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bookswithbethx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Genocide, Vomit, Murder, Violence, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Death, Xenophobia, War, Rape, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual violence, Confinement, and Body horror
froyobaggns's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, War, Death, Genocide, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual assault and Blood
booksthatburn's review against another edition
Moderate: Medical content, Kidnapping, Murder, Medical trauma, Body horror, and Death
Minor: Excrement, Violence, Torture, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
ekcd_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I read the book after watching the first episode of the show and fell in love so hard I don’t think I can be impartial about evaluating the books good-ness.
Deep characters, realistic dialogue, deep lore and world building.
A note on the writing of relationships …
It’s the one and only sci fi book I have ever read, written by a man (men?) that had a sex scene WITHOUT bodily objectifying women. Without bodily objectifying anyone. Such a minor plot point, less than two pages, but for me it reframed my expectations of the book. No weird porny misogyny. Just an earnest description of what it means to share intimacy
One aggravating, potential plot hole (hence the half star deduction)
Why the fuck wouldn’t they just crash Eros into the sun as planned? It’s great for the plot to have it land on Venus but it was so out of character and out of dynamic
I’m not mad though, because I would have hated for this to only be one book. But I hope they get their shit together on the next one tbh
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Blood, Medical content, Excrement, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Murder, Body horror, Death, War, Cursing, Gore, and Gun violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Drug use, Racism, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Cancer, Sexual assault, Torture, Alcohol, and Suicide attempt
jupitermond's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror and Death
Moderate: Violence, Alcoholism, and Genocide
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment
rynaissanceenby's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The characters were relatable, and their flaws were infuriating in the best way. The one character flaw I didn't really jive with, though, was how Miller thought about Julie. He is supposed to be like 50 and she is supposed to be like 26 or something, and his romantic pinings for her come off as really creepy. Furthermore, this easily could have been fixed by him viewing her more as a daughter figure than a romantic interest.
I appreciated the diversity in the cast. The culture that was developed for people who lived outside of Earth and Mars felt rich and interesting. The author took the time to think about what sorts of things would shape such a culture, and he did a good job of expressing those characteristics in writing. It was a bit frustrating how often the women felt completely outnumbered by men, though. It was used as a plot point, so it made sense why it had to be that way, but I would rather the author find a different point to make, so women could have more equal treatment.
Overall, I think the author put a lot of thought into the science and technology of the universe in a really satisfying way. He's no Andy Weir, but the technology generally passes the first and second glances. He seems to have thought a lot about the implications of life throughout the solar system, and he did a great job bringing that thinking into the book.
The enemies were visceral and unique. Disturbing in the best way.
This book definitely lives up to the label of "space opera," and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Graphic: Violence and Gore
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, War, and Xenophobia
coaxmetal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Sexual assault
blakethebookeater's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a reread for me! And it was just as good the second time around. Read this because I'm hosting an Expanse readalong this year in prep for the final book coming this fall! The live show discussion for this book is linked above and you can follow the Twitter account @ReadTheExpanse for more information/announcements!
So this book follows two main plots: Joseph Miller is searching for the missing Julie Mao, and James Holden and the crew of the Rocinante are...just constantly on the run. Eventually their two narrative intersect and then this book finishes off with quite an explosive finale!
Now I do think I was inclined to like this book more because I do already have a knowledge of where these characters go from here and seeing how their arcs started out was just a joy. I will have to say that this novel doesn't quite focus on character, and moreso focuses on plot, but that is a-ok because the plot really needs to be focused on. A LOT happens.
The Expanse takes place in a future where we have three main factions: Earth, Mars (technologically superior), and the Belt (basically everyone else living on various space stations). An event at the beginning of the novel sparks a solar-system-wide war and Holden and his crew race to discover the cause/stop it and Miller's mystery might have something to do with it as well.
I highly recommend this book is you're a fan of science fiction, and recommend the series as a whole. Because as crazy as this one is, it only gets crazier and more epic.
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Cancer, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Murder, Police brutality, Racism, and Vomit
Minor: Child death, Chronic illness, and Sexual assault
stubbornlybookish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Death, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical trauma
readingtheother's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Body horror
Minor: Sexual assault