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intermeyer's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Dune is a wonderfull exploration of the economics and sociology of its universe, sadly for me Pauls character development takes precedent over the worldbuilding. Additionally the pace of the book speeds up uncomfortably fast towards the end, which is definitly intended to bring across the feeling of a snowball effect gliding out of control but it still feels a bit to rushed towards the end for me. Overall the setting, mood and Pauls development are a delight to read, even if some of the themes are a bit out of their time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Islamophobia, and War
Moderate: Murder, Slavery, Fatphobia, Racism, and Pedophilia
Minor: Rape
philosopher_kj's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, War, Xenophobia, Death, Murder, Gaslighting, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Pregnancy, Classism, Colonisation, Addiction, and Child death
Minor: Slavery
johnathanwet's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Wow, another true classic under the belt, and I couldn’t be happier to have finally read Dune. This was almost a 5 star read for me here. The vast majority of this book is just conversations between people who are all constantly trying to hide the truth from each other, but never quite succeeding - until it suddenly becomes an action move in the 3rd act.
I found the pacing quite surprising with that 3rd act; this is a famously ‘slow-paced’ book, and I would say that is almost true. The first act is certainly slow, and the 2nd act is closer to medium, but it still waltz through the story it is telling. The 3rd act feels like the author ran out time or was told to drastically reduce the word count. I feel like we could have spent much more time with these characters in between the time skip. I feel like the some of the Barons story gets cut, especially considering he is a major POV character with all of these plans.
I would be remiss not to mention the way Herbert uses POV in Dune. It is fascinating. In each chapter there is a character that we follow, and we mostly see the situation through their eyes - but we see the situation through glimpses into everyone else’s experience of the situation too, little thoughts that they have to themselves, reactions that they try to hide from others. The POV structure puts you into Paul’s shoes, who sees everything that could happen or is happening; how other characters cannot hide from him in any meaningful way.
I found the pacing quite surprising with that 3rd act; this is a famously ‘slow-paced’ book, and I would say that is almost true. The first act is certainly slow, and the 2nd act is closer to medium, but it still waltz through the story it is telling. The 3rd act feels like the author ran out time or was told to drastically reduce the word count. I feel like we could have spent much more time with these characters in between the time skip. I feel like the some of the Barons story gets cut, especially considering he is a major POV character with all of these plans.
I would be remiss not to mention the way Herbert uses POV in Dune. It is fascinating. In each chapter there is a character that we follow, and we mostly see the situation through their eyes - but we see the situation through glimpses into everyone else’s experience of the situation too, little thoughts that they have to themselves, reactions that they try to hide from others. The POV structure puts you into Paul’s shoes, who sees everything that could happen or is happening; how other characters cannot hide from him in any meaningful way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape
kirkencraven's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Rape
sunn_bleach's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I read Dune over 12 years ago in 2011. I strongly enjoyed it; and, this revisit has changed some of my perspective. Herbert doesn't know when to trust you to get things; so much of the subtlety of the book is undercut by the characters giving you one- or two-line summaries about whatever's going on. No! Stop that! The best part of this series is figuring out the intrigue yourself! Herbert feels terrified that a reader might be slightly confused, which is ironic given the obfuscation around the Bene Gesserit and Missionaria Protectiva.
I also found that the book does a lot of telling rather than showing. We're told Paul is ~special~ and ~precocious~ from the start, but he's just asks normal questions. We're told the Suk school has unbreakable conditioning, but the *only* example we have is someone who can't. We're told that Thufir Hawat is a dangerous mentat, but he really screws up everything but one (Feyd-Rautha's gladiator battle). I almost feel like this is one of the few long books that could have been longer; we're given so much from the very beginning that feels subverted without establishment.
I still enjoyed this reread, but more for the ideas than Herbert's prose. Not a horrible thing to have, though!
I also found that the book does a lot of telling rather than showing. We're told Paul is ~special~ and ~precocious~ from the start, but he's just asks normal questions. We're told the Suk school has unbreakable conditioning, but the *only* example we have is someone who can't. We're told that Thufir Hawat is a dangerous mentat, but he really screws up everything but one (Feyd-Rautha's gladiator battle). I almost feel like this is one of the few long books that could have been longer; we're given so much from the very beginning that feels subverted without establishment.
I still enjoyed this reread, but more for the ideas than Herbert's prose. Not a horrible thing to have, though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape
Minor: Child death
garbagebarge69's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Slavery, Misogyny, and Violence
Moderate: Colonisation, Drug use, Grief, Death, Abandonment, and Death of parent
Minor: Pedophilia, Addiction, Blood, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, and Child death
banned_book's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
The ideas presented here must have been mind-blowing during the time it was published for the impact it made on modern culture. I can recognize that. But the prose was insultingly basic, and gave no room for the characters to grow beyond cookie cutter tropes. The dialogue was a painful slog to get through, and almost exclusively constructed of as-you-know-Bobs. I heard for years that the worldbuilding was dense and difficult to follow. No. Herbert drives information into your skull repetitively as if you could not grasp it the first time. This book has not aged well.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Slavery, Misogyny, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Drug use, Colonisation, War, and Cultural appropriation
dpekus's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Politika, filosofija, religija, ekologija, ekonomika ir dar visko ko tik įmanoma įsivaizduoti. Per tokio ilgio knygą aprašomas pasaulis vis labiau atsiveria su kiekvienu puslapiu - pradžioje nelabai aišku nei kas vyksta, nei kas čia per personažai aprašomi, bet nelabai supranta ir pagrindinis personažas, bet su laiku viskas ateina.
Daug siužeto vingių, šokinėjimų tarp personažų, tai skaitosi ganėtinai lėtai, bet tuo visiškai neįmanoma nesimėgauti. Turbūt geriausias dalykas ką apskritai esu skaitęs, bent jau kūrybiškiausias tai tikrai. Lekiu iškart skaityti kitos dalies.
Daug siužeto vingių, šokinėjimų tarp personažų, tai skaitosi ganėtinai lėtai, bet tuo visiškai neįmanoma nesimėgauti. Turbūt geriausias dalykas ką apskritai esu skaitęs, bent jau kūrybiškiausias tai tikrai. Lekiu iškart skaityti kitos dalies.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Pedophilia and Child death
Minor: Rape and Slavery
veronyqueso's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Dune is an indisputable classic. If you want to understand the blueprint for many of the sci-fi media we love today, then read Dune. Admittedly, it took me 2 years of on and off reading to finish Dune. It's a dense story that can be confusing. However, I never forgot the incredible world building and powerful characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Death
Moderate: Violence
dani_mac13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Torture, Death, Murder, War, and Addiction