|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
my rating |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0316669148
| 9780316669146
| B096RSDCVK
| 4.37
| 8,251
| Mar 15, 2022
| Mar 15, 2022
|
really liked it
|
This is a short story collection from the Expanse universe. I'm not the biggest fan of such collections, but this one worked pretty well, mostly becau
This is a short story collection from the Expanse universe. I'm not the biggest fan of such collections, but this one worked pretty well, mostly because all the stories are set in the same 'universe' and we get a look into side stories of characters / events from the main series. It still took me some time to finish this book, not because I didn't like it, but because I wanted to savour these final stories in the Expanse universe. And also because it has been a busy period with less reading time. I have already commented on most of the stories during my read. Here below my individual score for each story: - Drive: 4/5 - The Butcher of Anderson Station: 4.5/5 - Gods of Risk: 3/5 - The Churn: 5/5 - The Vital Abyss: 3.5/5 - Strange Dogs: 3.5/5 - Auberon: 4.5/5 - The Sins of Our Fathers: 4.5/5 My favorite story is probably the one that told the backstory of Amos: "The Churn". In general an interesting story with lots of things happening. Another good one, and even a bit linked to Amos his history, is "Auberon". This is actually a crime story involving a known character from Amos his past. Also Laconia is important in this one with a new Laconian governor for Auberon. The interaction between the criminal world and the new governor who wants the set things right, makes for an interesting read. Other two stories that were good: "The Butcher of Anderson Station" and "The Sins of Our Fathers". Both stories are linked to known characters; one tells the story of things that have happened and that were already cited in the main series as well. We get the real backbone of the story here. The second one takes place after the end of the gates; also a good addition. "Drive" was in general a good story in the collection. It isn't directly linked to the main series or known characters. It is an important story however, with the discovery of the Epstein Drive. A fun read. "The Vital Abyss" and "Strange Dogs" are both linked to Laconia and to characters that we've seen before. These were good stories but were less exciting and dragged a little bit. The first one touches the history of Cortazar. It was an interesting story, a nice addition, but not much more. The second one takes place directly on Laconia; also a fun read but nothing all too special either. The story I liked the least was "Gods of Risk", a shame really because it's a story with Bobbie involved. I would have loved a story more centered about Bobbie, but this was not that kind of story. Her involvement is limited; the main character is actually her nephew David Draper. It's not a bad story but I just didn't like it as much as the other stories. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Feb 23, 2024
|
Apr 14, 2024
|
Nov 19, 2021
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0593333020
| 9780593333020
| B088QLJGZC
| 4.51
| 3,059
| Nov 07, 2012
| Jun 02, 2020
|
really liked it
|
The Dune Saga Collection contains the six books written by Frank Herbert in his Dune universe. The story in these books spans over thousands of years.
The Dune Saga Collection contains the six books written by Frank Herbert in his Dune universe. The story in these books spans over thousands of years. You get a great story of epic scope with amazing worldbuilding and intriguing characters. The first book, Dune, introduces an interstellar Empire, with politics, economics, cultures, religion and ecology all woven in it with an enormous depth. All the following books build further on this start. Together they represent a benchmark in Science Fiction, which makes them a must read if you're an avid reader of the genre. Does this mean that you will like these books from the first page to the last? Probably not, I didn’t like everything equally much myself. But they are certainly good enough to give them a try, especially the first one is a must read. During my read I already commented on each of the six books after having finished them. I've tried to give each book a proper review here below. This wasn't always easy knowing the first four books were read in 2021. Having finished all the six books now, I think I have a better view of the overall story and a better understanding of some themes and events happening over the whole series. I think this would benefit my reading experience upon a reread in the future (if I ever came to that). DUNE [image] This book had almost everything you want from a good sci-fi adventure. It all starts with a good story off course, and that's something you'll definitely find in "Dune". Main focus from the start is House Atreides. Leto Atreides, head of the House, is the ruler of the planet Caladan. He is assigned by Emperor Shaddam IV to serve as fief ruler of the planet Arrakis. Arrakis is a harsh and inhospitable desert planet, but it has an enormous importance in the galaxy as it's the only planet where melange (spice) can be found. This substance is invaluable as it extends human youth, vitality and lifespan and it's important for safe interstellar space travel. Behind this move is a conspiracy from the Emperor with House Harkonnen due to the rising popularity of Duke Leto. This makes an interesting outset of a story from the start. This is further backed up by brilliant worldbuilding. Frank Herbert worked long and hard on this novel and a lot of this effort was clearly put into the worldbuilding. A lot of effort was put in the development of Arrakis, mainly it's ecological system and its conditions, but also into the sandworms (who thrive in these surroundings) and its life-cycles. Thought was put into the creation of melange, and how to harvest it. Having the conditions on Arrakis, making it a inhospitable planet, Frank Herbert worked out a way in his worldbuilding to survive and live in these conditions: the stillsuit. He introduced the Fremen on Arrakis, a desert people who have been oppressed for a long time. But Frank Herbert thought further than this and created a complete Galactic culture, very rich and detailed. To start with, you have the Landsraad. This was the body that represented all the Great Houses and was ruled by the High Council and overseen by the Emperor. You have CHOAM, an economic consortium with a monopoly on space travel. For this they need the Spice, as it allows them to see a short period into the future to plot a safe course before folding space. You have the Bene Gesserit, a powerful social, religious and political force. They are an exclusive sisterhood whose members train their bodies and minds through years of physical and mental conditioning to obtain superhuman powers and abilities. So a lot off importance was put on the worldbuilding in the first novel, but you also need a great villain to get a great story off course. The most obvious villain here is Baron Harkonnen, plotting with the emperor to get rid of House Atreides. Where there's a villain, there's also a hero, and in Dune this is Paul Atreides, son of Leto Atreides and Lady Jessica. His mother is herself an acolyte of the Bene Gesserit. Other important characters in the Atreides household are soldiers Duncan Idaho and Gurney Halleck and the Mentat Thufir Hawat (some sort of a human computer). On the side of the Fremen you have Stilgar and Chani. With all these elements, Dune provides a thrilling story with a lot court intrigue. Does all of this make "Dune" also a perfect book? No, I don't think so, I could give some remarks, but those are easily disregarded by the fun you get from reading this. Hence still my five star rating. Rating: 5/5 DUNE MESSIAH [image] This is a direct follow-up for Dune, taking place 12 years after the final events from "Dune". Paul "Muad'Dib" Atreides has ruled as Emperor during this time. By accepting the role of messiah to the Fremen, he has unleashed a jihad which has conquered most of the known universe, but has also resulted in the death of billions of people. Viewing this, a conspiracy has been put in place by the Bene Gesserit, the Tleilaxu and the Spacing Guild to remove Paul from his rule. Again an intriguing outset for a story. It contains a lot of politicking, a lot of good dialogue but it's also a bit too preachy and philosophical at times for my liking. Still a very good second novel in the Dune universe. Besides Paul Atreides we have some other returning characters as well, one of which is very unexpected.. This book is much shorter than