The Butlerian Jihad (Dune Series)

Rating:
Summary: Good story, bad writing
Review: This book is somewhat better than the authors' House trilogy. I think having freed themselves of the restraints of the original Dune universe, they were able to give free rein to their imaginations and put out a better product. However, the bad writing that characterized the House trilogy remains. It seems like the authors at some point in their lives took a really bad creative writing class where they were told to use lots of flowery prose with tons of unnecessary adjectives. For example, Norma never runs, she is carried by her legs. And they are never just legs, they are short legs. And it's diminutive Norma (because the reuse the same adjectives over and over and over again ad nauseaum). So "Norma ran" becomes "Norma's short legs carried her diminutive body." Rinse, rather, repeat for 675 pages. Just one more example. On page 593, a ship doesn't enter Jupiter's gravity well. Instead we are treated to the following monument to absurd prose: "The gas giant reached out to them, beckoning with a siren song of physics."

Even though the writing is no better, the story is. They did a relatively good job crafting the plot, and depicting the psychology of the struggle. Iblis Ginjo, Vorian Atreides, Serena Butler and Xavier Harkonnen are depicted realistically - if somewhat one-dimensionally. Other characters, e.g. Agamemnon, are less believable. Could he truly believe that "the barbarians didn't understand freedom or free will" even as they were revolting against the machines' rule? It is unlikely that he could be that oblivious to reality. (The whole "brain in a jar" concept is pretty 1930s.) On the other hand, the parallels between the cymeks and the human rulers of Poritrin (whose motivations do seem more plausible than the cymeks) is quite enlightening. It goes along the lines of the "good guys vs. bad guys" theme which I explored in my review of House Corrino. In that review I pointed out that the authors took a simplistic view of good vs. evil and did not consider valuable avenues of exploration in their writing. The fact that they do so here shows considerable growth in their writing.

The authors' complete ignorance of science is blatantly obvious in almost every chapter. The absence of even a hint of the science and mathematics behind the "inventions" of Tio Holtzman and Norma Cenva, despite "discussing" them at great length, is quite odd. The authors mention "arithmetic"; what meaningful science involves only arithmetic? What calculations could their solvers work on after only the most basic training? At one point, one of the solvers sabotages a result by "moving a decimal point" and claiming nobody would notice. If the authors knew ANYTHING about mathematics, they would understand that moving a decimal point is the mistake MOST LIKELY to be noticed. If I'm expecting an answer of 10, and you give me 5 or 20 I might not notice. But if you give me 1 or 100 I will definitely notice. Duh! The science-related quotes that start many chapters are meaningless as well.

Despite the derivativeness of the robot Erasmus, they nevertheless managed to make him fascinating in a macabre sort of way. What is unrealistic is that he would be so completely clueless about human behavior. Think Dr. Mengele meets the Terminator. If intelligence means the ability to learn, then Erasmus must not be particularly intelligent. The relationship between machines and humans at large is somehow odd. Things like robots serving as drivers of a horse-drawn carriage for a human are not realistic in light of the master-slave relationship. The resources dedicated to keeping the humans alive for slave labor are inconsistent with Omnius's oft-mentioned desire for efficiency. What do humans provide for the machines that they could not more quickly provide for themselves while consuming fewer resources. Surely a machine of some sort could do any required work faster than slave labor (which has long been known to lead low-quality results). The final chapters of the revolt and the surprise experienced by Erasmus and Omnius on the other hand could form a fascinating study of "AI psychology" if such a thing existed.

There are several gaps in the plot, a fact which I would be remiss in not mentioning. Without providing any spoilers, I can provide one example. The flaw in the defensive measures the humans used at Salusa Secundus and Giedi Prime was glaringly obvious. That the machines did not take advantage of it in their raid on Salusa Secundus AND that no human noticed the flaw either in the original design or when Xavier Harkonnen visited Giedi Prime for the specific purpose of evaluating their defenses simply defies belief.

