Customer Reviews

House Atreides (Dune: House Trilogy, Book 1)

5 star:		(123)
4 star:		(118)
3 star:		(84)
2 star:		(48)
1 star:		(53)

 

 

Dune: House Atreides is the first in the expansions to the Dune legacy created by Frank Herbert, this novel is set approximately 45 years prior to the first Dune novel written in 1963. Written by Brian Herbert, the son of the author of Dune, with co-writer Kevin J. Anderson, the duo has huge footsteps in which to follow. The novel takes us through the lives of the young Leto Atreides the man who would soon be Duke Leto and father to Muad'Dib, Duncan Idaho and his escape from the Harkonnen slave pits, Baron Harkonnen's early dealings with the planet Arrakis and his subsequent siring of Lady Jessica, Shaddam Corrino and his ascendancy to the emperor's throne with the help of childhood friend Hasmir Fenring, Thufir Hawat, and the original planetologist assigned to Arrakis by the Emperor Elrood, Pardo Kynes.

Now if that looks like a mouthful, even to a seasoned Dune fanatic, wait till you try to chew on all of the additional characters that these key players meet and interact with. It's enough to make your head spin. When you mash all of these plotlines together into one novel like this (and the first in a trilogy, so you know that the next two will be more of the same characters and certainly an equal number of new characters) you are left with a meal consisting of delicately sipping a vintage wine in between bites of chili-cheese fries. The chapters get shorter and shorter as the book progresses and end up more akin to a few frames of an after-school cartoon rather than something worth reading, pondering, digesting, and perhaps re-reading again someday. Nope. One read through on this book and you will probably need to brush your teeth just to get the bad taste out of your mouth.

The entire Pardo Kynes story simply does not belong in this novel. It is little more than a fleshed out version of Appendix One from Dune, and Frank Herbert wrote a more compelling version in 6 or 7 pages than son Herbert and co-writer Anderson do with a dozen chapters. Pluck this plotline out of this book altogether and make it a smaller, separate book of its own. It's presence here shows us how little these two really know about storytelling.

For those of us who have been Dune fanatics for any portion of the past 3-1/2 decades, we get to look forward do at least one major Duniverse error in each of these chapters, whether from the Baron's lean, muscular physique, to Duncan Idaho's curiously missing sister and absence of slave pits, to just about everyone and his brother being acquainted with the Bene Gesserit's breeding programs. Gone is the mystery of the Bene Gesserit, the origins of spice, and the inner workings of Ix. We even have Vladimir Harkonnen's suggested inclination toward boy sex toys (from Dune and Children of Dune) clearly laid out as no-holds-barred homosexuality. Makes you wonder how he is going to become the father of the future Jessica Atreides, hmmm? Well, never fear, but our wonderful Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohaim will find herself the future mother of Jessica through a surprising tryst with the Baron. OMG! Where did these boys miss the repeated references in the Dune chronicles to the multiple bastard children the Baron had by his reckless youthful adventures? The son Herbert insists that upon reading his father's notes, though, that the Baron is gay (not maybe even a little bi) and is forced to father this child (and another!) through a few weak plot points and manipulations. Wow! The imaginations of a pair of writers is limited by their extreme belief in polarities and simplicities. Every nuance is good/bad, straight/gay, obviously planned out and panned out.

Every attempt at complexity can't escape the suffocating breath of complicated and contrived. If the reader wanted to scrutinize the text piece by piece, consider such timeless phrases as "by the saints and sinners" or "the work of Satan" or how about "stronger than adamantium." What, is this suddenly an X-Men novel?

The inherent problem with any prequel, as clearly visible in the Star Wars prequels, is how to make use of the information that already exists in the later novels, and enhance it in the prequels, while not spelling out the details of what were surprises in the original series. If we know that Jessica is Baron Harkonnen's child, then where is the surprise upon reading Frank Herbert's Dune that the Baron is Paul's grandfather?

Another problem with prequels, especially with decades between the actual writing of them, is to be careful not to introduce technology or advancements that would be inexplicably absent in the later novels or would give people an undue advantage if they were so readily available. Let's call into question these strange earplugs that Baron Harkonnen uses to make himself impervious to the Voice? You would think by the time of Dune, in relation to this book, that everyone in court would have such earplugs to avoid manipulation by the Bene Gesserit. Of course what follows is sure to upset the Bene Gesserit fans: A Reverend Mother is stunned by the future equivalent of a tazer and then she is raped! Let's not even consider that some strange disappearing no-ship technology wanders into the Baron's hands. This would become real useful to wipe out a pesky Duke who took over Arrakis. Come on! Reality check!