the original. The groundworks have been done in the first novel off course and this book can profit from that. This also means it doesn’t have the complexity of the first book, it is much more contained, but it worked perfectly for me. That's why I also give it a four star rating, even though there are some remarks to be given . Rating: 4/5 CHILDREN OF DUNE [image] The third book in the Dune sage takes place nine years after Paul Atreides walked off into the desert. The focus in this book lies mainly on the twin children from Paul en Chani, Leto II and Ghanima. There's also an important role for their aunt and guardian Alia. The twins have concluded that she has succumbed to Abomination, possession by her grandfather Baron Vladimir Harkonnen. There's again an assassination plot, this time against the twins, put in place by Princess Wensicia of the fallen House Corrino in an attempt to regain power for her House. And from the desert comes the enigmatic figure "The Preacher", provoking the fanatical Fremen into open revolt. Some of them believing it's Paul Atreides himself. So a lot off plot points to work out ... and it worked pretty well. I would put this novel at about the same level as Dune Messiah with again some strong politicking happening. But on the other hand we also have some complicated philosophical and religious concepts being thrown at us which makes it difficult to follow at times. The first two novels also suffered of this, but to a lesser extent. Rating: 4/5 GOD EMPEROR OF DUNE [image] This one was for me the weakest book in the series written by Frank Herbert. The problem was mainly that the main focus was too much on introspection, musings and philosophical ranting and almost no effort was put into an actual story. For me substandard and very tedious to read. It was a struggle to get to the ending with all the philosophical speeches. Some of the earlier books already had such speeches, but mostly didn’t go this far along, and those books at least had a decent story which still made it an interesting read. The story of God Emperor was so thin it could have been written in only a fraction of the pages Frank Herbert did now. The main characters in this book were the God Emperor Leto II, Siona, a descendant of the Atreides family and Duncan Idaho. Honestly, I can’t even remember many other characters that came into play. Leto II has ruled for 3.500 years at the start of the book. During this time he has terraformed the planet of Arrakis from a desert planet to a green planet, with the exception of the Sareer, a small section of desert retained by Leto himself. As a result of the terraforming, all the Sandworms have died out and spice is no longer available. Leto II controls the remaining supply of spice, and through this he also keeps civilization under his command. It's because of this tyrannical rule that an underground rebellion has come to ground led by Siona. Through his prescient view, Leto is aware of this. But through the breeding program that Leto has established, he has bred a human strain that is invisible for this view and for (future) prophets in general. Siona is the final result of this. This will be the start of the downfall of Leto II. Throughout the book a lot of focus is also put on the golden path of Leto II. This is the optimal path for humanity as viewed by Leto II with his prescient view. The result of this, after many thousand years of peace, and after the fall of Leto II, is the scattering. The parting of humanity into the farther universe. It started out pretty good in the first chapter, and I remember myself thinking I was going to like this book. Unfortunately it went downhill from there and I didn't like it in the end. The ending itself was still decent though. Maybe I will like this book better on a reread, but on my first read I couldn’t give this any more than a 2 star rating. Rating: 2/5 HERETICS OF DUNE [image] After the god awful ‘God Emperor of Dune’ I still started this one at the end of 2021, and although it wasn’t bad, I didn’t finish it at the timing and finally took a break from Dune. More than two years later, in June 2024, I took this book back up and finished it in less than a month. This was actually a great book. There were still some dry sections in this book that didn’t always hold my interest, but what made it much more interesting was that we did actually have a good story in here. A plus was even that there were a lot of interesting characters contrary to GEoD. Actually all the important characters held my interest. The best addition for me was Bashar Miles Teg, a military genius for the Bene Gesserit. The result of GEoD was the scattering, the parting of humanity into the galaxy. In HoD, 1.500 year after the death of Leto II, we have the return of “The Lost Ones” from the scattering. The most powerful of these forces are the Honored Matres, a violent society of women bred and trained for combat and the sexual control of men. They are also the new antagonist in the Dune universe. Also coming much more to the forefront now are the Bene Gesserit. While the earlier books had a focus on House Atreides and their descendants, now the Bene Gesserit have become the focal point in the Dune universe. Other important factions are the Tleilaxu with their Face Dancers and the Ixians with their no-ships, ships that remain invisible to outside detection. Although the Bene Gesserit, as an entity in the Dune universe, are now the main focus in the story, there are some characters that are certainly as important. On the one hand we have a new Duncan Idaho ghola, who still needs to be awakened. He is being trained by the Bashar Miles Teg on the planet Gammu (former Giedi Prime). He was created by the Tleilaxu, on demand from the Benne Gesserit, but they have their own plans with him as well. On the other hand there's Sheeana, a girl who can control the giant sandworms on Rakis. The Bene Gesserit hope to gain control of her and the religion that will inevitably form around her. However other factions try to control her as well. This provides a lot of plot points through the story, again a lot of politicking in which each faction tries to gain something from the others. It's not always 100% clear what the goal is of each of these plot points or what each of these factions try to accomplish, but I thought this was still a very good novel in the series. I enjoyed this a lot, one of the better ones! Rating: 4.5/5 CHAPTERHOUSE: DUNE [image] After the great Heretics of Dune I had high expectations for Chapterhouse, but unfortunately these weren’t (completely) met. With the introduction in the previous book of the Honored Matres as antagonist, and the ending we got in Heretics, I expected something in the same vein for Chapterhouse. Contrary to Heretics, where we did get a lot of action and suspense, Chapterhouse is very slow to start with. We have a lot of internal monologues of characters during this book or conversations between characters that are often topped with too much philosophical ranting. This isn’t the case during the whole book, and it certainly isn’t as bad as with GEOD, but it’s often enough to take away from the flow of the book. Too often I lost my interest in it or it just went completely over my head. We still have a decent story here, something we barely got in GEoD. The Honored Matres have gained much more influence in the universe after their return from the scattering and the Bene Gesserit are forced into hiding. Multiple Bene Gesserit planets have already been located and have been destroyed with the loss of many Bene Gesserit as a result. Chapterhouse still remains a secret for the Honored Matres. It’s from here that the Bene Gesserit plan their next move and will try to strike back. All this under the leadership of Mother Superior Odrade, also one of the main pov’s in the book. This means that the outset of the story is there, the execution just didn’t live up to the one in Heretics. As we go along toward the end, the suspense does rise and we do get some action. Even long before the ending there are some good chapters to read, but not enough to give this a great rating. I am left with a feeling this could have been much better with the right alterations. Adding some action sequences here and there could have made it much more compelling from the start. I'm thinking off a chapter on the loss of Lampadas and what happened there. Omitting some parts would also have helped the flow a bit. In the end this is still a good book, but one of my least favorite in the saga. Rating: 3.5/5 Conclusion: As I mentioned before this is a must read for sci-fi readers. If I had the time, I would definitely reread this series at some point, but with all