Babylon's Ashes (The Expanse)

Babylon's Ashes really grew on me. Like the rest of the Expanse (as individual books, and as a series, and as a TV series), Babylon's Ashes is slow to start but picks up a lot of momentum. It is, on the one hand, super dismal. For, like economics values of "dismal." The economic landscape of the solar system being what it is, people are motivated to do terrible things to each other.

That's part of the mastery of the writers. Daniel Abraham and Ty Franc ("James S.A. Corey") adeptly show us the big picture of clashing tides of history as well as the personal stories of the little people struggling inside them.

Kindness, though, stands out above philosophical waffling about the "great man" vrs. "historical forces" debate. The heroes of the book are the people who, whatever their personal backgrounds or contexts, try to be compassionate. They reach out and help where they can. For a guy who's life is uncertain in many ways right now, that was comforting. I might have had a different reading of the book if I'd read it at a different time, but that's kind of the point.

I hate-read Nemesis Games, Babylon's Ashes is just more of the same navel-gazing while not much plot happens. Just a bunch of circular conversations about how "this isn't right!" and "it's hard to be poor and in space". We get it, you don't need to re-tread that commentary every chapter. There's hitting your audience with the message, there's beating a dead horse, this is just a black hole of repetitious filler and emotional masturbation.

Good ending,but there were many places where I wanted it to hurry up. I know those parts were setting up for something later but still that feeling was there and I didn't feel that way in the other books.

<b>Babylon's Ashes</b> is Book 6 of The Expanse Trilogy by <b>James S.A. Corey.</b>
I LOVE these books! (How many times can I say this?) The cast of characters, their trials and tribulations, and the deft story-telling of this author team are addictive.

Book 6 takes us into the aftermath of the Free Navy's reign of terror over the inner planets. Earth is on its knees after multiple asteroids have impacted on its surface. Food, medicine, and energy are in scarce supply as people on Earth try to survive in the hellish nightmare that has become their existence.
The Free Navy leads a devastating campaign against the combined fleets of Earth and Mars while the crew of the Roci and my favorite foul-mouthed politician, Crisjen Avasalara, struggle to outwit the leader of the Free Navy, Marco Inaros.
Babylon's Ashes's yet another fast-paced tale of politics, intrigue, space battles, and high-flying action that leaves the reader on the edge of their seat.
Highly Recommended!

Reading this book and looking back at the first one, it's hard to believe they are the same series. The story-line here has a richness, a depth, and a maturity that didn't exist back when this was a pop sci-fi action, mystery genre blender. The characters are dense, the politics complicated, the perspectives unique.

It's grade-A space opera at its core. Some of the reviews I read were disappointed and yes, I concede the style and pacing are a bit of a break from previous books but I can only assume that those who don't like this one are missing out the subtleties here. We are no longer being spoon-fed card-board cut out characters. The characters have grown and taken on a life of their own and the authors have grown with them.

The only disappointment was perhaps the deus ex machina in the final battle. I would have liked to have seen our characters hurt and bashed up a little more, maybe even a death in the core family. They concluded a bit too tidy and quickly but knowing there are more books to come eases that feeling.

In the end, I rate it for how I read it, and couldn't put it down, so...five stars.

Very disappointed the sixth Expanse book is not Audible narration-enabled. I checked to make sure they all did before I started reading the series, but missed that the final book has an Audible version but not Audible narration. Due to brain injury, it's difficult for me to follow a story without simultaneous text and narration, and now I don't know if I'll be able to finish the series.

When two authors (James Corey is the pseudonym for Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) team up to split writing duties for a book series, it must be formulaic by nature to maintain joint plot continuity. As the series extends, however, initial core plots can only go so far before they must out of necessity become increasingly overlaid with twists, turns, increasing action scenes and side plots to maintain page count. Fortunately, these are very good writers who can maintain a good yarn, unfortunately, at this point in the series there is little in plot intrigue that hasn't already taken place in some variation before. And whereas it's hard to walk away from such a money maker, rare in the book world these days, these writers have demonstrated the chops to do it all over again once they have milked this run to the end.

I've loved the Expanse series since I randomly decided to buy the first one on a whim. So I'm disappointed to say Babylon's Ashes is just a huge letdown. It starts with a whimper and the conclusion is just mind-boggling anticlimactic.

It was hard to get through some POV chapters, particularly those for Michio and Naomi's son...who is so whiny and unlikable his name escapes me. And Holden somehow became mostly comic relief. The three times there IS some action it's thrilling, and Avasarala, Alex, Bobbi and Amos are super great as always. Hopefully the authors got whatever was in their systems out before the next one.

Great to see the series really evolve. I'm excited for the next volume.

Ending was maybe a little less grand than I would have liked, at least in terms of how the multiple book plot resolved.

***SPOILERS AHEAD*****

I guess I was just hoping for a more personal resolution to the central conflict with the Free Navy. Though the ending was clever, it just felt anticlimactic. This series has such great characters that it's a shame to see major ones (Marcos in particular) killed off in such a way.

THOUGH this does open the possibility to Marcos, Fillip, and everyone else to find a way out of "limbo." They technically aren't dead, so I'm curious to see how this plays out in later volumes. The threat of the Free Navy is not 100% gone.... so there's that....

Well, the guys don't disappoint with this novel. SPOILER ALERT!!! DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE NOVEL. The situations and people are so real I was afraid to read certain sections for fear some character would die. Well, it happened and it was organic to the story but I felt the loss. I see and hear The Expanse cast when I read the novel. They are so flawed and human which is, of course, why we love them. Clearly the villain is not dead but I fear what he will become. I hope The Expanse lasts through all the novels:

I really enjoyed this book. It's not as broad and sweeping as the previous but that was fine for me. I liked that the story was made a bit more intimate, more personal. I enjoyed the Pa chapters and the perspective they offered. Pa's choices were no less difficult than Holden and crew, perhaps more so. To me the epilogue was a promise to push the story out in the next book. I believe this book was needed post the events of the previous, the new reality needed to be addressed, some closure.

Just finished the whole series of these books and cannot wait for the next one. This was supposed to be the end of the book series. The ending was just sort of satisfying. The book was quite good...better than the 4th. The tv series got me started on this epic journey and it has been quite the ride. Great character development of this odd space family . Sort of like Serenity's crew. Loved the Firefly series..and the movie, Serenity. The Firefly/Serenity crew is a family. The crew on the Roci ship is also a family. Lots of goofy people with problems and hangups...but they are family. You get involved with their lives. To me, that is great writing.

