Rating: 
Summary: Well thought out and plotted sequel to series 3 1/2 stars
Review: First, let's get the obvious out of the way; Dune: The Machine Crusade is another prequel to Dune and a sequel to The Butlerian Jihad. It has all the drawbacks and bonuses of a sequel; if you haven't read the first in this series of prequels devised by Frank Herbert's son Brian and Kevin J. Anderson, you may feel a little lost at first. The good news is that Herbert and Anderson manage to fill in the blanks early on with a nicely written recap in the prologue (much as the Frank Herbert did with each sequel to his classic Dune novel). I imagine that Herbert does much of the plotting based on Frank's original background notes and that Anderson does more of the hands on writing. At least it seems that way. In terms of style The Machine Crusades reminds me more of Anderson's novels than Brian Herbert's novels. But both had complimentary, similar styles so it's possible they rewrite each other. Either way, the plot continues. With the destruction of the Omnius on one of the settled worlds, humanity managed to strike a blow against the computer that created hope. The Cymeks led by Agamemnon struggle to regain their lost power against Omnius all the while fighting humanity as well. Time doesn't matter to Omnius or the Cymeks but it does to Serena Butler. Nearly a quarter century has passed since the computer's henchrobot murdered her son as part of an "experiment" to discover humanity's emotional movitation to fight even when they are clearly defeated. She and the others struggle on in battle against Omnius. Agamemnon's son Vorian Atriedes and Xavier Harkonnen continue their uneasy alliance in fighting Omnius. We also get our first glimpse of humanity's discover of "folding" space and the impact it will have. On Arrakis the Fremen come into their own as fierce fighters led by Selim Wormrider. We begin to understand how this distant, remote and poor dust speck in the cosmos comes to occupy center stage in Frank Herbert's original novel. This sprawling epic sets the stage for what's to come later in Herbert's original trilogy. Although it's uneven and the plotting is a bit more awkward here than in the some of the previous novels in this series, The Machine Crusade accomplishes most of its goal. It also sets up another potential sequel. To give Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson credit, the series they've created does credit to the original novel and Frank Herbert's memory. There are a number of interesting philosphical questions examined here. To the author's credit, they don't let the philosphical questions bog down the action. Both attributes contributes to the strengths and the flaws of the novel; the questions linger on too long and the battles are drawn out a bit too much. At times it seems as if the authors are struggling with the epic tale they are trying to tell; it's as if they are trying to come to grips with the size of the story they need to tell and control it. Even when it veers out of control, The Machine Crusade is still better than most of what passes for science fiction today. Nevertheless, like its immediate predecessor, The Machine Crusade has an epic, vast scale that the story and characters deserve. It's clear that Brian Herbert in continuing on his father's story chose to do so in a fashion that wouldn't just cash in on (and hence dilute)the original novels. Instead, he and co-author Anderson have tried to come up with a series of space operas as rich in character and scope as the original series. While the dialog can be frequently clunky and the characterizations a bit too sketchy for some, these are minor flaws on this large canvas. They boldly move forward using all the colors of language that they can to describe this epic tale. If words occasionally fail them, it's because the story, like much of Herbert's original epic, can be overwhelming in its vast embrace of science, religion and politics. If Brian Herbert and Anderson can continue to create novels this complex, the Dune series has a future as more than a cookie cutter space opera series. If they occasionally borrow from some of the sf films that have come out since Frank wrote the original novel, it's only fair; George Lucas and many other film directors borrowed liberally for Frank's imagination, integrating into their own projects and calling it their own.
Rating: 
Summary: they just keep getting better!
Review: The second book in the "Legends of DUNE" trilogy is complex, exciting, and full of surprises. DUNE fans will be thrilled to learn the answers to many questions left in Frank Herbert's original novels. THE MACHINE CRUSADE has so many storylines it's difficult to pick which one is best, but they are all engrossing and entertaining. Herbert and Anderson have written their own ambitious series based on the ingredients Frank Herbert left behind -- they are not attempting to COPY Frank Herbert. Great stuff.
Rating: 
Summary: The Dune universe begins to take form
Review: With The Machine Crusade, many of the plotlines now begin to fall into place and we start to see the birth of the Dune universe we had come to know with the original series of novels. The conception of foldspace technology, the riding of the worms on Arrakis and the start of the Fremen tribes, spice as a valuable commodity, etc. The sorceress of Rosak are seen as the precursors of the Bene Geserit, however their telepathic powers puzzle me as this was not one of the abilities of the Bene Geserit of the original Dune novels.
Here the ideological and physical conflict between man and thinking machine comes to the forefront as the two sides are at war from beggining to end of this hefty book. The best parts are when the more profound philosophical aspects are explored, ironicaly it is the robot Erasmus who ponders these matters the most and has really become one the more interesting chacaracters in the series as he strives to understand the human race and their endless contradictions. The short chapters keep the story flowing at a brisk pace and it is to the credit of the authors that the many characters and plotlines never bog the story down.
An interesting aspect is that the Butlerian Jihad, more than being a religious crusade as the term "Jihad" implies, is really a war waged for many reasons, political influence among the League of Nobles, economic benefit from the Tlulaxa flesh merchants and space transport industries, and just plain hunger for power from people on all sides. Perhaps the only ones to fight for a religious reason are the Buddislamics who are enslaved by machines and humans alike.
I do not give this book five stars, as that would be to put it on a par with Frank Herberts original Dune itself, the finest SF novel of all time. And yes, Herbert Jr. and Anderson sometimes fall into Space Opera mode, but The Machine Crusade is a more than worthy addition to the Dune Chronicles.
Rating:
Summary: Decide for yourself
Review: I must admit that being a fan of Frank Herbert's for over 20 years now I was daunted at the thought that someone else would try to "take the reins" and continue his vision. It is a shame that certain critics can not distinguish between the father and the son. Yes Frank did not write these prequels, that was known when you saw the authors names on the cover. It would be obvious to any learned individual that writing styles would not similar, or even in the same catagory. To expect that would be utter garbage. If you go into this as an individual who enjoys the Dune universe, as I do, will like this book as they explore the foundation for a series that has stood the test of time.
There are many facets of this book that will enthrall you, if you read it. I have read so many reviews where reviewers have skipped ahead because they were "bored" then complain that they didn't understand certain complexities of characters. You would have to admit that Erasmus trying to explain human reproduction to a 12 year old was funny, heck I laughed, something i have never done while reading a book.
I am not saying that this book is on par with a literary master such as Frank Herbert, but if you go into this book with that in mind and accept it for its telling of the pre-history of the Duneaverse then you are in for a treat and a few surprises.
And yes this book does deserve a 4 star....
Rating:
Summary: Fun but bloated and filled with plot holes
Review: Two good things about this book:
1) Fast-paced, planet-hopping adventure in the best space opera tradition.
2) Plenty of opportunities to try to decipher how the authors are setting up characters and events to "lead to" the universe created by Frank Herbert in the original Dune series. Kind of like a detective who knows the end result of a crime, then tries to pick up the clues to the series of events that led to the crime (not that Frank Herbert's originals should ever be considered a crime, except in this reviewer's awkward attempt at an extended metaphor!).
Two bad things about this book:
1) Significant events hinge on pretty implausible scenarios. Humanity is fighting against a computer evermind, Omnius, that enslaved the human race for a thousand years, yet that same evermind falls for some pretty obvious tricks and is unable to detect some ruses that you'd think something called an "evermind" would see right through. I understand the authors are trying to juxtapose humans' passion and unpredictability against computers' cold logic and reliance on pure reason; still, the holes in the plot left me feeling dissatisfied.
2) This sucker is way too long. Now I'm not lazy when it comes to reading; I've read plenty of LOOOOONG novels and some of them--like "...Kavalier and Klay" and "The Brothers Karamazov"--are my absolute faves of all time. But this novel could have used a LOT of editorial liposuction. I got into the story immediately and was really into it for the first 250 pages or so; but it dragged on and on and on...for some 500 more pages!
I've read all Frank Herbert's Dune novels, as well as Brian Herbert's and Kevin J. Anderson's "House" trilogy of prequels, "The Butlerian Jihad," and now this one. I've enjoyed them all, and while the new novels are not yet on a par with Frank's originals, I think Herbert the Younger and Anderson are getting better.
One last thing: I highly recommend reading Frank Herbert's original Dune series before reading the newer books. They're fantastic books (the best SF series ever, in my opinion), and they'll give you the knowledge to appreciate the newer entries on a much deeper level than you'd have without them.
Rating: 
Summary: Is this Science Fiction or a Romance Novel?
Review: Very disappointing. There are a few good parts of this story, but they are buried by sorrow about lost romance, uninteresting human relationships, and tales of Octa Butler's supreme meal planning ability for her husband Xavier. For example, "Octa did this as a gesture to him and her dead sister, serving the tasty meat glazed with a tart currant sauce (p 715)." In addition in the space of about 10 pages toward they kill off four of the most interesting characters that they spent the previous novel and most of this one building up in an outrageously unbelievable scenario. Fans of other Dune novels should consider this one an "abomination."
Rating:
Summary: Strictly for fans
Review: Brian Herbert writes this Dune prequel recounting the early history of his father's most fascinating universe under the claim that he and his co-author based the series on "extensive" notes and outlines left by Frank Herbert. While I am not certain that I would not rather to have simply read Frank Herbert's notes, as a great fan of Dune and its sequels, I relish the opportunity to answer questions on the formation of this intricate universe and its complex society. The Dune culture always left a series of questions in its wake, not the least of which being the story of its origins. How did space folding, the Guild, the Sisterhood, and all of the other complex institutions come into existence? How did there arise a high technology but basically feudal human society? What were the "thinking machines?" What happened to earth?
