Cibola Burn
The fourth novel in James S.A. Corey's New York Times bestselling Expanse series.
"You can call me a corporation. You can call me a government. I'm the guy here with the most guns, and I say this planet is mine. Now, Captain Holden, was there something you wanted to add?"
The gates have opened the way to thousands of habitable planets, and the land rush has begun. Settlers stream out from humanity's home planets in a vast, poorly controlled flood. Among them, the Rocinante, haunted by the vast, posthuman network of the protomolecule as they investigate what destroyed the great intergalactic society that built the gates and the protomolecule.
A terrible disease has struck one of the new colonies, and only Holden - with help from the ghostly Detective Miller - can find the cure to the illness slaughtering the colonists.
The gates have opened the way to thousands of habitable planets, and the land rush has begun. Settlers stream out from humanity's home planets in a vast, poorly controlled flood, landing on a new world. Among them, the Rocinante, haunted by the vast, posthuman network of the protomolecule as they investigate what destroyed the great intergalactic society that built the gates and the protomolecule.
But Holden and his crew must also contend with the growing tensions between the settlers and the company which owns the official claim to the planet. Both sides will stop at nothing to defend what's theirs, but soon a terrible disease strikes and only Holden - with help from the ghostly Detective Miller - can find the cure.
James S. A. Corey
In the vast universe of modern science fiction, few names have reshaped the genre quite like James S. A. Corey—a pseudonym that conceals a powerful creative duo: Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. Their collaboration gave birth to The Expanse, a sweeping space opera that redefined political intrigue, interplanetary tension, and character-driven storytelling on a galactic scale. With its gritty realism, moral complexity, and vast yet intimate scope, the series captured the imagination of a generation hungry for science fiction grounded not in fantasy, but in plausible futures.
The Expanse
Humanity has reached the stars—but it’s still haunted by its oldest problems.
The Expanse begins not with a heroic mission or utopian dream, but with a missing girl and a mystery that pulls at the fragile threads of a solar system on the brink. Mars, Earth, and the scattered colonies of the Belt live in uneasy balance, each burdened by political tension, economic disparity, and centuries of mistrust. And then something ancient awakens.
The Expanse consists of nine primary books, and includes one additional book that complement the series but is not considered mandatory reads — considered a complete series. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
