made me want to keep turning the pages. It is not short, but went by quickly because of that.

There are two main characters who switch off narrating and they are both men. I got real sick of being in the head of men. The whole thing was just very male and it was kind of exhausting. Lots of guns, posturing, threats, sexual overtures, recovering from battle, etc.

The character that sounds like he's going to continue narrating in the series is Holden, and I equate him with a ...more

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Aug 17, 2011 Brian rated it it was amazing

I've been reading a lot of space opera lately, and this one was a little different. Instead of focusing on a far future where Earth is a distant memory if it's even remembered at all, this one takes place during the early expansion of the solar system. Earth is still inhabited, and there is a colony on Mars and on some outer moons and asteroids, but humanity still hasn't taken the first steps to the stars.

I really liked this book a lot. I actually avoided reading it a few months ago because of o ...more

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May 14, 2013 Andreas rated it it was amazing

A few hundred years from now, humanity has colonized the Solar System. Mars and Earth (the “Inner Planets”) are the developed juggernauts of society, with Earth crowded by a population of thirty billion. The rest of humanity lives on various moons and asteroids (the “Outer Planets”), hollowed out or domed for habitation. Tension between the Inner Planets and the fringe has been constant for centuries, with the fringe being gouged on taxes and kept cowed by the massively powerful Mars-Earth combi A few hundred years from now, humanity has colonized the Solar System. Mars and Earth (the “Inner Planets”) are the developed juggernauts of society, with Earth crowded by a population of thirty billion. The rest of humanity lives on various moons and asteroids (the “Outer Planets”), hollowed out or domed for habitation. Tension between the Inner Planets and the fringe has been constant for centuries, with the fringe being gouged on taxes and kept cowed by the massively powerful Mars-Earth combined navies.

The story is told from the viewpoint of two characters, freighter officer Holden, born on Earth, and Ceres police officer Miller, born and raised on Ceres itself. Holden’s ship is attacked for (initially) undetermined reasons and along with a few other survivors he is now a fugitive from powerful interests. Miller is asked to investigate the disappearance of one Juliette Andromeda Mao, scion of a rich family who left the fold to hang with the semi-terrorist Outer Planets Alliance, a group dedicated to independence from the Inner Planets. Miller’s search soon leads him to an encounter with Holden, as they both try to figure out who is inciting a shooting war between the Outer Planets and the Inner Planets. More importantly, what is the terrible plague that found Julie Mao; who is trying to use it and for what purpose?

The plot moves along quickly, with kick-ass action scenes worthy of a blockbuster movie. Miller’s slow descent into madness is contrasted with Holden’s transformation from naive boy scout to cynical player. The divergence of Inner Planet and Outer Planet society is finely described with tidbits sprinkled throughout the book; a story of frontier society trying to define itself. The supporting cast is wonderfully fleshed out, avoiding stereotypes and developing relationships realistically. The story itself twists in unexpected directions, with a grandiose “couldn’t see that coming” ending. Great space opera!

http://www.books.rosboch.net/?p=1639 ...more

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Sep 22, 2011 Matthew Hester rated it liked it

I felt cheated when I finished reading this book.
Not in a story-telling way, like I was left hanging on an unfinished cliffhanger or had everything wrapped up conveniently by a deus-ex-machina. I felt cheated because when I finished reading (this obvious science fiction novel) I discovered the "author" was just a pen name for a Fantasy author!

I know it is extremely shallow of me to be jaded by such a thing; but anyone who knows me would expect nothing less.

That said; the book actually was pretty ...more

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Jan 04, 2012 Alex rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, space-opera, 2013, must-read-scifi, mediadeathcult-syfy, top20scifi

As the first book of "The Expanse" series Leviathan Wakes proved to be a major disappointment. What I enjoy most with space operas is that they portray breathtaking, awe-inspiring settings populated by larger than life main characters who struggle to achieve the best plot resolution possible. Oh, and space ships firing at each other. You can't beat that.

Leviathan Wakes falls short of all of the above. The setting is our solar system with the main action taking place on some backwater asteroid co ...more

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