Rating: 
Summary: Folding Into Dune
Review: Herbert and Anderson have done it again! Frank Herbert dreamed up one of the most fascinating sagas of humanity's far future and the prequels are doing a wonderful job of filling out the DUNE universe. Read and enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: A Depressing Precursor to the Dune Series
Review: Unfortunately Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have taken the Dune series and turned them into pulp science fiction. There is the same heartless story telling and lack of depth that is endemic of science fiction lately. The authors go to great efforts to make the series an epic battle, a struggle between good and evil, etc. There are so many predictable turns of plot and story that I find myself rooting for computer overlords to win, if for nothing than to kill the more annoying human characters.After finishing the Machine Crusade, I pulled out my trusty Dune Encyclopedia and read about the Butlerian Jihad. I consider the encyclopedia to be somewhat authoritative on the series. ... I also looked at the lineages of Atreides and Harkonnen families. There is no corroboration with the stories that are told there. I would wait for the paperback, or borrow a copy from the library. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
Rating: 
Summary: Sad little ghost of Dune
Review: Most people who read these prequels are most likely acquainted with the original works of Dune by Brian's father Frank. And if you aren't yet familiar with the originals then I suggest you start your reading there where it was originally meant to be. As it is, the prequels--started with the three "House" books and later moving back 10,000 years to the Butlerian Jihad--are sad little shades of Frank Herbert's visions. As Dune fans know, the Machine Crusade is the second book of a trilogy about a war between people and machines. Cliche? Very! That is why Frank Herbert began his Dune novels 10,000 years afterwards, to show the ramifications of such a war. He moved past the cliche and developed a universe that existed without machines. Here in the Machine Crusade we see the same typical writing of Kevin J. Anderson, whose writing style has very little eloquence compared to Frank Herbert. Frank Herbert's originals are a grand mishmash of intricate plotting that combines many aspects of human society: politics, religion, philosophy, ecology and family interaction. His books were all internal; he created characters that you cared about, that took on a life of their own even when they had such minor parts in the storyline. All these points are lost in the Machine Crusade where Anderson is mostly concerned with the external conflict of the Butlerian Jihad. Think Star Wars or Terminator. Lots of fighting. Lots of dying. No plot except for yet more fighting. For anyone who has read the originals, you know that telling stories of battle was not Frank Herbert's purpose in these books. It was to tell chilling tales of of tragic characters whose every move impacted all of human society. The wars that took place in the original series rarely happened within the very pages of those books, but mostly happened between books or before the books. They were irrelevant except for the fact to know that they happened and people died. His purpose was to show the ramifications of those very wars. The book fails in many aspects. Primarily, the Machine Crusade reads like a history book. In many cases its chapters just sum up what one character is thinking when it might be best to provide some much needed dialogue to give it a sense of immediacy. It's such a shame, because many of the characters have such potential, yet there is so very little interaction between the numerous main characters that you just want to yell at the book and make it DO something besides blow up robots. I have very little doubt that if it wasn't for the name "Dune" attached to the prequels, these books would never sell. They are cliche, poorly written, have flimsy characters and numerous plotlines that rarely come together to form an ever greater story. The book's only redeeming quality is that it provides a curious glimpse at the history of the Dune universe, and that is all. Whereas the Dune originals can be reread over and over again for greater understanding and enjoyment, these books will probably gather dust or wind up on ebay.
Rating:
Summary: As Always, Parallels to Current World Situation
Review: Once again, I have not read this book. But I have had enough conversations with Dune fans and saw a few minutes of David Lynch's Dune movie about 15 years ago and have read enough readers comments about previous Dune books, so I think I know enough to have an opinion. Based purely on guesswork, here is my synopsis of the plot: Emporer Jorgah Al-Bushah, leader of the planet Dune, has his hands full trying to prevent further attacks on the Peh 'pol of Dune by the Baron Hosah Mhbinlad 'Ain. Baron Osah has deployed tribes of Tah-li-Bhan around the planet, to cause death and destruction everywhere in his attempt to bring down Emporer Al-Bushah. The Peh 'pol support the Emporer Bushah in his efforts to eliminate the Baron, until it is revealed by the Emporer's arch-nemesis El-Gahor that Al-Bushah has been conspiring with the sinister Oman Emirates and Saho 'deis to horde all the Kah-Rud 'Oyl (magical wealth creating liquid which also powers the planet's Kah 'Ars) on the planet. But the spiritual mystic Rah elph Nahidir, with the aid of a small group of Hin Ju Neers, develops an alternate source of Kah 'Ar power, thereby making the Kah Rud worthless and stripping all the evil - doers of their corrupt influence and bringing peace to the planet. As usual, Herbert, through his great imaginative skills, provokes strong emotions and with all the middle-eastern sounding words and names, forces the reader to contemplate the current state of this here world. But you know, I'd rather watch CNN.
Rating:
Summary: a sequel that is better than the original
Review: While I would read anything to do with the Dune universe, parts of the Butlerian Jihad left me with mixed feelings. Maybe it was because I had to get used to new characters but the fact was that while the history and premise was very intriguing I thought much of the dialogue to be stilted. I would have given that book three stars, on a good day. It was then with much trepidation that I read the Machine Crusade. Well I could not have had a happier surprise. The characters are now more fleshed out, the history is still intriguing and the politics and backgrounds are exciting beyond belief. But the big difference is the dialogue amongst the characters and in their thoughts. I now care about the people involved in the stories. I look forward to the third book in the series. My faith in the ability of the authors to tell a story has been restored.
