Not completely awful for the most part, has moments of interest and is not terribly written. The origin of the Honoured Matres is quite good and probably a result of genuine Frank Herbert notes.

The book does have a tendency to over-explain metaphors and treat the reader as a bit of a simpleton, but this is all forgivable. The writing is not up to Frank Herbert's standard, this again is ok. The injection of characters and tidbits about non original series characters is also a little distracting.

The final reveal (spoiler): that the great threat is in fact some robots back from the dead that featured in Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson's prequel books is, quite franky, insulting. It completely ruined any suspense or interest I had. Pretending this is Frank Herbert's vision is ridiculous.

It sinks this from an average 2* book to a 1*. Awful waste of time.

Oh god.

Anyone who has read any of the books of the original series--the ones that Frank Herbert wrote--will know what travesties of supposed science fiction are Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson's contributions to the Dune universe.

One of the many things which greatly endeared me to all of Frank Herbert's writing, and not just the Dune chronicles, was the absolute skill and efficiency with which he wrote his prose. What truly struck me was how he wielded his pen like a master swordsman; there were no unnecessary flourishes of purple prose, no scenes which did not intimately contribute to the plot or necessary characterization of the principle figures. Every word seemed to have at least one meaning. Furthermore, Herbert treated the reader as an intellectual equal; there was none of the spoon-feeding of character's traits and feelings, wince-worthy amounts of exposition, and tell-not-show demeanor that seems to have drenched all of Brian Herbert's efforts.

While I support the completion of Frank Herbert's absolute masterpiece, its execution falls woefully short of the standards we have been given to expect from the original six books. It would be kinder far to publish and release the manuscript, outline, and assorted materials that Frank Herbert left behind than to cover the beautifully articulated skeleton of a novel with such gross, bulbous obese flesh such as Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have done.

«Мисливці дюни» Браян Герберт і Кевін Андерсон

Це було щось. Книжка не те, що класна , вона крута. Я прочитав її на одному подиху, швидко та зацікавлено. Син круто її написав, відчувається сучасна мова написання книги, а вона була створена в 2006 році з чернеток Франка Герберта.

Син зміг витримати ідею та подачу самого Герберта, книга так само наповнена філософією і політичними інтригами, але в цілому вона не така важка, як головного автора. До речі, хто прочитав 5 книг, але так і не зрозумів сутті і були питання до деяких моментів, то тут все розкрито і тому ти прям по іншому дивишся на попередні.

Мене переповнюють емоції після її прочитання, максимально доступно і легко написано. Після попередніх книжок ви будете вражені нею. Тому, хто ще не почав читати Дюну, зараз самий час.

10/10

Legenda głoszona przez Briana Herberta mówi o tym, jak wraz z radcą prawnym ojca odkrył istnienie dwóch skrytek bankowych wynajętych tuż przed śmiercią wielkiego pisarza, w których ów umieścił szkice do "Świętego Graala" wszystkich fanów uniwersum "Diuny" - niepowstałego za życia Franka Herberta siódmego tomu tego cyklu.

Pewne wątki pojawiające się w napisanej do spółki z jego synem przez Kevina J. Andersona zdają się to potwierdzać, zwłaszcza że mają one silne poparcie w drobiazgowych analizach i spekulacjach czynionych przez wielbicieli twórczości Franka Herberta od czasu ukazania się "Kapituły..."

Inne - o wiele bardziej kontrowersyjne i do dziś bulwersujące sporą część fanów uniwersum - elementy tej książki zdają się jednak mówić, że osnowa i cudem odnalezione konspekty i notatki spełniły jednak rolę służebną w stosunku do szerszego zamysłu, jakim stało się najwyraźniej dla Briana Herberta i Kevina J. Andersona połączenie oryginalnej serii z pomysłami wprowadzonymi w wydanych wcześniej powieściach, które ukazały się w ramach "Legend..." i "Preludiów Diuny".

