So before I get into the nitty gritty nerdery that I’m about to spew all over this review space, bottom line is that this book was comprehensively awesome and you should read it.

You don’t need to have read The Canterbury Tales to appreciate Dan Simmons’ epically epic first installment in the Hyperion Cantos series, and really, I suppose you don’t even need to know anything about The Canterbury Tales, but you’re certainly not going to appreciate this book very much if you don’t. Hyperion, like Chaucer’s famous Middle English collection of tales, follows a group of pilgrims on their way to a famous shrine. As a way to pass the time, they tell stories. In Chaucer, the goal is to tell the best tale, and the winner will get a free meal on their return, but the stories really were a clever way for Chaucer to paint a large and witty portrait of English society. Simmons uses the tales his pilgrims tell to similar effect, except it’s not English society he’s portraying, but a strange and feral one set in a future where Earth has been destroyed and humanity is spread across hundreds of worlds.

Seven pilgrims are journeying to an ancient series of tombs on the Outback world of Hyperion (Outback, meaning not yet connected to the web of farcasters–teleporters, essentially–that connect all the planets in the Hegemony of Man). In the background of their journey, interstellar war is threatening to break out, and they all understand that not only will this be the last such pilgrimage, it is almost certainly the last thing they will ever do. In The Canterbury Tales, the pilgrims are going to the shrine of St. Thomas a Becket. Here, they’re going to see the Shrike. The Shrike is an infamous figure on Hyperion, a seven foot tall monster covered in quicksilver spikes, with red, thousand-faceted eyes. For decades, the Shrike has been supposedly abducting people, all of whom are never seen again. Spaceships and other forms of aircraft cannot approach the Time Tombs where it is located. If they approach the tombs, they come back empty. A religion has also grown up around the cult of the Shrike, and supposedly out of every pilgrimage, the Shrike chooses one person to spare, and to that person he will grant a wish.

This is where our seven pilgrims are headed, and because this isn’t the peaceful type of pilgrimage that ends with everyone holding hands and buying each other beers–in fact, each pilgrim has very specific reasons for being there–they decide to tell each other their stories in hopes to gain some idea of the bigger picture: of the Shrike, the war, the Time Tombs, and each other. This set up is brilliant because it allows Simmons to give us a picture of the world he’s created without infodumping, but in a way that is still satisfying. He also gets to mess around with genre as he’s hopping all over his made-up universe with his characters. He plays around with detective stories, romances, military sci-fi that is concerned with the love of destruction and violence, time-travel, religion, artificial intelligence, murder, horror, revolution, and meditations on creativity and art. His characters are also extremely varied, and while they aren’t all instantly likable, they are all very interesting and engaging.

And of course, threaded throughout each pilgrim’s story are elements of the overarching story about the Shrike. The soldier, the priest, the poet, the detective, the captain, the consul, the scholar: How are they all connected to the Shrike and the Tombs? Why are they really on the pilgrimage? What secrets are they holding? What/who is the Shrike? Where did it come from?

Just so you know, these are mostly answers you won’t get until the end of book two. Hyperion and its sequel, The Fall of Hyperion, are a duology in the truest sense of the word. One can’t exist without the other, but both are also separate entities. Hyperion may not explain all its mysteries, but it does give you a sense of finality once the last pilgrim tells their tale.

I held off on rating both books until I’d finished them and sat on my thoughts for a while, and now that I have, I’m undeniably impressed with Simmons’ achievement. These are the kind of books that are fun and smart, but also woven all the way through with deeper concerns that I could probably spend a crapload of time unpacking. The kind of books that every re-read will tell you something new. But they are also both really satisfying on the most basic storytelling levels. I will have more thoughts in my review for book two concerning the characters, the themes, and Simmons’s prolific use of literary allusion. But for now all you need to know is FIVE STARS.

n  "You have been chosen to return to Hyperion as a member of the Shrike Pilgrimage.”n

This was a tough book to review. It is essentially a bunch of short stories interwoven by the connective tissue of a pilgrimage by a group of desperate people.

Ordinarily, I hate reading short story collections. Alice Munro is about the only author whose short stories I'm willing to pick up. So it is probably fortunate I didn't know going in that this was Hyperion's structure cause I would have noped right out.

As it was, I found this novel engaging and clever. Each of the pilgrim's tales has a different tone- noir, space opera, spiritual parable.

Inevitably some were more enjoyable then others. A few I would have loved to read as complete novels.

The writing was technically skilled. I was more than halfway thru when I realised how completely hooked I was.

My only complaint was that the overarching story (and as a result all of the short stories) were incomplete. The book ended before the final show down.

I really liked the gradual understanding that grows on you about the enormity of what is occurring. It is an ambitious novel and immensely enjoyable. I just wish it hadn't ended so incompletely.

Framed narratives while on pilgrimage to religious site suggestive of The Canterbury Tales, but not drawing any real influence from it. Whereas Chaucer's pilgrims generally do not tell their own stories, the focus in Hyperion is the tale of the teller. The caveat, though, is that each teller's tale is intimately wrapped up with a tale of another: the priest must tell a second priest's story; a soldier, another soldier's; a poet, a patron; a teacher, his daughter; a PI, her lover; a diplomat, a rebel. So, the tales of others are passed along, but only to the extent that the persons embedded in the tellers' tales relate to the teller. The tales are furthermore focused on aspects of Hyperion and the object of the pilgrimage therein; that's not chaucerian, either. And of course there's no proto-bourgeois Hoost in this non-novel to guide the proceedings, nor is there much in the way of humorous infighting between the tellers via their tales (cf. the Summoner v. the Friar in Chaucer, say).