We're now in the "comfortable middle" of THE EXPANSE. (Think THE TWO TOWERS, if you're a fan of Tolkein.) This is the point in most sagas where some major plot points are buttoned down, a few more are introduced, and the Big Guns are on the periphery, but still silent.

So, it's an okay read, but it doesn't have the "Wow" factor of the previous installments. No major revelations, no advancement of what I consider the "A" plot (the ring gates, who built them, and whether they're still around, waiting). One major plot point gets resolved, albeit in a way that felt too abrupt. Naomi's discovery will certainly come into play in subsequent books, but I found myself longing for more of that particular thread.

If you're a fan of the series, you will enjoy the familiar characters and settings, but depending on your expectations, you may be frustrated by the lack of plot advancement.

Maybe it's because I'm getting older, but I found this book the best in the series. OK, granted, there were no real new ideas or discoveries in the book; no new aliens or new planets or diseases, but the writing was just fantastic. It's almost "literature" beyond the classical sci-fi. The character development is deep and solid and moving. The book switches between many more characters and obtains a more solid character. The writing talent of the two authors is definitely developing, and I was truly sad when I reached the last page. I can't wait for the new book in the series to come out. I just hope they will continue in the same quality and don't hurry it.

In my mind, I always split the genre between SiFi, where real world physics are treated lightly and it's all just a fun romp and who cares if the author doesn't know a galaxy from a mud puddle....and Science Fiction- the real stuff where physics and character development count for something. The entire Expanse series of books, and Babylon's Ashes is one of the very best, is rooted in technological and social detail that never ceases to amaze. There aren't many books where I find myself going back and re-reading a page, but with the Cory team's work, it's a regular and wonderful thing. Perhaps best of all, the reader acquires a knowledge of space flight that should come with college credit. Can't wait for the next one.

As far as I recall, having read the whole series at least two months ago, this was the conclusion of The Expanse. I believe I found it interesting, and though a little draggy, was happy to finally find out how it all turned out. I loved the stories, although some of them got a little repetitious and slow, but all in all, it was a great series and I'm happy I read it. When I read the series, I burned through it and finished all six (or was it seven?) books in about two weeks..Highly entertaining. I may read them over again at some point, just to enjoy it.

Okay, so you two authors don't have a clue what comes next and are starting with the slow walk novels just like Weber and Martin. Of course, Martin is your patron and you think that he knows all about success...in Hollywood. Could be, but as an author he is a dismal failure with increased POVs every book. Weber goes to lengthy inane dialogue when he cannot think of anything to write. You two combine the worst of both. You two could have been great! You have a nifty story about the Expanse and you never get out of the solar system in over 1,000 pages (both of the last books.)

You each indulge yourselves at the paragraph level and instead of keeping the action going, you switch to a passive description of the action. Neither the prologue or the epilogue have anything to do with the so-called plot. You have characters thinking in depth thoughts at the height of the action...ridiculous!

Daniel, you in particular should be ashamed. You wrote a great 5 book fantasy with wonderful characters like Kit and Cyn and here you are allowing a lesser writer to bog you down...excuse me for repeating myself...you should be ashamed to put your name on this hogwash...

I think the authors are getting a little tired -- this looks like the last in a very good series. The characters, with the formal addition of Clarissa Mao and Bobbie Roberts, are even more interesting, but the story line has gotten overly complicated and at times is convoluted, at least for my mind. The TV series, The Expanse, apparently didn't last more than one season. Too bad, because it captured the first book pretty well.

This is perhaps the best in the series. YMMV. But I liked it a lot. If you're a fan of these books I don't have to recommend them to you. My only regret is that the paperback version won't be out for another year, which is why I bought the Kindle version. Fortunately I have a Kindle Paperwhite to read it on. But I've got all the other volumes in paperback.

This seems to be the conclusion to the main story line of the Expanse series. However there are many more stories possible in this universe. Hopefully Corey will continue on some of the other tracks. Babylon Ashes will keep you involved, and not feel cheated by an unresolved conclusion.

Much like Holden himself,Corey's greatest talent is bringing humanity to spellbound characters. Offsetting the cold and dangerous realities of space with a living and breathing cast of characters is a true feat.

The Expanse is a better-than-average sci-fi series. And this is one of the better books within it. The author shows real craft in how he puts his sentences together sometimes, causing the pleasure of the book to go beyond the story and extend into the art of the telling.

Great storytelling. Spoilers ahead!

Though I found myself skippimg through the Filip and Marcos chapters because I disliked the charcters so much. Sad to see a major character leave. Caught me by suprise. As well as their replacement. We need to get Chrisjen and Amos together more often. The dialogue between those two had me on the floor laughing outloud. A wonderful break from the main alien arc. Lots of detail about everyone. Though I wish I had heard more about Bobbie.

I can't wait for the next installment.

I have enjoyed the Expanse books and TV series to date. The core cast is very solid, and most of the guest appearances as well. Some of the main Belter players in the series could have been fleshed out better, but overall very good.

I've been a huge fan of everything written so far in the Expanse universe... but this felt like an imposter, fan fiction populated with the same characters but played out in a totally foreign and unrealistic way. The characters became caricatures of themselves, the plotline became predictable and banal... I really had to force myself to finish the book.

Almost all series have an eventual expiration date, and perhaps this is it for the Expanse.

Engaging and fulfilling like the rest of the series. I only have two complaints. One. I wish they would cut down on the number of chapter leaders to about 3. And I wish they would cut back on the belter language. There's more in ever book. I skim most of it because I don't understand it anyway.

great action sequences that make it hard to put down, twists & turns that keep you guessing, & geopolitics that actually look real to someone who"s spent decades studying those dynamics. BZ again, gents.

I really enjoyed the first book – great plot and great characters. After the first though, the Expanse series simply hasn’t lived up to the promise of the original. The plots are rather dull and lack the intrigue and suspense that the first had, while the addition of so many POVs detracts rather than adds value. This series is not Game of Thrones, these characters are not nearly as memorable, and most do not deserve their own chapters.

Props to the authors for creating a successful series and a moneymaker, and because of the nature of things, I imagine they’ll continue with the series though they probably shouldn’t. This will likely be the last of the Expanse series I bother with, though I hope the authors create something new because they clearly have talent.

Not whipsersync enabled... no narration possible with Audible.
The others books do and I feel like I was conned into buying this mediocre book. Time to start reading another story.

The whispersync feature became available today, several weeks late. I revised my rating accordingly.

Book 5 turned out to be long, boring and stupid. Beginning of the first chapter of this book and there is already two wives with a kid. For crying out loud, why the hell does the homosexual agenda have to be every freaking where? I wish I could get a refund.

Pretty good but I wouldn't have given this book the glowing review that George R R Martin gave it. Sometimes I wonder if Mr. Martin is paid by lesser known writers or publishing companies to give good reviews.

I have enjoyed the Expanse books and TV series to date. The core cast is very solid, and most of the guest appearances as well. Some of the main Belter players in the series could have been fleshed out better, but overall very good.

I've been a huge fan of everything written so far in the Expanse universe... but this felt like an imposter, fan fiction populated with the same characters but played out in a totally foreign and unrealistic way. The characters became caricatures of themselves, the plotline became predictable and banal... I really had to force myself to finish the book.

Almost all series have an eventual expiration date, and perhaps this is it for the Expanse.

Engaging and fulfilling like the rest of the series. I only have two complaints. One. I wish they would cut down on the number of chapter leaders to about 3. And I wish they would cut back on the belter language. There's more in ever book. I skim most of it because I don't understand it anyway.

great action sequences that make it hard to put down, twists & turns that keep you guessing, & geopolitics that actually look real to someone who"s spent decades studying those dynamics. BZ again, gents.

I really enjoyed the first book – great plot and great characters. After the first though, the Expanse series simply hasn’t lived up to the promise of the original. The plots are rather dull and lack the intrigue and suspense that the first had, while the addition of so many POVs detracts rather than adds value. This series is not Game of Thrones, these characters are not nearly as memorable, and most do not deserve their own chapters.

Props to the authors for creating a successful series and a moneymaker, and because of the nature of things, I imagine they’ll continue with the series though they probably shouldn’t. This will likely be the last of the Expanse series I bother with, though I hope the authors create something new because they clearly have talent.

Not whipsersync enabled... no narration possible with Audible.
The others books do and I feel like I was conned into buying this mediocre book. Time to start reading another story.

The whispersync feature became available today, several weeks late. I revised my rating accordingly.

Book 5 turned out to be long, boring and stupid. Beginning of the first chapter of this book and there is already two wives with a kid. For crying out loud, why the hell does the homosexual agenda have to be every freaking where? I wish I could get a refund.

Pretty good but I wouldn't have given this book the glowing review that George R R Martin gave it. Sometimes I wonder if Mr. Martin is paid by lesser known writers or publishing companies to give good reviews.

I gave up 1/3 of the way through and read a synopsis. The promise of the series has really been lost. I wanted to read about the protomolecule and the worlds beyond the gates, instead I get a mostly unbelievable insurgency that ends in a big deus ex machina.

A great addition to an excellent series. I was glad to see the focus of the book return to the belt. The authors did a great job conveying the scope of the conflict in this book and I liked that other characters got a chance to shine. Here's hoping that the TV show doesn't distract too much from the next in the series! (a la GoT)

4.5 Stars - [...]
Babylon's Ashes picks up where Nemesis Games ends, providing much needed follow up to the unresolved issues from the previous book. One of the best aspects of this sequel in the scope of the storylines within this expanding universe. Unlike previous books in the series, the authors do not restrict the chapters to four primary character perspectives. Instead, this new novel includes a rotating cast of characters to show the widening scope of the epic storylines. These perspectives include the return of many favourite characters from all the previous books. Even the newly perspectives added were primarily characters that were introduced in prior books. I appreciated this familiarity, which made it easier to become invested in the chapters of these newest characters. 

If you are caught up on The Expanse series, I highly recommend you pick up this latest installment as soon as possible. Whether you read the books for the adventure, the politics, the mysteries or the characters (or all of the above), you will not be disappointed in this sequel. The writing from both authors continues to be strong with engaging dialog and plenty of action. As with the rest of the series, the world building in this book was very accessible. The reader is never bogged down with complex descriptions or technical jargon found in harder science fiction. As well, while primarily serious in nature, the authors include some great moments of humour and witty remarks to provide much needed comic relief to the suspense.

I requested this book from Orbit Books because I was dying to read what happens next in the Expanse series. As always, my reviews are unbiased and reflect my own personal, honest opinions.

A middle of the road installment in this fun series. It's plotted just like you'd expect in the  sixth book in a series that just got extended to 9..a holding pattern before we get back to the main event. I missed the lack of developments around the big plot-driver of the series, the protomolecule. And I wanted to read more about the post-apocalytic earth. The analogies with current politics and world events felt forced. Plotting was slow and disconnected. Character development was generally good, although there's a bit too much naval-gazing going on. 

I like the ongoing development of different kinds of family arrangements in this series.  There's a nice undercurrent of social liberalization (among the good guys), tempered with some very negative looks at decaying parts of the constructed world.

Whichever writer uses this little writing device: "It was. But it wasn't. But it was" to try to add complexity to our understanding of a situation or plot point needs to stop. Its overdone and especially annoying in the audio version. 

I agree with the many reviewers who think the villain was lame and overly predictable. Please let Marco Inaros' fade-out be permanent. 

I also agree with the reviewer who said the authors have a "red shirt" problem developing. Its just too much of a stretch that Holden and his entire crew have made it intact through 6 adventures. As the series adds complexity and more characters with more depth, we haven't left many behind (just Joe Miller...who isn't really gone is he? And now Fred f'ing Johnson). At least send some of these guys off into separate plot lines (and leave them there this time). 

C'mon, bring back the world building and aliens next time. 

The conflict is inevitable. Belters have been abused by Earth and Mars for far too long. The mass exodus of people from Earth and Mars to new worlds has two huge impacts. First, if everyone leaves the planets, Belters will be abandoned and will die off over time - and they've lived so long outside gravity wells that they can no longer live on planets - and can't join the migration. The other big impact of the exodus is that it has
weakened those who stayed behind, and has made them an inviting target of the Belt.

Naomi's hidden past is revealed, and plays a very important part in the drama that unfolds. Several characters from previous novels return with interesting roles - especially Bobbie, Clarissa Mao, and Michio Pa. Avasarala stays true to her character in the most traumatic of times. Love her or hate her, she's unique in the political world.

