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A review by yevolem
The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons
5.0
As with the first book, The Fall of Hyperion was narrated through a frame story. This time it's told through dreams, though considering how accurate they seem to be, it may as well be the same as telling each other stories. The dream sequences follow the pilgrims of the first book and they were more horror oriented than I expected. They even joke about horror movie tropes. There's a lot of humor, which I enjoyed considerably more this time. The space opera scenes of the frame story were the highlight of the book for me and reminded me that I need to read more space opera that I enjoy, but that seems difficult for me to find. There were spaceship battles, governmental politics, diplomacy, and so many differing societies on so many planets.
I was surprised by how many different ideas were included. Many of the ideas could each be the focus of their own novel. This abundance of ideas meant that there wasn't much development for most of them. Simmons presented an amazingly accurate depiction of smartphone addiction and technological dependence. The Hegemony had gone far beyond globalism and their interdependence astonished me. The story and character reactions crossed into melodrama and hysteria a few times, but the extremely online are often like that. My favorite concept continued to be the elimination of distance through portals. I may have an unreasonable like for portals, but it's not something that I actively seek out, because I don't for almost anything.
There were several questionable narrative choices and little that can hold up under scrutiny, but sometimes that's irrelevant. What matters most to me is how much I enjoy something, whatever it may be. It's not the only consideration, though it is the primary one. This was an utter delight to read and I enjoyed it as much as the first. The first book had higher highs and lower lows while this one provided a smoother reading experience that was almost uniformly pleasant. There were so many passages that I considered including here. Not the poetry though, I didn't really care for it. Also, the descriptions of the female body and the sex scenes were quite something again.
The ending and epilogue took an unexpected turn in that it explained what truly mattered most in the universe, provided the final answer to a religious question, and made a few political statements. There also was a scene that seemed out of place and I assume was for comedic relief and may have been a reference that I can only guess at. Simmons almost had too much fun with the ending and epilogue. I don't know whether that's what he usually does or not. The final lines were nearly identical to those of the first book, but somehow I found that I didn't mind at all this time. I know the remaining two books aren't supposed to be anywhere as enjoyable, but I'm cautiously optimistic anyway.
I was surprised by how many different ideas were included. Many of the ideas could each be the focus of their own novel. This abundance of ideas meant that there wasn't much development for most of them. Simmons presented an amazingly accurate depiction of smartphone addiction and technological dependence. The Hegemony had gone far beyond globalism and their interdependence astonished me. The story and character reactions crossed into melodrama and hysteria a few times, but the extremely online are often like that. My favorite concept continued to be the elimination of distance through portals. I may have an unreasonable like for portals, but it's not something that I actively seek out, because I don't for almost anything.
There were several questionable narrative choices and little that can hold up under scrutiny, but sometimes that's irrelevant. What matters most to me is how much I enjoy something, whatever it may be. It's not the only consideration, though it is the primary one. This was an utter delight to read and I enjoyed it as much as the first. The first book had higher highs and lower lows while this one provided a smoother reading experience that was almost uniformly pleasant. There were so many passages that I considered including here. Not the poetry though, I didn't really care for it. Also, the descriptions of the female body and the sex scenes were quite something again.
The ending and epilogue took an unexpected turn in that it explained what truly mattered most in the universe, provided the final answer to a religious question, and made a few political statements. There also was a scene that seemed out of place and I assume was for comedic relief and may have been a reference that I can only guess at. Simmons almost had too much fun with the ending and epilogue. I don't know whether that's what he usually does or not. The final lines were nearly identical to those of the first book, but somehow I found that I didn't mind at all this time. I know the remaining two books aren't supposed to be anywhere as enjoyable, but I'm cautiously optimistic anyway.