James Holden

James "Jim" Holden is the captain of the Rocinante. Born in Montana on Earth during the early 24th century, Holden joined the United Nations Navy, later being dishonorably discharged after seven years of continuous service. Following the destruction of the ice hauler Canterbury, Holden, along with Naomi Nagata, Amos Burton, Alex Kamal, and Shed Garvey, underwent a quest to uncover the true culprit, uncovering conspiracies and mysteries across the system. His exploits continued aboard the independent frigate Rocinante, eventually raising him to system-wide recognition and his appointment as the first President of the Transport Union.

Holden is an only child of 8 parents whose DNA was artificially combined to create an heir to his parents' fight to preserve one of the last undeveloped wildernesses in Montana. At a time when Earth's population is over 30 billion, there are large incentives for people not to have children and undeveloped land is a distant memory for most Earthers. When he was 18, his closest parent, Elise, in a moment of guilt, told him he had been raised to fight a losing battle and that he should run away as far as possible.

Holden joined Earth's Navy to escape, serving as a First Lieutenant aboard the UNN Zheng Fei until an ethical disagreement turned physical when Holden tried to punch a superior officer. The officer dodged and Holden broke his hand on a bulkhead. Holden was given a general court-martial, convicted and discharged from service. Afterwards, Holden took a job with Pur'n'Kleen Water Company, owner of the Canterbury, looking to get as far from Earth and the UNN as possible.