I just want to start off this review by saying that I really enjoyed this novel. As always, I find Corey's writing style to be engrossing, and I got caught up once again in the amazing future he has envisioned for humans in space, with all its possibilities. After the events of the last novel, I was dying to find out how everything would be resolved (Luckily I had season 1 of the ScyFy Series to hold me over) and I was not disappointed. I couldn't quite give this book 5 stars, but my reasons were minor and ultimately, this was a solid addition to the series. 4.5 ⋆

** Beware Spoilers ahead**
Babylon's Ashes takes place not too long after the events of the previous novel; In the wake of the rock attack sent down to Earth by Marcos Inaros and his "Free Navy" The home world of human life in the universe is gasping for breath under a blanket of dust, ash, and death. Of the 30 million souls crammed together on Earth, 10 million died outright, and the rest are either fleeing the planet or dying of disease and starvation. Mars is struggling to recover from the betrayal and mass exodus of most of their military force, and the people of the belt feel vindicated and free from the tyranny of the Planets and their corporations. James Holden and the rest of the crew of the Rocinante are swept up in events firmly out of their control, and must find a way to not only stay out of Marco's hands, but to figure a way forward in the aftermath of all this tragedy.This book really was an end and a beginning, both for some characters in the series, and for the future of humankind. The Earth and Mars are no longer viable options for the future of man, but with 1300 planets beyond the alien gates, new worlds lay just within reach. But to even have a chance of making it there, the remaining forces of Earth, Mars, and Fred Johnson's OPA must come together to retake the Stations of the Belt and Warp Gates from Marcos Inaros and the Free Navy.

I went into this novel feeling sooo angry about what was done to the Earth, what a horrible waste of life, and how could the people of the belt be happy about what was done to the planet?! But by halfway through I was trying to see things at least to some small extent, from the point of view of the belters as an exploited and trod upon people. While it didn't make me feel like it was alright for them to be happy, I could see why some people would be. Naomi explains to Holden in the novel that to people on earth, the Belters all seem the worst extremes of their culture. The same is true about how the Belters look at the Martians and Earthers, no one seems like they are real individual people, SO the violence done back and forth can be argued and rationalized by them. The fact that I found MYSELF weighing my anger and frustration with the events happening on my page on whether or not it was because I too was a human from earth, or how I would feel if I grew up in an environment like the belt, proves how amazing this series is and what a great writer James is. This book bounced around from many different viewpoints, more I think than many of the previous novels, and while I enjoyed this constant change in perspective I was at times wishing to get back to other characters and their own personal narratives. Some POV chapters were merely relevant as flavor for the major events in the book, and you will either like that or you won't. I felt like it was necessary to fully appreciate and understand the complexities of the war going on, and the anger of both sides, but still, sometimes I just wanted them to stick with the crew of the Roci a bit longer.

I also thought that everything was concluded pretty nicely in this book, It was satisfying to know that our characters had many of their issues and greatest threats resolved, because we got to see them work through the pain of loss and figure out their next steps to take. If Corey chose to stop here I wouldn't be *TOO* upset about it, though I am so grateful this won't be the last novel. From reading this book you are lead to believe that this is the end of one long arc of the series, the Next "chapter" will be out beyond our solar system and into the worlds of the Gate. Human life is expanding :) it's going to be scary and trying, but I am so excited to see how James and his little family decide to face it.

**There are no spoilers for THIS book, but I talk about past books**

I read all of these digital on the "other guy's" e-book store, but I wanted to leave a review here as well. I've read quite a few reviews describing this book as 'ok' and tending to describe it as a filler. After reflection on the book I've come to view it as my favorite so far.

I feel this book was a major turning point for the series and I suppose I'll have to wait until next year to see if I'm right about that. I'm going to keep this spoiler free so I won't give anything away, but the authors introduced an event in the previous book (Nemesis Games (The Expanse)) that was narrative changing and they pick up in this book right where the other left off.

The book has a solid ending; not a cliffhanger. I would feel satisfied if this had been the last book in the series and that's the real feeling I have coming out of this book. The others left me angsty and ready to read the others. This left that pleasant taste of finality in my mouth that I could nod and look back fondly on the series as I went on to other things. That isn't say I'm done with the series - I'll keep reading for as long as they keep writing, but to me this book had a sense of directional change. They're ready to move on and do new stuff.

If I had to guess, this book was a seeding thought in the authors' heads way at the beginning - they knew the story was going to progress to this point and culminate in the events of Nemesis Games and this book.

I loved the very subtle and real character developments of this book. There is nothing substantially different about the main characters, but Holden in particular is 'growing up' and realizing that his actions have consequences that he needs to live up to. I found Naomi to be neglected in this book which was a little odd considering that Filip and Marco are so prominent in the story. But I think we got a lot of her in Nemesis Games so the authors probably purposely pulled back. Avasarla has an endearing couple moments in the book and I am always surprised how perfectly the authors are able to make her a real person in my mind with her nuances and private emotions. I've always found Alex (the pilot) to be an underused character that is pretty one dimensional, and while, the book didn't do much to change my opinion on him, there was a great couple chapters from his perspective that were absolutely perfectly written that showed he's a human too. I loved the subtle interactions between Clarissa Mao on the ship. The book brings us back to a couple past characters in a few scattered chapters, but does so in a fluid and natural way that doesn't force them to run into Holden again, but is just showing what else is going on in the expanded universe.

I think this book is not the most interesting or spectacular but it really has a feel of ease to it, like butter. It's hard for me to explain but the book seemed natural, subtle, and not forced. The ending didn't surprise me and I felt the book led up to it, but that's OK. I don't need surprise endings every book, I very much enjoyed how things seemed to naturally coalesce in this book.

I think some people's concerns were that this book didn't have much to do with Alien things in it, and they felt it was expository in the series. Well it didn't have much to do with Alien things in it, but I can't imagine reading the end and not getting excited about where the story is going to go next.

The truth is, if you've been reading the series up until now, you're going to continue reading. You're not going to jump on here, because you would be so incredibly lost, sa sa? But I think this book really represents how The Expanse's universe has matured and how everything up until now just clicked in this really natural way.

Loved the first couple of books in this series but I think the writer has lost his way. I got to 31% in "Ashes" and gave up. Sure, I get it, nobody wants to let go of a terrific money-spinning product, but it's past time to put this to bed. The grand theme--the protomolecule and the alien angle--seems all but forgotten. Who knows, maybe Corey did a spectacular volte face 32% onward and regained his footing, but I doubt it. Just a lot of chit-chat in bars, ships and conference rooms. I also don't need to know what color every minor character is and his/her sexual preference. I can't remember half of went before anyway, why lard it up with irrelevant details.