Zresztą na dobrą sprawę zdaje się "Diuna 7" być bardziej kontynuacją pomysłów z "Legend Diuny" - a w zasadzie ich swoistym sequelem - niż słusznym zwieńczeniem sagi Franka Herberta. W tej warstwie wypada nawet lepiej niż powieści opisujące krucjatę przeciw myślącym maszynom. Natomiast, w zestawieniu z oryginalną "Diuną" - sześcioma znakomitymi - a w swych najjaśniejszych punktach wybitnymi - książkami Franka Herberta, "Łowcy Diuny" są tworem stylem i sposobem narracji dalece odbiegającym od tego, do czego przyzwyczaił nas Herbert ojciec a przede wszystkim obrazoburczym - czego fani (nawet tacy jak ja, którzy rozumieją, że zarówno Brian Herbert jak i K. J. Anderson nigdy do pułapu twórcy "Diuny" nie sięgną, i gotowi są im to wybaczyć, czerpiąc nawet jako taką przyjemność z obcowania z literaturą science-fiction akceptowalnego poziomu) nigdy im nie wybaczą - haniebnym wykorzystaniem kultowych postaci z oryginalnych książek, czym dali dowód nie tylko braku smaku, ale też zrozumienia ich roli w całej, ciągnącej się tysiąclecia historii tego uniwersum.

Tak więc oceny muszą być w tym wypadku dwie. Pierwsza niska - książka zawodzi, jako kontynuacja oryginalnej serii. Druga, średnia - powieść ta jest obiecującym finałem "Legend Diuny", dużo bardziej pomysłowym i akceptowalnym od tego, co zaproponowano w tamtym, trzytomowym dziełku. Pomny tego, że "Wielkie Szkoły Diuny" oceniłem wysoko, widzę że twórcy ciekawie się rozwijają i dobrze rozszerzają i eksplorują to uniwersum, ale najlepiej w przestrzeniach i wątkach, do których nie docierał i których nie wymyślił sam Frank Herbert.

I'll try to keep it brief; and I'll not -- for the moment -- incorporate my reading notes (posted earlier, during reading), here. If anyone wants me to, just ask (in a comment or message).

(Well -- it mightn't seem very brief, even to me; but at least I spent only a moderate amount of time crafting this rant.)



I cheered before the race was won -- a day after my last comment (about the ultimate stretch of reading I had to do, in this novel; I'd found it being not too bad, quality-wise), the annoyances re-surfaced. Only a few instances -- unnecessarily repetitious vocabulary within one page. But still, a painful reminder of how this is A Thing That Should Not Be.

This took me more than half a year to read -- but let's be clear: that's not the book's fault, it's life's. And I must say, that the content actually stood its ground against the long pauses. Overall, it was fairly entertaining and had some good moments and interesting reveals about the (expanded) Duniverse. Some of the characters are interesting, and most are recognizable and unique w/i the ensemble. The plotting -- or should I say, 'the padding'? -- was slow, usually. I must admit that on the exposition/explanatory side (yes: there, too), the overly repetitious nature of the writing at times also helped me get back into the fray; and partially b/c of that small mercy, I personally could handle (and even appreciate) its literary downsides. But more often than not, their benefit to me notwithstanding, the rehashing of past event (both from w/i and w/o this tome) felt like filler material. If you're an average or fast reader, and/or w/ a good memory or focus, YMMV... but will probably be found sub-standard.

In the end, The Enemy Is Still Coming. In the final pages, we get to know a little bit more about that -- as well as interspersed throughout. That's a fun, epic, and intriguing part. I fear -- gleaning from what I've read to far -- that some of The Enemy's traits and choices do not do Their nature justice; that might be a further annoyance that I may have to suffer in the next part. Yes, I will keep reading the series, proper; and no, I won't be reading anything of the prequels and expansions. I'm thankful for the advice I got here, to perhaps read 1 of the chronologically-earliest titles so as to better understand this plot; I agree that I could've gotten more out of this entry in that manner, indeed -- but as the advisor also stated, it works this way. And reading a secondary novel just for the backgrounds and expanded history, would've undoubtably cost me more than it gained me. Time, and sanity. I'm hanging on to this series by a thread, as it is.

(So, to anyone wondering about the same issue as I had, for several years -- yes, I think one can perfectly skip all the prequel, side-quel and inter-quel novels, and just continue straight on w/ this one, after Mr. Frank's original sextet. It may be that the next, last chapter contains more elements that build on the prequels, which might eventually make me regret my decision or even rescind my current opnion on this; I'll report back about that, specifically, if I won't forget. In a year or so...)

