The Churn: An Expanse Novella

James S. A. Corey

Apr 2014 · The Expanse Book 11 · Sold by Orbit

About this ebook

A novella set in the hard-scrabble world of James S. A. Corey's NYT-bestselling Expanse series, The Churn takes the bestselling sci-fi series to the dark world of organized crime, drugs, secrets, and murder that shaped the Rocinante's mechanic, Amos. Now a Prime Original series. This story will be available in the complete Expanse story collection, Memory’s Legion.

HUGO AWARD WINNER FOR BEST SERIES

Before his trip to the stars, before the Rocinante, Timmy was confined to a Baltimore where crime paid you or killed you. Unless the authorities got to you first.
On a future Earth beset by overpopulation, pollution, and poverty, people do what they must to survive. The Churn follows a crime boss named Burton as his organization is threatened by a new private security force tasked with cleaning up the city. When the police start cracking down, Burton and his footsoldiers-loyal lieutenant Erich, former prostitute Lydia, and young enforcer Timmy-become increasingly desperate to find a way out.

The Expanse
Leviathan Wakes
Caliban's War
Abaddon's Gate
Cibola Burn
Nemesis Games
Babylon's Ashes
Persepolis Rising
Tiamat's Wrath
​Leviathan Falls

Memory's Legion

The Expanse Short Fiction
Drive
The Butcher of Anderson Station
Gods of Risk
The Churn
The Vital Abyss
Strange Dogs
Auberon
The Sins of Our Fathers

Ratings and reviews

Amos' character has really evolved throughout this series and I've definitely grown to love him and his moral ambiguity. This story shows the root of how he evolved into the trustworthy and honest killer that he is, and really humanizes him. I also liked the description of Earth, since that has lacked detail in the main storyline. I definitely recommend reading this before you read Nemesis Games (Expanse #5) as some of these characters and this history come into the main plot at that point.

The novella stands by itself if you haven't read any of the Expanse series yet, in my opinion. It's a good short story that gives you a little more of a look at what some of the situation is on Earth in the Expanse universe and doesn't shy away from the seedy, and sometimes gory, details. I would recommend it to any who are interested in the series as a whole, or someone that just is interested in getting their feet wet in the sci-fi genre.

These short stories are all about the back story of certain characters. This one had a cool twist to it but unfortunately you'll probably be able to guess it long before it actually happens. Still a nice read to pass the time between Expanse novels.

About the author

James S. A. Corey is the pen name of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. In addition to writing the novels and short stories of The Expanse, they wrote and produced the television series of the same name. Daniel lives with his family in the American southwest. Ty will tell you where he lives when and if he wants you to come over.