Upon first glance, the 600 pages of “Leviathan Wakes” by James S.A. Corey seem pretty daunting; however, from page one, “Leviathan Wakes” kept me intrigued. Published in 2011, it is the first novel in “The Expanse” series that creates a futuristic society that is completely relatable to todays’ readers.

The book follows two characters, Jim Holden and Detective Miller, in a futuristic society where mankind has colonized most of our solar system.

However, life is not kind to those living on the asteroids.

The stations they live on are becoming worn down and social unrest is causing riots throughout the star system.

Detective Miller is the disgruntled cop with a chip on his shoulder, lacking basic social skills and nursing mild alcoholism.

After being assigned the kidnapping case of a wealthy man’s daughter, Detective Miller uncovers a conspiracy that he has trouble proving.

On the other side of the star system, Jim Holden pilots an ice-mining vessel.

After picking up a distress call from a nearby ship, Holden and his shipmates investigate only to find the remains of a crew.

As Holden and Detective Miller both work toward finding answers, they begin to unravel an even greater mystery that holds not only the fate of the solar system, but also the entire galaxy, in their hands.

I found this novel highly entertaining.

The setting appears to be unfamiliar, but the constant tension between different ethnic groups echoes a lot of conflicts in today’s society.

The author even went to the lengths of creating a new language that combines dialects that exist on Earth today, to create a mishmash language representing the new global identity.

The rising action escalates at an unprecedented rate.

I almost found myself canceling plans to read.

“Leviathan Wakes” is also impressive due to its scientific accuracies.

Although there are times when they bend the rules of space in order to make certain plot points work, overall the novel stays true to our scientific knowledge of space.

At times, this can be gruesome, but it really involves you in the world. My favorite thing about “Leviathan Wakes” is the characterization.

James S.A. Corey did not create perfect characters.

Detective Miller and Holden respond to every situation they are presented with in a realistic way.

At times, I have to admit, this would leave me frustrated.

I found myself shouting in my head “Why didn’t you do this instead?” But the fact that neither character is completely infallible allowed me to fully envision them as people.

The world they live in became so engrossing that the only thing I disliked about “Leviathan Wakes” was that it had to end.

I noticed while reading the novel there were startling similarities between its character development and “The Song of Ice and Fire” series (more commonly known as “Game of Thrones”).

Upon doing some research, I learned that James S.A. Corey is actually the pen name of two men, Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck.

Ty Franck is George R.R. Martin’s (author of “The Song of Ice and Fire” series) assistant and Daniel Abraham has been known to collaborate with Martin in the past.

Do not fear, if the daunting nature of “Song of Ice and Fire” kept you from reading it, “The Expanse” series is a lot easier to tackle.

The language is similar to current vernacular and you will not require a catalog of family trees in order to understand relations.

The limitation to two character’s perspectives also makes this novel less confusing.

At times, you may find yourself having to look back to the end of the previous chapter in order to understand where you left off, but that is the extent of the confusion you will have.

The novel ends with a considerable cliffhanger, but never fear — the authors have been releasing new books in the series every year and all three books that are out so far have been more than 500 pages in length.

Although this sounds like enough to keep you entertained, the publishers have also requested that an additional five novellas accompany the series.

If you’re left waiting for the next novel in “The Song of Ice and Fire” series, or simply want to add an epic adventure to your life, I highly recommend “Leviathan Wakes.”