Unfortunately, only diehard fans will be even more than faintly interested in the answers to these questions. Others will find this novel and its predecessor dry, with flat characters, and amateurish stilted story telling. Where Frank Herbert created compelling portraits of Great men and women, his son's work offers little more than sketches. A few exceptions exist. Norma, for example remains both interesting and entertaining. Other pivotal characters, however, fall flat. Vorian seems incomplete and often something out of a pulp story. Compare this central character with the powerful and rich Leto, his distant descendant who dies off at the beginning of the first Dune novel yet whose complexity haunts the series next four books and credibly remains central for over 1,000 years.
Readers will continue to enjoy Frank Herbert's Dune for years to come. His grand world invites one to savor and revisit. The world his son paints, however, is worth visiting only to answer some outstanding questions. If you were not enthralled by Dune, you are better off rereading that master work and skipping this rather skimpy mere curiosity of a book.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Sequel
Review: This book confirms my problems with The Butlerian Jihad, the first book of this series of prequels. Frank Herbert did not envision a great battle against robot overlords.
He envisioned a deeply religious war against people relying over much on computers fought by ordinary people against human elites (that's why, in a galaxy of exotic names, he chose "Butler" as the name for the jihad leader). Even if there were planets taken over by robots, the jihad the elder Herbert envisioned would never have allowed people to use robots to train swordmasters or to guide human ships as happens in this book.
Frank Herbert likely would have used such plot points differently. There would be people secretly and illegally using computers believing that they could learn from their enemy and that the ends justify the means. They would have been discovered by the Jihad, and whether they continued to use machines or were killed for doing so, the results would have been ambiguous.
The authors of this series don't have such a vision. But the Machine Crusade was still enjoyable space opera with some hints of Frank Herbert's universe. Knowing that we would never get the story the way Frank would have told it, it was still interesting to see the continued gelling of the various factions of the Dune world--Bene Gesserit, Tleilaxu, Guild, Fremen told on the background of an action-packed war against humans and machines, a story of political intrigue among humans, and the continued and humorous (partly unintentionally) story of the quirky robot Erasmus. We never know from one moment to the next whether a character we enjoy will live or die.
Less interesting was the story of the swordmasters of Ginaz. Since these two authors focused on Ginaz swordmasters in their "House" books in a way Frank Herbert never did, I guess they were more interested in telling of their audience. The rest of us could have skipped the story.
This book held my interest enough that I will buy the third one when it comes out in paperback, but not enough to rush out and by the hardcover.
Rating:
Summary: Not As Good As It Could Have Been
Review: Having read most of the dune novels, except the house series...this one is pretty decent. It was very irratating at the beginning of this novel, how they kept repeating the information on "manion the innocent" having read the first in this trilogy and knowing the ending it was not necessary to continously repeat this. If i was not a large fan of the dune series i would probably have stopped reading the book because of this. Character development was decent, but killing off almost all major characters at end of novel was surprising none the less. Guess they didnt want these characters alive in the next novel. However having started to read the battle of corrin now, i understand why these characters were killed off. All in all it is a great book to read, look forward to finishing the last of the trilogy. Just wonder if they will try to write another trilogy in the dune universe somewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Continuity and bleievability not consistent with Frank
Review: I read the original Dune novels several times because they were well-written masterpieces not only of science fiction, but also (arguably) or modern literature. The other prequels seemed to carry on that tradition of fine storytelling as well as anyone could be expected to without being on par with Frank Herbert, and I read those once. I noticed minor inconsistences in the other novels, but they never bothered me too much. This second book in the "Legends" series is a different story.
One thing that had bothered my since THE BUTLERIAN JIHAD was the fact that there existed Sorceresses who had telepathic powers. This exists nowhere in the senior Herbert's Dune universe. Granted, he wrote characters with extraordinary abilities, but these abilities always stemmed from extremely intensive development of faculties already possessed by humans in the real world. Paul Muad'Dib was no telepath, but could "see" the future. He was, essentially, a mentat.
Paul was a mentat, and I am not the first reader to make that assertion. The spice melange, in classic Dune, was a drug that modified brain function and, in the case of Paul Atreadies, interacted with his own unique body chemestry that was a result of eons of breeding in a way that the mentat faculties he had been unwittingly trained in since birth were amplified to superhuman levles. Guild navigators enjoyed similar benefits from the spice, but at a much greater cost to their humanity and freedom. In this cost, I find it difficult to accept that humans possessed telepathic powers thousands or years before the culmination of the kwizats haderach program.
The powers of the Sorceresses of Rossak bother me for another reason as well. Presumably, this group of women will evolve into the Bene Geserit. If the Bene Geseret had, in the distant past, possessed powers of telepathy, wouldn't it have been of great importance to them to maintain those abilities? Hell, if they had that, they wouldn't have needed Paul for anything. Not even the Honored Matres possessed such power. Also, why the hell does foldspace have a high rate or success without a prescient navigator? That really bothers me. And why is it possible to manipulate physical matter with your mind after your body has been destroyed? I could ramble on, but I just don't want to say any more about the faults of this book.
Though this work is irreparably flawed, I must read it and those books still to come. If you've read the rest of Dune, like I have, you may find that you have the same problem. But seriously, I could have done better myself.
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