The Expanse authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, who use the pen name James S. A. Corey, have finished their book series before George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones, winning a bet with the author. Corey’s beloved space opera has spawned short stories, novellas, and a television series. The first book in The Expanse series, Leviathan Wakes, and the fifth entry in A Song of Ice and Fire, A Dance with Dragons, were published in 2011. That same year, the immensely successful TV adaptation of Martin’s fantasy novels, Game of Thrones, premiered on HBO.
The TV adaptation of The Expanse, which is often described as “Game of Thrones in space,” premiered on Syfy in 2015. Despite being critically acclaimed, the network canceled the show after its first three seasons; however, thanks to a fan petition, Amazon Prime Video revived it, and its subsequent seasons have been released on its platform. Last year, Amazon announced a renewal of The Expanse for season 6, also the show's last. Like Game of Thrones, each season of The Expanse has benefitted from its source material. Unlike Game of Thrones’ divisive final seasons, every season of The Expanse has had published material to draw from. The ninth and final book in The Expanse series, Leviathan Falls, has been completed while the sixth (and not final) entry in A Song of Ice and Fire, The Winds of Winter, has yet to be released.
Corey recently announced the completion of Leviathan Falls a decade after starting their science fiction novels with Leviathan Wakes. The manuscript is currently in the hands of the publishers at Orbit Books. The authors also revealed that, by handing in Leviathan Falls, they’ve won a bet with Martin on who would finish their respective series first, though they later clarified any bets "were made in jest between friends." Check out Corey's tweets below.
Before collaborating with Abraham and adopting a pen name, Franck actually served as Martin’s assistant. On top of that, Abraham adapted several of Martin’s novels into comics. It’s worth noting that the entire Expanse series was written while readers waited for The Winds of Winter. It's unclear whether Corey's bet—which is obviously all in good fun—to finish their series was made before Martin completed The Winds of Winter or A Song of Ice and Fire. While the latter was proactively “adapted” in its entirety, Amazon’s The Expanse will end before reaching the books’ conclusion.
Twenty-eight years pass between the events of the sixth and seventh books in The Expanse series. According to those behind the show, it will embrace this breaking-off point and wrap up things nicely. Though The Expanse season 6 was always planned to be the end, the producers haven’t ruled out another revival down the road. Regardless, for viewers who find season 6’s ending unsatisfactory, they can always turn to the books for a more definitive and expansive conclusion—something that can’t be said for Game of Thrones.
Source: James S.A. Corey 1, 2