One last disappointment in the book is that the authors clumsy attempts at foreshadowing gave me what I believe is conclusive proof of where they are headed in "Dune 7." On page 224 it says, "By the time humans expanded into those distant star systems, Omnius would already be there. Waiting." And in House Corrino, we were already treated to "ancient enemy ... future enemy" (when Navigator D'murr Pilru goes off course because of the amal). Other brief comments in House Corrino (regarding the unnamed planet that Tleilaxu Master Ajidica was setting up to take his BG axlotl tank) made me hopeful that they might head off in another direction. But now I have no doubt, the Honored Maitres and others returning from the scattering are fleeing thinking machines. This bothers me, as I am fairly certain that is NOT the path that Frank Herbert would have taken had he been alive to write Dune 7 himself.

My last thought, which really encompasses everything mentioned above, is that the story is not bad (you really want to keep reading to see what happens next), but the writing is bad, bad, bad. These guys need a good editor like nobody's business.

Rating:
Summary: Unspeakably awful
Review: First, I am a huge fan of the original Dune books. The first one is a masterpiece of SF, the first three make for a very nice unified work, the remaining three seem weaker and muddled but worth reading.

Second, there were *problems* with the first Herbert/Anderson trilogy (to put it in a painting analogy, Frank is Renaissance and Brian is Mannerist) but apart from this weakness of the writing, my main complaint was that Brain Herbert does not have anything like Frank Herbert's sensitivity to cultural references, so that the vast tapestry of exotic allusion (all the Arabic words, etc.) gets flattened out to something more Asimov-ish (who had a bad habit of coinages that had no allusiveness at all). And the lack of Shakespearean, or at least Alexander Dumasian depth to the characters of the sort Frank developed, leads to the need to rely more on sex and violence to carry the story. But that said, the Prelude to Dune was OK-ish.

I am halfway through Butlerian Jihad and have basically given up because it is so unbelievably awful. First, the degree of derivativeness without homage or irony is just appalling: throw together Terminator, Colossus: the Forbin Project, and Star Wars, some references from Herbert, and stir. Not a single page went by that didn't remind me of some other, better book or film. Second, what on earth is wrong with these guys? Have they completely forgotten how to write? Was no care put into this at all? All through it, I kept hearing in my mind Queen's "Flash Gordon" title song. Yipes! Who names an evil supercomputer "Omnius"? Who came up with these characters? The only weird thing is I kept trying to imagine the evil brains in canisters (marching around like so many leftovers from "War of the Worlds") as twirling their mustaches and tying Sweet Polly Purebred to railroad tracks.

Ugh! This was without doubt the worst thing I've read in years.

Rating:
Summary: Fun To Read, Interesting To Think About
Review: Although the writing and content of these new Dune books don't hold up to Frank Herbert's originals, they're still worthwhile reads for fans. This one has a barnburner of a plot, and it's fun to think about how the stories laid out here will result in the Dune universe we came to know.

Rating:
Summary: A great imitation of an excellent writer.
Review: I was greatly impressed by this prequil. Originally I purchased this volume as a quick, easy read over the summer; I was pleasantly surprised. Stylistically it differs in voice and tone from the original series, but not in a negetive manner.
The narrative is both easy to understand, not requiring extensive knowlede of Herberts original works, and fast paced. Overall I recommmed this book for anyone curious about the Butlerian Jyhad, which remained illusive in the first chronicles.


Rating:
Summary: Error: Offending Logic
Review: The premise of this book's "robot" portion is inherently flawed. The explanations provided within it do not reveal sufficiently why thinking machines would need to study humans in such a grotesque manner for so long. Omnius and Erasmus are creations of rather standard sci fi imaginings, and their motives do not extend beyond heavily trodden literary cliche's set by previous tales of old involving machine domination of mankind.

