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The eighth book in the NYT bestselling Expanse series, Tiamat's Wrath finds the crew of the Rocinante fighting an underground war against a nearly invulnerable authoritarian empire, with James Holden a prisoner of the enemy. Now a Prime Original series.
HUGO AWARD WINNER FOR BEST SERIES
Thirteen hundred gates have opened to solar systems around the galaxy. But as humanity builds its interstellar empire in the alien ruins, the mysteries and threats grow deeper.
In the dead systems where gates lead to stranger things than alien planets, Elvi Okoye begins a desperate search to discover the nature of a genocide that happened before the first human beings existed, and to find weapons to fight a war against forces at the edge of the imaginable. But the price of that knowledge may be higher than she can pay.
At the heart of the empire, Teresa Duarte prepares to take on the burden of her father's godlike ambition. The sociopathic scientist Paolo Cordozar and the Mephistophelian prisoner James Holden are only two of the dangers in a palace thick with intrigue, but Teresa has a mind of her own and secrets even her father the emperor doesn't guess.
And throughout the wide human empire, the scattered crew of the Rocinante fights a brave rear-guard action against Duarte's authoritarian regime. Memory of the old order falls away, and a future under Laconia's eternal rule -- and with it, a battle that humanity can only lose -- seems more and more certain. Because against the terrors that lie between worlds, courage and ambition will not be enough. . .
The Expanse
Memory's Legion
The Expanse Short Fiction
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ISBN-10
0316332895
ISBN-13
978-0316332897
Print length
576 pages
Language
English
Publisher
Orbit
Publication date
January 20, 2020
Dimensions
6 x 1.5 x 9.25 inches
Item weight
1.23 pounds
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IF LIFE TRANSCENDS DEATH, THEN I WILL SEEK FOR YOU THERE. IF NOT, THEN THERE TOO.
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Growing older was a falling away of everything that didn’t matter. And a deepening appreciation of all the parts that were important enough to stay.
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This was the problem with thousand-year Reichs. They came and they went like fireflies.
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B07BVNVWL6
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1421 KB
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Award winners:
"Corey deftly weaves multiple points of view to create a dense and colorful tapestry of political intrigue, personal relationships, and sophisticated technology that bursts with action but also delivers an introspective view of the characters as they age and reflect on their purpose and the value of their lives."―Booklist (starred review)
"As Corey wraps up their epic space opera series, they're running on all cylinders, playing with epic consequences for humanity, and showing that none of their long-running characters are safe from what could come. But they also put together a story that seems all-too-relevant in this day and age: a warning of the dangers that fascism and totalitarianism bring."―Polygon
"A standout tale of violence, intrigue, ambition, and hope. ... Corey cranks up the tension relentlessly in this fast-paced story of heroes and rebels fighting for freedom. With enough thrills and intrigue for three Hollywood blockbusters, the novel stands alone nicely, making it easy for new readers as well as diehard series fans to dive right in." ―Publishers Weekly on Nemesis Games
"The science fictional equivalent of A Song of Ice and Fire...only with fewer beheadings and way more spaceships." ―NPR Books on Cibola Burn
"Combining an exploration of real human frailties with big SF ideas and exciting thriller action, Corey cements the series as must-read space opera." ―Library Journal (starred review) on Cibola Burn
"The Expanse series is the best space opera series running at full tilt right now, and Cibola Burn continues that streak of excellence." ―io9 on Cibola Burn
"Corey's splendid fourth Expanse novel blends adventure with uncommon decency." ―Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Cibola Burn
"A politically complex and pulse-pounding page-turner.... Corey perfectly balances character development with action... series fans will find this installment the best yet." ―Publishers Weekly on Abaddon's Gate
"It's been too long since we've had a really kickass space opera. Leviathan Wakes is interplanetary adventure the way it ought to be written, the kind of SF that made me fall in love with the genre way back when, seasoned with a dollop of horror and a dash of noir. Jimmy Corey writes with the energy of a brash newcomer and the polish of a seasoned pro. So where's the second book?" ―George R. R. Martin on Leviathan Wakes
"An excellent space operatic debut in the grand tradition of Peter F. Hamilton." ―Charles Stross on Leviathan Wakes
"High adventure equaling the best space opera has to offer, cutting-edge technology, and a group of unforgettable characters bring the third installment of Corey's epic space drama (after Caliban's War and Leviathan Wakes) to an action-filled close while leaving room for more stories to unfold. Perhaps one of the best tales the genre has yet to produce, this superb collaboration between fantasy authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck should reawaken an interest in old-fashioned storytelling and cinematic pacing. Highly recommended." ―Library Journal (starred review) on Abaddon's Gate
"Literary space opera at its absolute best." ―io9 on Abaddon's Gate
"[T]he authors are superb with the exciting bits: Shipboard coups and battles are a thrill to follow." ―Washington Post on Abaddon's Gate
"Riveting interplanetary thriller."―Publishers Weekly on Leviathan Wakes
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Prologue: Holden
Chrisjen Avasarala was dead.
