Presque trente ans après la fin de la guerre et l'anéantissement de la Flotte libre, l'humanité a retrouvé un semblant d'ordre et de stabilité. La Terre et Mars ont reformé leur coalition et se relèvent progressivement, tant sur le plan économique que militaire. L'Union des transports, l'organisme ceinturien chargé de réguler les échanges commerciaux entre les différents systèmes, tient un rôle essentiel au sein de l'Univers connu. Dans ce contexte, Holden, capitaine fraîchement retraité, s'imaginait bientôt couler des jours paisibles sur Titan. Mais Winston Duarte et sa flotte dissidente, jusque-là restés en sommeil dans le système Laconia, s'apprêtent à refaire surface, équipés d'une nouvelle et mystérieuse technologie bien supérieure à toutes les autres. Se retrouvant cette fois dans la situation des opprimés, Holden, Naomi et l'équipage du Rossinante, aidés par leurs alliés du système Sol, doivent maintenant opérer dans l'ombre et se lancer dans un ultime combat pour tenter de …
Presque trente ans après la fin de la guerre et l'anéantissement de la Flotte libre, l'humanité a retrouvé un semblant d'ordre et de stabilité. La Terre et Mars ont reformé leur coalition et se relèvent progressivement, tant sur le plan économique que militaire. L'Union des transports, l'organisme ceinturien chargé de réguler les échanges commerciaux entre les différents systèmes, tient un rôle essentiel au sein de l'Univers connu. Dans ce contexte, Holden, capitaine fraîchement retraité, s'imaginait bientôt couler des jours paisibles sur Titan. Mais Winston Duarte et sa flotte dissidente, jusque-là restés en sommeil dans le système Laconia, s'apprêtent à refaire surface, équipés d'une nouvelle et mystérieuse technologie bien supérieure à toutes les autres. Se retrouvant cette fois dans la situation des opprimés, Holden, Naomi et l'équipage du Rossinante, aidés par leurs alliés du système Sol, doivent maintenant opérer dans l'ombre et se lancer dans un ultime combat pour tenter de déjouer les plans du Haut consul Duarte, qui entend bien étendre son empire et diriger la galaxie d'une main de fer durant des millénaires.
The seventh Expanse novel, which might be thought of as the first in the final trilogy-of-trilogies, introduces another universe-destroying piece of technology, and sets our intrepid crew to fighting the good fight. It's not really a complete story, as it needs to leave a lot of loose threads to weave into the next two books, but it's still great to ride along with Holden and company once more.
Much better than expected from where it started, and a logical progression of the series. Less outright fun in a lot of ways, but a pretty satisfying interim position.
If you've made it this far you have to be an Expanse fan and if you are a fan there is no way you can be disappointed with this book. If you are I want you to tell me why. To me you have every plot element necessary to facilitate a great story and even better, it feels like just the beginning. If this tale continues to spool out another 10 volumes I couldn't be happier. Bring on a Dune echelon if you catch my gist.
Here we see our favorites in fandom aging. A protagonist that ages get a lot of solidity, or maybe that's because I think I'm the same ages as Holden is finally. You don't change who you are, you just get more comfortable with who you are.
So the Laconians are waking up and stirring the pot with a 2x4 coated in sugar. …
Just.. wow..
If you've made it this far you have to be an Expanse fan and if you are a fan there is no way you can be disappointed with this book. If you are I want you to tell me why. To me you have every plot element necessary to facilitate a great story and even better, it feels like just the beginning. If this tale continues to spool out another 10 volumes I couldn't be happier. Bring on a Dune echelon if you catch my gist.
Here we see our favorites in fandom aging. A protagonist that ages get a lot of solidity, or maybe that's because I think I'm the same ages as Holden is finally. You don't change who you are, you just get more comfortable with who you are.
So the Laconians are waking up and stirring the pot with a 2x4 coated in sugar. Well. Ok.
They are building technology off the protomolecule? Well, of course, what could possibly happen that is bad?
Oh, it's untested and you don't know either! Come here boo, I'll take a hit on the chin for that.
// Laughs Mirthlessly //
We have some great tales and substories unfurling here. New dilemmas with a regime that wants to conquer, aging elders, a trade union that is trying to find its way, new players--all trying to find their way with moral ambiguity always hanging around like a noose in the wind.
Like usual I don't want to give away more than I should. You should really read this, you should really read the entire series. It is great science fiction but it's not too heavy-handed in the geekiness of it. Mostly the focus is always on human behavior and the slippery way we judge what we see, and how what we see changes with time and circumstance. Great fodder for critical thinkers.
Enjoy this book and pace furiously for what Durate, ahem, High Consul Duarte does next.
// Mumbles something about storming heaven..... //
Review of 'Persepolis Rising (The Expanse, #7)' on 'Storygraph'
4 stars
The previous book, Babylon's Ashes, was a big step down in quality. It focused too much on ancillary characters away from the Rocinante's crew. But Persepolis Rising is a return to form for the series. The focus is again back on the core characters and the politics of space conflict, without nearly as much focus on the establishment of new trade organizations. The problem I have with this novel is the timeline of things. This takes place years after the events of the earlier novels, but there's rarely attention paid to the effects of years of heroic space adventures on bodies that must be pushing forty, at least. In a series that devotes so much attention to how the human body isn't built to live in space and the physical difficulties and dangers of trying to make a life in the vacuum of space, I would have like to …
The previous book, Babylon's Ashes, was a big step down in quality. It focused too much on ancillary characters away from the Rocinante's crew. But Persepolis Rising is a return to form for the series. The focus is again back on the core characters and the politics of space conflict, without nearly as much focus on the establishment of new trade organizations. The problem I have with this novel is the timeline of things. This takes place years after the events of the earlier novels, but there's rarely attention paid to the effects of years of heroic space adventures on bodies that must be pushing forty, at least. In a series that devotes so much attention to how the human body isn't built to live in space and the physical difficulties and dangers of trying to make a life in the vacuum of space, I would have like to see more focus on the Old Man Holden aspect of things.
