I downloaded and listened to Leviathan Wakes after finding
out it is being developed into a television show. I was listening to a Nerdist
podcast with Chad
Coleman as the guest, and he plugged this show as in development. I’m
always on the lookout for new sci-fi stories and decided to give this book a
try before the series kicks off this winter. It’s an interesting book and good
story, but I wish I would have waited for the television show.
The book is very episodic. Which is why I think it will make
a perfect television series. I can already see where they will break each
episode down. They should be able to stretch the first novel into two seasons
if they want to. The problem is the story never drew me in as a book. The
characters would accomplish one task and I wouldn’t be compelled to continue on
to see what happened next. It’s not that
the story isn’t interesting, it is, I just never felt hooked enough to binge
listen. I could see myself being excited enough to tune in week to week if they
do the show right. I hope they give the
show enough of a budget to be successful. They have a good actor, Chad Coleman, to play
Fred Johnson who is a big supporting character in the book. Thomas Jane is set
to play one of the major roles, Detective Miller, so the cast is anchored well.
Didn’t mean to go into a preview for the TV-show for my book
review. I just want a new science
fiction show to succeed on the sci-fi network. This series has a good chance to succeed based
on the content in the book. I really enjoy the universe Corey builds in the
novel. There are three different
factions of humans in the solar system. People from Earth, Mars, and the Belt.
Each faction is naturally at odds with the other because, hey, we’re all still
human. I really liked how the Belters
where truly the misunderstood people in the solar system. Corey did a great job
of setting up how different they were from people who grew up on actual
planets. Actions transpire in the book
that cause the fragile peace to be broken between the three different groups.
In the middle of all the mess are the two main characters,
XO Holden and Detective Miller. Corey jumps back from each of their
perspectives and it works for the most part. I’ll be honest and say I didn’t
relate well to Detective Miller. He’s a down on his luck burnout cop. He’s
jaded and cynical about the universe. I
usually like these types of characters, but I just couldn’t get behind Miller.
It’s one reason why I would suggest to wait for the Television series, the
characters are the weakest part of the book. Corey tries to make Miller
complex, and he works hard to develop him, it just fell flat for me. Holden is
the opposite of Miller. He is an idealistic starship executive officer, who
does well with the ladies. A tad cliché, but of the two main characters I
related to Holden more than Miller.
Where the characters are a tad weak, the universe Corey
develops is stellar. Corey is very heavy
on the science in his science fiction. There are no inertia compensators, so
the accelerating of starships have effects on the human body. Living a life in
space also affects the body. The belters reflect this. They are more lanky and
elongated, and if they are subjected to high gravity bruise easier. Everything
for a belter is perilous. If one thing goes wrong it could set a chain of
events in motion which could collapse their society. If ice haulers from Saturn
don’t make a run on time or at all, it could spell disaster for the entire
system. They have to rely on Earth and Mars for much of their livelihood and
want to be able to break away. This is
the underlying current for the novel. “Earther’s” are looked down upon in the
belt, and Belters are thought of as second class citizens to people from Earth
and Mars. Humans in the future aren’t immune to racism. The scale is just
vastly larger, and the groups have changed.
Our characters get caught in the middle of a conspiracy and
must navigate their way through to survive. It’s perilous, and Corey does a
good job of building tension throughout the book. Again I was never sucked completely
in because each chapter was almost its own adventure. I was happy with each
section, but able to walk away and wait for a bit to come back to the
novel. Corey throws in some sci-fi
horror, which is a good addition to the book and keeps the story moving
forward.
I’m excited for this book to be made into a television series.
It should make for a good television show. According to IMDB 10 episodes are
ready to go (The
Expanse), so it looks like we will get an entire season. If you want to get ready for the season pick
up the book. I’ll visit the next couple of books in the five book saga (thanks @Peter Gulka for the assist) if the series doesn’t
make it, but I think I’ll wait to be surprised if the show goes past season
one.
My Rating: Good
Science Fiction Novel.
Have you read the Expanse trilogy? Are you exited to see it
on the sci-fi network? Comment and let me know.
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