This book feels more like a color by numbers painting that a child could easily do, rather than a complex and intriguing work of art. The authors are trying to connect too many dots into one story, and they are winking at the readers repeatedly as they try to be clever with tying in as many Dune themes as possible, even themes that will not resurface for 4500 years in Heretics of Dune or Chapterhouse Dune, or more frighteningly, in the ever-present Dune 7 and 8 looming on the horizon...This reader is afraid to continue on to the next book, House Harkonnen...

Okay, first things first: No, Brian Herbert is not as good an author as his father and no, this book is not as good as the original. Of course, Frank Herbert was probably the best science fiction author of the past 50 years and "Dune" is perhaps the best science fiction novel ever written. So those are rather impossible standards for Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson to live up to.

"Dune: House Atreides" does stand on it's own quite well, however, and is one of the better science fiction novels I have read in a long while.

This book is a prequel centering on the original Leto Atreides, who was killed off in the early pages of the first "Dune" novel. (Leto, we hardly knew ye.) Brian Herbert and co-author Anderson go into the past to write of Leto's adventures long before the Atreides ever went to Arrakis. We follow the young Leto as he battles the Harkkonens and matures into one of the most powerful men in the universe.

Certainly the book lacks a lot of the subtext of Frank Herbert's original novel. And, as with any prequel, there is the problem of us already knowing how this is all going to end.

Still, if the worst you can say about a SF novel is that it "isn't as good as 'Dune'" ...well, you can probably say the very same thing about every other SF book ever written.

My advice is that if you liked the previous "Dune" novels, sit back and enjoy this book for what it is. And don't worry about impossible comparisons.

I've been waiting for a new Dune novel for a long time. Needless to say, I was anxiously awaiting the release of Dune: House Atreides. No one should expect to find the complexities of Frank Herbert's style retained in this new book, I never did. That is not to say that my anticipation for House Atreides was ever diminished. Brian Herbert and K.J. Anderson are both fine authors, but everyone must remember that Frank Herbert was an astonishing, unique talent. That said, House Atreides is fun to read; a well structured story. A person can fly through this book in a day or two, as the authors' style doesn't really lend itself to prolonged contemplation, and that's fine. I was thrilled to learn of the background of my favorite character, Duncan Idaho, as well as a host of other familiar people in the Dune universe. Also, there are plenty of new characters to discover. While there seems to be some contradictions in character behavior, I am reserving judgment until I've read the entire prequel trilogy and look forward to the next book, House Harkonen. There may be a reason for these contradictions to exist. In any event, no Dune fan should pass on this opportunity to revisit Frank Herbert's ultimate creation.

I loved "Dune: House Atreides". There were a couple of things that bothered me though.

One is that near the end A priest of Dur was mentioned, but Dur is the shortening of Guldur (Heritics of Dune)a Gammu name for the God Emperor who was born thousands of years after this.

Two is the seeming common Knowledge that the Tleilaxu are religeous Fanatics but that was kept a total secret by the Tleilaxu until Taraza interragated Waff (Heritics of Dune). They kept a facade of amorality (Neither moral nor immoral / without moral principles) until that point.

One thing that was not wrong but still something I wished for, I had hoped that Idaho would turn out to be an illegitamit son of Palus or Leto. thus a rationalzation of Idaho's rampant gholaing and special abilities. But that was quashed.

A good read, but Don't expect FH's Dune

Writing a prequel to one of the greatest science fiction books ever written is no easy task. Herbert and Anderson are to be commended for even trying to craft this work, based at least partially on the notes left by Brian's illustrious father. Their success, however, is partial and this book is probably only of interest to Dune fanatics.

The book concerns events that happened a generation before Dune. That's about as much as I can say about the plot because its principal fault is the lack of a narrative focus. We are treated to Pardot Kynes starting his lifelong study of Dune, to Shaddam IV scheming to get control of the Empire, to a villanous plot to take over the planet of Ix and to the rise of Leto Atreides. We even get information on the conception of Lady Jessica.

Any one of these stories might have worked but the attempt to put all of them together makes the book slow (at 600+ pages, it is longer than most of the Dune books). A few threads should have been dropped.

