I’ve always been a big reader of science fiction. It was a first love when I started reading as a young boy. I’ve come back to the genre over and over again as I’ve grown older. I think science fiction is a way to communicate about our fears and hopes for the future. It’s also a genre that is focused on technology. Questions about artificial intelligence, space travel; how these and other technologies will affect our humanity are central to science fiction writers.

Leviathan Wakes is the first novel in a series written by a pair of writers (Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) using the pen name James S.A. Corey. Space Opera is the term publishers give this kind of book, but I think that is too limiting a term.

The story revolves around a familiar trope: the mismatched assembly of characters who form the nucleus of a space ship crew. This fascinating group of characters face planetary politics, racial divide and an alien virus. How these ideas play out is what makes the book so special.

Remember the pace of the movie Aliens? That’s how Leviathan Wakes moves as you read it. However, the true focus of the book is the slow and careful development of the characters. They are what you hold on to through betrayals, space battles, political intrigue and alien death.

Leviathan Wakes is a book I’d recommend to anyone who wants to start reading science fiction. The plotting is intelligent, the pace is torrid and the ideas are important and relevant to our current political situation. Plus, if you become involved in the story and characters, you have several more novels in the series (called “The Expanse”) to look forward to!

(Iliad usually has various copies of titles in the series  – feel free to e-mail us if you’d like to inquire about availability.)