I do love The Expanse series, but holy hell was book three, Abaddon’s Gate by James S. A. Corey boring. It is no fault of the narrator. His performance was as stellar as always. My reaction is not even due to the fact that I knew what was going to happen because I already saw season three of the television series. In fact, there was a character in the book that I really wish was in the show because he was that interesting.
Still, television has an advantage over the novel this time around because they can add lots of visuals to help offset the lack of story. They can also condense scenes that take way too many chapters into a matter of minutes to improve the story’s flow. Plus, they can make improvements to certain characters to make them not only interesting but more relevant to the action. In other words, they can do what an editor should have done to the novel.
There is no reason for Abaddon’s Gate to be 576 pages or 19+ hours. It is too long for what little actually happens and is in dire need of a good edit. Unfortunately, you can’t skip much either because this is a key plot point in the series itself, one that sets the stage for the next two novels. So, my advice is to push through this one because the next two stories are fantastic. After all, not every book in a series can be stellar.
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