Damn. I've finished them!

This is last of the books in The Expanse series, and I've grown to love them more as I've progressed through them. The characters are complex and interesting, the scope is sweeping, and there's wit as well as drama, psychological insight as well as action. All six books are entirely satisfying.

This series is as free from gender bias as anything I've ever read. That two men can write a character like Avasarala - an old, sweary, powerful Indian woman - is impressive. Age, sex, race and sexuality are all incorporated into these books as unremarkable facts of life. They do not determine whether someone is a soldier, a politician, an engineer, a priest or a doctor. These authors write about People.

The book is well read. The voices of all the characters are consistent and evocative, and Maya's rendering of the Belter patois is excellent.

The overall message of this series is humane and tender and timely, but it is conveyed in riveting stories, and through characters it's easy to fall in love with.

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Excellent story, brilliant narrator.

Just a fantastic continuation of The Expanse series and a complex yet gripping story. The narrator is just brilliant and makes other audio books sound lacklustre. Hope there's another.

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Just can't stop listening..!

Truly love this series and the performance is outstanding. Straight onto book seven. Cant wait to see where we go..!

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Still amazed and builds on its sci-fi perfection!!

Full on Rocinante and crew goodness. Dealing with Ring politics, Marco as Earth's number 1 enemy on the hunt, but also being hunted. Naomi getting to come to terms with her past, Avaserela pulling no punches but still surprising, some new characters to see through the eyes of, and even Prax.

This one went fast and was enjoyable all the way. I can't stop myself from going right into the next one. I've become obsessed and probably need some help.

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Excellent

I really enjoyed this one.
Much stronger writing of character but It still comes to a powerful climax.

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Converted TV viewer

The books just provide a far more detailed description of the universe and characters in it. I have now completed the book series and I am sad to say the TV series really ended too soon and misrepresented many strong female characters within the book to end it so quickly.

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I really just dig this world

The Expanse is one of my go-to series. I was introduced via the TV series, but enjoy the books so much better. The world-building in this series is phenomenal and the characters are so distinct and complex. Jefferson Mays is an amazing narrator, which really amps up the experience. While I blasted through the first 4, I'm now pacing myself to draw it out longer.

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Make this one last

Where does Babylon's Ashes rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's in the top 5, along with four other James S A Corey books.
Above Paul Hoffman, Robert Harris, Frank Herbert, James Clavell, Steven King... you get the idea.

What did you like best about this story?

Okay, maybe I was waxing a tad lyrical, after all it's the sixth book in the series. But much like the Rocenante's Epstein drive, this series seems to run on a different sort of gas.

What is notable in this book is that it concerns a real, human nemesis worthy of Holden - Marco Innaros. He is a fantastic villain; perpetrator of deeds that would make Atilla the Hun cough, yet with a warped moral framework that masterfully justifies everything he does. James SA Corey is a genius at shifting the narrative voice to describe though process, without changing the overall feel and pace of the book.

This book also has the best space battles out of the series; I would go as far as to say the most exciting ever written. Wait till the rail gun comes out... You'll understand what I mean.

Have you listened to any of Jefferson Mays’s other performances? How does this one compare?

His voice is now part of my head and I'm going to struggle going to sleep tonight without him.
Hence the lengthy review.

Mays has the rare gift of being able to capture the essence of characters with only the slightest changes of intonation. In a book of this scale, subtlety of delivery is key, and I was really awed by his control of the human voice.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

With Earth in ruins, the only thing standing between humanity and a new dark age, is a Martian frigate, its crew... and a rail gun.

Any additional comments?

Good hunting!

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Great continuation of the series

Another great book in the Expanse series. references past books a fair amount, so helps to have read / listened to them.
A couple of the story lines seem to be the to give more depth but don't add to the plot exactly, hence a 4 out of 5

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Best reading ever

I've devoured the entire series. Amazing storytelling, engaging characters, beautifully written and all wrapped up in simply brilliant narration. I felt like I should stand up and clap at the end of this one it was just such an incredible performance.

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