I am just a little disappointed by Babylon's Ashes. The Expanse series has such good ingredients - a well wrought solar system-wide civilisation, a 'scooby gang' on their own ship, and the haunting, Lovecraftian mystery of the protomolecule engineers and their even more mysterious foe. These ingredients have been previously dealt with in a very concentrated, humorous and impactful way, especially in the first two books.

This book wanders, and I would say it compiles some of the least favourable aspects in the books so far. It doesn't approach the fundamental fantastic mystery of the human encounter with the infinite, the mystery of these 'higher races'. Instead it falls back into meandering, and I would say verbose and often sentimental treatments of sub-characters emotions, reactions, responses, motivations and so on, of the Free Navy.

There also seems to be the increase of a didactic tone, which was pretty much absent from the first few books but entered in strongly during Abaddon's Gate and Cibola Burn. This tendency has increased. Not so bad when dealing with loftier subjects, but when enmeshed in the merely human - as in this book- one feels like one is dragging through the author 'figuring out' morality of a more contemporary tone. I found this a bit tiresome as personally I come to sci-fi to experience the bigger picture. I feel this book lacked the daring to make broad, bold strokes but got lost in niggling details.

I'm sorry, but this book was just plain boring. Had to force myself to finish it. Barely anything happened. Corey is starting to go the way of Terry Goodkind unfortunately, spending page after page, chapter after chapter on minutia that will make you feel like dusting your grandmother's teacup collection is exciting. This story has completely stopped going the way of space exploration and the unknown, and just focuses on soap opera type relationships. Sadly I'm half way through the next book and that one is the same as this. Sigh. I guess writing gets hard after you get 2-3 books into a series.

The Expanse series has seriously lost its way. The first two books were fascinating and exciting--absolutely fantastic sci-fi. The next two were good. With book 5 the series went from a sci-fi epic to a space opera. Book 5 was so bring I ended up skimming the last few chapters. I'm now about 2/3rds the way through book 6 and it is simply boring.

Remember when the protomolecule made a magical space gate that opened up 1,300 new worlds for exploration and excitement? The author doesn't. Instead, we're stuck with the lame Free Navy and a whole lot of characters that we're evidently supposed to care about but just don't. Once again we don't leave Sol. After reading 2/3rds of the book absolutely nothing of significance has happened. Oh, except for when the Rocci has the chance to eliminate the leadership of the Free Navy, but Holden chooses not to because reasons. Or it wasn't the righteous thing to do. Or something.

Unless the reviews for the next chapter are glowing, this might be it for me with this series.

Too soapy and for the second book in row didn't follow up on the mysterious aliens. Soap sells I guess. Not even a Miller cameo to spice up the tedious story telling. I was flooded with more personal information and interaction than I could stand (TMI). So much so that I came to dislike the main characters and was hoping they would surprise us and put 2 or 3 out of their misery (Holden's a doorknob!). Anyway, I'm done. Thanks for the first 3 novels though. They were great.

I'm a huge fan of the EXPANSE series, and grind my teeth waiting for every new entry. That said, BABYLON'S ASHES is, in my opinion, the weakest installment so far. Still a great sci-fi novel, just not the best representation of what the series has already achieved.

I can only imagine that the authorS (James S.A. Corey is actually two people: Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham, for anyone who didn't yet know) were too busy working on the SyFy incarnation of their work to give this novel all the TLC it truly needed. Otherwise, I call into question some of their creative decisions.

By biggest beef with BA was the glut of ineffective POV perspectives in the mix. With so many vital characters populating the series, there was just too much time committed to ones who aren't. And if you want to develop some new guys, that's fine, but DO that. Some of the new voices went absolutely nowhere, making me wonder, why bother at all? Elvie Okoye was a totally new voice in Cibola Burn (book II) and she was integral to that story. The new folks in Babylon's Ashes? Not so much.

I was overjoyed to see Praxidike Meng make a return, been dying to get him back on the Roci... but even that thread completely peters out without any significant payoff. Truly baffling.

There are exceptions to these let downs. Michio Pa from Abaddon's Gate makes a substantial return, and we finally see Clarissa making the strides we knew she was capable of. I can accept some marginalization of her as a realistic reaction on Holden's part. But overall, I feel like a lot of juicy narrative meat is being dangled out there and we never get to truly sink our teeth in. 'Corey' has prepared everything so beautifully, but the story gorges on junk food instead of the succulent entrees right under our noses.

In many ways, Babylon's Ashes is the direct sequel to the preceding novel, Nemesis Games. Those looking for a thrilling conclusion to the showdown with Marco Inaros will not be let down. But the big mutant Elephant in the room, the protomolecule, and it's mysterious masters, are barely touched upon. Yet another reason why time shouldn't have been wasted on tertiary characters who simply do not contribute to either the series arc or the latest novel itself.

I get that, fundamentally, 'Corey' has a highly inclusive perspective of the human race. EVERYONE is relevant. Hell, that's Holden's major hobby for this book; giving voice to the voiceless masses, as he does, but for a series with stakes and threads as cultivated as the EXPANSE has, you gotta tighten it up. Us superfans have been around for 6 books. I am so grateful that the series has come so far. I'm begging the authors, please, take a little more care next time. There are enough quality ingredients here for every chapter to be riveting and perfect and essential to the arc.

I've been an enthusiastic fan of the Expanse novels, as well as the new TV series based on them, but "Babylon's Ashes" was a real disappointment. After the spectacular escalation seen in "Nemesis Games", the continuation of the Free Navy's war on the inner planets was a meandering, disappointing fizzle. All the ingredients I've enjoyed about the Expanse saga were there (realpolitik intrigue, the illusion of hard science authenticity, and vivid, compelling characters), but for whatever reason just didn't gel this time around. Add to that long, near-impenetrable Belter-speak conversations and character dialogue that sounds a little too close to modern hipster-speak ("I know, right?"), and needless to say, this book was a long slog. I really hope this disappointing installment is only an exception to an otherwise sterling track record for Abraham and Franck.

I blazed through the first 5 installments of this series and was looking forward to the next. After reading it, boy it was disappointing.

The book itself: I didn't count, but apparently there are 17 PoV characters, mostly forgettable ones. Filler, basically. Most don't add much to the story that couldn't be explained by a different narration. Worse, those little subplots have their own holes, which I assume won't be filled now everything has neatly been folded into a happy kumbaya family of earthers, martians and belters. Anyway, those characters are supplemented by even more characters which have little purpose. We quickly get introduced to a lot of ships, stations, moons, planets and areas, just to explain that space is really, really big. Well, we already know that and it's best to forget all that fluff immediately after you read it because it has no plot significance at all.

