Leviathan Wakes
Two centuries from now, humanity has spread across the solar system. Earth and Mars keep an uneasy peace, while the working people of the Asteroid Belt — the Belters — mine ice and ore under the thumb of the inner planets. Into this fragile balance comes a discovery no one was meant to make.
Jim Holden is executive officer of the Canterbury, an ice hauler working the long run from Saturn's rings to the stations of the Belt. When the Canterbury answers a distress call from a derelict ship called the Scopuli, Holden and his surviving crew find themselves holding a secret that powerful people will kill to keep — one with the power to tip the whole system into war.
On the station of Ceres, detective Joe Miller draws what looks like a routine missing-persons case: locate Julie Mao, the runaway daughter of a wealthy family, and ship her home. The deeper Miller digs, the more his case tangles with Holden's, until both men are chasing the same shadow across a solar system sliding toward catastrophe.
Blending hard science fiction, noir detective mystery, and political thriller, Leviathan Wakes is the opening novel of The Expanse — a sprawling, character-driven space opera about ordinary people caught up in forces far larger than themselves.
Idealistic executive officer of the ice hauler Canterbury who believes hard truths should be made public, no matter the cost.
A jaded, world-weary detective on Ceres Station assigned to track down a missing young woman.
Gifted Belter engineer and a steadying presence in Holden's crew.
The crew's blunt, dangerous, fiercely loyal mechanic.
Easygoing former Martian Navy pilot who flies for Holden's crew.
Leviathan Wakes is the first book in The Expanse series. While it introduces the main characters and setting, the overarching narrative continues across multiple subsequent novels.
Yes, Leviathan Wakes is the basis for the first season of The Expanse television series. The show generally follows the book's plot and characters closely.
The narrative of Leviathan Wakes is told from the alternating perspectives of two main characters, Jim Holden and Detective Joe Miller, offering distinct insights into the unfolding events.
