A review by jessgj
Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey

adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

So the first thing you need to know about this book is that it feels like 2 books happening at the same time. The book moves between two narratives, the space opera and the futuristic noir. For the space opera, we're in the head of the idealistic (Some might say naive) Jim Holder, th leader of the surviving crew of the Canterbury. The noir follows Miller, a nihilistic cop who has seen better days who was assigned to find a missing girl, Julie Mao. 

Sometimes the book gave me whiplash from the tones from the two POVs but in a good way. The book is very much a slow burn, which isn't my style but it does give you enough room to understand both characters and their very flawed and at times, tragic thinking. And while the book does have some old-school sci-fi feels, it does a good job of setting up some toxic "romantic" tropes in the genres and then calling both characters out for them.

Also, if you're worried about finishing the book but not feeling compelled to continue with the series, don't worry. It does answer the questions contained in the book while setting up a much bigger and more dangerous world for our characters. 
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