In the first book, the Carryx empire enslaves humanity, adding them to the long list of alien species that must prove themselves useful to the Carryx, or be exterminated. In this book, Dafyd Alkhor, who is now the representative of all human captives, is doing his best to keep humanity useful to the Carryx, while secretly plotting with the Swarm a way to take down the empire. Like the first book, it’s a fascinating premise, and there’s great world-building, but the plot moves slowly, and frankly, not a whole lot happens.
The Expanse is one of my all-time favorite sci-fi series (S tier!), so I really want to like this new series from James S.A. Corey, but it’s not hitting the same highs. There’s plenty of potential here: the alien species are varied, unique, and have a deep and rich history; there are a bunch of intriguing mysteries, such as how to defeat the Carryx, who is the “undying enemy,” and who sent the swarm; and the idea of a bunch of subjugated alien races figuring out how to understand and trust each other so they can join together to defeat their conquerers is solid.
But it feels like the first two books have not executed on this premise particularly well. They seem to focus a bit too much on the imprisonment, oppression, and the science the Carryx force them to do, and as a result, the plot barely seemed to progress in either book. Whereas the Expanse had space battles, alien discoveries, politics, relationships, exploration, and a whole lot more, this book is mostly about humans hanging out in a prison colony while being abused by the Carryx. Interestingly, the novella Livesuit, which goes between the first and second book in this series, had more action and plot progress in ~90 pages than the first and second books combined. Could we get some more of that please?
At least the character development in this second book is a bit stronger, as the book doesn’t have to spend much time on introducing them, and can instead focus on their growth and relationships. That said, because so little happens in the plot, the amount the characters can develop also feels a bit stilted.
Overall, the premise, world-building, and mysteries, along with my faith in James S.A. Corey’s writing, are just enough to keep me reading, so I’ll pick up the next book in the series, and hope that it finally moves the plot forward.