"Non-novel" because it really is a collection of six novelettes that overlap in various ways. Some of the tales are proficient (priest's, soldier's, detective's), and several are affirmatively annoying (consul's, poet's)--but the scholar's tale is very affecting (though I'm not sure if it's cheap sentimentalism or not). But that overlap doesn't make for a sustained narrative. Yeah, the setting gets developed, allowing one to piece together a lengthy political backstory, pushing toward a nasty conclusion.

Some tedious explorations of scifi technology (though it is very cool that one guy has a "home of thirty-eight rooms on thirty-six worlds" (196)). Pedestrian commentary on religion via the figure & church of the Shrike, which is actually not doing it for me, except when the scholar refers to it as the golem (298) which makes it more interesting than it otherwise happens to be. (Poet refers to it as the Frankenstein monster (223)--not seeing that, though the reference is explained.) The object of the pilgrimage is the Shrike's house, the "Time Tombs," a lackluster name, apparently referring to backward arrow of time at that point. Okay, then. Lotsa pointless references to poet Keats. Plenty of bad art theory (from the poet, mostly).

Nifty concept is "time-debt," arising out of travel at relativistic speeds--but the non-novel manifestly fails do anything with that concept other than use it to refer to the effect of everyone else aging while you stay the same.

Pleases me perversely to note that one character has vagina dentata (172). Also like that this story fits into my general thesis that if robots or AIs are part of the story (as opposed to merely being a component of the setting--a fine distinction), then the point of the story will eventually be a robot/AI rebellion.

Reveals that they blew it up, the maniacs, by not-at-all foolishly building a quantum singularity on Earth, and--surprise!--it got loose. Villains of the piece are loony spacemen and some surly computers. Overall, the non-tale framing portions account for about a less than a fifth of the book; that's not sufficient to drive the narrative forward, though there's plenty of generic setting development in there--so, when the pages run out, it's kinda difficult to see the point. Maybe that's cleared up in the sequel. Dunno.

Recommended for fans of dislinear plotting and non-contiguous prose, those involved in Post-Destructionist music theories, and Visigoths crouching on the ruins of Rome's faded glory.

“Words bend our thinking to infinite paths of self-delusion...we lack the objectivity necessary to see the terrible distortion of reality which language brings.”



Dan Simmons' Hyperion is a novel that seems to have it all, a plot that holds the book together, interesting world-building, well-written characters and fantastic storytelling. Its structure of stories, told from the perspective of pilgrims on their way to the Shrike Temple on Hyperion, is based on Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. Rather than instill confidence, that structure made me think about how easily Hyperion could have fizzled. All these voices, though, worked perfectly and revealed something new about Simmons' world. I'd read Hyperion several years ago and, for some reason, didn't continue with the sequel. I need to make sure I keep reading this time.

“To be a true poet is to become God."

I am a sucker for novels made up of short stories; I am a sucker for the Romantic poets (especially Keats); I’m a sucker for spine tingling sci-horror, space opera, sci-fi tragicomedy, sci-tragedy, techno-noir, cyberpunk, conspiracy theories and doomed love stories. I am a sucker for literary intertextuality and pop intertextuality. Mostly though, I am a sucker for a good tale, and that is what Hyperion is, but when I read this story ten years ago I found that it left me a bit cold. I think I finally know why.

But before I get to that, here’s what I thought of each story that makes up Dan Simmons’ award winning novel.

The Priest’s Tale -- “The Man Who Cried God”: A wonderfully creepy story to kick things off. Simmons creates a strange paradise, maybe even a “heaven,” a place of immortality where there are no needs, no cares, no desires, no worries. And isn’t that what we’ve always been told heaven is all about? I know it was what I learned from Sunday school and Catholic church. Yet the Bikura live a life that Father Dure sees as hellish or purgatorial, a dead life, a useless life, but we must remember that he is not one of the Bikura, so he sees their life through the eyes of a man -- not as they see life. Perhaps if he had spent centuries dying and being reborn, if his mind had been erased and he’d slowly become a mongoloid, perhaps then he’d not disdain their life, perhaps then he would find himself in heaven. Whatever the case for the Bikura and Dure, Simmons seems to be making another suggestion entirely: that there is not much to separate our conceptions (or even the reality?) of heaven, hell or purgatory.

And that should be damn creepy for any believer. Even creepier than the sad undeath of Father Dure and the double crosses that infect Father Hoyt.

The Soldier’s Tale -- “The War Lovers”: What begins as a classic, albeit exciting, episode of Shrike connected space opera becomes a wildly sexual and violent orgy of erotic sensation that fully embraces one of Simmons’ favourite themes -- that the cost of life is death (which is why I love him so). This may be my favourite of the stories.

The Poet’s Tale -- “The Hyperion Cantos”: The telling of this story makes Martin Silenus one of the most fully realized characters in Sci-Fi. I believe in him. I believe in him so much I actually want to believe his story, which could be a giant pack of lies being sold by a madman, or the skewed, confused, addled personal truth of an egoistical, arrogant fool, or a completely true story from a tortured soul who knows he won’t be taken as seriously as he should be (And truth, of course, can only be so true in Simmons’ fictional universe).

