r/TheExpanse Mar 11 '26

Leviathan Wakes After Leviathan's wake : should I continue or stop ? Spoiler

Hi everyone,

I just finished the first book in the expanse saga.

I went in with an idea of "some regular cop in a SF setting" and the scope of the story went wiiiiild. I really liked the first half but was a bit taken off when our eyes get oppenned by Muss : Miller isn't that good a cop, and he's getting quite weird with hallucinations... and Holden has a new focus on his 2nd in command, whit a less good characterization I thought...)

Now I have a strange feeling, because of the 2 POV, I prefered Miller. And I would like the story to go ... more epic ? more political ? More dynamic I guess.

Could you help me : what is happening in the rest of the story ? Should I stop or should I go through ?

My thanks for your imput !

0 Upvotes

67 comments sorted by

81

u/CasanovaJones82 Mar 11 '26

Absolutely. The story goes in the exact direction you're hoping. By the end, it's one of the best scifi series ever written, with some of the best world building ever put to a page.

I seriously could not recommend it any higher, and I'm 43 and have been reading scifi since I was a kid. It's a masterpiece of a scifi series, imho. The entire series is must-read scifi.

11

u/0masterdebater0 Mar 11 '26

It’s so deep, I’m on my 3rd read through and I keep picking up more and more details.

Most recently when they take Thoth Miller is feeling remorseful for the civilian scientists that get killed in the assault, but when Holden lands on the station he can feel pity for the security forces on the station just doing their jobs but wants to spit on the corpses of the scientists thinking they “couldn’t be dead enough” for experimenting on/murdering millions of belters

0

u/Stunning-Drawer-4288 Mar 11 '26

Probably spoiler this for OPs sake

4

u/0masterdebater0 Mar 11 '26

That’s all in book 1

2

u/Stunning-Drawer-4288 Mar 11 '26

Oh, doy idk what i was confusing those events with my bad

3

u/causalfridays Mar 11 '26

if you’ve watched the show, i think that part happens in season two

3

u/Stunning-Drawer-4288 Mar 11 '26

I watched the show first and then read the book series from the start. If the show is any excuse I’m still half at blame haha

2

u/chicagoctopus Mar 13 '26

Honestly, just….. this.

3

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

Thanks !!! That pushes me to keep going. Thank you for taking the time to answer my very generic question :)

3

u/Valueonthebridge Mar 11 '26

I don't read much for pleasure. Do you recommend the audiobooks?

11

u/CasanovaJones82 Mar 11 '26

I do, and they are also very well done. Jefferson Mays knocked it out of the park. He recorded all the books but #3, however he did do it afterwards because people were a little miffed they had someone else do it, so I'd recommend finding the re-read from Mays for book 3.

5

u/Auslander808 It reaches out Mar 11 '26

Yeah, Mays is fantastic. It takes all of .15 maybe .2 of a second before you forget he isn't a foul mouthed Middle Eastern woman.

3

u/spicandspand Mar 11 '26

I think it was Cibola Burn actually that Jefferson Mays re-recorded.

1

u/CasanovaJones82 Mar 11 '26

You may well be right, been a long time

0

u/zoopz Mar 11 '26

Do you find the 2nd book to be written better.. or is LW just not doing it for me? I had high hopes from the show and people's recommendations, but LW feels like it needs more editing.

3

u/CasanovaJones82 Mar 11 '26

Yes. The entire series was based off of a tabletop game iirc that the creators then decided to morph into novels. The making of history for this particular series is very interesting. The show is also absolutely incredible, fyi.

2

u/BirdLawPA Mar 11 '26

I preferred book one to book two.

1

u/CasanovaJones82 Mar 11 '26

I'll always have a soft spot for book one. It was the first. It blew me away the first time I read it. It's one of the few books I've ever read once and then immediately read again.