the books on my reading list I'm not sure I will ever come to that. I think my enjoyment of these book would profit of a reread with the full knowledge I have after finishing all six of them. Does this also mean I'll continue the series with the books written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson? I'm not sure. Initially, before I was well underway reading these books, I would have thought I wouldn't continue reading after finishing the main series by Frank Herbert. Now I'm in doubt. There's an itch remaining, so maybe I'll plunge into the final two books at some point (Hunters of Dune / Sandworms of Dune). I do have doubts these books will approach the actual outline that was intended by Frank Herbert, and I have even more doubts that these books will match the writing from Frank Herbert. But who knows what'll happen if I do start them and I finish both H0D and S0D. Maybe I'll even continue after those. Among the books written by the duo, there are multiple stories that have me interested enough to also give those a try. I definitely won't continue now, but maybe I will at some point in the future. This is actually a huge compliment for the original series, as it has intrigued me enough to even consider start reading other stories that aren't written by its original creator. Series rating: Dune: 5/5 Dune Messiah: 4/5 Children of Dune: 4/5 God Emperor of Dune: 2/5 Heretics of Dune: 4.5/5 Chapterhouse Dune: 3.5/5 Overall Rating: 4/5 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Sep 13, 2021
|
Jul 22, 2024
|
Sep 10, 2021
|
ebook
| ||||||||||||||
| 0356510379
| 9780356510378
| B08MQ7ZHQT
| 4.54
| 58,158
| Nov 30, 2021
| Nov 30, 2021
|
really liked it
|
This is the concluding book of the Expanse series; it has been a nice ride, I loved most of the stories told by James S.A. Corey, and this one is a so
This is the concluding book of the Expanse series; it has been a nice ride, I loved most of the stories told by James S.A. Corey, and this one is a solid finisher for the series as a whole. I don't think it's the perfect ending, otherwise I would have given it 5 stars, but very good nonetheless. The story starts pretty strong with the slow recovery of Winston Duarte and his disappearance shortly afterwards. High Admiral Trejo dispatches Colonel Tanaka to find him and bring him back. I personally liked the addition of the Tanaka POV and the story linked to her: her search for Winston Duarte, but afterwards also her attempt to retrieve Teresa Duarte as a way to lure Winston Duarte back. The fact she is after Teresa also means she is after the Rocinante; this made an interesting story at the start. Especially the scenes on New Egypt were highlights in the book, also the scenes afterwards in the Freehold system were very strong. These weren't only action packed scenes, but they also centered around the main crew. This made them much more interesting and relatable as they have always been the heart and soul of the series. Another important storyline is the one following Elvi and her crew on the Laconian science vessel "Falcon" in the Adro system. She tries to find a solution to the blackouts and the disappearance of ships and a way to stop the Ring Entities causing these and other events. These chapters weren't always very interesting but were necessary for the overall story (as were some other chapters with some additional pov's). Gradually these two storylines evolve to each other with a big finale in the Ring Space and on the Ring Station. I would have loved a little bit more focus on some of the space battles between the remaining 'human' ships and the ones being controlled by Winston Duarte, but that wasn't the focus in this part of the story. The main events are happening on the Ring Station itself. Finally we get a nice ending and a good conclusion of the overall story. The Ring Entities will always remain a bit of a question mark, but I can live with that. It's a bittersweet ending, not only between the main characters, but also as a reader after nine books joining these characters. I can say James S.A. Corey has done an excellent job in creating these characters and making me care for them. The concluding epilogue is one to give you some shivers up your spine as well! Conclusion: Very good conclusion of the story after nine books. Rating: 8.2 / 10 As a whole I can say I really liked the overall series; reviewing my overall scores I rated the series as a whole 4 out of 5 stars. Here below you can find the individual scores for each book: 1. Leviathan Wakes: 4/5 2. Caliban's War: 5/5 3. Abaddon's Gate: 4/5 4. Cibola Burn: 3/5 5. Nemesis Games: 4/5 6. Babylon's Ashes: 4/5 7. Persepolis Rising: 4/5 8. Tiamat's Wrath: 4/5 9. Leviathan Falls: 4/5 Upon reread I'll possibly rate some of the books a bit higher, but I think the overall rating of 4/5 is pretty correct. I have finished plenty of fantasy series, but this is the first science fiction series that I have finished of this magnitude (9 books). The only one I can remotely compare it to is "Remembrance of Earth’s Past" as it's the only other science fiction series I have finished. They're still very different nonetheless: The Expanse is space opera while RoEP is more hard scifi (and only 3 books). Of these two, I myself have a huge preference for "The Expanse"; I can't recommend it enough! ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jan 29, 2024
|
Feb 21, 2024
|
Aug 05, 2020
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| B06XKN9G27
| 4.37
| 75,048
| Dec 05, 2017
| Dec 05, 2017
|
really liked it
|
Several decades after the defeat of the Free Navy, the solar system has settled into a normal rhythm. The rebuilding is still ongoing for Earth and Ma
Several decades after the defeat of the Free Navy, the solar system has settled into a normal rhythm. The rebuilding is still ongoing for Earth and Mars, while the Belters have their role to play with the Transport Union. In the role of the Transport Union, the Belters are now overseeing the traffic in the gate network and control everything in the Slow Zone. It’s at this moment that an invasion starts from the Laconia Gate. I have to say I liked this one again very well. With the Laconia story line really coming to the forefront now, the story gets a new direction, one I really loved. Behind the strategy of Laconia, is still Winston Duarte, the former Martian who left Sol system with a portion of the Martian Navy ships. With his departure he also left Sol system in the hands of the Free Navy. After all these decades Laconia isn't a force to be deglected. They have had the time to develop and engineer a self sustaining world based on the technology of the Protomolecule creators. With the ancient shipyards (construction platforms) in Laconia orbit from the same creators, they were even capable of constructing Magnetar-class space ships. Special specs are a magnetic beam cannon and a self-repairing hull. Heart of the Tempest is the first of such ships entering the slow zone and the main force in the strike from Laconia. The goal of Duarte is to controle the whole gate network and all worlds. It is up to the UN and the Transport Union to oppose this new threat. At the time Laconia makes its move, the Rocinante crew is stuck on Medina station after their return from a previous mission. A lot of the action is perceived from the crew members viewpoints. It's up to them, together with former OPA Belters, to form a resistance on Medina station against the Laconia control. Leader in the resistance is Saba, who is also the lover of president Drummer. Drummer is the former head of security under Fred Johnson on Medina and now leader of the Transport Union. She's not on Medina station but in Sol system when Laconia attacks and serves as the viewpoint for Sol system. The Laconia viewpoint comes from captain Singh who has taken over Medina station; I thought the characterization of him was superbly done. He's not a likeable character most of the times and you notice that as the story progresses he's losing control of the situation. With the cummulation of events his outcome was to be expected in some sense ... but still very nicely done! As the story progresses, tension rises, action blooms and during the ride we also get some nice unexpected twists. It has it's slow moments at times, but the ending is again fully worth the wait. A worthy ending for a great book; it makes me want to read the next book even more. Conclusion: Persepolis Rising manages to be gripping, action packed and filled with tension. Another great installment in the series. I'm starting immediately with the next one "Tiamat's Wrath". After that it will be the long wait for the final book in 2021 ... "Leviathan Falls" Rating 8.4 / 10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Nov 10, 2020