Silenus’ story, however, is a bit of a conundrum as far as Simmons’ own writing goes. It is an exemplar of Simmons authorial brilliance, but it also reveals his occasional sloppiness of voice and his literary snobbishness. The brilliance is in every frightening metaphor, every laugh-out-loud moment of comedic vulgarity, every molecule that makes up the Martin Silenus we come to know and love or hate. But then comes the sloppiness of voice and literary snobbishness. Simmons has Silenus, in the midst of his myriad literary references, describe the Shrike as Grendel, and then extend the Beowulf analogy throughout his tale. This wouldn’t be a problem, if not for the fact that Colonel Fedmahn Kassad made this connection himself -- only hours before Silenus started telling his story.

Now, Silenus’ natural arrogance and pride in his intelligence wouldn’t allow him to rehash the observances of another so quickly, particularly when there are other metaphors and similes to choose from and when the entire history of literature is at his fingertips. It is an unfortunate moment that mars this third story (although it doesn’t come anywhere near wrecking it for me). Still, it makes me painfully aware of Simmons’ literary references and that conscious awareness aggravates me. From the second Beowulf reference on, I find myself implicated in Simmons’ literary know-it-allness (which could have been his point), but I am not able to have fun with it anymore.

Another thought: is there anyone else out there who would love to read Silenus’ “Hyperion Cantos”? It is one of those great works of fictional fiction that I would love to see.

The Scholar’s Tale -- “The River Lethe’s Taste is Bitter”: Make no mistake, this is as frightening a chapter as any of those that precede it. There may be no Twilight Zone parasite creating inescapable immortality, no ultra-violent orgy of death, no serial killer-esque muse in metal skin and razor sharp limbs, but the Shrike’s reversal of Rachel Weintraub’s aging and the Abraham/Isaac dreams that torment Sol and Sarai are horrifying in a cerebral, emotional, please not-my-kids way. I didn’t find this story as freaky when I read Hyperion a decade ago, but then I didn’t have kids ten years ago, and I wasn’t able to fully appreciate the torture (and even the strange joy) of Rachel’s affliction. It felt personal this time, and I think I’d rather the tortures that plague the other characters than the torture that plagues Sol. His torture hits me in a place that is far too sensitive.

The Detective’s Tale -- “The Long Goodbye”: Here is the action story. This is the “boy’s own” adventure with a girl detective at its heart. It’s a Hollywood blockbuster with all the ingredients: the obligatory chase sequence, the giant action ending, an apocalyptic conspiracy theory and love almost triumphant. And even the heroine’s name is properly overdetermined -- Brawne Lamia -- at least for the lover of a cybrid version of John Keats. It isn’t quite as deep as the other entries in Hyperion, but it is just as entertaining.

The Consul’s Tale -- “Remembering Siri”: All that was left for Simmons to deliver was his tragic love story, and he nails it in the story of Siri and Merin. Relativity and time debt give Siri, (a village girl from Maui-Covenant) and her young lover, Merin (a Shipman who is helping build the new colony planet’s farcaster), just over one hundred and fifty days together in their entire lives. But at the time of their Seventh Reunion Merin is 23 years old and Siri has died in her eighties. Merin attends a pseudo-funeral with his son and his grandchildren, but the former is older than him, and the latter are just under half his age. It’s genuinely sad because Siri's and Merin's love was true. Merin takes up Siri’s cause and tries to finish the fight she started but he's doomed before he even begings. So he passes the task on to his grandson. His grandson the Consul.

One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. One man’s spy is another man’s hero. But if you wanna know which the Consul is you’ll have to tune into The Fall of Hyperion because the answer isn’t in Hyperion.

Ultimately, I think that was at the heart of why I didn’t love this book ten years ago. I wanted closure. I didn't like being left hanging. It doesn’t bother me so much now. I’ll be starting the last book soon, but for now I’ll let the cliffhanger be just that -- a cliffhanger. The answer will be mine soon enough.

1ra reseña: Hace mucho tiempo deseaba leerme este libro. Hoy finalmente lo comienzo. Espero pueda disfrutar una “manera” de ciencia ficción de antaño. Como siempre, las estrellas al final. Comenzamos!

On the eve of Armageddon, with the entire galaxy at war, seven pilgrims set forth on a final voyage to Hyperion seeking the answers to the unsolved riddles of their lives. Each carries a desperate hope--and a terrible secret. And one may hold the fate of humanity in his hands.

Hyperion was our fantasy book club read for May. This is basically like the Canterbury Tales in space. Honestly, I wasn't crazy about the way the book was written with a bunch of individual stories taking up most of it. The stories got mixed reviews from me and also everyone else in our group. Some of the stories reminded me a lot of other stories, especially the scholar's story  Most definitely Benjamin Button  and the Consul's story  The Time Traveler's Wife . I'm going to list the stories here and rate them individually.

The Priest's Story: A huge part of this story is about another Priest and that was the most interesting part. The story started off slow for me. I felt like there was a lot of needless description in the beginning but once it got going I was interested. The mystery of what was going on with those people is what really hooked me. 3 stars.

The Soldier's Story: This one was pretty weird. I really wasn't interested in reading about the battle simulations. My husband liked that about this story and the way historical battles were recreated, like the Battle of Hastings, but I was bored by it and the mysterious woman that kept appearing to him and "making love" to him during the simulations was weird and cheesy and that just overshadowed the rest of the story for me. The one part I did enjoy in this story was when he was trying to get away from the Ousters out on the space ship. A friend of mine referred to him as a MacGyver in space because of this part and I have to agree! 2 stars.

The Poet's Story: This was the worst story in the book. I truly disliked the poet. The man annoyed me throughout the book with his rudeness and foul mouth, and reading about a poet is so boring. I don't often hope that a character dies in a book I'm reading, but this guy would be one of those rare times. 1 star.