Sentient and intelligent A.I. in some far-flung scenario of the future would not be interested in something so mundane and pointless as slave making. The entire premise is, to put it simply, illogical. Why would machines need human slaves? Why would anyone in this future world need them, for that matter? Technology in this story has reached such a high pinnacle, making the idea seem foolish. The only instance in which human servitude would be required, in my opinion, would be for the entertainment of other living things. In a universe of starships, magnificent weaponry, spacefolding and highly sophisticated machines (both thinking and non-thinking), what benefit would involuntary human labor have? Why dig when you can blast or beam? Why have a cargo team when you can devise a sophisticated loader machine?

Further, why would the thinking machines need to spend so much time observing human behavior? And if they did, would they really do it in such a counterproductive way? Erasmus behaves like some future version of Dr. Mengele, claiming to not understand emotion, yet seeming to display sadism quite effortlessly when he paints walls red with blood. Why would such a creature ever be tolerated by "thinking machines?" Is this really what happens to you when you are left in a ravine for two decades alone with your thoughts?

In general, the book reads quickly, despite being 675 pages in breadth. We don't get mired in endless detail, and the action moves steadily, hooking us along effectively as we go. As a writer, I find it interesting how Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson fleshed out the body of this work. The book very much reads like a movie script. I found it interesting, if not fragmented feeling at times.

While this book stands well as a general science fiction novel, I'm not so certain it deserves to bear the Dune name. I say this with all due respect; both authors are very talented writers, but do not possess the otherworldly style and vision of Frank Herbert. To me, the most interesting interactions in this book concerned the dialog between Erasmus and Serena Bulter. Having said that, I will note that the characters in this book lack a certain depth overall. While we are interested in their actions, we are not so connected to them in an emotional sense.

If you expect to be filled with wonder and ambitious questions after reading a science fiction novel, this installment of Dune might not appeal to you. If you sway toward a more action-oriented story with clips of curious events, do have a read.

Rating:
Summary: Uggghhhhh
Review: Boy, was this book bad. I couldn't get through it quickly enough and onto my next read. None of the complexity of Frank's work. To call the characters "two-dimensional" is being generous.

Is there a synopsis of the following two books? I'd rather not endure the chore of actually reading them.

You know what really scares me? Certainly not a moron like Erasmus. Rather, the fact that B&K are writing two books to follow Chapterhouse. Let's hope they take some of the magic pixie dust that helped Frank come up with such awesome stuff and hopefully avoid the sophomoric tendencies that led to this drivel.

But semi-seriously, I suspect the only reason serious Dune fans spend time on these pulp novels is that we are so hooked on the entire Dune universe that we will wade through the horrible writing just to find out "what happens". Who can resist knowing something of the Butlerian Jihad?

One final question: when are the Dune comics and pop-up books due? ;-)

Rating:
Summary: Simply doesn't measure up...
Review: I have to say, this book does not live up to the standards of the 'Dune' series. Although it's not a half bad book in itself, it just doesn't fit in with anything else - not even the 'house' books by the same author.

For starters, the characters don't have nearly the dimension that they did in previous books. It's hard to connect with them sometimes.

The constant one-line ending to each chapter that the author is using is more than annoying. Ex: (after inspecting a planet to watch for weaknesses against the robots) "And completely unaware of the vulnerabilities he had not bothered to discover..." Of course he wouldn't discover it!!! If he did, there would be no next chapter!!! There are so many stupid endings to these chapters, it's sickening. Half of them could be ended one sentence before, and you know something's going to happen, so why foreshadow?

The book is also inconsistent with the other Dune books. They refer to things that haven't happened yet with a twist. Like the Tleilaxu and their growing of body parts. In this book, they claim to tell people they're capable of creating parts, but then it adds 'but the truth is that technology is years off - they really chop up slaves'. (pls note that is not a quote).