The action picks up in the second half of the book in an exciting space battle. Honestly, it was a very good read, that. But that's about the only highlight of this installment. The way the eventual remnants of the "Free Navy" are dealth with leaves a lot to be desired. Sure, it was a neat way to deal with being overwhelmingly outnumbered, but it's simply...meh. I would be much more intrigued if the Roci's crew would have decided to have hightailed it out of a random gate to fight another day.

Honestly, the authors have basically killed off the excitement over the alien protomolecule stuff by hardly paying any attention to that kinda major plot in this book. They also managed to sortof wrap up the conflicts between the three main human factions, so there's little to be done there in the future either. Honestly, I figured this would actually be the last book in the series. And then I noticed there are still three novels still to come? Well, I don't see how the authors will be able to come up with much which doesn't feel rehashed, stale or repetative. For now I'll consider this series "concluded". Maybe I'll pick up the next installments when they're on sale or something. Or maybe not, who knows.

The personalities and the interpersonal relations of the core characters in this installments brings nothing new, with the limited exception of Bobbie Draper. This novel sees more development of 'secondary' (yet major) characters such as Marcos, Filip, Pa. That would be fine and dandy IF the story tightened up at the end with respect to these secondary characters. In this case, we are left hanging. Due to the extensive development of these secondary characters, I have to assume they will become major players in the next installment.

This book is like a $10 all-you-can eat buffet. There's a lot to digest, but it doesn't really leave you truly satisfied at the end.

This is another great entry in The Expanse series. Franck and Abraham have definitely hit their stride in terms of plotting: keeping up the suspense, and adding new mysteries and storylines in as older ones get resolved. It’s very much an episodic series, though – I don’t think that most readers would find this book comprehensible or enjoyable without having read the earlier books.

If you've read the earlier books in this series and enjoyed them, then you will want to grab this one. If you haven't tried Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse Book 1), I encourage you to give it a try and see why so many people are raving about it.

I wanted to enjoy this installment, but I found more and more that the Belters sounded just like Jar Jar Binks and I had a difficult time taking them seriously. Plus the authors got real politically preachy and the whole think stank of a liberal utopia with all the ambisexual relationships and such. That will appeal to 51% of you, but I just wanted to read another interstellar shoot-em-up without the moralizing. I can watch reruns of Star Trek for that.

I'm as big a fan as anyone when it comes to the "Expanse" series and this installment, while weaker than the entries that preceded it, is a fine read. But can someone please explain to me why as of May 5, 2017 the hardback is only 17 cents more than the Kindle version and the paperback is actually cheaper? I love the convenience of the Kindle but I've gone back to physical books until Kindle pricing becomes more reality based.

First, huge commendations for the series! I'm bummed that I am now at just about the maximum amount of time to wait before the next installment. Second, this is, well, a serviceable addition to the series. It is not as compelling as some of the earlier books. It frequently moves very slowly, and in some places has the unfortunate habit of telling us what is happening, or what happened, rather than showing us. It also is undercut by the ending, in which something that seemed alien and intentional at the end of book five, turns out disappointing. (I don't want to write more, as it would be a spoiler.) It just seems to stop, rather than end in a satisfying way. I don't know if this book missed because of the authors' well-deserved success (and presumed related demands on time and attention) from the TV series, or it was inherently hobbled as an "in-between" work. Needs more Miller, more aliens! I sincerely hope that the remaining books aren't dragged-down by a need to finish the series, without re-igniting the creativity and excitement of the first several books.

This book moves the series forward in a very positive way. But the plot details, the back & forth of protagonist/antagonist, do bog this book down a little more than the others. I don’t think it can be helped much as the complexity of the systems & personalities at play have inevitably gone up by degrees of magnitude. So, all that just means that I’m looking clear to the next book & the ones that follow that.
On a separate note, I’m absolutely amazed at the pace these authors maintain in publishing what seems like a major work on an average of 1-1.5 years. Kudos guys & please keep up the great work.

A solid entry it wraps up earth's confrontation with the OPA Free Navy. Very enjoyable, I agree with others that it feels a bit stuffed in the second half with side plots. While I really enjoyed it, I have to gripes with the book, and the series overall at this point. 1) the bombardment of earth is like the biggest f****g Pearl Harbor attack in history, with real mega consequences for humanity. A brilliant move for the series overall. However, I never feel the appropriate level of anger or bloodlust for revenge. My Uncle fought in WWII, and even 40 years later you could feel his anger at the Japanese over the surprise attack. In these books, bombing earth is total genocide, not a strategic diversion like Pearl Harbor. Chrisjen Avasarala should be seen struggling to keep her generals under control from waging a scorched earth series of counter attacks against all belters. 2) I missed having a bit of alien mystery, proto-molecule madness in the mix, a hint of it towards the end, or even an epilogue would have been nice.
Kevin

While it was nice to have all the characters together in one place--especially adding Bobbie to the Roci crew--I couldn't shake the feeling that Babylon's Ashes suffered from the proverbial "middle chapter syndrome." The pace quickened towards the end, but there was entirely too much pointless buildup, in my opinion. The book was certainly well-written, and it should NOT be avoided by fans of the series . I would only recommend that readers don' t expect the furious action and awesome lore of the first three books in this iteration.

I'm a big fan of this series, and have been waiting for this book for a while - but I really didn't care for the plot or what happened to the characters in this one. Few of the truly interesting ideas of the first few books are explored - the main characters seem immortal, and it's just boring..

Listening to the audiobook I find myself regularly just tuning out after pages and pages of nothing talk that can be summed up in sentences like - "and then they attacked" or "they spent some time on the station for R&R".

It's just a hokey vanilla plot with a lot of filler in bad need of some editing.

Not as bad as Cibola Burn (which can be excused as a side story) but the second worst book in the series. For better examples of good writing by the same author, read The Vital Abyss or The Churn novellas.

This was a disappointment. The writing is on par for the series so far, but the action was lacking. No not lacking, nearly non-existent. It seems like every character still alive from the previous novels got their own chapter... Just cause... Most of these sidebars added little to nothing to the overarching story. By the end there was only one development likely to impact future novels. And that was a death that was handled like a side-note. It's not bad. I like the characters. But much of the novel was a lot of talk of politics and self reflection. Wait till you can get it from a library or can borrow it from a friend or just skip it.

