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4.24 AVERAGE
4.24 AVERAGE
“It occurs to me that our survival may depend upon our talking to one another.”
A group of seven pilgrims are sent to the planet Hyperion, a colony world guarded by the inscrutable killing machine known as the Shrike. During the journey, the pilgrims, each of whom has a personal link to Hyperion, begin to tell each other their stories, and realize that things are much more complicated than they thought. Overall, the series is inspired by the unfinished epic poem Hyperion by John Keats. The first book is modeled after The Canterbury Tales, especially in how each of the pilgrims has an opportunity to tell an individual story. There was a time in my life when classic science fiction like this would seem too dense and feel inaccessible to me, but I found myself easily falling into this world despite my struggles with reading this exact book when I was younger. You need to be patient with this book at times. This book could be considered a collection of novellas or short stories interconnected with a bigger narrative that is woven throughout, and readers will need to exercise some patience when the narrative switches from story to story, and perspective to perspective. I had trouble attaching myself to the world and the characters at first, but the second that the characters sat down to tell their own stories, I was hooked. Every word is precise and weaves the world of this story in a way that captures the reader each time, which prevents the reader from drifting off between short stories. Each tale weaves together a larger narrative while exploring one character at a time. I loved the mystery and horror elements to this classic science fiction story. The Scholar’s Tale was uniquely intriguing and heartbreaking, I loved the exploration of Rachel’s character and her condition. While I did love these individual tales, I only disliked and felt like the pacing was halted with the final one, The Consul’s Tale. It just felt like it halted the story’s pace right at the climax and didn’t realistically feel like the time for another character to tell another story. It didn’t help that the final tale was the weakest of them all. It’s hard to rate this book because it truly is the first half of a greater story. That being said, the first two-thirds of this book were the strongest, and each tale fleshed out a character in the modern timeline, with the conclusion of every tale transitioning the story into the second book as the characters reach their destinations. This book won’t be for everyone, and it should be seen as half of a larger story. I enjoyed this book, and I’m curious to see if they’ll continue this quality of writing into the second instalment and the climax of the story.
“In such seconds of decision entire futures are made.”
A group of seven pilgrims are sent to the planet Hyperion, a colony world guarded by the inscrutable killing machine known as the Shrike. During the journey, the pilgrims, each of whom has a personal link to Hyperion, begin to tell each other their stories, and realize that things are much more complicated than they thought. Overall, the series is inspired by the unfinished epic poem Hyperion by John Keats. The first book is modeled after The Canterbury Tales, especially in how each of the pilgrims has an opportunity to tell an individual story. There was a time in my life when classic science fiction like this would seem too dense and feel inaccessible to me, but I found myself easily falling into this world despite my struggles with reading this exact book when I was younger. You need to be patient with this book at times. This book could be considered a collection of novellas or short stories interconnected with a bigger narrative that is woven throughout, and readers will need to exercise some patience when the narrative switches from story to story, and perspective to perspective. I had trouble attaching myself to the world and the characters at first, but the second that the characters sat down to tell their own stories, I was hooked. Every word is precise and weaves the world of this story in a way that captures the reader each time, which prevents the reader from drifting off between short stories. Each tale weaves together a larger narrative while exploring one character at a time. I loved the mystery and horror elements to this classic science fiction story. The Scholar’s Tale was uniquely intriguing and heartbreaking, I loved the exploration of Rachel’s character and her condition. While I did love these individual tales, I only disliked and felt like the pacing was halted with the final one, The Consul’s Tale. It just felt like it halted the story’s pace right at the climax and didn’t realistically feel like the time for another character to tell another story. It didn’t help that the final tale was the weakest of them all. It’s hard to rate this book because it truly is the first half of a greater story. That being said, the first two-thirds of this book were the strongest, and each tale fleshed out a character in the modern timeline, with the conclusion of every tale transitioning the story into the second book as the characters reach their destinations. This book won’t be for everyone, and it should be seen as half of a larger story. I enjoyed this book, and I’m curious to see if they’ll continue this quality of writing into the second instalment and the climax of the story.
“In such seconds of decision entire futures are made.”
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
Very strong start to a series. I loved having the smaller stories within a story, it feels like I've read 6 different books now. However this did serve to take away all the focus and momentum from the main storyline so I'm looking forward to getting into that and not being distracted from here on.
The writing is very smooth and I like the prose. I absolutely love the worldbuilding. There's so many detail of the world just hinted at that it feels very developed and realistic. The best part is that this was written so long ago and there's some passages that make it so unbelievably predictive of our current situation that you'd think it was written in the last year or two.
I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series, I hope it holds up against this great start.
The writing is very smooth and I like the prose. I absolutely love the worldbuilding. There's so many detail of the world just hinted at that it feels very developed and realistic. The best part is that this was written so long ago and there's some passages that make it so unbelievably predictive of our current situation that you'd think it was written in the last year or two.
I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series, I hope it holds up against this great start.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I can see why this book is a classic. The book is essentially an homage to the Canterbury Tales with its layout but also create a narrative from it's disparate sources and stories that come together and intertwine to create a world like no other. The threat of the enemy, the mysteries at the heart of this world, the lack of resolution at the end is very well done. The book is exceptionally well written and I am interested to see where the trilogy goes.
Boring writing terrible female character author up his own rear end
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Dan Simmons’ Hyperion is a science fiction epic unlike any other—a sprawling, poetic, and deeply human tale that manages to blend the structure of The Canterbury Tales with futuristic space opera and philosophical inquiry. Set against the backdrop of a crumbling galactic civilization, the story follows seven pilgrims on a final journey to the mysterious and deadly world of Hyperion, home of the time-twisting Shrike and the enigmatic Time Tombs.
At first, Hyperion may feel dense and complicated. Simmons throws readers into a richly detailed universe full of new terminology, political factions, and philosophical implications. But the novel's brilliance unfolds as each of the six pilgrims (the seventh remains mysterious until later) takes a turn sharing their deeply personal, often haunting backstories. Each tale is a standalone story, yet they interweave in ways that elevate the whole narrative into something extraordinary.
Father Lenar Hoyt’s account of faith and suffering is both chilling and moving. Colonel Fedmahn Kassad’s story veers into brutal combat and unexpected romance with mythic undertones. Martin Silenus’ tale of a degenerate poet turned prophet is wild, vulgar, and strangely touching. Sol Weintraub’s narrative, centered on his daughter Rachel’s tragic and bizarre condition, is perhaps the emotional heart of the book. And while Brawne Lamia's noir-inspired detective story, involving a romance with an evolving AI, was the least compelling for me, it still offered crucial insight into the deeper mystery of the TechnoCore and humanity’s uneasy relationship with artificial intelligence.
By the end, I was completely enthralled. Simmons’ prose is elegant yet accessible, and his vision of the future is both awe-inspiring and terrifying. The way he weaves theological, philosophical, and literary themes into a hard sci-fi framework is masterful. The book leaves many questions unanswered—but that's part of its beauty. It’s the kind of story that stays with you long after the last page.
Hyperion is not just a story about a pilgrimage. It’s a meditation on time, grief, belief, love, and what it means to be human in the face of cosmic indifference. Highly recommended for readers who want science fiction with depth, heart, and lasting impact.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced