Reviews with content warning for Death - Abaddon's Gate

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Reviews tagging 'Death'

Abaddon's Gate by James S.A. Corey

21 reviews

bergha1998's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Wow this book was amazing, the world building in this series just keeps ramping up and I’m so here for it. I adored all the philosophical discussions about what they are find out about the universe really means. Especially in regards to religion. Very interesting.

Sci-Fi, Found Family, Romance Subplot

“Science had given mankind many gifts, and she valued it. But the one important thing it had taken away was the value of subjective, personal experience. That had been replaced with the idea that only measurable and testable concepts had value. But humans didn’t work that way,”

“What kind of justice would that be? ‘Oh, you killed Ren, but you’re sorry now so it’s okay’? Fuck that. And if that’s how your God works, then fuck Him too.”

“Charting the course of a life was making a map of the ways each event changed the person, leaving someone different on the other side.”

Content Warnings

bickleyhouse's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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? It's complicated

4.0

This is the third installment of The Expanse series, coming in at 541 pages (the book is longer, but I don't read the "extras" that always come at the end, usually the first chapter of some other book that Orbit recommends).

And, as has been the case with the other two, they don't read like 500+ pages. What I mean by that is that it seems to go by quickly. I suppose that means that the writing is pretty engaging, and makes me want to keep reading.

I did find that this one was a little harder to follow, at some points, though. Nevertheless, it was satisfying and kept me engaged to the end. One of the things that I have liked about this series is the chapters that alternate between major characters in the story. In this book, those seem to be mostly Holden, Bull, Melba, and Anna, the last three of which are new to this book. Bull is one of Fred Johnson's people (Fred is the leader of the OPA), but gets demoted to Chief Security Officer of the Behemoth ship, so that Ashton can be the captain. Melba is (or at least starts out to be) our villain for this installment, and Anna is a delightful character, who is a minister.

Miller (the dead guy) continues to be a major player in this book, lead (or misleading?) Holden, who seems to be the only person who can see him. The main theme of this book is The Ring, formed by the protomolecule after it launched from the surface of Venus and assembled itself somewhere out around Saturn and Uranus. The whole story begins with a minor player launching his ship into the middle of the ring, which was surrounded by Earth and Mars military vessels.

Confused, yet? See what I mean about it being a little hard to follow?

But it was engaging enough that I read the last 200 pages in one day, to finish the book. It gets very intense toward the end, as people turn out to be not exactly who they started out to be. As I read, though, I seem to remember some pretty drastic differences between the book and the TV show, in this season. But it's been a while.

There were some interesting thoughts presented in this one, too. The authors (yes, plural, because "James S.A. Corey" is actually two people) got into some rather deep theology in the course of this story. Especially of interest was a segment beginning on p. 249 of my edition, concerning Armageddon and eschatology. Then there was Anna's thought on the idea of a "mixed" church, which in her thinking, was gathering people from Earth, Mars, and the OPA, usually referred to as "Belters." Here's the passage: "It had occurred to Anna then that there really wasn't any such thing as a 'mixed' church group. No matter what they looked like, or what they chose to call Him, when a group of people called out to God together, they were one." Very interesting and thought-provoking.

Of special interest in the current state of affairs was this line: "Disaster recovery could only go two ways. Either everyone pulled together and people lived, or they kept on with their tribal differences and fear, and more people died." I find this to be totally relevant in 2024 USA.

In another conversation, this one between Anna and Bull, the possibility of there being a line that could be crossed, after which there was no possibility of redemption, was discussed.

Bull: I think it is entirely possible to go so far into the red you can't ever balance the books.
Anna: Sounds like the voice of experience. How far have you been?
Bull: Far enough to know there's a too damn far.
Anna: And you're comfortable being the judge of where that line is?

And then, in one of the last conversations in the book, Anna is talking with fellow minister Hector Cortez, who says, "God gave man the Earth. He never promised him the stars."

It's been a long time since a science fiction book made me think this much.

I recommend this book for fans of hardcore science fiction, especially with a somewhat mystic bent.

Content Warnings

jan_coco_day's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This is the perfect place to insert a spiritual element to this saga because humanity is literally at the edge of known space. Representatives from many of humanity's religions are headed towards the edge of space, but only one of them suspects that the person who needs spiritual/soul guidance the most is someone who started the journey with them. Anna and Melba/Clarissa's story is by far the most compelling in the book, particularly Melba's slow descent into insanity after her first murder.

I am disheartened to learn that in this near future, there is still no cure nor relief from migraine attacks.

Content Warnings