What do the novel titles of The Expanse series refer to?

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The Expanse series has novels with titles based on several religious or mythical images.
What are the origins of the titles and what elements of the story do they refer to?

  1. Leviathan Wakes
  2. Caliban's War
  3. Portão de Abaddon
  4. Cibola Burn
  5. Nemesis Games
  6. Babylon's Ashes
  7. Persepolis Rising
  8. Tiamat's Wrath
por curiousdannii 01.08.2019 / 14:14

1 resposta

1. Leviathan Wakes

O Leviatã is a sea monster in Judaism, most well known from its appearance in the Book of Job.

The title refers to the waking of the long-dormant protomolecule from Phoebe, moon of Saturn.

2. Caliban's War

Caliban is a half human, half monster character from Shakespeare's play A Tempestade.

The title refers to the project which created hybrid human-protomolecule soldiers and the war fought with and over them.

3. Abaddon's Gate

Abaddon is a Hebrew name for the abyss or pit of destruction, as well as an angel personifying the same.

The title refers, I think, to the characters passing through the protomolecule's gate and the rapid forced braking they experience and the destruction that follows.

4. Cibola Burn

O Zuni-Cibola Complex is an archeological site in New Mexico. It was believed by the Spanish to be one of the Seven Cities of Gold.

The title refers to Ilus, a planet settled by both Belter refugees and a mining company from Earth, who both wanted to mine the planet for its valuable lithium. It may also refer to the ancient buildings they find on the planet.

5. Nemesis Games

Nêmesis is a Greek goddess who enacts retribution against the arrogant.

The title refers to Marco Inaros and his Belter "Free Navy" who attack the Earth.

6. Babylon's Ashes

Babilônia was the capital city of the Babylonian Empire. In Jewish and Christian symbolism it stood for the corrupt world, evil, and eventually the Roman Empire.

The title probably refers to the continuing recovery efforts of Earth after Marco's attack, although most book readers would be more likely to sympathise with the Earth's survivors. The title may also be a clue of the Laconian Empire's overtaking of Earth in the next book.

7. Persepolis Rising

Persepolis was the capital of the Persian Empire.

The title refers to the reemergence of the hidden Laconian Empire which, just as the Persian Empire had conquered the Babylonian Empire, then conquered the "Babylon" of Earth, Mars, and all the other inhabited systems.

8. Tiamat's Wrath

Tiamat is the Babylonian goddess of the sea and chaos.

The title refers the unknown alien race which had previously defeated the protomolecule's "Ring Builders" race and is now attacking Humanity (or arguably defending itself), by a variety of means including scrambling the physical parts of humans, causing system-wide consciousness breaks, and destroying everything in the Slow Zone.

01.08.2019 / 14:49