Additionally, the suspense of the book is watered down when you've read Dune. You know what the outcome of Leto's trial by forfeiture will be; you know how the Baron's breeding will work out. The really interesting stuff concerns Ix and House Vernius and I could have used a lot more of that and a lot less of Lady Jessica's conception.

The book's appeal is not helped by the authors' style which is slow and repitive. They will tell you about the balance of power in the Empire at least a dozen times. This can be contrasted with Herbert the Elder's style, which was crisp and quick -- so much so that you really have to pay attention to know what was going on. This book is a lot more dumbed down.

Hmmm. It sounds like I'm panning the book. I'm not. It's not *bad*, it's just not *great*. It was an enjoyable read and I found the filling in of Dune's background interesting. Although I knew the eventual outcome, the last hundred pages had me reading rapidly, eager to see what happened. I was reminded of the appendices to Lord of the Rings -- which lack the narrative verve of the novel but are fascinating if you love the world Tolkien created. This is the same -- it lacks the power and lyricism of Dune but is fascinating if you're interested in the history of the Imperium.

The ultimate point is that I went out and bought House Harkonnen after reading this. That should tell you how much I liked it. But then again, I loved Dune. And that's the point of my review. If you loved Dune, you'll like this book. If not, save your money.

I ordered this book with considerable trepidation after reading many of the reviews you can read for yourself on these customer review pages. I had considered waiting for the paperback given some of the vitriol written by some self-identified Dune lovers! Now pushing 50 years of age, I count the original Dune as one of my most-loved sci-fi tales of all time. Although there is valid criticism of House Atreides in these customer reviews , perhaps the one I agree with the most is the authors' compulsion to provide a "recap" of known (and previously established) events, concepts, or character motivations at the beginning of virtually every chapter... even those that have been well-documented in the text of prior chapters! They must feel the reader has the intellect of a Star Wars paperback reader! Nonetheless, I found the book to be an entertaining read. Lacking the mysticism and spirituality of the original Dune (as is almost always true of sequels or "prequels" of any great novel), House Atreides still spins a tale that is entertaining, largely congruent with the events and cast of characters of Dune, and informative regarding the prior generations of Harkkonens, Bene Gesserits, and the Emperor's ancestors.... Reading House Atreides led me to re-read Dune for the first time in 4 or 5 years, and those critical of this prequel may be surprised to find there are also problems with Dune as well...one that I noted more than I remember from prior reads is the repeated references to Paul's "prescient" visions of the galaxy-wide Jihad! Is House Atreides a mind-altering life-changing sci-fi classic? Definitely not! But House Atreides is definitely a good entertaining read that kept me turning the pages and wishing for more.

House Atreides is not worth incurring a water debt, and you may wish to wait for the paperback if your budget is tight, but read it!

Most other reviews here have pointed out the shallowness of the ideas in this novel, manifested in the hollowness of the characters, etc. All of this is true, but when it comes down to it, House Atriedes book simply suffers from bad writing, and ultimately, I feel, bad editing. The writer isn't always to blame. Authors sometimes get so close to their work that glaring inconsistancies become invisible to them. It is then the job of the editor to sort out these problems. That job has not been done well enough in this case. While there are many examples in House Atriedes, one that stood out was the description of a chair as "comfortable" in one sentence, and "uncomfortable" in the next. This was no attempt at irony, metaphor, whatever. Just bad writing. Everything else follows from this. The poor development of character, the debasing of any mythic resonance established in the original series (how about those Salusan bulls - straight out of Lost in Space!), the complete lack of insight or broad philosophical/historical ideas that made the original so exemplary. Worse still, and perhaps somewhat disturbing, was the role of females within the novel. When they weren't sitting around eating fruit and looking pretty, they were being raped, blasted, or eaten in scenes that lingered a little too long for my liking. While men in the novel suffered various noble deaths, there seemed to be a kind of sick delight on the writers parts in establishing and "executing" various cruel ends for the women. I really think this issue has to be addressed before the series continues.

I've had Dune: House Atreides, the first prequel Dune novel, sitting on my night stand for a couple of weeks. Its not that I dislike the Dune books, but Dune is not a novel. It's more like a research project. Frank Herbert's Dune series is arguably the most detailed, complex, and multilayered science fiction opus of all time. Never have I read such enormous books and finished with the feeling that the author needed to explain more. Very few books have forced me to pause, close the book and think carefully about the plot just to keep up. And there on my night stand sat Dune: House Atreides, with a menacing challenge gleaming from the cover. En garde!