|
Nov 28, 2020
|
Jun 08, 2020
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B000FBFMZ2
| 4.04
| 108,779
| Feb 28, 2002
| 2018
|
really liked it
|
Great book !!! I watched the Netflix series after it was released and I liked it a lot. It sparked me to read the book someday in the future. With the
Great book !!! I watched the Netflix series after it was released and I liked it a lot. It sparked me to read the book someday in the future. With the second season expected to come out somewhere at the start of 2020 (no official confirmation yet though), I thought it would be nice to read the book and refresh some details from the tv series. I have to say that there was some divergence between the two, they big story lines were there in both, but the Netflix series added some interesting new storylines while some other stuff from the book was filtered out. Honestly, although I liked the book, I liked the tv series better. But the fact that the tv series is that goods starts off course with a good book, especially the world building is top notch. The premise is great; the author built a whole world, a colonized universe with a rich history that we're only starting to grasp in this first book. I expect that there's much more to it. The whole technology that Morgan created behind his story is well thought out and links pretty well with the society on earth and how the rich benifit from it, and he poor suffer under it. Regarding the technology, I think it did help that I already saw the series. It helped me understand some parts from the book better, especially in the first few chapters. The main character Takeshi Kovacs is truely the main star of the book. I really loved him; truely my kind of character. He has some nice humour but when it comes down to it, he won't back down and will use the necessary violence to get things done. His history as an Envoy, some sort of elite military force of futuristic soldiers, helps a lot to get him out of some pretty difficult situations. There are some other interesting characters, but they don't come through as much as the story is told from first person perspective. Still a nice job from Morgan. The story itself is a detective story with a futuristic touch. Kovacs is hired by Laurence Bancroft, one of the wealthiest men on Earth, to investigate his murder. Yes, you read that right, the person who was murderd hired someone to investigate his murder. It has all to do with the technology of the world and how the wealthies can live forever. In eacht case, the cops have ruled out murder and believe it to be a suicide. However Bancroft isn't the person to belief that he would kill himself and blunder when doing it so that's the point where Kovacs is brought into the story. One thing leads to another and in the end we get a very exciting sci-fi detective story with a lot of action and a very intruiging plot. Definitely worth reading. Conclusion: I'll definitely continue this series at some point in the future, but not right away. I'll probably watch the second season from the Netflix series first. If my information is correct it will be a totally different story than the one in the second book. Rating: 8/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Oct 27, 2019
|
Nov 16, 2019
|
Oct 27, 2019
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 0356510336
| 9780356510330
| B07DHRMBCJ
| 4.57
| 69,691
| Mar 26, 2019
| Mar 26, 2019
|
really liked it
|
The penultimate book in the Expanse series takes off some time after events in Persepolis Rising. The crew of the Rocinante has been scattered through
The penultimate book in the Expanse series takes off some time after events in Persepolis Rising. The crew of the Rocinante has been scattered through the galaxy. Bobbie is captain on the Gathering Storm with Alex as pilote, Naomi has locked herself away to perform strategic analysis on behalf of the resistance for Saba, Holden is still captured on Laconia and any contact with Amos has been lost after a secret mission. From here on out we follow the story mostly from known perspectives. We get Holden for the prologue, but afterwards his contribution to the overall story is limited (besides a short interlude). We do get another pov from him in the epilogue. Luckily we have pov's from the Rocinante crew members, from Bobbie, Alex and Naomi, and I have to be honest, these pov's remain the best in the series. I do have to say that some of the Naomi chapters weren't the best I've read, but this improved as the story progressed. Besides these pov's, there is also the returning pov from Elvi Okoye who is now working for Laconia. She is performing research into the race that annihiliated the Protomolecule builders. While I didn't really like her character earlier on in the series (book 4), it was much better this time around. Her storyline was much more interesting in this book. Finally we also have a brand new pov with Teresa Duarte, daughter off Winston Duarte. She gives us the view on Laconia and events happening there. And some serious events are happening throughout the story, some that will change the future once more. This was again a bit of a slow burner from the start. This has never really bothered me in previous installments, and it didn't bother me now. We do have multiple exciting clashes on the way, but the real goodies are left for the end with also a satisfying conclusion for this book. I have high expectations for the final book, out in 2021, to fully blow my mind away. According to me the Laconia storyline will still take an important part up of the book, but the real cake will come from a final clash with the alien species that destroyed te Protomolecule builders. I can't imagine that the Rocinante crew won't be involved in that. Conclusion: As I mentioned already after reading Persepolis Rising, the Laconia storyline gave the series a new drive after the first six books. This was definitely continued in this book. I'm not sure which book I prefer of the two, both have a good story, interesting characters, some unexpected twists and some very good space battles. In the end I've scored both of them the same with 4 stars and 8.5 / 10. Rating: 8.5 / 10 and now the long wait begins for the final book: Leviathan Falls !!! ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Dec 02, 2020
|
Dec 22, 2020
|
Aug 14, 2019
|
ebook
| ||||||||||||||
| 4.14
| 568,407
| Jul 26, 2016
| Aug 11, 2016
|
really liked it
|
I bought this book on a Kindle sale without being aware of the hype already surrounding it. The story intruiged me and I picked it up. It didn’t get m
I bought this book on a Kindle sale without being aware of the hype already surrounding it. The story intruiged me and I picked it up. It didn’t get my immediate attention, I was busy reading other books, but when I was on holiday and I wanted to start a new short book, I started with this. I liked it, so I continued ... and now that I've finished it, I’m at a point that I’ll probably try something else from Blake Crouch in the future. His newest novel 'Recursion' has already peaked my interest. This was a quick easy going read, and as many other readers have pointed out also thought provoking. The story centers around choices and how to live with them. It made me even re-think about certain choices in life myself and how it would (most likely) have brought me on a completely different path. In this book we follow the path of Jason Dessen, an average college professor with a normal American life with wife and teenage son. This is all put upside down when he is attacked by a stranger on his way home after a drink in a bar. He is literally pulled from his life and placed into the life of someone else. It's from this point on that it gets really interesting. In order to get back to his old life he'll have to find his way to the right world, as each choice creates another path, another world, ... it gives you an infinite number of worlds to get back to. It's this many world interpretation that makes the story intriguing. The concept also offers possibilities for a movie or a series, and it already seems this is being in the make. In the end there are still some loose threads left hanging, so there is a possibility for Blake Crouch to return back to this world. If he did, I would pick up these books as well. Conclusion: This is a perfect example of a book that surpassed my expectations, hence the 4 star rating I gave it. A perfect read between longer series or more complex books, although saying this isn't a complex book isn't completely right either. Rating: 8/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jul 18, 2019
|
Jul 22, 2019