The Scholar's Story: In my opinion this was probably the best story in the book. I could relate to Sol and I felt like he was one of the only people in the book that I actually liked. His reasons for going on the pilgrimage were solely for his daughter and I liked how much he cared for her and for his wife. The story is a bit sad, but I still enjoyed it. 3.5 stars.

The Detective's Story: This one was pretty easy to like because for the most part I always like detective stories. I liked Brawne Lamia and I thought the whole thing with the AIs was really interesting. Some of what was going on in the world also began to make sense during this story and I felt like I was beginning to see the bigger picture of where the story arch was going and would head in subsequent books. The only downside to this story was the romance. It was too instant and not very believable. 3 stars.

The Consul's Story: A good chunk of the Consul's story is about his grandfather. I found his grandfather hard to like because of his habit of flitting in and out of the lives of the people that should have been important to him. He was selfish and I don't know why the woman loved him and why she kept doing the same old thing with him over and over. I did like the message she leaves him in the end, but why wait so long to tell him, and why not dump him years before? The part of the story that is about the Consul himself was interesting  especially the whole double agent thing. . 2 stars.

One of the things that I disliked in general about this book is that it contained quite a lot of insta-love (or insta-lust as in the case of The Soldier). It bothered me that most of the relationships between the characters didn't feel very genuine. To me, Sol's relationship with his family was the only one that did, and that's probably one of the reasons I liked his story the best. I think the author of this book is good at world building, but he stinks at writing people and relationships. This book felt like one giant prequel to something and it was definitely a different type of read for me. I think I've had my fill of this world. I can't imagine reading three more books just to find out how it all ends so I will not be continuing on. I will however look up spoilers for the few small things I'm still curious about.

Review also posted at Writings of a Reader

Esto es una reseña, pero creo que sobre todo es un resumen.
n  Contiene algunos spoilers.n


Un futuro en donde a la Tierra -nuestra Tierra- le explotó su núcleo. Un futuro en donde la Tierra ahora es Vieja Tierra. Un futuro en donde la humanidad vive en cientos de planetas. Un futuro en el que la humanidad puede viajar a través de portales -en segundos- de mundo en mundo.

Un presente en donde la guerra contra los éxter está a punto de empezar. Un presente en el que las Tumbas del Tiempo están a punto de abrirse.

Y aun así, es el pasado lo hay que cambiar.

Y el Alcaudón está al acecho.


Hyperion no es una novela fácil de reseñar. ¿Por qué? Por su estructura, por la variedad de temas que trata, por los varios y variados (y complejos) personajes. Por eso más bien creo que esto es un pequeño resumen.


Para hablar de Hyperion -del planeta que da nombre a la novela- hay que decir que el ser humano se ha unido en lo que llaman la Hegemonía, una Red de Mundos que son los que forman la sociedad.
Las IA -inteligencias artificiales-, liberadas del control humano, asesoran a la Hegemonía desde hace siglos.
Más allá de esa Red de Mundos está Hyperion, un planeta en el que se encuentran las Tumbas del Tiempo, algo mandado del futuro y que se cree que contiene un secreto relacionado con un dios, el Alcaudón*.
Por este planeta, Hyperion, no solo la humanidad tiene interés, también lo tienen los éxters*, y todo grupo poderoso del universo.
Parece que las Tumbas suscitan mucho interés...

*Los éxters son descendientes de la Vieja Tierra, pero que evolucionaron de forma independiente del resto de los humanos, buscando su propio camino. Físicamente han cambiado, porque ellos mismos se han cambiado genéticamente, para adaptarse al espacio y a otros planetas y sus ambientes. Por como se describen se parecen un poco a insectos (o así me los he imaginado).

*El Alcaudón es un dios(?) terrenal, físico. Se le describe con forma humanoide, de más de 3 metros, cubierto con una especie de armadura de metal, con cuatro brazos, y lleno todo él de agujas metálicas y cuchillos. Sus ojos son rojos, y tiene colmillos metálicos.



La historia comienza con un grupo de siete personas que va en peregrinación al encuentro del Alcaudón. Este, supuestamente, concederá un deseo a uno de ellos y matará al resto.

La novela trata las increíbles, tristes, impresionantes, historias de estas siete personas.
En el viaje que deben hacer hasta llegar a Hyperion, deciden contarse sus historias para conocer los motivos de su viaje, de cuál fue su primer contacto o su historia con el planeta, y de por qué los escogieron entre cientos/miles de solicitudes para hacer la peregrinación.



LOS PEREGRINOS:

-Primera historia: El hombre que gritó Dios.
*Parásitos, inmortalidad, alma, muerte... Cruciforme.
El protagonista de esta historia es Lenar Hoyt, un sacerdote que narra la historia de otro sacerdote, Paul Duré, del cual tiene su diario personal.
En ese diario el padre Duré cuenta como es el día a día de su viaje al mundo de Hyperion y de cómo vivió con una raza llamada los Bikura. Después de pasar muchos días con ellos descubre una capilla, que el cree que es cristiana, pero que descubre que no, que es un templo donde veneran al Alcaudón. Duré ve a este ser, y después los Bikura le cuelgan al cuello una especie de cristal, un cristal cruciforme.
Al día siguiente descubre que este cristal está pegado a su pecho y no puedo despegárselo.

(Esta primera historia está narrada en forma de diario -diario de Paul Duré-, y en primera persona.
La escena final es terrorífica. Duré se clava a si mismo en un árbol, cual Jesús en la cruz, para intentar terminar con la resurrección que provoca el cruciforme. Pensar cuantas veces le cayeron rayos, murió, resucitó, volvió a morir y así ¿durante cuánto tiempo?
Creo que es mi historia favorita, o mi segunda favorita.)


