The Expanse Series Review and Why You Should Read It
Whether you are new to reading, new to the Sci-Fi genre or a verifiable reading addict The Expanse series should be on your must read list.
It is not often you will come across a series that is this gripping, entertaining, filled with both suspense and humour and maintains its high level of quality throughout. What should add the icing on this cake is that the series is complete, so no waiting years for the las couple of books to be published.
After recently completing the series, I wanted to share my overall thoughts, dig into what makes the series so special and who I think the series will most appeal to all without spoiling any part of the books.
Series Summary
The Expanse is a gripping and expansive science fiction space opera. Set in a future where humanity has colonised the solar system, the narrative unfolds against the backdrop of political tension, interplanetary conflicts, and the discovery of a mysterious alien technology that could reshape the fate of all humanity.
The series begins with a solar system divided among Earth, Mars, and the Asteroid Belt, each vying for control and resources. The discovery of the protomolecule, an otherworldly substance with incredible powers, becomes a focal point that triggers a series of events with far-reaching consequences.
The Expanse spans across 9 books that following on from the one before over decades. You will become intimately familiar with the main crew and be introduced to an array of characters who will appear in multiple books in a variety of situations.
The main cast help navigate political tensions between the different worlds, become heavily involved in skirmishes and are often just looking to survive in harsh environments. Essentially it contains everything you are looking from a sci-fi series and space opera epic.
Scope
What first struck me when I started this series was just how massive in scope it is, that feeling never left. Earth, Mars and The Belt are already separate entities in this world meaning it is already much larger than the world we currently know. Interplanetary travel is well established, The Belt consists of hundreds of colonies and the conflict between each of the different planets and factions has a history to it that feels real.
To put it in words that may be easier to understand, its like Star Wars without the force or a in plain bad guy like the Sith. Although interplanetary is already very much in play, it does not mean that’s where the scale ends. In fact throughout the series, the scale gets a big hit of steroids and expands beyond what I was expecting.
The Characters
I would be very hard pushed to find a character I didn’t like this series, whether that be one of the main cast, one of the villains or one of the many side characters you meet on the journey. Every character feels real, is complex and yet at times what makes some of them great is they are easy to understand and their motivations are straightforward.
What this series does so well is establish characters early on, further your attachment to them and then let them be in the world. Many characters will also return to the series after a few book absences and fit right back into the story, matured and full of a new history we get to dive into.
Although I have said that what makes the characters great is their complexity but some of the villains you come across in The Expanse are less complex. They don’t focus on making them more grey than bad, they don’t focus on having genuine motivations that you can begin to understand. Sometimes they are just assholes that are doing bad things and that was a breath of fresh air that made the more complex characters even more rewarding.
Over 9 books the characters you become closest too you will begin to see them grow and change in a way that feels organic. There are many moral dilemmas characters will face, many occasions for personal growth and flaws that will be exploited in ways you don’t expect.
The characters are one of the main things that kept me engaged throughout, their relationships are some of the most realistic I have read so far. You really feel like you are on the journey with them and due to the sheer diversity of characters from the Earth, Mars and The Belt you really get a wide array of motivations, world views and idioms that I felt myself falling into.
Non-Stop Thrill Ride
Okay, maybe not non-stop but only a few slow moments over 9 books, that is pretty good going. The main point is, The Expanse kept me on the edge of my metaphorical seat throughout. The visuals that the books paint include some of the best action scenes I have read and even when it’s not action, the pictures that James SA Corey paint of the different planets, space stations and ships really help you envision the different environments.
The plot beautifully pairs suspense, mystery and action to combine in a plot that I just love and lets be honest who doesn’t love a mixture of suspense, mystery and action.
I found myself fully invested in the plot from the first book and each book has an incredible story that on its own would work but as a narrative that winds throughout the series it is incredible. I never once found myself overwhelmed by the plot or that it was too complex even though it leans heavily into science and alien technology.
If you are looking for something with incredible action, genuinely intriguing political dynamics, a mystery that continues to unravel then you should give The Expanse a try.
Great Dialogue
A book can live and die by its dialogue. Thankfully The Expanse features strong dialogue throughout the series. When dealing with topics such as alien technology, interplanetary travel, political intrigue dialogue can become overly complex or roll your eyes cliche. This is not true for this series and I cannot state how much of a strong point that is.
Dialogue between characters seems as genuine as a conversation you’ve had in your life or something you might overhear. The characters speak like people, this is one of the big strengths. Some characters are really witty, others try to be and fail, when a character is in a stressful situation they may forget how to speak or they may start to word vomit. All of it is relatable and adds to the connection you have to some of the main cast and other characters really.
Some characters you come across are made that much better from their dialogue and you never feel like someone is speaking out of character either. The strength of the dialogue is constant throughout and is the saving grace for the slow periods you come across – although they are very few and far between.
Its Dark and Gritty but Sometimes Its Not
This series is dark, it is gritty but also has an underlying feeling of optimism. If you are anything like me, you will love how dark it can be. There are real stakes in the series and many of the actions taken by characters will leave you saying ‘What The Fuck’. Characters will make questionable decisions and go against any sense of morality you think someone could have, these moments are often thrilling, full of suspense and make you want to continue reading.
However, as i said earlier the series has an underlying feeling of optimism. Hope that humanity can be better than what it is showing, hope that given the choice, the right choice will be made. What makes this work is the fact it is done in a way that isn’t preachy and fits some of the characters personalities. What I am trying to say, its done naturally and doesn’t take you out of the story.
Combined with its optimism, The Expanse can also be really funny. This is mainly done through a few key characters and is often used during some of the darkest moments of each book. Again, if you are anything like me, you will love the dark humour featured throughout.
It’s Hard Science Fiction
I loved the series and how it dealt with the technical elements throughout. I am a massive sci-fi fan so the more science they can throw at me, the more invested I would become. Even when I didn’t quite understand what all of it meant and in my opinion that is sometimes the point.
However, if you are new to the genre or someone who doesn’t like overly technical descriptions then there will be many parts of the series that doesn’t work for you. Many of the action moments or new discoveries will use a lot of technical jargon, it can be overwhelming at times but much of the language I feel is to show you how complex it is and how smart each of the characters are. once the technical stuff is out of the way, characters will distil it down to something that is much easier to understand.
Large Number of Characters
There are a huge number of characters in these books with a large amount of them having POV chapters. If you like a small cast then this is not the series for you. Although the main cast stays the same and relatively small, each book will introduce new characters from different worlds with different motivations that can make it hard to keep track of.
Aside from the cast being quite large, characters will often return a few books later and may even become new POV chapters. This can be an issue for you if you struggle to remember who characters are or if you only wish to read certain POVs.
Pacing Issues
The plot of each book and the overall series is fast, dynamic and full of suspense. However, the pacing is not non-stop and some of the books can really suffer with slow moments where characters aren’t moving forward or the plot seems to be stuck and you are waiting for something to happen.
This is not the case for the every book but some of them do suffer from it and if you only read in short bursts this can affect your enjoyment. Even if you read masses of pages at a time, the slow pacing can be hard to move past especially as it has normally come right after a great revelation or piece of action.
It will be a great shame if some readers can’t get on board with the pacing because the series is more than worth it.
The Expanse might be the best sci-fi series I have read so far. I love the overall plot, I love the characters, I love the world, basically I love all of it. The 9 books felt like a breeze for me to read through and once each one was finished I had to start the next one right away.
I am not completely new to sci-fi but I hadn’t quite read anything in this genre that spanned across so many books, nor had I read anything on this scale before. I was taken aback by just how easy I found it to understand what was going on amongst alien technologies, space travel that is equivalent to me getting my car, a vast wealth of scientific language and three very distinct human factions.
The political intrigue the story built up was great and I very much found myself on the side of Belters at all times, even when they were massively in the wrong. I was first really invested in the story because of the mystery that is established from the get go and always wanted to learn more and see how it developed across each book in ways that I didn’t think it could.
I especially loved the mystery because it wasn’t always apparent how it would show itself and would not always be the main plot of the book. To have it in the background made it more compelling and gave it a real feel.
The characters are some of the best I have read and I have become so attached to the crew of the Rocinante. I love them because of the relationships they have with each other, the flaws they each have and how grounded they are in the universe they exist in.
But really what makes this series great to me and why it is well worth the read for anyone, is the payoff. The ending of each book was incredible and left me satisfied, but the ending of the series overall is something that will sit with me for a long time. Storylines were wrapped up beautifully, characters were given realistic and cathartic endings, cliches were avoided, I cannot talk about each books ending or series ending in a more positive light.
Who Is This Series For?
For me the quick answer is everyone. The quality of this series means it transcends the genre and with its elements of mystery, suspense and political intrigue there is something that will hook in everyone and keep them reading until the end.
With all that being said, I will now try to steer a smaller group in the direction of The Expanse. If you are somone who loves epic space operas then this series is for you. It features many firefights and action sequences that range form intimate 1 on 1s to epic space battles with space navies, super marines and alien technology.
If you are looking for a series that heavily dives in to different technologies and lifeforms this series will also be for you. The standard in this world is interplanetary travel, with every planet in our solar system being inhabited in some way as well as different moons having their own bases. The series ramps up the technologies and the science behind them with each book.
If you are a lover of books with huge political stakes and full if intrigue then you will also love this series. Earth, Mars and The Belt all have their own motivations, they are all vying against each other and actions are taken both out in the open and as guerrilla warfare and espionage. This theme also runs across every book and installs many of the tensions and obstacles characters have to overcome. The quality of the writing when it comes to the interstellar politics is second to none and will grip you in an instant.
If any of the above appeals to you then I would highly recommend this series. If more than one element or all of it appeals to you then it should be the next series on your ‘To be read’ list.