|
Jul 18, 2019
|
Kindle Edition
| |||||||||||||||||
| B00LO1T3J8
| 3.49
| 2,748
| Sep 25, 2014
| Nov 06, 2014
|
really liked it
|
I'm not a Star Trek expert, but I have seen multiple episodes in the past and I see where this book comes from. This truely is a great parody on the s
I'm not a Star Trek expert, but I have seen multiple episodes in the past and I see where this book comes from. This truely is a great parody on the series, fun to read and with a lot of hilarious moments. It contains a great mix of silly and thoughtful humor. It already starts with the starting comments from one Captain Hadrian Alan Sawback: "SPACE ... it's fucking big. And from there on out Captain Sawback will bring you and his crew from one strange situation to the next. He's an unlikely captain; he doesn't follow protocol, he has his own views on the big guns in command and he has selected a crew that is just as unusual as he is. They only add to the strangeness of the story. The book has one major story arc that is intermingled with little episodes in between. It makes for an easy and quick paced read. Don't expect anything as deep or complex as Malazan, just throw youself in it and enjoy. Conclusion: I probably wouldn't have read this book if I didn't like Erikson's writing or MBotF as much as I do. It's off course something completely different, but I didn't regret reading this. Definitely recommended if you like Star Trek and you are in for a comic twist on the series and the genre. Rating: 7.8/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jul 26, 2018
|
Aug 02, 2018
|
Jul 26, 2018
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B004J4WKUQ
| 4.23
| 1,205,673
| Aug 16, 2011
| Aug 16, 2011
|
liked it
|
I haven't been an avid sci-fi reader, but with the movie of 'Ready Player One' almost being released I thought it would be the right time to at least
I haven't been an avid sci-fi reader, but with the movie of 'Ready Player One' almost being released I thought it would be the right time to at least start reading this book (and maybe seeing the movie afterwards). The outset of the story seems very interesting; people escaping the real world to live in an elaborate virtual universe called the OASIS. In here players can do anything and be anyone. In here they can also compete with each other to find the 'Easter Egg', a contest of three challenges created by the designer of the virtual world James Halliday. The hunt started after Halliday's death and the first to complete each of the contests will be declared winner and owner of the OASIS and inherit the whole fortune of James Halliday on top of this. The winner truely takes it all ... I thought it was a great idea, but unfortunetely it lacked a bit in execution. My main problem seems to be that it contained too much (obscure?) 80's references. I was born in the 80's myself and I'm familiar with some of the references, but in the end I was too young to have a good understanding of everything to properly enjoy the book. I'm sure it can be enjoyed even more when you're familiar with the 80's material. I identify myself more with the music and culture of the 90’s than the 80’s. I still liked the book, it had some great scenes, and the whole hunt for the easter egg was fantastic. What I especially liked was how the High Five started interacting with each other and grew closer as the story went along. Especially the thread of the sixers played a huge role in this; putting the High Five on the disadvantage worked marvelous and lead everything nicely toward a climax. Outside the OASIS I thought the whole threat for the High Five of begin captured by IOI made also this part of the story in the real world more interesting. Also the twist of how Wade let himself be indentured to IOI to provide the solution in the OASIS was nicely done. I didn't have any issues with the characters themselves, I liked them well enough, but it's not that any of these characters truely stood out either. It's what you can expect from a YA book according to me. Conclusion: This is a difficult book for me to rate; although I liked it, I wasn't wowed by it. It was an entertaining read, but it had too much info dumping for me at times, too much facts about computers, games, movies and information about the 80’s in general. At times the references were also overexplained. I'm sure I would have liked it better if the references had been more into my age category; the nastolgia effect that Ernest Cline is trying to create would have made more of an impact. In the end I think this book is worth 3.5 stars, but I still rounded it down to 3 stars as it still lacked the awesmeness factor that I expect from 4 star books. Rating: 7.2/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Apr 14, 2018
|
Apr 26, 2018
|
Dec 06, 2017
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B005X8V1OI
| 3.60
| 1,575
| Jul 08, 2010
| Jul 08, 2010
|
it was ok
|
This is the first time I've read an anthology and I can't say this was a great reading experince. Maybe an anthology isn't really my thing, but in thi
This is the first time I've read an anthology and I can't say this was a great reading experince. Maybe an anthology isn't really my thing, but in this case the anthology also wasn't strong enough. It contained plenty of stories but it took me to the last one, "Flight to Forever" by Poul Anderson, to find a story I really liked (and even then I saw the ending coming by far). Another one I liked pretty well was the first one: "The Hum" by Rick Hautala. There were some other nice stories, the best ones being the following: "To the Storming Gulf", "We can get them for you wholesale", "Dark, dark were the tunnels" and "The wheel". The remaining stories were ok at best and always contained something that bothered me, most often the ending. The fact that I don't even remember what most stories are about says enough. This is not something I'd recommend to others... Rating: 4/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jan 19, 2016
|
Feb 13, 2016
|
Jan 19, 2016
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B018S2773Y
| 4.25
| 86,011
| Dec 06, 2016
| Dec 06, 2016
|
really liked it
|
Book six in the Expanse series and another good addition. Until now I feel it’s only book 4 that was underwhelming. This isn’t the best one in the ser
Book six in the Expanse series and another good addition. Until now I feel it’s only book 4 that was underwhelming. This isn’t the best one in the series either, but it was probably a difficult one to write after Nemesis Games. It’s not a perfect book, but I still liked it a lot. You have a lot of different pov’s in this book. I understand why these were necessary. After six books, and with events in Nemesis Games, there are so many different factions, that it is necessary to add more pov’s to unravel the full story. We have the Rocinante crew, there’s the viewpoint from Avasarala representing the UN (with Earth / Mars), you have the Free Navy (Marco, Filip) but also other pov’s linked to the Free Navy (Michio Pa, Medina Station) and there’s the original OPA from Fred Johnson. With all these different sides and pov's it's the one from Holden that remains the most important one. Besides him there's also an important role for Michio Pa, returning character after book 3, and Filip as the main viewpoint for the Free Navy. I have to say that I wasn't too fond on most of Filip's chapters. Other pov's only have a limited amount of chapters and most are spend on known characters. To give a full view of all the events taking place in this book, it was definitely necessary to add more pov’s than we’re used to. I fully understand this … but I’m sure that the book could also have been (re)written with less than we have now and even been better by it. This is only a minor point of criticism as it didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the book. Especially because I liked the story that was unravelling. This story picks up after events in Nemesis Games; Earth has been crippled after the Free Navy strikes and is still in danger with ongoing attempts from time to time. In the mean time, the Free Navy is controlling a lot of stations in the Belt. It's also continuing their piracy and violence against the colony ships on their way to new planets through the gates. Their goal: gather all supplies and re-distribute them among the Belter stations. The outset of the story is very interesting and we do have a couple of interesting scenes in the first half and quarter of the book. But I have to be honest, there's also a lot of meandering in there as well. A lot is centered around politics between the different factions. I liked this, but I can imagine that it will bother you if this is not really the thing you're in for. In the last quarter of the book the writers go all in. We have a lot of interesting scenes and a satisfying ending on top of it. Conclusion: Very good installment in the Expanse series; 4 starts! I'll immediately start with the next one; Persepolis Rising Rating: 8.2/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Oct 24, 2020