Segunda historia: Amantes de guerra.
*Amor, Avatar, sexo, batallas... Moneta.
Fedmahn Kassad es el protagonista de esta historia. Un soldado que en su entrenamiento -con simuladores virtuales- conoce a una mujer con la que termina teniendo sexo. No la vuelve a ver hasta que en otra simulación la vuelve a encontrar, y así durante muchas simulaciones.
Él ni siquiera sabe el nombre de ella, pero se enamora.
En un viaje a Hyperion la nave en la que viaja es atacada por los éxter, y todo el mundo muere excepto Kassad. Este despierta en Hyperion, junto a la chica, para descubrir que esta es una aliada del Alcaudón.

(Esta historia fue un poco liosa, sobre todo en la parte de la batalla contra los éxter. Pero para nada es aburrida, y según avanzas el libro vas enterándote mejor de todo. Kassad es un personaje interesante.)


Tercera historia: Los Cantos de Hyperion.
*Cantos, pasado, siglos, Musa... Poema.
Martin Silenus ha vivido siglos gracias a ciertos tratamientos que rejuvenecen.
Después de tener que abandonar su hogar en la Tierra llega a un planeta para trabajar como mano de obra. En esta viaje, por culpa de X razones (se explican), pierde gran parte del habla, dejándole solo seis palabras en su memoria -todas esas palabras eran vulgares, obscenas-. La falta de palabras hace que se obsesione con ellas, así que decide hacerse poeta y comienza a escribir. Una mujer que casualmente lee sus poemas le da la oportunidad de publicarlos... Y tiene un gran éxito.
Se hace famoso y rico gracias a su obra, pero después de eso su editorial y el público deja de tener interés en él. La editorial le da el trabajo de escribir novelas de baja calidad -las cuales tienen mucho éxito-, pero llega un momento en que Silenus se cansa y deja su trabajo.
Después de este suceso se muda a la Ciudad de los Poetas, que está en Hyperion. Allí hace un descubrimiento que lo cambiará todo, y es que su Musa no es otro que el mismísimo Alcaudón.

(La historia de Silenus es bastante interesante, sobre todo hacia el final, cuando se va a vivir a Hyperion y convive con este Triste rey Billy. Me gusta como todo se empieza a volver oscuro, terrible, cuando Silenus más éxito tiene con sus Cantos; y es que empiezan a aparecer gente muerta, asesinada, y en principio nada se sabe, hasta que cada vez queda menos gente, y el Triste rey Billy se da cuenta de que el poeta tiene algo que ver. La escena en la que se enfrentan y que al final el poeta hace que el Alcaudón mate al rey me gustó.
Y es que a veces las musas no son buenas.)


Cuarta historia: El río Leteo sabe amargo.
*Sueños, Tumbas, niña, enfermedad ... Tiempo.
Sol Weintraub es un profesor/investigador, casado y con una hija. Su pequeña, Rachel, es la otra gran protagonista de esta historia, y es que Sol nos cuenta la vida de su hija hasta que es adulta, y se va a Hyperion a estudiar las Tumbas del Tiempo. Allí Rachel tiene un accidente y cae enferma.
Cuando Rachel llega a casa enferma, los médicos no saben qué tiene y sobre todo no saben cómo curarla.
La enfermedad hace que Rachel envejezca al revés, y cada día es más joven. Y no solo eso, además Rachel pierde la memoria cada día, después de irse a dormir.
Si bien Rachel intenta volver a su vida normal, poco a poco el peso de su enfermedad hace mella en ella y vuelve a casa con sus padres.
La prensa los acosa, los vecinos acaban por venderlos, así que al final la familia se muda.
Sol tiene un sueño recurrente en donde algo o alguien le pide que sacrifique a su hija en Hyperion.
Al principio se niega, pero todo tiene un límite...

(Esta historia creo que es la que más nos conmueve a los lectores, supongo que por tratarse, al final, de un bebe y un padre; y también de la madre, no hay que olvidarla.
La impotencia, la rabia, el no saber que hacer, el amor... Todo es tan real que no creo que haya nadie que no sienta lo mismo que siente Sol.
Creo que es mi favorita, junto a la historia del sacerdote.)


Quinta historia: .
*Misterio.
Esta historia debería haberla contado Het Masteen, un templario y el capitán de la nave arbórea Ygdrassill -la nave que los lleva hasta Hyperion-, pero este desaparece antes de poder hacerlo.
En su habitación aparece mucha sangre, así que creen que alguien, o algo, ha podido hacerle algo. No saben que ha ocurrido ni a donde ha podido ir, o a donde han podido llevarlo.

(Me hubiese gustado escuchar la historia de Masteen, parecía un personaje interesante, lleno de secretos. Espero que volvamos a saber de él.)


Sexta historia: El largo adiós.
*Crimen, cíbridos, Keats, amor... Madre.
La protagonista, Brawne Lamia, es una detective a la que un hombre le pide que investigue un asesinato; el asesinato de él mismo. Por supuesto Brawne le pide explicaciones, y el hombre le explica que es un cíbrido y que ha sido desconectado por un corto (creo que era un segundo) tiempo del Núcleo. A ella le parece una tontería, pero para las máquinas eso es igual que un asesinato.
El cíbrido le dice que su nombre es Johnny, y que lo crearon para ser una recreación de un poeta de Vieja Tierra llamado John Keats.
Los dos tienen una relación sentimental a lo largo del relato.
Brawne acepta el encargo y lo primero que hace es investigarlo a él. Al hacer esto descubre que alguien persigue a su cliente, y que este hombre es también un cíbrido.
Brawne y Johnny terminan averiguando que él había pedido ir en peregrinación a la iglesia del Alcaudón, pero no lo recuerda; aunque después dijo que ya no quería ir.
Brawne descubre que Johnny, antes de ser asesinado, habló con un templario, que cree que podría ser Het Masteen, aunque no tiene pruebas.
Después de varios viajes descubren que hay una guerra secreta y de que una facción quiere a toda la humanidad muerta. Hay otras facciones que quieren seguir teniendo relación con los seres humanos, y de ahí que la guerra sea inminente.
Cuando Brawne y Johnny viajan a Hyperion, para ir al templo del Alcaudón, sufren un ataque. Johnny muere, pero ella consigue sobrevivir.
Al final Brawne descubre que está embarazada de Johnny.

(Esta historia fue incluso más liosa que la del soldado. Es verdad que tiene elementos muy interesantes, el tema de los cíbridos, de qué es ser humano, pero hubo ratos en que me perdía un poco; aunque no hay que preocuparse porque casi todo se entiende una vez se termina de leer todo el libro.
Lo que más me gustó de esta historia es cuando Lamia está investigando a su cliente y va descubriéndolo todo.)


Séptima historia: Recordando a Siri.
*Traición, tiempo, venganza, islas... Espía.
Esta es la historia del cónsul, Donel, que empieza contando su historia mostrando al resto de peregrinos una grabación electrónica de su abuelo.
Su abuelo, Merin, fue un navegante estelar que trabajaba en una nave de transporte. Este llega a Alianza-Maui para llevar las piezas para construir los teleyectores que los una al resto de la Hegemonía.
Las deudas temporales por los viajes por el espacio son protagonistas en esta historia, y lo que para Merin son unos meses, en Alianza-Maui son años. Este dato es importante por la relación que tendrá el navegante con una mujer de ese mundo.
Cuando Merin y un compañero de viaje llegan a Alianza-Maui, van a un festival de ese planeta. Después de una disputa con algunos nativos, su compañero muere. Allí conocerá a una mujer llamada Siri, con la que entabla una amistad.
En los siguientes viajes de Merin, él y Siri se enamorarán, e incluso tendrán una familia. Lo que para él son meses, o pocos años, para Siri son muchos años, y cada vez que se ven Merin sigue siendo joven, mientras que ella va envejeciendo visiblemente.
En Alianza-Maui tienen mucho petróleo -que el ser humano todavía usa para hacer sobre todo plástico- y a una parte de los nativos esto les preocupa y se oponen a los teleyectores.
En el último viaje de Merin a este mundo va a ser inaugurado el primer teleyector, pero antes de la inauguración se entera de que Siri ha muerto meses antes.
En la tumba de Siri se encuentra con una grabación que ella le dejó antes de morir. En ella Siri le cuenta que la gente de Alianza-Maui no quiere saber nada de la Hegemonía, y que ella ha organizado una rebelión. Siri le dice que cuando intenten usar por primera vez el teleyector este explotará.
Donel -el cónsul- sigue contando a sus compañeros de viaje que su abuelo luchó de parte de Siri, pero el padre del cónsul -hijo de Siri y Merin- no, ya que estaba a favor de la Hegemonía. Donel quiso luchar con los rebeldes, pero su abuelo no le dejo. Al final su mundo es arrasado por la Hegemonía.
Donel termina siendo cónsul y trabaja para la Hegemonía. Su trabajo le lleva a un planeta en el que tiene que persuadir a los nativos para que provoquen a los éxter, todo porque la Hegemonía tiene intereses en ello, aunque no le dicen cuáles son esos intereses.
Como resultado del ataque de los nativos de Bressia a los éxter, estos atacan de vuelta. Se suponía que el cónsul y su familia no deberían de haber estado todavía en Bressia cuando sucede el contraataque. Su familia muere y él comienza a beber mucho.
Tiempo después le asignan la misión de entablar negociaciones con los éxter. Después de varios viajes los éxter le capturan y el cónsul confiesa los planes de la Hegemonía.
Parece que el cónsul ve con buenos ojos la forma de vida, la evolución, de los éxter. Estos llegan a confiar en él, y le mandan en una misión para abrir las Tumbas del Tiempo. Pero una vez en Hyperion traiciona a los éxter.
El cónsul quiere venganza, venganza contra todos, contra la Hegemonía que destruyó su mundo, y contra los éxter que mataron a su familia.

(Esta es la historia más compleja de las siete. Si bien no ha sido mi favorita, creo que es una de las más importantes, ya que al finalizarla es cuando se entiende el conjunto de todo.)


La novela termina de forma bastante abrupta, con los seis peregrinos cantando una vieja canción -que ellos no saben o no recuerdan que pertenece a la película 'El Mago de Oz'- mientras entran en el lugar donde están las Tumbas del Tiempo.



Una de las mejores cosas que tiene esta novela es la variedad de personajes, y como todas sus historias, que de primeras no tienen nada que ver unas con otras, se entrelazan de formas que no te esperas. El autor tiene todo el control de su historia -o historias- y aunque al principio puede ser confuso, al final todo tiene sentido y todo se entiende.
También los temas son variados, desde la religión, al poder, la guerra, el amor (no solo romántico), tecnología, arte...
El cambio de estilo con cada nueva historia es algo fantástico; es como si leyésemos una novela distinta cada vez que cambiamos de personaje.


