Book four of The Expanse series by James S. A. Corey, Cibola Burn, makes up for the torturous storyline of the third book. We also get a chance to step away from all the space drama as our hapless crew makes its way to a newly-found planet where they must decide just who will get the chance to call this new planet a home. The story still contains plenty of space battles and dangerous ship action, but I find the story a nice respite from having to worry about breathable air all the time.

Actually, as I texted my son while halfway through the story, Cibola Burn is like the year 2020 for the series. If it can go wrong, it does. Holden and his crew face some crazy shit, and that’s saying something given everything that has happened in the series so far. But they are unfamiliar dangers, which gives the story some much-needed freshness.

While I knew what was going to happen, thanks to the fact that Cibola Burn is essentially season four of the Amazon Prime series, I still enjoyed every moment of the story. It was fun to get to know a few new characters and get to see the main Rocinante crew outside of their comfort zone. Plus, let’s face it, a planet that is out to get its inhabitants is insane, but the two authors behind the pen name James S. A. Corey manage to pull off the insanity yet again.