Then again; I'm still fascinated, and still hanging on. When taking some steps back, it all does feel to fit in w/ the complex political dynamics, the subtle atmospheres and cultures, and the historical path (i.e., based on ancient but well-documented events, ample hints, and solid foundations) that Mr. Herbert Sr. laid out for Paul and his son, Leto II, in the last 2 of his own books. And, to me, that still is a 'Golden Path'; KJA & BH do a good job, there, even if they're taking their good time strolling along it.
Thus, to add another tongue-in-cheek reference: the thread I'm dangling on is barely visible (at times, even to me), but it's made out of shigawire... (That's a really strong substance. If you don't trust me, take a Sardaukar's word for it.)

As for an effective rating for this specific entry -- it clearly was much more entertaining than 2*, while it also obviously felt a tad more annoying than 3*. In-between is where my verdict should be; but I promised not to give half-stars. It lands at a shifty 3*, then.

n  Addendum.n

In his review of the short story that's printed, in my edition, alongside the novel-under-review, Austin finds, ''I really do think that Frank Herbert went in an odd direction when deciding to destroy the Planet Dune''. To which I replied,
''Thanks for sharing your opinion here. [...] I'd like to offer that recently, while lamenting the very same "oddity" (to which I agree), I realized that ecology and terraforming are part of Mr Frank's background and/or his overall vision for the Dune saga. The manner in which the event sets new BG plans in motion, makes it possible to showcase some more of this background. YMMV whether it was necessary to do so (I'm still unsure why and if, myself) but I reached the tentative conclusion that, at least, it's consistent from a thematic POV.
(Those are just my 2 cents concerning the matter you rather deservedly raised; and which I had wanted to add to my reading notes, here somehere, anyway. This was as good a place as any -- thanks for the opportunity and reminder.)''



I almost neglected to mention -- well, I did omit it, but somehow I got my Devastator back on its tracks... I still 'need' (want) to read the story --  Treasure in the Sand (Dune Chronicles, #7.1) -- that Austin (aforementioned) reviews. Said story is not related to the novel itself. I decided to leave it for later -- mustn't forget!

And, b/c we can, let's commemorate the occasion of the release of Mr Villeneuve's latest instalment with a cute photo of the local fauna:



Here's to eventually -- hopefully -- getting to see the Emperor of Dune (and beyond; his true Golden Path) on the silver screen.

An abomination.

Crap.

I could not watch Brian Herbert try his best to tarnish his fathers legacy for more than 200 pages. What a joke of a book and author.

Great expansion to the Dune story that adds on to the conclusion that was setup by Frank Herbert with new twists and plot threads. Though the writing is very different from the original Dune books it is still very enjoyable to read and in my option actually surpasses the stories told in the last two Dune books written by Frank Herbert. There are some weird story tie ins to the books not written by Frank but it is still easy to understand the story being told and the final direction the Dune universe is heading into.

The long awaited 'final' book in the brilliant Dune series. The story picks up from where Chapterhouse Dune ended. The final story is fairly large so it has been split into two books.

The history of the Honoured Matre's is explained although the mysterious super Face Dancers still appear to be holding all the cards. The Bene Gesserit are also now the sole suppliers of spice with many intrigues and naturally things come to a head with the Honoured Matre's. The Bene Tleilax are now all but wiped out but they hold a few more secrets...

All these things are mere distraction from the real enemy for the battle at the end of the universe...

I actually quite enjoyed this book, not as good as the original series and lacking the depth but still a very good story in its own right.

If you have enjoyed the prequels released in recent years you will enjoy this.

Фантастична література знала достатньо прикладів, коли інший автор продовжував чи завершував серію книг. Сандерсон – Колесо Часу Джордана, Джордан же написав роман про Конана (Говарда), про наслідування Лавкрафта і продовження розвитку його творів годі говорити. Звичайно є ще Крістофер Толкін, який донедавна опікувався спадщиною батька, хоча син скоріше був поважним редактором. А ось з Дюною дещо інше. Тут син буквально творить і продовжує цикл. Направду се складна ноша. І вона має кілька рівнів. Для початку Френк Герберт самим романом «Дюна» поставив високу планку. Настільки, що сам не міг її перевершити. Наступні твори слабші, бо мають іншу суть в силу різних причин. І байдуже який другий, третій і так далі твір, більшість намагатимуться порівнювати з найпершим і тим, що приніс славу.