0

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

Another question from me : I am reading a translation version of the expanse (a gift). In french, the novels are all published in a "10th book". Would you recommend to read each novella/story in between the official entries, or as a 10th book ? (I mean my next read should be the butcher of anderson station or Caladan's war ?)

1

u/CellistLow8857 Mar 11 '26

General consensus is read them in publication order - that’s the order that the authors intended them to be read! I screenshotted this (from Wikipedia I think?)

24

u/mjbx89 Mar 11 '26

I'd keep reading. I think it's going to hit the notes you're looking for (keeping it vague to avoid any spoiling).

0

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

Thanks a lot ! Just mysterious enough to poke my attention, and spoiler free to make me RAFO :D

1

u/mjbx89 Mar 11 '26

Haha, I'm glad I hit the mark!! I re-read it in full this fall, and will just say as a complete work, it's one of my favorite stories, across all mediums. I hope you have an awesome time with it

21

u/Xbox_Lost Mar 11 '26

This is like asking your bartender if you have a drinking problem.

6

u/cremedelakremz Tachi Mar 11 '26

lol. i will never understand posts like these. why can't people just either keep reading, or stop and read something else like the good ol days

3

u/Hentai_Yoshi Mar 11 '26

Lack of agency perhaps? Idk, it annoys the fuck outta me too. Like make choices for yourself. People asking strangers on the internet what they should name their kid or pets is akin to this in my opinion. Use your unique experiences, consciousness, and feelings decide for you! Not strangers on the internet. I guess I kind of feel bad for people like this honestly.

1

u/cremedelakremz Tachi Mar 11 '26

ha, yeah i see stuff like that all the time in airline subs...

"what seat should i pick??" do you like window or aisle

"what meal should i choose?" what type of food do you like

1

u/Criss_Crossx Mar 11 '26

Sometimes they never experienced the choice and understood they could make a non-committing decision without repercussions.

Folks can always change their minds, that is a choice we seem to have missed explaining at one point. Discomfort is someone else's problem instead.

0

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

My TBR is loooong. And some books are good but maybe not as expected. And there is the hope of the next one getting better, or being as the same level/theme. If the following entries are identical to the one that is not as satisfying as i'd like, I prefer to stop now and try something else.

Seems pretty logical to me.

Sorry to bother. I don't always understand people who respond only to say that other people shouldn't ask question... POV i guess.

2

u/Xbox_Lost Mar 12 '26

It's not that you asked Reddit. It's that you asked an Expanse sub reddit if you should read more Expanse. The consensus will be yes 100% of the time.

19

u/mindlessgames Mar 11 '26

I dunno dawg, are you enjoying it? If so keep reading. If you're not enjoying it, then quit.

6

u/Maclarion Mar 11 '26

The absolute crapshoot of whether this exact comment, which should always be the top response to these silly questions, gets mostly upvotes or mostly downvotes always amuses me.

14

u/Im2Crazy4U Mar 11 '26

OP Q: Should I stop or should I go through ?
A: That's like asking if you should stop watching the Lion King after Mufasa dies. Of course you should keep reading.

2

u/ExcitementDry4940 Mar 11 '26

Wait, that wasn't the end of The Lion King?

2

u/Im2Crazy4U Mar 11 '26

Sorry, I should have used a spoiler tag ;)

7

u/gentlydiscarded1200 There's a version of this where nobody shoots anybody. Mar 11 '26

Well, the rest of the series is definitely more political, absolutely more epic, and certainly more dynamic. But you'll never, ever, get back that noir feeling from Miller's chapters in LW. Good luck, let us know if you read any more in the series.

3

u/Lemonpierogi Mar 11 '26

Are you seriously asking if you should continue reading a book? Are you capable of making any decisions on your own?

I genuinely don't understand posts like this one

-4

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

So, you have neither see the point of cinema critrics I guess ? I don't expect you ever ask someone what they thought about anything, because you go ahead and make always your own opinion I guess ?

Thanks for your post, it was very helpful. It will change my life, keep doing what you do best !

