This book is the fourth book of the Expanse Series and it is just as exciting as the three preceding this. In Cibola Burn, they cover the exploration past the rings that are found at the end of Book 3. A Belter community landed first and started to mine and explore the planet “Ilus,” also known as “First Landing.” When the rest of the space entities found out, they flew a huge arc of corporate scientists and engineers to stake a claim over the entire planet, calling the original settlers “squatters.” As one can imagine, things do not go as planned and they are met with opposing forces from the original Belter group who landed first.

I appreciate the struggle portrayed between humans attempting to terraform a strange planet that is an 18-month trip away from the Milky Way galaxy. This story describes in detail how conflicting views amongst two different explorers can make everything go badly, very quickly. It has a real feel to how life was on earth back when new land was discovered and proves that humans never change. The chaos builds and builds as the story goes on. James Holden is sent in to quell the rebellion, but ends up getting mixed up in between all sides. As a result, more conflict ensues. If you are starting the Expanse Series, I recommend you read on to this book and beyond. I am now starting Book 5!