130 of 143 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
WHY?, July 26, 2008
Brian Herbert is not his father. With that in mind, I read this book, not expecting him or Kevin to write exactly like Frank. But even with NOT expecting Brian to write just like his father, this book SUCKED. There were SO many things wrong with this book. It was full of unnecessary, plodding details. Alia and Serena Butler acting as Other Memory even though neither of them had surviving descendants, is utter ridiculousness. The Baron-ghola and Erasmus commented on Alia and Serena in Other Memory respectively, wondering how they could be there (just like us readers) yet Brian and Kevin never offer a explanation for this. It's like they're saying 'Well, we're the ghostwriters, so we'll rewrite FH's canon however we want, and you can suck it!'
I was also VERY disappointed in the fact that nothing is revealed of Gilbertus Alban's fate. Erasmus thinks a lot about Serena, but you'd think that he'd have some thoughts about his ward, because out of the entire population of humankind, Serena and Gilbertus are both undeniably very important to Erasmus.
The thing with Norma Cenva and Omnius was one of the most ill-thought out ways to wrap up things, and the fate of some of the gholas, Leto II, Sheeana, etc, was all one HUGE disaster. The ending left me feeling unfulfilled and frustrated. I plodded through what, over 1000 pages (Hunters/Sandworms) only to see this crappy ending that RAPED my fond memories of Dune to the fiber of their very being.
One of the central themes to Frank's Dune books was that we must free ourselves of any one guiding force - hence Leto II Atreides' Golden Path to force the Famine Times and the Scattering, so that humankind would not be united under one ruler and become diversified, finding new ways to survive and learning how to adapt. And this was all RUINED when Duncan Idaho merged with Erasmus to become the Ultimate Kwisatz Haderach. This goes against the very message that Frank Herbet - through his characters Paul Muad'Dib and Leto II - was trying to teach us. Sure, we can assume that Frank had some big plans for Sheeana. After all, she is the descendant of Siona and she was able to control the worms. But I doubt that she would have become a ultimate Kwisatz Haderach. Rather, I feel that Herbert had planned for her to become the next 'example' of the Golden Path, a key figure to ensure humankind's survival after Paul, Leto II, and Siona.
And I was VERY disappointed in the lack of Darwi Odrade's Other Memory in Dune 7. She was so important in Chapterhouse Dune, and Kevin and Brian have all but thrown her aside and concentrated on some storyline concentrating on the gholas aboard the Ithaca and other crap that is really irrelevant to the whole scheme of Dune. Hunters/Sandworms concentrated on the gholas, personal drama, some bull about sea-worms (WTF???) while ignoring main characters that had been vital in previous books.
It would have been far more conceivable for the Other Enemy to be Erasmus himself rather than Omnius, or some rogue Face Dancers or renegade Tleilaxu or a female group more sinister than the Honored Matres, or some twisted male version of the Bene Gesserit or Mentats.
The very ending, with the Paul and Chani gholas just cheesed me off. Everything was wrapped up far too neatly, which is something Herbert would never have done. Leto II fought to keep mankind from stagnating, at personal cost to himself and his reputation, so to ensure its survival in the Scattering. By having Duncan Idaho become the OMG ULTIMATE KWISATZ HADERACH!!!!!!! is bringing humankind under one ruler again and will lead to eventual stagnation again.
And so many details were unnecessary - all the subplots in Dune 7, oy! The House trilogy wasn't such a bad read, but in the grand scheme of the Dune universe was really unnecessary. Frank Herbert was a master of concentrating on the big picture, and painting a grand image with but a few words. He left mentions here and there of history - Butlerian Jihad, Paul's jihad, and what have you. The details of such things is not needed in the grand scheme of the Duneverse. We Dune fans aren't retards who need every single detail expanded on. That's why we liked Frank Herbert. The Duneverse is different from the more familiar and popular sci-fi universes - Star Trek, Star Wars, what have you. Mind you, I'm not badmouthing George Lucas or whatever, but Dune was different and we liked it for that. Brian and Kevin just ruined it for us.
Frank Herbert is without a doubt spinning in his grave. How dare you besmirch his memory by planning to write even MOAR Dune books! We don't need 'Paul of Dune' and whatever else you have planned. Just stop writing, seriously. Haven't you raped Frank Herbert's legacy up the wazoo for long enough? People didn't like the books you wrote, and for good reason. For the sake of Frank Herbert's legacy, just stop.
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60 of 66 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Misunderstand Frank Herbert's originals, September 16, 2008
The book directly contradicts facts established in Frank Herberts originals. Not trivial bits, but major plot points such as who and what important characters are, rewriting the background for the universe, etc.
What is worse is that it makes a mockery of the themes Frank Herbert explored in his originals: Where they discussed the problems of handing over decision-making to mechanical things and power structures, the new books talk of an evil robot trying to eradicate mankind for no apparent reason.
After Frank spent 6 books demolishing the hero archetype, charismatic leaders and our dependency on them and warning us about 'putting all our eggs in one basket' as a species, this book applauds religious fervor to incite mankind to band together under a single leader.
If you liked Frank Herbert's work for the multilayered plotting, believable characters, well crafted universe and themes of humanity, politics and overall philosophical approach to science fiction - you will feel your fond memories violated.
If you thought Dune was an action novel with a few draggy bits but a lot of lasers, giant worms and über-cool heroes and villains - then you might enjoy this and other KJA&BH work. You would also be wrong...
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51 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
As Enraged as an Honored Matre, November 7, 2008
Wow. This novel (along with Hunters) was simply awful, plagued by a childish writing style and uninteresting plot developments. I was very disappointed with this work.
Seaworms? Honestly? You mean to tell me that after thousands of years of experimentation in sandworm propagation, that a half-baked Tlielaxu was the first to think of such a thing? What was the point in doing this? the seaworm plotline was unnecessary for this tale, and does much to diminish the worm mythology.
The rest of the story reads like an unbearably protracted curtain call for all the most famous characters of the Dune universe. The re-introduction of many of these characters was pointless, and contributed little to the development of the story. Such extreme disappointment. I would have preferred a beautifully illustrated coffee table book, containing prints of Herbert's actual notes. Harumph. I would wager that they wouldn't have much in common with this novel as it was published.
Stop milking the cash cow, at let the beauty of the original Dune novels stand on their own. Fellow readers, avoid the temptation to buy this book just to satisfy your craving for a hint of melange. Instead, find an old, beat-up copy of God-Emperor somewhere, and reacquaint yourself with the real deal.
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