The Expanse is one of those series (both, books and TV) which have been recommended to me often by many different people. Having read the first entry now, I can see why.

The characters are really solid, world building is good. I especially liked the relationships between Holden and Naomi, and Miller and Julie, though the latter is a bit unusual.

Compared to previous hard SciFi I read like Project Hail Mary, The Expanse is a lot more serious. It doesn’t shy away from the harshness of space while keeping the warmer, human elements. While Weir likes to throw near-catastrophes at his characters, they usually emerge unscathed. In this book, however, I never felt like that was a given.

Another point I liked was the political machinations of the three major powers, Earth, Mars, and the OPA. Not anywhere near Dune levels, but enough to make the world seem lived in.

While I plan on reading the rest of the books and watch the TV series, I’m still undecided if I want to watch interleaved or wait until I finish all (relevant) books.