Hay varios elementos en el libro que creo que son muy interesantes:
-El primero el Alcaudón, por supuesto. Un dios terrenal, un dios poderoso, malvado, temido, violento, que parece que no responde ante nadie ni nada, y que hace lo que quiere. Físicamente temible también, lleno de metal y de armas cortantes, con ojos rojos... Me ha recordado a Giger (creador de la figura -física- del Alien), creo que es algo que podría haber creado.
La verdad es que no se sabe muy bien si realmente es un dios, o algo creado por alguien... Pero la figura es interesante.
-Lo segundo las naves arbóreas. Las naves que manejan los Templarios. Y sí, el nombre lo dice todo, tienen forma de árbol. Y son enormes. Y me hubiese gustado saber algo más, pero quien sabe, quizás en la segunda parte -La caída de Hyperion- se sepa más sobre las naves.
-Tercero, los cíbridos. Seres mitad humanos, mitad IA. De ellos se sabe bastante, pero en mi opinión es un tema complejo.
-Cuarto, los portales teleyectores. Con ellos se puede viajar a otros mundos en cuestión de un segundo.
-Las alfombras voladoras son el quinto elemento. Que puedo decir, son alfombras que vuelan.
Y me dejo muchas cosas. Muchas.



Si no se lleva las 5 estrellas es porque la novela no termina, hay que leer el siguiente para terminar de saber que ocurre.
La otra razón tiene que ver con gustos personales, para mí no llega a la máxima puntuación; pero eso no quiere decir que no sepa que es una magnífica obra literaria.


He leído que muchas personas creen que este libro es un prólogo larguísimo, y sí, es verdad, pero joder, qué prólogo.
No se si su segunda parte estará a la altura de esta, pero rezo al Alcaudón para que lo esté.

Lo diré de forma sencilla. Hyperion entra en el top 3 de mis mejores lecturas del año.



Simplemente no creo que se haya escrito mejor libro de ciencia ficción después de este. ¡Lo tiene absolutamente todo! Es un deleite.

Se ha hablado mucho y muy bien de esta novela y no quiero alargarme con la trama demasiado porque lo verdaderamente importante de la obra es el juego de información que Simmons nos va entregando de forma magistral. Puede parecer en un principio que la información es un bombardeo, pero trascurridas unas pocas decenas de páginas, el shock del inicio desaparece y lo que queda es un poso sutil en el que Simmons construye su mundo. ¡Y qué mundo! La humanidad se ha expandido fuera del sistema solar, ha colonizada cientos de planetas, ha superado guerras, sistemas políticos y religiones por igual, hasta ha logrado sobrevivir a la independencia de la inteligencias artificiales, que ahora viven al margen, como aliadas de la humanidad, en algo llamado Núcleo.



Todo esto lo averiguamos sin muchos problemas al principio y es entonces cuando llega el genio de Simmons y empieza a soltar pequeñas píldoras de información por aquí y por allá y antes de darte cuenta tu mente ha unido esos puntos reconstruyendo el universo de la obra. Sin muchos aspavientos, Simmons logra superar con un sobresaliente el fallo que destroza muchas obras de ciencia ficción: crear un mundo en apariencia sencillo pero dotado de una enorme complejidad. Algo así es difícil de lograr y más en la ciencia ficción, donde todos los conceptos suenan extraños y los términos parecen surrealistas. Simmons logra que terminología de motores, armas o vectores parecen totalmente verosímiles hasta el punto de que acabas dándolo por sentado al poco tiempo. En mi opinión es el gran pilar sobre el que sustenta de la obra y lo que hace que sea tan buena.



La historia se refresca a sí misma debido a los relatos de los peregrinos, aquellos escogidos por la iglesia el alcaudon para la expiación final. Cuenta la leyenda que a sólo uno de ellos les concederá su deseo y luego de conocer todos los relatos no tienes ni puta idea de quien merezca mas que se lo otorgue dicho deseo. Todos los relatos son impresionantes.

Como en cualquier recopilación de relatos, los hay de muchos tipos y algunos son más atractivos que otros dependiendo el gusto, pero Simmons logra que cada uno tenga una voz individual y propia según el peso narrativo recae en los distintos personajes. Por ejemplo, la historia del poeta está llena de giros del lenguaje, recursos líricos y términos prosaicos y arcaicos, mientras que la del militar es concisa, directa y parca en descripciones, muy al estilo del ejército.

El final es un corte abrupto hecho por la editorial. En realidad los dos primeros libros son en realidad uno sólo. Así que a seguir leyendo.

5/5

Dan Simmons' Hyperion is a science fiction masterpiece about the varied and intricate relationships between life and death.

Hyperion has often been compared to the Canterbury Tales but it feels more like Harlan Ellison and Cormac McCarthy had sex in Frank Herbert's brain.

If you've read those authors, you know what that means. The lore is dense, the subject matter is harsh and the story is not afraid to dig your heart out of your chest and wave it in front of your face for a cheap laugh.

This book has moments of such profound sadness that they caved in my chest like someone dropped Thor's hammer on me while I was reading. If you're looking for simplistic and predictable resolutions, this is not the story for you. Hyperion is about the journey as much as the destination and like real life, things do not end with a neat and clean finale.

The Plot: A group of space-going adventurers are on a pilgrimage to a far away planet. Each of these travellers has a fatal rendezvous set-up with a creature of near infinite power, cruelty and indifference: the Shrike.