I suppose I should start with what House Atreides is not. It's not written by the legendary Frank Herbert, who is deceased. The novel is a joint effort from Herbert's son Brian Herbert, and popular science fiction author Kevin Anderson (Jedi Academy Trilogy). Additionally, it does not continue the Dune books, but rather is a prequel and starts a generation before the initial Dune novel.

It only takes a page to tell the old master is gone. It's not that the new writers are bad, but Frank Herbert's prose is unmistakable, and I doubt there are many writers who could even approach the detailed and complex style that Herbert seemed to spin with such ease. Brian Herbert and Anderson make a strong effort, but it's a pale shadow to one of the most acclaimed science fiction writers ever.

Yet House Atreides is a good book in its own right. While the novel is not as heavy, either in girth or prose, as previous Dune books, it is an entertaining look at young Leto Atreides as he learns the hard lessons of leading a major house in the galactic empire against the intrigues of the evil Harkonnens and even the Padasha Emperor himself. We get to meet familiar characters and learn how they developed in their good or evil ways, and we learn more about the competing schemes of the galaxy's great ruling houses. The new authors are painstaking in the effort to remain consistent with the other Dune books, and this attention to detail is remarkable considering the sheer number of detail in the original novels.

Dune: House Atreides is a relatively easy read and paced quick enough to keep the reader's attention. If I didn't keep comparing the book to the previous novels, I likely would have been impressed. But if you are going to write a Dune Book, then you must be prepared for the inevitable comparisons. House Atreides is good, but few can compare to Frank Herbert.

Brian Herbert attempts to complete the stories leading up to Dune, surely the greatest science fiction novel yet written. However he does not capture the feel of Dune which is so rich and intriguing, a great depth of politics, psychology, personality and hidden agendas and hidden backgrounds which not only create a great mystery and give a mystical feel to the whole story but also capture the reader completely. Frank Herbert knew how to write about people and their characters with such consummate skil, it will be hard to find even in his son or anyone who attempts such a great vision which this book does not. But then it cannot, not really because this vision was created already in Dune itself and as such had to be followed to stay true. The grand scale of Dune and the awesome sense of the Empire is not wholly captured. Some of this was portrayed extremely well in the film with the costumes especially and the various machines and the worms, however it failed to live up to the whole because it simply wasn't long enough you need a long term series to do that, I would think at least 3 or 4 films.

Nonetheless this book maintains the interest and to some degree the sense of the first and it reveals much more information about the main characters, even though one of the strengths of the original was the fact that it held it back. The things one learns about Pardot Kines and his son are fascinating and this is what is remembered most of all.

All in all very entertaining but it doesn't come close to the original.

While noone could, or at least should, expect this novel to live up to Frank Herbert's master work, it is acceptable as a continuation of the storyline. While it is far inferior to both Dune and Children of Dune, it is a far better work that Chapterhouse. What it lacks in plot, however, it makes up for in perpetuating lines of stereotyping and discrimination.

The additional plotlines woven into the text - the backgrounds for Ix, the Bene Tleilax, and Duncan Idaho in particular - provide a good solid backgrounding for the later books in the story. The Baron's story is a good format adopted here to show why he turned out to be so twisted, but the familial backgrounding is weak. The first half of the story dealing with Shaddam and Fenrig's scheming is excellent, but the latter half of this plot-line is contrived and reflects too much of Anderson's involvement in the Star Wars expansion books. The plotline involving Sister Gaius Helen Mohiam is quite ingenious.

As far as the relationship between the text and real life go: the anti-union bias reflected in this text is horrid, the environmental considerations are added in only as a tribute to Herbert (it is obvious that the authors do not share his passion for ecology), the careful attitude adopted by Herbert towards non-European cultures is adandoned and degenerates into racist and xenophobic depictions, and the general background and serious research put into the novels by Herbert is replaced with irrelevant and utterly made-up sceince and biology.

In short, while the book is interesting, the social message is one that should be taken into account by the reader. THe book abandons Herbert's course of wise progressivism in favor of reactionary and regressive stances towards socal issues. One has to read this book with a critical eye to avoid the sexist, racist, and (often) homophobic attitudes adopted by little Herbert and Anderson in the text of this book.