|
Nov 09, 2020
|
Oct 29, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B00WDVKZY0
| 4.42
| 132,447
| Nov 2010
| Sep 20, 2016
|
liked it
|
This is the final book in the trilogy and personally I thought the book was on par with the second one. This certainly isn't a bad book or series, but
This is the final book in the trilogy and personally I thought the book was on par with the second one. This certainly isn't a bad book or series, but all three books suffer from the same issues making it hard for me me to really enjoy them. There were definitely parts that were entertaining, but unfortunately there was also a lot meandering sections in this series. Too much focus was put as well on technological explanations for various subjects in fysics, chemestry and science in general. Finally I also thought the ending was a bit lacking; in the end the story didn't really lead anywhere except the end of the solar system, the human race, and the entire universe. It makes me ask the question what the point was in reading all of this ... Conclusion: Despite the great reactions this series got internationally, I'm only getting lukewarm from this book and the series as a whole. In the end it's something I'll probably won't reread. And I don't think I'll ever really recommend this series either. Rating: 6,5/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jan 25, 2019
|
Feb 27, 2019
|
Oct 21, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B00R13OYU6
| 4.41
| 173,110
| May 2008
| Aug 11, 2015
|
liked it
|
The Dark Forest is the sequel to The Three-Body Problem. I enjoyed this book more than the first; there's more happening in this book, the focus is pu
The Dark Forest is the sequel to The Three-Body Problem. I enjoyed this book more than the first; there's more happening in this book, the focus is put less on science (although still enough) and the characters are more fleshed out. Trisolaris has sent a space fleet that will arrive in four centuries on Earth in order to extinct humankind. In order to prevent a scientific explosion from humans, the Trisolarans have send out Sophons to Earth ahead of them to block any kind of scientific breakthrough in fundamental sciences. Besides this, Sophons can also be used as a communication way with humans but more importantly they can observe everything on Earth. This should give the Trisolarans a good view on all the Earth preparations for their arrival. Therefor The PDC (Planetary Defense Council) decides to put in place the Wallfacer Project; an project developped especially to mislead Trisolaris. The project appoints four Wallfacers, four persons that aren't accountable for their actions and don't have to explain their strategies. Three of them are well known men, but the last one is an unknown ordinary person named Luo Ji. It's this fourth person that Trisolaris want's to see dead at all cost. The outset is much more interesting in this story. It also doesn't take as long before something really interesting happens. As the story progresses we go from the present time, after the Trisolaran crisis starts, to the future when humankind has developped a giant space fleet. I feel that the story this time is much more focused. On the other hand there's also less attention for scientific details. The story also introduces a lot if interesting concepts. The most important and interesting one is the theory about the Dark Forest. In order to truely grasp the meaning of this, everyone should read the book by themselves. Also the characterization is much better done. The story consists of multiple POVs but it's Luo Ji that carries the entire book. That makes him the strongest and most relatable character. As in the first book other secondary characters are less fleshed out in comparison to the MC. Conclusion: Although it took me almost two months to finish this book, I still liked it better than the first. The first had some interesting sections, but it mostly served as build up for the second book. It's only now that the series developpes into a real sci-fi story. Although it's interesting at times, I still feel it lacks in suspense. That's also the main reason why I only give it a slightly better score than the first book. Rating: 7.0/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Nov 28, 2018
|
Jan 24, 2019
|
Oct 21, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 4.08
| 392,541
| May 01, 2006
| Oct 14, 2014
|
liked it
|
This was an interesting book, but as many books I've read this year, I wasn't blown away by it. One of the most important reasons I never really got i
This was an interesting book, but as many books I've read this year, I wasn't blown away by it. One of the most important reasons I never really got into this was that the book leaned too much towards hard scifi, apparently that's not really what I look for in science fiction. The story itself is intriguing but it definitely wasn't what I expected. There's a lot of focus on the history of China and the cultural revolution. The events happening in that era have an important impact on one of the main characters. It's an important catalyst in the decisions this person will take. In the end these decisions will impact the future of humankind and earth. On the other hand the fact the author is a scientist himself and focuses a lot on technical explanation of various subject takes away from the story. I'm not even bothered with the fact if the explanation is technically possible of believable, I just want a good story and all the science talk makes it more a text book at times than a novel. It also has an impact on the characterization; the author relies mostly on his indepth knowledge of science to tell his story but he lacks in his characterization. There are only a handful of characters that receive a more indepth characterization, but even then de characterization felt a bit off. Other characters were even worse and aren't much more than a passer-by. Conclusion: This book is a hit-and-miss. The story is intriguing on the one hand but also too much focused on technical details on the other which takes away from the story. The result of this isn't bad, but I feel it could have been much better if it was written by a true author and not a scientist. Also the characterization would have benifited much from this. Rating: 6.5/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Nov 04, 2018
|
Nov 26, 2018
|
Oct 21, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| |||||||||||||||||
| 031621759X
| 9780316217590
| B0157VRVVC
| 4.44
| 101,010
| Jun 02, 2015
| Jun 02, 2015
|
really liked it
|
This book was a huge improvement over Cibola Burn, the previous book in the Expanse series. This book has everything Cibola Burn didn't have; great sc
This book was a huge improvement over Cibola Burn, the previous book in the Expanse series. This book has everything Cibola Burn didn't have; great scope, amazing plot, better pacing, interesting background stories and great character interactions. With the seperation of the Rocinante crew we finaly get pov's of each of the main characters. This was for me personally what made the book so good. We have an amazing story, not perfect though ... But maybe I was just expecting too much after the raving reviews I read. After their return from Ilus, the Rocinante crew has been holed up at Tycho Station awaiting the repairs on the Rocinante to be finished. This could however take several months after the damage they received earlier. At this point the crew will be seperated; Alex needs to revisit his ex-wife on Mars, Amos has urgent business to do at Earth and Noami needs to revisit her past after a message from an ex lover. Holden is the only one of the crew to remain at Tycho station. With each of them on a seperate path we finally get a pov for each character. This was one of the main reasons why I liked this book so much; it's not only that we have a lot of time with our favourite characters, each pov also gives more insight in their past and we learn a lot of new things. Besides that, we also get a lot more screen time with Bobby, Avasarala en Fred Johnson. More amazingness! With each of our characters seperated their still is an important overall story arch to develop. it starts in the prologue with an attack of the radical OPA on Callisto. Later on in the story their is talk of the disappearence of Martian ships and material on the one side, but also of ships dissapearing going through the gates. It's finally around the 40-50% mark that we get a humanity altering event with the radical OPA playing their hand. It will not only change the way humans have lived and survived, but also how humans from different political factions (Earth, Mars, OPA and Belters in general) will interact. From there on out we even get more thrilling scenes. Conclusion: A great book, one of the best in the series. Maybe my expectations were set too high after the huge praise I read. Due to that it didn't completely meet my expectations. Nonetheless a must read if you've come this far in the series. Rating: 8.5 / 10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Sep 27, 2020