The Shrike is a metallic, multi-armed, god. A god of blades and hooks and murder. A god of death and war who exists outside of time. The Shrike hands out curses to people like my Mom handing out candy to trick or treaters. In large amounts and with wild abandon. When it isn't exploding through hapless onlookers at the speed of light, the Shrike is hanging his victims on a great steel tree to suffer for all eternity.

So why the hell would anybody want to go see the Shrike?

That's the question that hangs in the novel and the answers are as diverse as they are insightful into the human condition.

Hyperion is separated into a series of stories told from the perspective of each of the characters making the pilgrimage. Each story offers a different outlook on the Shrike and the struggle with death itself.

"The Man who Cried God" details a monstrous encounter between a banished priest and a host of mutated humans on Hyperion. A group of fanatics who have been granted a terrifying gift from the Shrike. This explores the relationship between deeply religious mindsets and death. It is about the spiritual pitfalls of the promise of immortality. It shows us that what we desire from our beliefs might come at the expense of our humanity. That religion can be a great comfort and uplifting and provide insight into our hearts. But it can also be a grotesque parasite. Feeding and growing at the expense of the individual, churning people and twisting them into a great, unthinking, hegemony.

"The War Lovers" is about a love born in bloodshed. A love that inspires a soldier's life-long relationship with death. A desire that intertwines the man's hunger for intimacy with conflict. As the warrior gains a reputation for his skill he is forced to face a nearly insurmountable threat, only to learn the truth about his feelings and their connection to Hyperion and the Shrike. This tale shows how violence and trauma feeds unhealthy desires for connection while creating endless loops of solitude.

"Hyperion Cantos" is about a poet. A cantankerous and spoiled rich kid who is transformed into a sex-crazed, best-selling author/satyr. The poet moves to the planet of Hyperion to join a colony of artists. As he struggles to create his magnum opus the colony is laid siege by the murderous Shrike. And the terrifying figure becomes both a tool of desolation and inspiration. A deadly muse motivating the poet to finish his masterpiece. Just as death haunts all artists.

"The River Lethe's Taste is Bitter" is a heart-rending story about a father. A Jewish man who's daughter visits Hyperion and is afflicted with an unearthly sickness. A disease that challenges the man's faith and tears his life apart even as it tests the bonds of his family. A sickness that sends him on a journey of sacrifice to face his fate, and the horrifying God of Death waiting for him on Hyperion. A story of nostalgia and love where a father fights for his child against a merciless future.

"The Long Good-Bye" is about a private detective and a handsome artificial intelligence in a human body who join up to solve a murder mystery. A science fiction noir story that leads to a vast conspiracy, involving the creation of Gods and a war waging across time. Where the existence of the Shrike hints towards a future conflict that could threaten everything. As a romance builds between an A.I. and a human it sends the detective to Hyperion. Where love, hope and fate struggle against inevitable destruction.

The final story "Remembering Siri" is about naivety and romance, colonialism and worlds colliding. A science fiction fable of two star-crossed lovers spins from a series of idealised romantic nights into a heartbreaking view of cultural genocide. Where the Shrike and his promise of Armageddon is not a threat, but a prayer of revenge answered for a people who have lost everything.

Hyperion is colossal. Not in page numbers so much as ideas and emotions. It is thick, cerebral and complex. It is not a book to just marathon in a single sitting, it demands and requires you to put thought into its ideas. And you should. You should let this novel swallow you up. Let it take some time from you, because it will give you so much in return.

Hyperion is one of the most rewarding works of fiction ever written. Not just science fiction, but fiction in general. It is as mythic and wondrous as any fantasy and as grounded and soulful as any literature. It is a story about a great and impossible, steel god that weaves together elements of politics, galactic empires, art, war, cyber-noir, A.I. uprisings, culture and religion. But at it's core Hyperion is human drama. Strip it down to the essentials and this book is about being alive and struggling before the many faces of death.

The death of self. The death of love. The death of faith. The death of art. The death of nations and homes. And the death of family.

But Hyperion is not bleak. It is not hopeless.

Hyperion isn't about losing your humanity in the face of an uncaring universe.

It's about finding it.

An interesting book. It has been recommended to me a number of times, and seeing as I had a copy, I thought I'd see what all the fuss was about and read it.
Did I enjoy it, yes, was it what i expected, no, not really. As a book it is basically a scene setter for the sequels, yes a few things happen, but the majority of the book is the back story (and history) of the main characters in the book.
Now this sounds a little boring, BUT, it is in fact a great way to start a wide-ranging space opera series. The back history includes a huge amount of "world" (read Universe) building, including, both technology and the main players both good and bad. But which ones are which, we are given glimpses, backgrounds and descriptions of opposing political forces and dynasties as well as religious factions, and off-shoots of the human race.
All in all, an amazing amount of background setting that leads you nicely to the first sequel, which I now have to buy as I have to know what happens next.
So now I know what all the fuss is about. A very solid 4+ stars ⭐️

When people rave about this book they should really mention that it doesn't have a real ending! Sure it was an enjoyable bunch of stories and all, but I was reading them in the context of learning about the characters before the big showdown at the end of the book. I guess that only happens in the next book.

I also found the description of the settings overdone and a bit indulgent. These sections became very easy to spot as they tend to be at the beginning of a chapter or new story. I found myself skimming over them.

That said I did enjoy the majority of this book. I liked the characters and their stories. I'm not sure the first story made for a good introduction since in my mind it is the least interesting and felt the longest. So for anyone who picks this up and finds it a bit slow to get going I'd recommend getting past the priest's tale before you make a judgement.

I'm keen to read the next in the series since the confrontation at the "end" of this book was what I was so looking forward to. But seriously grumble mutter about the ending of this one.