A massive leap forward in time - lots of personal and universe changes. I enjoyed it a lot. ( )

I'm amazed that I still love this series seven novels in. I don't think I've ever stuck with a series this long. It is a testament to how Corey keeps the characters fresh and evolving. ( )

Well, this was a game changer for the series. I'm glad that some long forgotten plot points seem to finally be coming back, albeit slowly. Can't wait for the conclusion to the series in book 8 and 9. ( )

Having come to The Expanse through the tv series, this seventh volume - the first to extend the story beyond the show's arc - was a step into the unknown for me. The characters were still there as I remembered them (and not as the authors describe them), though given the passage of time within the story, I had some difficulty imagining them in their sixties. Mind you, I have some difficulty understanding how I got into my sixties from the youthful, hirsute figure I remember looking back at me from the mirror. So one mark for verisimilitude there.

Admiral Duarte, last seen taking a renegade segment of the MCRN fleet through the ring gate to create a militaristic empire, returns to the story, having done just that. Having chanced upon a world with orbital construction platforms created by the protomolecule builders, he has used the alien technology to create a highly advanced hybrid fleet, and uses it to seize Medina station as a bridgehead for the incorporation of the Sol system - and the other colonised worlds - into his Laconian Empire. The Rocinante, on its way back from doing a slightly dirty job for Camina Drummer's Transport Union, arrives right in the middle of the Laconian invasion. This puts a stop to everyone's plans. And by the end of the book - which is somewhat open-ended - all bets are off and all plans have crumbled to dust.

The Laconian Empire expects total commitment and dedication from all its citizens. Failure is not an option. This is especially well integrated into both the plot and the motivations of the Laconian characters. One such, Singh, is a POV character, and we see him unexpectedly catapulted into the position of Military Governor of Medina station. What follows is a clear portrait of someone in the grip of Imposter Syndrome, which sits uneasily with the Social Darwinism of the Empire. Part of that imposter syndrome arises from Singh's own insecurities and inexperience; but some would be inevitable when the logic of Empire, as a system of government that all its citizens accept without question as natural and logical and efficient, comes up against unrefined human desires for freedom (however you define it), give-and-take, and compromise in everyday matters.

At one point, the authors engage in a little small-'p' political analysis. A Laconian security chief attempts to give Singh, his nominal boss, a lesson in practical empire-building:

"Insurgencies are historically nearly impossible to eradicate, for a few very simple reasons. The insurgents don't wear uniforms. They look just like the innocent populace. And they're the friends and family of that populace. This means that every insurgent killed tends to increase recruiting for the insurgency. So unless you're willing to rack up a sizeable civilian casualty count, we can't just shoot everyone we suspect. If we take the strongest possible response, we stop calling it counterinsurgency and start calling it genocide." (Chapter 35)

Perhaps more people ought to start reading science fiction for the truths it contains.

Alex and Bobbie's Martian background comes in handy, allowing them to second-guess a lot of Laconian procedures to their advantage, given their common origin. Bobbie in particular feels some professional sympathy for the Laconian foot-soldiers she comes across, knowing that conflict will be inevitable; though she does not let it get in the way of her doing what she has to do. Some of the plot twists are a bit dependant on the omniscient planning of the authors, but actual plot holes are minimal.

I have a bit of a problem with the world-building, though. Laconia has existed for some thirty years or so. All the other colonies have made a certain degree of progress, but many still struggle with low population numbers and a limited range of economic activities. Laconia, however, appears to have a thriving, technologically advanced society, with the full range of facilities - schools, universities, medical technology, prisons, quarrying for building stone, textiles, staff cars, farming and heavy engineering. Are we supposed to think that the alien orbital construction platforms can do all this as well as build ships? The Empire is using the protomolecule to make advances in human modification, but there is little sign that it has been put to any of the 1001 other uses that would go to make up a 21st-century tech-level equivalent society which is what Laconia appears to be outside of the super-science. This is a common slip-up of many writers in the fantastic - Tolkien gave his hobbits in the eponymous novel household utensils and commodities appropriate to the 1930s, so that he could root some of the setting in the familiar for the benefit of his son, to whom he was reading the story, without considering how much behind-the-scenes technology decent cutlery, pottery and household goods requires. The same seems to have happened here.

But this will not trouble most readers, and to some extent it didn't trouble me. Certainly it did not get in the way of the story, and I am looking forward to the next volume. ( )

Figured I should get through 7 and 8 before the last book debuts this month, and we have a time skip! Previously, I've read after reading the equivalent show season, but started to move forward and I do think this easily sets up the ability to do a second 'series' after this final season for The Expanse as we know it.

I really enjoyed this. Singh is very much a zealot who doesn't know anything outside of Laconia, and in some ways is innocent of the world, not understanding why people *wouldn't* accede to Laconian rule over humanity. Great antagonist, though. Curious to see where we go, and looking forward to the return of WEIRD ALIEN BIOLOGY yesssss ( )