I guess if this book had to stand alone as a story, it wouldn't be bad. It just doesn't live up to the legacy. It's a shame when it seems like the author is hammering out books to make a profit as opposed to carrying on his father's dream for people to enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: A shadow of the original
Review: I didn't expect a lot, which was a good thing. Herbert and Anderson have produced "mainstream SF" -- decent characterization, interesting ideas, and adequate plot, but lacking the richness and brilliantly constructed framework of Dune. As other reviewers have mentioned, the authors practically bash you over the head with things they want you to "get," rather than let you puzzle it out yourself like the inimitable Frank Herbert did.

Bottom line: it's enjoyable enough for a bit of light reading, and for the game of exploring the possible history of the Dune universe, but don't expect anything nearly as good as the classic Dune series.

Rating:
Summary: A Good Example of Bad Fiction
Review: I'm a huge fan of Herbert Senior's fiction. I've read the original Dune series innumerable times. I'm the proud owner of a signed first edition of "Chapterhouse: Dune". I've read SF since I was hooked at the tender age of eight when I stumbled upon A. Bester's "Tiger, Tiger!". I read at least five or six books a month, half of which are SF. I've a pretty good grounding in classical and contemporary English language literature.

Once I've presented my credentials, let me say one thing:

The prequels SUCK!

Now let me elaborate upon that:

In the "House" prequels, the co-authors at least had to be consistent with FH's original universe. Now that they went back 10,000 years, they think they don't need to be that consistent with the originals. The problem is: they can't even invent a consistent, believable universe by themselves.

The premises are simpleminded: For example: How the hell can you sustain a whole technological planet --Poritrin-- with *no* computers (a hand calc qualifies as a computer here), totally around slave labor, and, incidentally, support advanced R&D of Holtzmann's caliber? Whoops! And there are no such things as Mentats or any other augmented intellects yet either.

The characters are cardboard-thin and mentally-challenged: Xavier Harkonnen's vaunted "military prowess" is idiotic. The first scrambler field installations' vulnerability is glaringly obvious to any hard-SF space-opera reader: dump rocks at gravity-well speeds on top of the centralized installation. Boom! Instant crater, forget about kindjal fighters. Yet the heroic soldier missed that through his six month inspection tour, even though he was instantly promoted to command after the same thing happened to his superiors (purely by accident, by the way: the first machine attack missed this too; so much for Omnius's love of efficiency).

The style is wooden, and it reads like the notes the authors passed around via instant messenger while they were bouncing ideas back and forth. "XXXX's eyes were misty, (s)he felt sad." See Spot run.

I originally read the "House" prequels to get my Dune fix, even if it was like having a saccharine-sweetened lemonade when I craved a triple-fudge sundae. I'm halfway through "The Butlerian Jihad", and even if it is awfully, horribly bad, I'm going to finish reading it. Why? I'm having way too much fun demolishing it. It's a beautiful example of how *not* to write fiction, so I'm learning a lot.

On the other hand, if you're not an aspiring writer learning by (bad) example, and you just want to enjoy a good book, stay away from whatever these two have written, it's not worth the hassle.


Rating:
Summary: Interesting interpretation of Dune pre-history
Review: While I enjoyed reading the book, and learning about the history of the technology and people developments that I've read about in the Dune series, I couldn't really get a sense that the events of this book took place millenia before the Dune series (as I recall, according to the original series the Butlerian Jihad was supposed to have taken place several thousand years prior to Dune). The political structures were the same, politics were the same, characters were a little more 2D. And it seemed like all of the wondrous developments of the Dune world took place seemingly at the same time. Portable Holtzman shield generators, the beginnings of space-folding, discovery of spice on Arrakis by off-worlders, Tlaxian organ growing, etc.

The other thing that struck me while reading the book was it's similarity to God Emperor of Dune. Replace Omnius with Sandworm Leto, the intelligent robots with the Fedaykin, the outer worlds with Leto's rebels and you have pretty much the same story as in God Emperor.

Overall, a good book, enjoyable and easy to read, but just not as satisfying as some of the other books in the Anderson/Herbert Dune collection or the original Dune series.