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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
Finally get details of Gunny backstory and his hatred of the Harkonnens. The fact that he never gets his vengeance on Roban helps explain his hatred. Harkonnens spice stockpiles explained why they were just rumors and why Paul never found them.
I would very much like to see the sandworm cane the baron originally used.
Roban and his younger brother were specifically made by Bene Gesserit for the breeding plan secretly.
Fenring was a failed Paul, which is why he's sterile.
Learn that the room of plants that was found wasn't made by Harkonnens but by Fenring for his wife.
Yueh's wife was a known member of the sisterhood but they never helped him, he knew they had already attacked the baron before with the disease so why not ask for their help? We learn how the doc was brought under Leto's employ, and what Docs original work and how he met the baron and piter.
The sisterhood has more than just the box to test for humans that are never mentioned. The box is mentioned as only being mental and not harming you truly, but a larger box is used in previous books that caused physical damage.
Learn about how the water of life is made and what happens when used wrong.
Life of the Kinds we know and how he maintained his rank and started the attacks on the Harkonnens.
Leto had a previous child that's never mentioned named Victor.
The Tleilaxu hatred for Leto and his family is never mentioned.
Duncan's time with the sword masters of Ginaz.
I would very much like to see the sandworm cane the baron originally used.
Roban and his younger brother were specifically made by Bene Gesserit for the breeding plan secretly.
Fenring was a failed Paul, which is why he's sterile.
Learn that the room of plants that was found wasn't made by Harkonnens but by Fenring for his wife.
Yueh's wife was a known member of the sisterhood but they never helped him, he knew they had already attacked the baron before with the disease so why not ask for their help? We learn how the doc was brought under Leto's employ, and what Docs original work and how he met the baron and piter.
The sisterhood has more than just the box to test for humans that are never mentioned. The box is mentioned as only being mental and not harming you truly, but a larger box is used in previous books that caused physical damage.
Learn about how the water of life is made and what happens when used wrong.
Life of the Kinds we know and how he maintained his rank and started the attacks on the Harkonnens.
Leto had a previous child that's never mentioned named Victor.
The Tleilaxu hatred for Leto and his family is never mentioned.
Duncan's time with the sword masters of Ginaz.
As I stated in the first book of this series, I was concerned about the quality of the story vs the Original. I personally feel that the quality is on par. Dune is the penultimate story but this series does a great job getting all of the players into position for it. We are learning about Duncan Idaho, Gurney Halleck, Duke Leto, Jessica, the Harkonnen's and other plots and sub-plots. I have found the story fascinating.
The ending of this novel was rough - certain events, which you knew had to be coming, happened to shake the Atreide's world. We can see the Duke from Dune starting to be built - brick by experienced brick in this series. Some of these Bricks are bitter indeed.
Almost everything is now where I would expect them to be...and there is a third novel in this prelude trilogy. I expect that novel to lead us to where Atreide's is given governorship to Arrakis.
If you like the Dune novels... These really are a must read.
The ending of this novel was rough - certain events, which you knew had to be coming, happened to shake the Atreide's world. We can see the Duke from Dune starting to be built - brick by experienced brick in this series. Some of these Bricks are bitter indeed.
Almost everything is now where I would expect them to be...and there is a third novel in this prelude trilogy. I expect that novel to lead us to where Atreide's is given governorship to Arrakis.
If you like the Dune novels... These really are a must read.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Star Rating: 4 stars
Date: 8/26/23 – 9/4/23
Note: This is the 2nd book in the Prelude to Dune or House Trilogy as well as the 8th book in the Dune Universe reading order so this will not be an in-depth review.
As I have stated in multiple reviews before, I have discovered my love of classic science fiction and fantasy and have been reading through a lot of the famous series in that sub-genre, and that includes the Dune Universe, and the one I was most recently able to get is Dune: House Harkonnen, the 2nd book in the Prelude to Dune or House trilogy as well as the 8th book in the overarching Dune Universe. (I have a system where I read 1 book from each series that I’m reading until I run out of series then I start over. Although, my new releases do throw this pattern off since I have to read them as soon as they come out because I get most of what I read from the library and new releases have long waiting lists so they have to be turned over quickly.)
As I have stated in most of my reviews of this series, I do not understand the anger that stems from Brian Herbert’s fleshing out his father’s series as, in my opinion, it seems like he is doing it in a respectful way. If you read the original Dune by Frank Herbert, then you know that there is a lot of contextual information that the elder Herbert does not explain and this information does relate to the plot so when you read Dune, you have to accept that you stepped into the middle of a story and aren’t really getting the whole picture. For some readers, the ones that the anger stems from, they are satisfied with this, however, when I read Dune, I found myself wanting that context. This is where the younger Herbert comes in because he stepped in and wrote the books, along with his writing partner, to give the readers that wanted it that context as well as finishing his father’s arc of the series. (His father passed away before he could complete it.)
If you want to know why I am bringing this up in this review specifically, it is because there is a relationship between two characters in this book, Liet and his father, Pardot, that I think is a direct representation of the younger Herbert’s relationship with his illustrious father. These two characters even have a conversion on page about the fact that Pardot, the father, is interested in the big picture of what he is trying to accomplish within the narrative, which I won’t spoil, while is son is more balanced, in that, he is interested not only in the big picture, but also the smaller details, and if you look at their writing styles and how they each tackled the narrative of Dune, then you will see some similarities. I just thought it was interesting and kind of endearing that he was able to let that relationship influence his writing.
However, as I mentioned previously, this book is the son’s attempt to flesh out his father’s narrative and give it the context it deserves, and he does this by setting up a lot of the themes and characters that will pay off explosively in his father’s Dune. He and Anderson have been doing this throughout their installments in this universe, but all their groundwork is now becoming stunningly clear as these books are direct prequels to Dune and feature almost exclusively the same cast of characters. If you want to understand the feud between the Harkonnens and Atreides or you want to know what the Bene Gesserit and their Missionaria Protectiva and Panoplia Prophecticus is, then please read the books that younger Herbert and Anderson wrote, it will give you that information without altering the complexity that you have come to expect from Dune.
One final note, however, this book was not as tightly wound as some of the others. It was still entertaining and greatly helped flesh out the world in ways I was seeking, but the narrative itself was not as engaging as some of the others, which is the reason why I deducted a star, however, I am looking forward to reading the final book in this arc, Dune: House Corrino, in the next few months as well as the rest of the books in this series. (I am specifically excited to reread the original Dune now that I have this extra context.) 4 stars and will be purchasing my own copy for my forever shelves!!!!!!!!!!!!
Date: 8/26/23 – 9/4/23
Note: This is the 2nd book in the Prelude to Dune or House Trilogy as well as the 8th book in the Dune Universe reading order so this will not be an in-depth review.
As I have stated in multiple reviews before, I have discovered my love of classic science fiction and fantasy and have been reading through a lot of the famous series in that sub-genre, and that includes the Dune Universe, and the one I was most recently able to get is Dune: House Harkonnen, the 2nd book in the Prelude to Dune or House trilogy as well as the 8th book in the overarching Dune Universe. (I have a system where I read 1 book from each series that I’m reading until I run out of series then I start over. Although, my new releases do throw this pattern off since I have to read them as soon as they come out because I get most of what I read from the library and new releases have long waiting lists so they have to be turned over quickly.)
As I have stated in most of my reviews of this series, I do not understand the anger that stems from Brian Herbert’s fleshing out his father’s series as, in my opinion, it seems like he is doing it in a respectful way. If you read the original Dune by Frank Herbert, then you know that there is a lot of contextual information that the elder Herbert does not explain and this information does relate to the plot so when you read Dune, you have to accept that you stepped into the middle of a story and aren’t really getting the whole picture. For some readers, the ones that the anger stems from, they are satisfied with this, however, when I read Dune, I found myself wanting that context. This is where the younger Herbert comes in because he stepped in and wrote the books, along with his writing partner, to give the readers that wanted it that context as well as finishing his father’s arc of the series. (His father passed away before he could complete it.)
If you want to know why I am bringing this up in this review specifically, it is because there is a relationship between two characters in this book, Liet and his father, Pardot, that I think is a direct representation of the younger Herbert’s relationship with his illustrious father. These two characters even have a conversion on page about the fact that Pardot, the father, is interested in the big picture of what he is trying to accomplish within the narrative, which I won’t spoil, while is son is more balanced, in that, he is interested not only in the big picture, but also the smaller details, and if you look at their writing styles and how they each tackled the narrative of Dune, then you will see some similarities. I just thought it was interesting and kind of endearing that he was able to let that relationship influence his writing.
However, as I mentioned previously, this book is the son’s attempt to flesh out his father’s narrative and give it the context it deserves, and he does this by setting up a lot of the themes and characters that will pay off explosively in his father’s Dune. He and Anderson have been doing this throughout their installments in this universe, but all their groundwork is now becoming stunningly clear as these books are direct prequels to Dune and feature almost exclusively the same cast of characters. If you want to understand the feud between the Harkonnens and Atreides or you want to know what the Bene Gesserit and their Missionaria Protectiva and Panoplia Prophecticus is, then please read the books that younger Herbert and Anderson wrote, it will give you that information without altering the complexity that you have come to expect from Dune.
One final note, however, this book was not as tightly wound as some of the others. It was still entertaining and greatly helped flesh out the world in ways I was seeking, but the narrative itself was not as engaging as some of the others, which is the reason why I deducted a star, however, I am looking forward to reading the final book in this arc, Dune: House Corrino, in the next few months as well as the rest of the books in this series. (I am specifically excited to reread the original Dune now that I have this extra context.) 4 stars and will be purchasing my own copy for my forever shelves!!!!!!!!!!!!
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Great book but wow that was sad. Did not expect these backstories to get so dark. Duke Leto Atreides…you have been through so much…
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Sexual content is ridiculous and over emphasized
This was... just about readable, and because it is predictable and must inevitably fit into the imminent narrative of his father's vastly more nuanced work, it stands up. But somehow the narrative does not ever really thrum or impress, the descriptions are invariably predictable, and the abuses of the titular clan are unimaginably base and unpleasant. There is no sensitivity in it, but it works and is easy, if not always wholesome and uplifting, reading.
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes