Caliban's War

By: James S. A. Corey

Narrated by: Jefferson Mays

Length: 21 hrs

Publisher's Summary

The second novel in James S. A. Corey's SF New York Times best-selling Expanse series. Now a major television series!

We are not alone.

On Ganymede, breadbasket of the outer planets, a Martian marine watches as her platoon is slaughtered by a monstrous supersoldier. On Earth, a high-level politician struggles to prevent interplanetary war from reigniting. And on Venus, an alien protomolecule has overrun the planet, wreaking massive, mysterious changes and threatening to spread out into the solar system.

In the vast wilderness of space, James Holden and the crew of the Rocinante have been keeping the peace for the Outer Planets Alliance. When they agree to help a scientist search war-torn Ganymede for a missing child, the future of humanity rests on whether a single ship can prevent an alien invasion that may have already begun....

Caliban's War is a breakneck science fiction adventure following the critically acclaimed Leviathan Wakes.

©2012 James S. A. Corey (P)2017 Hachette Audio

Great Book of Great Series

Really nice second book in the Expanse series. I found it just as good as book one. The story and characters continue to evolve as does the proto-molecule. There are a lot of characters in this novel and they are all fleshed out and dynamic. There is action and tension. The science is interesting and believable. The politics are interesting. This is rapidly becoming one of the best series in Sci Fi.

The narration is wonderful and adds to the characters and excitement of the novel.

11 of 11 people found this review helpful

Favorite narrator, favorite scifi author

Great, one if the best, scifi writers... But seriously, this male narrator does a fantastic profanity-laced Indian grandmother.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

I liked Leviathan Wakes; I loved Caliban's War.

What made the experience of listening to Caliban's War the most enjoyable?

I really loved how the writing improved for this book. Leviathan Wakes depended much on the words being spoken, but Caliban's War does a lot to let you understand how those words are spoken, and goes deeper into characters' minds. The additional characters -- Bobby, Avasarala, and Prax -- were all incredibly enjoyable. The plot was also great in a way that builds on the first book without really compromising any of it.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I really loved Prax. I loved seeing into his mind and how it works. But the author did a great job of building a lot of new characters, while also really developing Amos, who was previously very simple. I still think Holden can be obnoxious (but the book is sort of self-aware with that) and it annoys me how Naomi is simplified into an extension of Holden, but the rest were great. Prax, Bobby, fucking Avasarala! All were really fun getting to know. And again, the depth that they added to Amos is really great. Alex took a bit of a backseat in this book, so I am hoping he sees some character development in the books to come.

Which scene was your favorite?

While I REALLY love the space battles -- they are written so well and in an exciting way -- I absolutely loved seeing Prax and Mei get reunited was truly heart-warming. I figured, like Prax did, that she was dead or that if he found her, it would be too late. But he actually found her, and they were actually safe. It was sweet, not bitter sweet, and it felt great.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Humanity has found alien technology, but is set on using it to destroy eachother.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

Thrilling, exiting, surprising.

I arrived to this book series after watching the TV show first. I was happily surprised more than a few times. The book reads (listens!) Like a fine political thriller with some good sci-fi sprinkled over it. Listening to this entry was enough to make me buy the rest of the series.

AUDIBLE 20 REVIEW SWEEPSTAKES ENTRY

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Even Better Than Leviathan Wakes.

Calibans War, does interplanetary politics right. It is not too heavy handed in its approach, making it appear to be more of a spectator sport rather then a game of bureaucratic checkers. The new characters are all well imagined and thought out. Bobbie is probably the most ordinary character, but in an immensely extraordinary situation. Christjen is far and away the most well developed and fleshed out character and it was a treat to see how she operated.

Protomolecule is still present and doing its thing, however we do finally get a glimpse at what it can do other aside from making primordial soup from people. While its presence is short, when it is shown it is a truly imaginative, alien and horrific entity. It has some cosmic level horror, driven home by a seemingly innocuous curiosity of humanity.


The narrator was on point as he had been in Leviathan Wakes, and really strives to differentiate the characters. He was truly a joy to listen to.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

High interest blend of sci-fi, horror, and the human condition

Caliban’s War was one of the most gripping stories that I have read in the last several years. The authors execute a fascinating exploration of the human condition set against the back drop of man’s colonization of the solar system. The diverse array of characters and their intertwining stories makes for a story you can’t put down.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

just amazing

The narrator did a fantastic job with the character voices! Makes it clear who's speaking! the storyline was amazing and very clear. Sometimes I would hope the next chapter would be about a certain character and it wasn't, but by no means was any of it boring because of it. I loved every minute of this story and can't wait to start book 3!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Brilliant follow up to Leviathan Wakes

One more of the detective sci-fi like the first one. Looking for a missing girl again this time. There are some plot holes in the story but on the whole the book is amazing.

Bobby, Avarasala, Prax are great POV too. I would love to read Bobby and Avarasala POV later in the series.

This series has turned out to be more fun than I expected and it keeps getting better.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

I'm Cpt Holden of the Rosi and I endorse this book

This series competes with the multitude of other distractions on my phone -- podcasts, reddit, games -- and wins.

A Neverending Crescendo of Pace and Tension!

The narrative of this book keeps pushing the limit that is "the edge of your seat" beyond the limits of reason... closer by half, then closer by half, then closer by... and its turtles all the way down. It'll leave you straining, waiting for the beat to drop until your pupils are pinpoints, your arteries are rock-hard and you've crushed your teeth to powder with the clench of your jaw. And when in the last line of the book the bass hits, shattering the firmament with the WUB WUB, you'll think of nothing but diving into the waters of the deep that flood over you. Luckily, with Audible, you can dive into those waters immediately... by downloading the next book!