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mcr314's review against another edition
3.0
This book was recommended to me some place or by someone... I've forgotten who/what.
I went through a phase 20 years ago, reading collections/anthologies of short stories like those created in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thieves'_World. It's a shared world, mostly fantasy. It became a kind of thing that everyone did, and SF authors did it too, including various panels at SF conferences that often included https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_Ellison creating a planet and populating it.
I think that I would be forgiven to think that Hyperion is really just a collection of (tragic) novellas set in a badly explained future. I certainly felt that way until three quarters through, when some explanations finally were made for bits of the universe... (is there faster than light travel? unclear. Is there instant travel between places? yes, sometimes... What is light debt? Can one go someplace faster than light, on the constraint that hyper-light cones do not intersect? Singularity Sky had something like that...)
It wasn't a page turner. I did care about the characters, especially Weintraub and his daughter Rachel, who got younger and younger every day, (forgetting things ever time she slept); basically living backwards in time.
Today I read the last few pages, and clearly it was book one of a series, with very little hint as to what awaits our heros.
I went through a phase 20 years ago, reading collections/anthologies of short stories like those created in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thieves'_World. It's a shared world, mostly fantasy. It became a kind of thing that everyone did, and SF authors did it too, including various panels at SF conferences that often included https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_Ellison creating a planet and populating it.
I think that I would be forgiven to think that Hyperion is really just a collection of (tragic) novellas set in a badly explained future. I certainly felt that way until three quarters through, when some explanations finally were made for bits of the universe... (is there faster than light travel? unclear. Is there instant travel between places? yes, sometimes... What is light debt? Can one go someplace faster than light, on the constraint that hyper-light cones do not intersect? Singularity Sky had something like that...)
It wasn't a page turner. I did care about the characters, especially Weintraub and his daughter Rachel, who got younger and younger every day, (forgetting things ever time she slept); basically living backwards in time.
Today I read the last few pages, and clearly it was book one of a series, with very little hint as to what awaits our heros.
grayr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
pteroskaska's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Colonisation, Sexual content, Blood, and Violence
odpm612's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
zeetsean's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
cammc86's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.0
squaternutbosch's review against another edition
5.0
The controversial ending peaked my curiosity and it didn't disappoint.
drmaths's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0