She’d passed in her sleep on Luna four months earlier. A long, healthy life, a brief illness, and she left humanity very different than she’d found it. The newsfeeds all had obituaries and remembrances prerecorded and ready to spin out across the thirteen hundred systems to which humanity was heir. The chyrons and headlines had been hyperbolic: The Last Queen of Earth and Death of a Tyrant and Avasarala’s Final Farewell.
No matter what they said, they hit Holden just as hard. It was impossible to imagine a universe that wouldn’t bow to the little old woman’s will. Even when the confirmation came to Laconia that the reports were true, Holden still believed deep in his bones that she was out there somewhere, irritated and profane and pushing herself past all human limits to bend history just another fraction of a degree away from atrocity. It was almost a month between the moment he heard the news and the first time he let himself accept that it was true. Chrisjen Avasarala was dead.
But that didn’t mean she was finished.
A state funeral had been planned on Earth before Duarte intervened. Avasarala’s time as secretary-general of the United Nations had been a critical period in history, and her service not only to her world but to the whole human project had earned her a place of honor that could never be forgotten. The high consul of Laconia thought it only right and proper that she find her final resting place at the heart of the new empire. The funeral would be at the State Building. A memorial would be built to her so that she would never be forgotten.
The part where Duarte was complicit in the vast slaughter on Earth that defined Avasarala’s career got skipped over. History was in the process of being rewritten by the winners. Holden was pretty sure that even though it didn’t make it into the press releases and state newsfeeds, everyone remembered that she and Duarte had been on opposite sides, back in the day. And if they didn’t, he certainly did.
The mausoleum—her mausoleum, since there wasn’t anyone else of sufficient stature to share it with her yet—was white stone polished micron-smooth. The great doors were closed now, the service concluded. A portrait of Avasarala filled the center panel on the north face of the structure. It was etched into the stone along with the dates of her birth and death and a few lines of poetry he didn’t recognize. The hundreds of chairs arrayed around the podium where the priest had spoken were only about half-filled now. People had come from across the empire to be here, and now that they were, they mostly broke into little clumps with whoever they already knew. The grass around the crypt wasn’t like the stuff back on Earth, but it filled the same ecological niche and behaved similarly enough that they called it grass. The breeze was warm enough to be comfortable. With the palace behind him, Holden could almost pretend that he might walk out to the wilderness beyond the palace grounds and go wherever he chose.
His clothes were of Laconian military cut, blue with the spread wings that Duarte had picked for his imperial icon. The collar was high and stiff. It scraped the skin along the side of Holden’s neck. The place where his insignia of rank would have gone was blank. Empty was apparently the symbol of the honored prisoner.
“Will you be going in to the reception, sir?” a guard asked.
Holden wondered what exactly the escalation tree looked like when he said no. That he was a free man, and rejected the hospitality of the palace. Whatever it was, he was pretty sure it had already been practiced and rehearsed. And he probably wouldn’t enjoy it.
“In a minute,” Holden said. “I just want to…” He gestured vaguely at the tomb as if the inevitability of death was a kind of universal hall pass. A reminder that all human rules were tentative.
“Of course, sir,” the guard said, and faded back into the crowd. Holden didn’t have any sense that he was free, though. Unobtrusively confined was as much as he could hope for.
One woman stood alone at the base of the mausoleum, looking up at Avasarala’s portrait. Her sari was a vibrant blue that was just close enough to the Laconian color scheme to be polite and just far enough from it to make it perfectly clear that the politeness was insincere. Even if she hadn’t looked like her grandmother, the subtle-not-subtle fuck you would have identified her. Holden ambled over.
Her skin was darker than Avasarala’s had been, but the shape of her eyes when she glanced over at him and the thinness of her smile were familiar.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Holden said.
“Thank you.”
“We haven’t been introduced. I’m—”
“James Holden,” the woman said. “I know who you are. Nani talked about you sometimes.”
“Ah. Well, that must have been something to hear. She didn’t always see things the way I did.”
“No, she did not. I’m Kajri. She called me Kiki.”
“She was an amazing woman.”
They were silent for the space of two long breaths together. The breeze made the fabric of Kajri’s sari ripple like a flag. Holden was about to step away when she spoke again.
“She would have hated this,” she said. “Hauled into the camp of her enemies to be celebrated now that she can’t crack their balls anymore. Co-opted as soon as she couldn’t fight back. You could power a planet by hooking a turbine to her right now. That’s how much she’s spinning in this grave.”
Holden made a small sound that could have been agreement.
Kajri shrugged. “Or maybe not. She might have just thought it was funny. I could never be sure with her.”
“I owed her a lot,” Holden said. “I didn’t always realize it at the time, but she did what she could to help me. I never got the chance to thank her. Or… I did, I guess, but I didn’t take it. If there’s anything I can do for you or your family…”
“You don’t seem to be in a position to do people favors, Captain Holden.”
Holden looked back at the palace. “Yeah, I’m not really at my best these days. But I wanted to say it all the same.”
“I appreciate the sentiment,” Kajri said. “And from what I’ve heard, you’ve managed to have some influence? The prisoner with the emperor’s ear.”
“I don’t know about that. I talk a lot, but I don’t know that anyone listens. Except the security detail. I assume they listen to everything.”
She chuckled, and it was a warmer, more sympathetic sound than he’d expected. “It isn’t easy, having no part of your life for just yourself. I grew up knowing that everything I said would be monitored, cataloged, filed, and judged for its potential to compromise me or my family. There’s a record in the intelligence service archives somewhere of every time I’ve had my period.”
“Because of her?” Holden said, nodding to the tomb.
“Because of her. But she gave me the tools to live through it too. She taught us to use everything shameful in our lives as a weapon to humiliate people who would diminish us. That’s the secret, you know.”
“What’s the secret?”
Kajri smiled. “The people who have power over you are weak too. They shit and bleed and worry that their children don’t love them anymore. They’re embarrassed by the stupid things they did when they were young that everyone else has forgotten. And so they’re vulnerable. We all define ourselves by the people around us, because that’s the kind of monkey we are. We can’t transcend it. So when they watch you, they hand you the power to change what they are too.”
“And she taught you that?”
“She did,” Kajri said. “But she didn’t know it.”
As if to prove the point, a guard moved across the grass toward them, keeping a respectful distance until he was sure they’d seen him and then gave them time to finish what they were saying before coming closer. Kajri turned to him, lifting her eyebrow.
“The reception is going to begin in twenty minutes, ma’am,” the guard said. “The high consul specifically hoped to meet you.”
“I wouldn’t dream of disappointing him,” she said with a smile Holden had seen before on other lips. Holden offered his arm, and Kajri took it. As they walked away, he nodded toward the tomb and the words written on it. IF LIFE TRANSCENDS DEATH, THEN I WILL SEEK FOR YOU THERE. IF NOT, THEN THERE TOO.
“It’s an interesting quote,” he said. “I feel like I should recognize it. Who wrote it?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “She only told us to put it on her grave. She didn’t say where it came from.”
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James S. A. Corey
James S. A. Corey is the pen name of fantasy author Daniel Abraham, author of the critically acclaimed Long Price Quartet, and writer Ty Franck. They both live in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Customer reviews
4.8 out of 5
27,918 global ratings
Michael Lynn McGuire
5
Book number eight of an nine book science fiction series
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2024
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Book number eight of an nine book science fiction series. I read the well printed and well bound trade paperback weighing 1.3 lbs. Ah, Science Fiction by the pound, cool ! I have the last book in the series and will be reading it soon.
James Holden is still alive and is a political prisoner in the palace on Laconia. The Laconians, the lost Martian colony, are now ruling the central station with the 1,300 gates, shortcuts around the Milky Way, with their three antimatter based super battleships.
The Laconian's usage of the protomatter to enhance humans, take over worlds, enhance space flight, and change all matter to meet their rule over the Galaxy is going to new levels. Even Sol System has been subjugated by the Laconians. But, somebody else has awakened and wants to destroy everything.
You can watch books one through six converted to a six season tv series on Amazon Prime. The series was started on the Syfy channel and moved to Amazon for the fourth season.
My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
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Albert pierce
5
Story stays fresh
Reviewed in the United States on August 2, 2023
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The story stayed fresh as it has throughout he series. This one was a bit slower on the pick up. Struggle to stay attentive through some of it but it all paid off in the end. Great world building and character development as always. Gut wrenching twists and turns. Can't wait to read the next.
Lou J. Anschuetz
5
Character development done exquisitely
Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2020
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For all story telling art forms the important part is character development. If I feel like I know the character I can be part of the story. And, these authors have it nailed. Eight books. Eight plots that engage us, with characters we know. I shed tears at the loss of some of the ones we've come to know, and I expect book 9 to be worse.
I'm not going to note anything about the story in this one. As usual in this series the book builds a solid foundation and then creates a stunning, well executed and appropriate climax. And, of course, in 2 words sets the background for the final novel.
This series, however, has never really been about the big explosive scenes (though every one has some), but about the universe, the people in it, and what makes us all tick. The pacing, unlike WoT, is fast enough that you never feel like you just have to wade through exposition. And every brick laid into the foundation of every book is important.
When I got book 8 I was determined to read it slowly so that I could hold onto it for at least part of the time until the 9th and final book appears. That didn't happen. Though I lingered over and cherished each word, there was no stopping and taking a breather before pressing on. Not many books do that.
And, oh yes, like real life there are sad moments. But those are a real and important part of life.
Read this series. It will pay you back many times over.
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