The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

First thing first, this isn't the Expanse. It is, however, a truly fascinating exploration of a vast prisoner's dilemma on the scale of many, many civilizations.

A hive-like alien civilization basically hoovers-up every alien species in its range, and we humans just happen to be in its path -- on this lonely, strange, colony world.

We follow its scientists and survivors among what amounts to an absentee landlord that just cherry-picks the best parts of our civilization, or any civilization, and us humans are forced to try to survive not just our total captivity, but also our own shit.


Great start to a series. I'm all down for it. It's exciting and enraging just like our reality, only put on a much bigger display. There's choice, but not really. There's huge stakes beyond just us, too, with the threat of another vast enemy. So it's not like we can simply just choose sides. The premise is difficult, complex, and fascinating.



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