Ugh, this book was so boring. The series as a whole is not too bad, but it almost feels as though they are cashing in on the popularity by stretching the story out over an ever increasing number of books. It reads like an undergraduate assignment on character development. The authors devote pages and pages of introspection to a single thought that moves the story on at a glacial pace. The other problem with this book is that it is centred on the most boring aspect of the entire series, and coupled with the previous book, I feel like I've all but given up caring what the protomolecule is up to, because clearly, the author's don't care. Three quarters of the way through I started to "speed read". I didn't have the strength to slog through another chapter of Avasarala swearing her head off, or hearing about Holden's need to humanise the people of the OPA. I guess the authors think they are holding a mirror up to humanity, but it has been done before, and done infinitely better than this. My hope is that the next book gets back on track.

Interesting characters, fun dialogue,space ships -all you need for a good story- this book has it. My favorite part was a series of political discussions towards the middle.

Only three complaints. First of all it dragged a bit. I realize big plots have to be manipulated but some spice or color at these points would have helped. Second, Amos had a lot less focus in this one. He's a great, fun and important character -I missed him. Lastly there are many references to people and places discussed in the previous books -a glossary at the end would have been nice.

Had a really good time reading this. Thanks!

This book is a great read. If you have read the previous installments (and you should) this is a fine continuation. Movement in the series wide arc's where a major piece are two are resolved, which cascades to the next book wonderfully (you know those protomolecule inspired changes are gonna bite you later). This novel follows the earlier space opera structure (versus the detective style, frontier style, etc)

The characters we have learned to love continue to explore themselves. The major technical problems of living on dirt, on metal, and the spaces in between continue to be explored.

My only gripe is that no one ever seems to finish their meal. Off it goes into the recyclers.

This is a great series. I’m still partial to the first novel but I love where this book goes and how the characters are developing. What’s fun is to see how it translates to the small screen with the tv series on syfy and now taken on by the store. I also just found out there are two new books in the series that I hadn’t read! Perfect in time for summer reading. This is one you can sink your teeth into and also get away from today’s politics.

This book was the lightest on science and heaviest on war. I enjoyed the ship battles particularly. The back story for all the main characters gave me a solid sense of closure. Time to let this series rest a bit and get to other authors in my queue.

Mild spoilers below:

-Without going into too much detail, the book's ending relies upon an incredibly stupid deus ex machina setup. It's almost completely incoherent, and it rivals "The Force" of Star Wars in its nonsensical mysticism. Bad fiction, and bad science, make for especially bad science fiction.

-How is it that Holden and his crew are directly and personally involved in every interesting event in the universe?! This strains credulity to the max, almost as much as the pathetic ending. And, as another reviewer rightly noted, this brings along with it the "Redshirts" effect -- where certain characters are not allowed to die no matter how stupid or reckless they are, whereas cannon-fodder dies left and right, and untold "billions" die offscreen.

-Some of the POV characters were a waste of time. They add very little to the story.

-Very little gets resolved -- satisfactorily or otherwise.

...Like all of the books in the series, Babylon's Ashes is well-written and engaging, and it shows flashes of brilliance. But that's not enough, when the story itself is so weak.

Another amazing installment to this epic series. It was a slow start for me (but it could have just been me). Things are all wrapped up nicely and I can't wait to see where they take the series in the next book.

For the full review check out ReadingOverTheShoulder.com

I thoroughly enjoyed this ebook. Due to the attacks at the end of Nemesis Games, there is a war in the Solar System. I liked the depiction of a war, the reflections by several of the characters that humanity has been violent throughout history and this isn't any different. I also liked that Avasarala's vulnerability was explored. There wasn't anything that I didn't like. Five stars.

Book 4 was fascinating.. Advanced the plot, setting was cool and mysterious alien ruins with mystery and hints. Good characters and action...almost like it was written by a different author. Book 5 was filler, disjpointinhg backstory with one big plot development, could hardly read it. Book 6 is rambling details,lots of padding...what hsppened to the aliens and Miller! Plodding details, disappointment.
Will read 7 with less expectations.

Anyone who enjoys a "good" book should not spend $13.99 plus tax on this Space Soap-what a rip off. I have read all the preceding and spent the money to get to this book and will not spend that amount for a series that you thumb though some of the "fluff-filled chapter" to "get to the point" of the story.
There are too many Great authors out there in cyberland who are on Kindle Unlimited. The best of the best of Space Soap (in my opinion) is Ryk Brown, who should be charging for his novels.... not these guys.

I continue to enjoy this series as much as I have from the beginning. It's very neat to see such a long-running series maintain its interest and momentum. This one really starts to feel like things are tipping toward the climax. Very exciting read, I thought.

I a fan of this series and was glad to continue their adventures. It was not as fast paced as the previous books in the series but it did fill in a lot of gaps and set the stage for the next adventures of episodes. I look forward to the next book.

I liked the complexity of the characters (other than the hero and the villain, who were appropriately archetypal--the villain in particular is a cautionary example of what to watch out for in leaders). I enjoyed the realism of the space travel (I'm willing to give allowance for the magical gates between the stars) and the intelligence of the plotting. I don't know that the series is ended, but this is a good completion point--it can go on from here in multiple directions.

I found this latest entry to be rather boring. A series that began with the excitment of the proto-molecule and the amazing world given by an ancient race of beings has been reduced to a story about a jilted lover raging war on the Sol System. so much promise reduced to a simple story of revenge.

If the authors are planning on returning to the strange and bizzare sometime terrifying thrills of the first three books, I hope they hurry. This sixth entry of the series makes me want to quit.

Interesting characters, fun dialogue,space ships -all you need for a good story- this book has it. My favorite part was a series of political discussions towards the middle.

Only three complaints. First of all it dragged a bit. I realize big plots have to be manipulated but some spice or color at these points would have helped. Second, Amos had a lot less focus in this one. He's a great, fun and important character -I missed him. Lastly there are many references to people and places discussed in the previous books -a glossary at the end would have been nice.

Had a really good time reading this. Thanks!

This book is a great read. If you have read the previous installments (and you should) this is a fine continuation. Movement in the series wide arc's where a major piece are two are resolved, which cascades to the next book wonderfully (you know those protomolecule inspired changes are gonna bite you later). This novel follows the earlier space opera structure (versus the detective style, frontier style, etc)

The characters we have learned to love continue to explore themselves. The major technical problems of living on dirt, on metal, and the spaces in between continue to be explored.

My only gripe is that no one ever seems to finish their meal. Off it goes into the recyclers.