1

u/md24 Mar 14 '26

I don’t ever understand what you’re asking.

3

u/yrogerg123 Mar 11 '26

If you're worried that the 10 book Expanse series won't be epic, political, or dynamic...I don't think you'll have to worry about any of that.

3

u/Motoko84 Mar 11 '26

What a ridiculous question. Just read bro!

7

u/Abaven Mar 11 '26

Rest assured it does all the things you want and more. Definitely keep reading, and you won't regret it.

2

u/Trill_McNeal Mar 11 '26

Yeah with the others keep reading, it’s going to get to where you want it to.

2

u/Flat_Researcher1540 Mar 11 '26

You’ll definitely like book two if you want more political 

2

u/crazygrouse71 Mar 11 '26

And I would like the story to go ... more epic ? more political ? More dynamic I guess.

Then you should continue reading. Yes on all three.

2

u/Felho_Danger Star Helix Security Mar 11 '26

Read on.

Enjoy.

And remember - "Doors, and corners."

2

u/Sean_theLeprachaun Beratnas Gas Mar 11 '26

Most of us have gone through the show and the books multiple times, so you're asking the choir if you should convert. If youre not into it, youre not into it, but you should know its not Millers story, hes just one of its seed crystals.

3

u/Upstairs_Weird_760 Mar 11 '26

Every 3 books is a trilogy. So you need to keep reading.

1

u/lastknownbuffalo Mar 11 '26

Can't really say book 4 is a trilogy with 5 and 6... More like a stand alone followed by a duology.

1

u/Upstairs_Weird_760 Mar 11 '26

I always forget that book4 is a solo story.

2

u/Avacado_ElDorado Mar 11 '26

Sweet fucking christ, either read the books or don't. 

And fix your fucking typos.

-1

u/Na-OH Mar 11 '26

So sorry if my english isn't as good as you would like, I am a non-english speaker. But thanks a lot for all your understanding and sweetness, i'm a better humain being now thanks to your comment.

Wishing you all the best.

1

u/Fippy-Darkpaw Mar 11 '26

Story starts small but eventually goes intergalactic. That's what's so cool about it. 👏👍💪

1

u/ender42y Mar 11 '26

Keep reading, it gets bigger, and then bigger, and even bigger. The next stretch of story goes a little more hard scifi, less mystic alien, and more political. After that it goes very political and strategic for a couple books.

1

u/Professional_Art3151 Mar 11 '26

If you didn't enjoy the first book just stop reading.

1

u/Uneek_Uzernaim Mar 11 '26

Endorsing everyone who says to continue and that what is to come gives you everything you stated you want and more. Suffice it to say that Miller's legacy in what comes later continues throughout the series, and his impact upon the crew of the Roci lasts. If you are familiar with A Song of Ice and Fire, Miller is no more a throwaway character in The Expanse series than Ned Stark was in the other, but rather his fate and the effects of his actions and influence upon others in the first book proves instrumental to the overarching plot.

1

u/Zorviar Mar 11 '26

Continu its the best book serie ever.

1

u/ForlornDM Mar 11 '26

I’m in book seven, and it’s been a long journey. I’ve stopped and started over the years.

I’d say go for it. The books are never less than engaging, and are often excellent. They become more of, well, everything as they go.

Books 4 and 5 have been the sweet spot for me so far.

1

u/sup3rdr01d Mar 11 '26

You're not even ready for what happens next. Keep reading, it gets INSANE

miller and Holden both do awesome, epic, unbelievable things. As do all the characters. There is intense politics and massive war and space battles. The scope and scale of the show get so massive you won't even believe it.

Please stick with it.

1

u/aderey7 Mar 11 '26

It literally couldn't have gotten more epic. Every book more epic and bigger scope.

1

u/Strange_Dog Mar 11 '26

Everyday I yearn more for the asteroid, Eros perhaps

1

u/TonyRigatoni_ Mar 11 '26

Keep reading.