|
Oct 18, 2020
|
Aug 28, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0316217603
| 9780316217606
| B00FPQA4F0
| 4.22
| 112,416
| Jun 17, 2014
| Jun 17, 2014
|
liked it
|
This is the fourth book in The Expanse series and unfortunately it was the weakest so far. Having read some reviews beforehand this didn't came as a s
This is the fourth book in The Expanse series and unfortunately it was the weakest so far. Having read some reviews beforehand this didn't came as a surprise to me, but it's still regrettable that a series that started out so strong couldn't keep up with that quality. Luckily, I've also read that things will get back on track with the next books! So what's the problem with this book? For me personnally the whole book doesn't reach the same quality as the previous books. The story isn't as interesting; it resolved too much around one central conflict for most of the book with not much tension. The pacing is off and it's only in the last 25% of the book that everything picks up. The characterization is still good, it remains one of the strong points of the series, but I just didn't connect much with the new characters. And although the characterization is good, I still feel that we don't have the high quality characters from the first books. I also think the story was lacking to really make them shine in the circumstances they are confronted with. Murtry was probably the most convincing new character in the book. I also thought that the worldbuilding was lacking a bit. It's the first actual story in the series where we go through the ring and explore an Earthlike planet, I the worldbuilding didn't convince me much. It maybe isn't the most important part of the story but I think this could have been worked out better. Conclusion: This was a decent addition in the series, but still the weakest book so far. I'll be taking a break for the series for now. I really need a palate cleanser, read something totally different, before I head into the next few books. From the reviews I've read, these should really put the series back on track. Rating: 7 / 10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Aug 09, 2020
|
Aug 24, 2020
|
Aug 28, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0316235423
| 9780316235426
| B00A2DZMYE
| 4.27
| 136,707
| Jun 04, 2013
| Jun 04, 2013
|
really liked it
|
This is the third book in the Expanse series, and while it was still a very good read, I didn't like it as much as the previous books. Some things did
This is the third book in the Expanse series, and while it was still a very good read, I didn't like it as much as the previous books. Some things didn't work as well as in the first books. I especially felt that some characters weren't as interesting. Besides that, there was also a dip in the story toward the midway point. It picked up again around the 75% mark to end on a high note, but it didn't make me completely forget what came before. The story picks up almost a year after events from book two. Holden and his crew have taken good advantage of previous events and have gone from one job to another to earn some good cash. But when they are about to leave for a new assignment, Holden and his crew get into a tough spot as Mars wants to reclaim the Rocinante. In order to get out of this predicament they have only one option left; they have to take on a new contract with a television crew that wants to bring the story of the ring. They need to do exactly what Holden has tried to avoid; fly toward the ring. Besides the Rocinante, there's a wide range of other ships from different factions (Earth, Mars and the OPA) moving toward the ring. Each of these factions want to learn more about the ring and want to defend their interests in it with their presence. But behind the scenes their's someone working out a plot to get Holden, to destroy his reputation and make sure he doesn't come back alive from the ring. With all this happening the story starts off really interesting. I still think the start was stronger in the first two books, but that didn't stop me from being fully engrossed in this one. Further along the way, when a climax has been reached around the 50% mark and the plot against Holden seems to be resolved, I felt that we move into a dip in the story. I had the feeling that the story had to restart over again and needed to get into a new gear. It took some time, but luckily the story picks up and ends on a high note with some great scenes. Most important returning characters are off course the crew of the Rocinante. Besides them we also have reappearences from Fred Johnson and Samantha Rosenberg. As in the previous book we have again four pov's. The problem is that I didn't like all the new pov characters as much as the ones from previous books (Miller, Avasarala, Bobby, Prax). They just weren't all that compelling. * We have again James Holden as main pov following events surrounding his crew and the Rocinante. * The OPA perspective is followed from the pov of Carlos Baca (Bull), third in command on the Behemoth, the former Nauvoo and now repurposed as a warship. He's Fred Johnsons's man, but as he's an Earther among Belters he's in a tough spot in the position of security officer. It's a difficult task because he's not considered as 'one of them' among the Belters. He's constantly confronted with everything going bad on the ship and him to solve it, leading to a lot of frustration. I liked his pov pretty well. * Unfortunately I really didn't like the pov of Anna Volovodov. She's a pastor who joined the expedition as part of a UN delegation of religious figures and artists. A lot of her chapters weren't all that interesting and didn't add much to the story. Nonetheless is her character essential to the oucome of the story, but I didn't think it was all that convincing. * Final pov character is Melba Koh, a technician and crew member of the Cerisier. Thi is a ship following the Earth flotilla on its way to the Ring and it's responsible for the maintenance of the Earth ships. Melba's actual goal is to destroy Holden and his reputation. I liked this revenge story and her character until the climax around the half way point ... after which we have a dip in the story and her story arc get's a lot less interesting. Also her character and mood changes a lot after that. I'm still not sure if all of it was quite believable. With regards to the worldbuilding, we can see that the universe expands even further. We go from the known world, into unfamiliar territory beyond the ring. Even though the world expands, I mainly felt that the story this time around was constrained by events around and in the ring, and even moreso on a couple of space ships in particular (but mainly the Behemoth). The scope is much more narrow than in the previous books and I think this didn't help the story much. Conclusion: In the end I still liked the book enough to give it 4 stars, mainly thanks to the strong ending. At some point I was nontheless thinking it wouldn't go further than a 3 star rating. So still a good adventure in the Expanse series, but not as good as the previous two books. This was bound to happen at some point in a nine book series, and I still feel it's strong enough to continue the series. On to the next one: Cibola Burn !!! Rating: 8 / 10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jul 19, 2020
|
Aug 04, 2020
|
Aug 28, 2015
|
Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| B005SCRR1A
| 4.38
| 161,723
| Jun 07, 2012
| Jun 26, 2012
|
it was amazing
|
Caliban's War is the second book in the Expanse series, the follow-up for Leviathan Wakes. I really liked Leviathan Wakes but it took me some time to