This is a great series. I’m still partial to the first novel but I love where this book goes and how the characters are developing. What’s fun is to see how it translates to the small screen with the tv series on syfy and now taken on by the store. I also just found out there are two new books in the series that I hadn’t read! Perfect in time for summer reading. This is one you can sink your teeth into and also get away from today’s politics.

This book was the lightest on science and heaviest on war. I enjoyed the ship battles particularly. The back story for all the main characters gave me a solid sense of closure. Time to let this series rest a bit and get to other authors in my queue.

Mild spoilers below:

-Without going into too much detail, the book's ending relies upon an incredibly stupid deus ex machina setup. It's almost completely incoherent, and it rivals "The Force" of Star Wars in its nonsensical mysticism. Bad fiction, and bad science, make for especially bad science fiction.

-How is it that Holden and his crew are directly and personally involved in every interesting event in the universe?! This strains credulity to the max, almost as much as the pathetic ending. And, as another reviewer rightly noted, this brings along with it the "Redshirts" effect -- where certain characters are not allowed to die no matter how stupid or reckless they are, whereas cannon-fodder dies left and right, and untold "billions" die offscreen.

-Some of the POV characters were a waste of time. They add very little to the story.

-Very little gets resolved -- satisfactorily or otherwise.

...Like all of the books in the series, Babylon's Ashes is well-written and engaging, and it shows flashes of brilliance. But that's not enough, when the story itself is so weak.

Another amazing installment to this epic series. It was a slow start for me (but it could have just been me). Things are all wrapped up nicely and I can't wait to see where they take the series in the next book.

For the full review check out ReadingOverTheShoulder.com

I thoroughly enjoyed this ebook. Due to the attacks at the end of Nemesis Games, there is a war in the Solar System. I liked the depiction of a war, the reflections by several of the characters that humanity has been violent throughout history and this isn't any different. I also liked that Avasarala's vulnerability was explored. There wasn't anything that I didn't like. Five stars.

Book 4 was fascinating.. Advanced the plot, setting was cool and mysterious alien ruins with mystery and hints. Good characters and action...almost like it was written by a different author. Book 5 was filler, disjpointinhg backstory with one big plot development, could hardly read it. Book 6 is rambling details,lots of padding...what hsppened to the aliens and Miller! Plodding details, disappointment.
Will read 7 with less expectations.

Anyone who enjoys a "good" book should not spend $13.99 plus tax on this Space Soap-what a rip off. I have read all the preceding and spent the money to get to this book and will not spend that amount for a series that you thumb though some of the "fluff-filled chapter" to "get to the point" of the story.
There are too many Great authors out there in cyberland who are on Kindle Unlimited. The best of the best of Space Soap (in my opinion) is Ryk Brown, who should be charging for his novels.... not these guys.

I continue to enjoy this series as much as I have from the beginning. It's very neat to see such a long-running series maintain its interest and momentum. This one really starts to feel like things are tipping toward the climax. Very exciting read, I thought.

I a fan of this series and was glad to continue their adventures. It was not as fast paced as the previous books in the series but it did fill in a lot of gaps and set the stage for the next adventures of episodes. I look forward to the next book.

I liked the complexity of the characters (other than the hero and the villain, who were appropriately archetypal--the villain in particular is a cautionary example of what to watch out for in leaders). I enjoyed the realism of the space travel (I'm willing to give allowance for the magical gates between the stars) and the intelligence of the plotting. I don't know that the series is ended, but this is a good completion point--it can go on from here in multiple directions.

I found this latest entry to be rather boring. A series that began with the excitment of the proto-molecule and the amazing world given by an ancient race of beings has been reduced to a story about a jilted lover raging war on the Sol System. so much promise reduced to a simple story of revenge.

If the authors are planning on returning to the strange and bizzare sometime terrifying thrills of the first three books, I hope they hurry. This sixth entry of the series makes me want to quit.

My son was well pleased with the whole set of books. Delivery was a bit sketchy, though. Online the delivery man said that " package was handed directly to customer". Actually the packages were found outside the front door by my husband when I got home from work. The fibbing makes them look bad.

I actually haven't bought or read this yet - I just have a question and am not sure how to ask about it any other way! I've read all the other books in the series, on Kindle, but I love that they have Audible narration via the Kindle iPhone app. This one doesn't have it... is it something that will be added? Would I be waiting days, weeks, months, years? If anyone knows or someone at the store or the publisher (or authors) see this I'd really love to know since I'm holding off to buy it until I find out about this. Thanks!

Love the Expanse but this book was too boring. Eliminate all the sub-plots, family drama, etc. and make it a short story. Please get back to the protomolecule and the mystery behind where it came from.

Another great addition to the expanse serise, I was left with a feeling of longing and pure joy after finishing this installement. If you have already read the series thus far, there is no reason to not pick this baby up.

This is by far the weakest book in the series. I feel that authors' commitment to make ten book series led the to threading waters in Babylon's Ashes. Could be skipped, unless you are a dedicated fan of the S A Corey universe.

Just finished the whole series of these books and cannot wait for the next one. This was supposed to be the end of the book series. The ending was just sort of satisfying. The book was quite good...better than the 4th. The tv series got me started on this epic journey and it has been quite the ride. Great character development of this odd space family . Sort of like Serenity's crew. Loved the Firefly series..and the movie, Serenity. The Firefly/Serenity crew is a family. The crew on the Roci ship is also a family. Lots of goofy people with problems and hangups...but they are family. You get involved with their lives. To me, that is great writing.

This is a review of the Audible audio book version. I'm so glad that Jefferson Mays is back as the narrator for the Expanse books. He has the individual characters' voices down pat - Amos and Chrisjen Avasarala just aren't right with anyone else.

Babylon's Ashes is sort of a bridge book in this series. It picks up from the end of Nemis Games and really expands on the now, system wide war and the different factions involved. One of the reasons why I love this series is because so many of the characters reappear throughout the books and novellas. Characters that we saw in Cibola Burn and Abaddon's Gate are back in Babylon's Ashes. This brings a continuity throughout the world building and over arching plot lines - for me it becomes more believable and easier to just immerse myself into stories.

This book seems to bridge the gap from discontent through war and into the possible future revolving around the Protomolocule and the gates. The Rocinante has two permanent additions to her crew and Chrisjen is poised to become a super power system wide. There's lots of action, battles, second guessing and a couple of small twists, and a great pairing of Bobbie Draper and Amos in battle together. This series is gaining momentum, though a little slower than the first two books, but the chess moves have been made and the bigger game is about to begin.