Rating:
Summary: Machine Crusade - Awful!
Review: The writing is trite and certainly has none of the depth of the original Dune series. When you're fan, you can't help but want to read "pre-quels," a "history" of the "later-in-time" books. Unfortunately, the series from Brian Herbert and Anderson just hasn't measured up to expectations. Can I say "awful" again? Best wait for the paperback and not waste your money.
Rating:
Summary: DUNE!
Review: Despite what other people say about this book. I liked it a lot. I'm a fan of science fiction and Dune has to be one of the best series ever.
Rating: 
Summary: Okay... now THAT'S better!!!
Review: Okay, I admit... Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are getting better. After the horror that was "Dune: The Butlerian Jihad" I thought all hope had been lost. Appearantly some people CAN learn new tricks... including how to write. I am happy to see that there is actually a solid plot in this one. And speaking of plots- I actually got an EMOTIONAL response during this book; whereas the only true emotion I felt during "The Butlerian Jihad" was that of suicidal tendencies. They should have had a coupon with that one for a mail-in t-shirt that rewarded the reader for surviving that ordeal. That said, however, you'll never understand THIS book w/out the other. Consider it a trial by fire. "That which does not kill you only makes you better", and so on. However, after enduring that literary "gom jabar" we are actually rewarded with "Dune: The Machine Crusade".
Rating:
Summary: A Trilogy All Its Own
Review: The difference between the Dune books written by Frank Herbert and the prequels written by his son, Brian Herbert, is that they occur in a completely different time. These books are similiar in the fact that they both deal with the legend of Dune, Muad'dib, and the countless other players but the situations are vastly different. I never picked up these prequels expecting them to be immense philisophical tomes but instead I found stories that you would hear around a campfire.. stories of powerful legends and people and history that brings the great novel of "Dune" into focus. What many need to understand when they pick up this novel [and the one before it "Butlerian Jihad"] is that they won't encounter the deep-thoughts of Frank Herbert's books, but instead a far reaching story that must encompass much of the history that came before "Dune". If you go into the novels knowing this, then you will come out immensely satisfied like I did. The stories are rich and the pace of the novel flows like wine. A good wine, one that you will want to taste again and again. I won't divulge important storypoints here because that's best left up to a book report or newspaper review, but instead emphasize that it got my heart racing and I couldn't put down the book for several days. I actually sneaked it into work and read it under my desk when no one was looking.. and on the subway to and from work, I had difficulty not crying "no!" at the book in several instances.. [usually I do not talk to books, but this one left me emotionally enraptured].. Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson, I feel, are doing great justice to Papa Frank's dynasty. It's amazing that they can wrap all these storylines into whirlwind of rich history... Yes, the book is not "in-depth". It does not try to be what the original "Dune" novels are.. but instead becomes something of its own.. and worth the read..
Rating: 
Summary: "The Machines of Our Lives"
Review: It reads like the bible for a soap opera; "The Machines of Our Lives". Every chapter seems to be written as if it has a three page limit which hashes out only the minutest description of the characters as well as the storyline. Much like the previous Anderson/Herbert ventures it lacks any type of great story telling and pales in comparison to the original books from where it gets its name. Why then did I finish this book in three days? Unlike the other books, the paired down outline approach to story telling seems to convey a simplistic charm that truly works. Maybe my expectations have been warn down by one disastrous ÒprequelÓ after another, but I canÕt say that the Anderson/Herbert duo didnÕt give me something that I liked. In some respects the books flows like fast food, and I devoured every page as such. Yeah in the end I felt bloated and knew the story would leave my mind about as quickly as it entered, but so what. It was fun. What ÒHerndersonÓ (Herbert/Anderson) did finally learn in this outing was how to present cool characters in enough wacky situations to keep me reading. Whether this should be called a true ÒDuneÓ book or not IÕm not to say, but at least I got to read a few pages about a character every now and again that I liked (or disliked in a good way). DonÕt get your hopes up about any realistic characters though. Like in the other books the dialogue is still about at the level of a bad student film and there is no real story, just one big lumberous plot with enough interesting events to make those of us with nothing better to do plod along with eager anticipation. It is unequivocal that the authors take themselves and this ÒstoryÓ too seriously considering the atrocious amount of blithe undeveloped plots and subplots designed to set up something that eventually leads us nowhere other then to tie up a loose end (i.e., the entire needless Hectate subplot). The books also seems to think that it has a surprise ÒtwistÓ at the end, but narratively it fizzles out long before itÕs eaten up by a sun (no IÕm not spoiling anything). To be honest I was more shocked at the audacity of the authors attempt at selling this as an ending of any kind then caught up in the turmoil of the narrative. Unlike my reaction to the other books though, I enjoyed the pomp of it all. I even relished in it. It seems to me that if ever anybody was going to put ÒRocky HorrorÓ into a book form, it would seem that these two would be perfect for it. Not because of their comic timing, or their subversive storytelling, but rather because I think that theyÕd take it seriouslyÉ and thatÕs what would make it so darn fun to read! AD
| 