Caliban's War is the second book in the Expanse series, the follow-up for Leviathan Wakes. I really liked Leviathan Wakes but it took me some time to get into the story, the characters, the world ... With the second book I was however immediately hooked. I really wanted to delve into this story and get back to the main characters of the Rocinante ... And it also helped that the story starts off with a great prologue. While we had only two pov characters in the first book, Holden and Miller, we now move to four different pov's. We have again James Holden, but also Bobbie Draper, a martian marine, Christjen Avasarala, a UN politician from Earth and Praxidike Meng, a botanist working on Ganymede. I liked all four of these characters and their plotlines. All characters are in the end linked together by the main story thread that starts in the prologue; the alien attack on Ganymede. This attack is seen from the pov of Bobbie Draper, but as an inhabitant of Ganymede also Praxidike Meng is highly influenced by these events. Afterwards Holden is send with his crew to Ganymede to investigate these events as an assignment from the OPA. The internal Earth UN politics and the relationship with Mars are especially followed from the pov of Avasarala. The Expanse is often praised for it's characterisation and I can't agree enough with this. It's even more apparent in this book as we move to four different pov's. Probably Avasarala's character shines even more than the others' due to the subtleties added in the story. The worldbuilding continues in the same vane as in the first book. We get a good picture about how the technology works in the space age (e.g. space traveling, living in space). It's subtle and not overly technical which draws away from the story for me. There've been other sci-fi books which didn't do this as wel as Expanse (yes, I'm refering to you "Three Body Problem"). This time the story also focuses a bit more on the political side of the story and the Earth - Mars relationship directly. As mentioned earlier, this is is especially from the pov of Avasarala, representing the earth side, but also from the pov of Bobbie Draper, representing Mars. It gives us some inside on the politics in the future. As mentioned, the story is triggered by an alien attack on Ganymede. This seems to be linked to activity of the protomolecule on Venus. But as the story progresses we learn there's more to it. Once the story get's going, it really moves from one action packed sequence to antoher. Even to the extent that I liked this book even more than the first, and this certainly isn't only because of the action sequences. I feel this book is better in many ways than Leviathan Wakes. Conclusion: Highly thrilling sci-fi novel, top-notch ... I can't recommend this book and this series enough. If you read the first, you should definitely continue. If you haven't, you should start right away, you're really missing out! Rating: 9/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jul 2020
|
Jul 15, 2020
|
Aug 28, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| B0047Y171G
| 4.31
| 280,751
| Jun 02, 2011
| Jun 15, 2011
|
really liked it
|
Very good sci-fi novel and an excellent start for this nine book series, with the final one to be expected in 2020. We definitely have a nice science
Very good sci-fi novel and an excellent start for this nine book series, with the final one to be expected in 2020. We definitely have a nice science fiction setting with humanity having colonized the Solar System. Most of the story takes place within the asteroid belt (The Belt) where tensions are rising between Earth's United Nations, Mars, and the outer planets. You have two main stories. It starts with the ice hauling ship Canterbury returning to Ceres Station when it encounters a distress signal from a vessel called the Scopuli. A shuttle with five crew members is dispatched to investigate, including MC James Holden. When they arrive there's no trace to be found of the ship's crew, but they do discover the beacon transmitting the distress signal. They suspect a trap set by pirates but before they arrive back at the Canterbury an unknown stealth warship arrives and destroys the Canterbury. It sets in motion the rest of the story and even futher tensions between the different fractions; Earth - Mars - outer planets. At the same time there's also detective Miller working on Ceres Station for Star Helix Security, an Earth-based private security firm responsible for policing the station. He gets the assignment to locate Julie Mao, daughter of wealthy magnate, and send her back to her family. His investigation leads him to link her disappearence with the events surrounding the Scopuli and the destruction of the Canterbury. He finally sets out for Holden and his crew. With this the story not only contains a sci-fi setting and a lot of space opera elements, but also a mystery story with the search for Julie Mao. It evens evolves into a thriller with some horror elements. I thought it was a very interesting twist in the story. The world-building is excelent. There's enough science detail but you're not drowned in technical and theoretical explanations that could destroy the enjoyment of your reading (which I had for large parts with the Three Body Problem series). The world itself is very well thought of; you have the future where Earth has started colonizing parts of the Solar System (but not further) like the moon, Mars, and various dwarf planets and moons within the Asteroid belt. The Solar system is divided into 2 main entities being Earth and Mars. You also have the Belt, but they are mainly suppressed by Earth and Mars. This is where the Outer Planets Alliance (OPA) comes in play. It's a network of loosely-aligned militant groups that try to combat the Belt's exploitation at the hands of the Earth and Mars, who in turn, have branded the OPA as a terrorist organization. Also the characters are superbly done; you have James Holden and his crew. Holden is definitely the MC of the story; he is an Earther and former UNN officer. He holds a certain amount of idealism during the whole story, maybe to the extent that you're having doubts if it's still realistic. Further you have tough guy, Amos Burton, the mechanic of the team and also an Earher. The pilot of the team is Alex Kamal, an former Martian Navy Pilot and finally you have chief engineer Naomi Nagata, also executive officer and a Belter. It's a small main cast, but very nicely written; the synergy between them works perfectly. You also have Joe Miller, a worn out detective and a drunk after his wife left him. He has a bit the opposite personality from Holden which results in several clashes between them. Conclusion: I liked the story from start to end; great worldbuilding, good story with multiple twists but in the end it really comes up to the characters. I was thinking on giving it a 5 star rating, but finally set on 4 stars. Well worth it! I'm looking foward to reading the next books and hoping on even better than this first instalment Rating: 8,5 / 10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jan 2020
|
Jan 22, 2020
|
Aug 28, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 4.42
| 1,162,363
| Sep 27, 2011
| Feb 10, 2014
|
really liked it
|
I really enjoyed reading this book and the main reason I loved it so much is Mark Watney. He's an incredibly funny and interesting character with a ve
I really enjoyed reading this book and the main reason I loved it so much is Mark Watney. He's an incredibly funny and interesting character with a very positive mentality. He's the most important POV in the book and through his log entries we follow everything that happens on Mars. Very nicely written this way, but also very compelling. I really felt for the guy when reading. Another asset of the book are the great comments throughout the log entries. The book contains a a lot those that are worth remembering. A small sample of them: Yes, of course duct tape works in a near-vacuum. Duct tape works anywhere. Duct tape is magic and should be worshiped.” “Maybe I’ll post a consumer review. “Brought product to surface of Mars. It stopped working. 0/10.” “Me: “This is obviously a clog. How about I take it apart and check the internal tubing?” NASA: (after five hours of deliberation) “No. You’ll fuck it up and die.” So I took it apart.” The story itself was great as well; I was really sucked into it from the start. I liked it much more than I would have thought from the beginning. The book however gets a bit technical at times, and it's something that could irk some people. I myself tried to understand most of it to a certain degree, and if I didn't, I just got along with it and in the end it didn't ruin any of my reading pleasure. Now that I've read the book I'm already looking forward on watching the movie. Rating: 8/10 ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Dec 18, 2015
|
Dec 25, 2015
|
Aug 25, 2015
|
Kindle Edition
|
Loading...
20 of 20 loaded