Отож, син Френка, Браян Герберт, узявши у співавтори іншого фантаста – Кевіна Андерсона – спробував продовжити справу батька. «Мисливці Дюни» - не перший твір Браяна у всесвіті Дюни, однак перший, який опубліковано українською. І він залишає не найкраще враження, оскільки десь є відображенням того, на чому застряг і його батько Френк. Дункан Айдаго зі своїми вічними беззмістовними переродженнями уже десь набрид. Брак розвитку світу, який вимірюється в тисячоліття, можна пояснити, проте якось воно уже також нецікаво. Одна й та сама історія циклічно крутиться. І найдивніше – може тут Дісней підглянув ідею воскресіння Палпатіна – повернення Пола і Володимира Харконнена. Звичайно вони не головні протагоніст і не антагоніст у цій книзі, скоріше запасні гравці, що чекають свого часу. Відбиток діяльності обох досі зависає над всесвітом Дюни, але зважаючи на роки, що минули з подій «Дюни», обидва мали залишитися як історичні постаті. Ймовірно автори намагалися надалі відтворити другий рівень «Дюни», а саме метафізичний, однак чомусь він уже так не спрацьовує як з першим романом циклу.

П.С. Розвиток людства в рамках імперії набагато цікавіший у творах Айзека Азімова.

This book is interesting because it basically picks up after the end of Chapterhouse Dune and sets out to complete Frank Herbert’s vision for the Dune series. With Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson at the helm, there really isn’t anyone else who’s better qualified to do that.

It also helps that they had access to a bunch of Frank Herbert’s notes which detailed where he wanted the story to go, and so we can be reasonably sure that we’re getting the ending that he had in mind, rather than just some cash grab attempt to bring in a few extra bucks by breathing life into a dead franchise.

And Herbert and Anderson do a pretty good job of things. It probably also helps that by this point, they’d had a lot of practice through the other Dune prequels that they’d worked on. Weirdly, these books actually sort of bring the original series and the new series together, because we see gholas coming back of characters like Serena Butler and Xavier Harkonnen.

The concept of gholas is interesting to me because I usually find it to be a bit of a cop out when authors bring dead characters back to life. I find that it cheapens death and stops it from being so final, and so that then lowers the stakes. For whatever reason, I think it works in Dune, and it’s also interesting to me that they’re not born with their previous memories and have to regain them over time, usually by going through some sort of horrific ordeal.

In this book, all of the characters that we know and love are back, including two different Paul Atreides and even antagonists like Vladimir Harkonnen. But at the same time, they haven’t quite regained their memories yet, and so we’re left in this unusual situation in which they’re simultaneously familiar and different. There’s an edge to that, because we end up in situations where people don’t want their memories to come back or where they dislike the person that they were.

And then we have the idea of the no-ship travelling through space, trying to escape the grasp of an unseen enemy that later turns out to be someone – or something – that we’re familiar with. Arrakis is no more, and the only sandworms still around are living in the hold of the no-ship, creating small amounts of spice in an artificial desert.

Honestly, there are so many different elements to this book that I couldn’t hope to tackle them all, and that’s a good thing. I was worried when I learned that it was going to carry on from Chapterhouse Dune because I wasn’t a particular fan of that one. Luckily, I guess Frank was building up towards a triumphant ending that he never got the chance to work on, and it’s pretty sweet for us readers and for his legacy as a whole that his son was able to finish the job.

Not that this book is the end. There’s one other book that goes after this one, and then there are a couple of others that sort of sit between the existing releases. I’ve had such a good time with them that I’m pretty sure I’ll have finished the rest of the series by the summer, and I guess then I’ll have to find another series to nerd out on.

All in all then, Hunters of Dune was a success for me, and I’m glad that I got to it. I actually enjoyed it enough that I immediately went on to the next one in the series. I couldn’t wait.