Hyperion

Rating:
Summary: Award winning?
Review: Probably there is no wonder as to why Hyperion was given awards: it combines a lot of elements from genres like mystery, "Little Women" type family stuff, plus a modicum of horror writing. The question, of course, is does this actually help tell a story?

For the unwary reader, this will be a frustraiting book. It is almost entirely digressions into the past of six of the main characters on their pilgrimage to meet the Shrike on Hyperion. It starts to get a little annoying, whowever, when one realizes that the main story supposedly taking place in the "present" of the tale is hardly progressing. This book was, for all intensive purposes, written as the beginning of a series, and so leaves pleanty not yet cleaned up for the next book. Left as-is (with no series after), it would have bordered on literary fiction (to be understood by those who read it), but knowing there is something after somewhat ruins the effect.

The conclusion? This is no Gateway or Rama, where the first novel is almost completely stand-alone and has closure in itself. If you want to try it out, you will at least want to have the next book in the series (The Fall of Hyperion). Some will enjoy the first book as-is, though be it such people are few and far between.

Rating:
Summary: First book in one of the best SF/Fantasy series ever
Review: This is a masterful piece of writing. A space opera with hard science fiction elements, marvelous character development, and a strong sense of humanity. I rank the Hyperion Cantos as superior to Dune, second only to Lord of the Rings.

Simmons is a true writer, and, like Lord of the Rings, his work transcends the genre.

Rating:
Summary: Hyperion Isn't For Everyone
Review: This book didn't do anything for me. For the most part I was bored, it took a good measure of will for me to stick through the whole thing to the end. I don't think the actual book lived up to the description on the back cover, and I always find that rather disappointing. Simmons's style isn't one I can appreciate.

I chose Hyperion based on the back cover and all the glowing reviews I heard. I'm glad I got it at a library book sale instead of spending 6 bucks on it. The reason I have the next book is that I found it at the same book sale.

There are many much better science fiction novels out there. My suggestion is that before buying this book you should read the first 2 chapters, this will probably warn you off, or sell you on the book.

I'll give the sequel the benefit of the doubt, but the first two chapters have done nothing for me. If I didn't have so many books which I haven't read yet, I wouldn't bother with the sequel. However, since I have the sequel and I just finished Hyperion, I have to get through it somehow just to cross one of these books off my list.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasy, not fiction
Review: My experience with sci fi is pretty tiny, but a friend described this series of novels as the best sci fi around. He raved about the concepts and the religious themes, especially Simmons exploration of the nature of God.
I found some of the ideas in Hyperion compelling, particularly the concept of the Cruciform which is nicely developed in the Priest's tale, and the region of the Time Tombs that travels backwards in time on the planet Hyperion, creating an anomaly which confounds the predictive powers of the seemingly omniscient Hegemony world order.
The mysteries of the Web and the datasphere, megasphere etc, some vastly developed information superhighway, and the technocore, a politically independent and powerful artificial intelligence network, are scantily justified from a scientific standpoint, but sufficiently communicate the huge differences between Simmons populated solar system and our own tiny planet of now.

Unfortunately the Simmons literary delivery and dramatic execution is quite deeply flawed. At odd times the prose sparkles but often betrays haste and projects like a stage set, existing only to provide a vehicle for inventive science fantasy. There is obviously talent here, for Simmons periodically produces a noticeably different style for the various characters' tales, but too often it is a forced and unconvincing artifice. The Scholar's tale is annoyingly slushy and in general the characters are wooden and one dimensional. The enigma of the Shrike is at the same time arresting and incongruous and seems to belong to the world of horror rather than science fiction.
Simmons uses naïve artifices to communicate the subtleties of his plot, particularly through the 'thoughts' of major characters, and this worsens in the second book, The Fall of Hyperion, where Simmons gives little reminders of plot, trite precis of previous events, as though he is worried you will have forgotten what went before. This naivety produces the unfortunate effect in the reader of constantly being reminded of the author's intent, rather than being caught up in the world of his story.
OK, I know science fiction writers are not literary giants, but why the hell shouldn't they be?
Still, I read the second book, which to be honest is more laborious than this one.

Rating:
Summary: Sci-Fi Lovers, READ THIS BOOK
Review: Hyperion is such dense/thick reading that it really took me a while to get "into" it, but once I got about a quarter of a way into the book, I started the upward spiral of obsession and respect for Dan Simmons as an author. I am now finished with the third book in this series, and it's one of those experiences where I'm excited to start reading the next one, but at the same time I'll be sorry to have to "let go" when I'm done reading the next and last. Simmons has applied an intelligent and eloquent wit and charm to his characters in a way that I have nothing but admiration for such a unique and creative writer.

Rating:
Summary: The Hyperion saga - brilliant and infuriating
Review: If you're reading this review, I assume you are wondering two things: Should I buy this book? And should I go on to buy the whole series? (Hyperion, The Fall of Hyperion, Endymion, The Rise of Endymion)

As a stand-alone book, Hyperion is one of my very favorite science fiction novels ever. Like the Canterbury Tales or the Decameron, it is a collection of tales by characters who don't know each other at first, and most of the action happens in the tales. But the tales are more closely related than the other two books I've mentioned. They are variations on a theme: What is the greatest pain a human can endure? Two of these stories have been seared in my mind forever. (I read the book several years ago.) I don't remember the others as vividly, but I do know that they gripped me at the time.

I loved Hyperion because it is such a wonderful feat of world building -- the best and richest SF world I've read, and that includes Dune. It has the best alien life form?/technology? ever, the Shrike. I appreciated its intellectual seriousness. And I liked it because it was understated, not pretentious, and doesn't over-explain.

Now, what about the series? Well, it's everything the first book was not -- grandiose, pretentious, and it explains everything down to the n-th detail. Simmons gets caught up in his own ideas, at the expense of the story. The second book was okay -- perhaps even a cut above the first one in the world-building department, as he provides more of the context for the first novel's action. The third book was dreadful, every bit as formulaic as other reviews on this site have suggested. I simply do not want to read another book about an author's concept of a messiah. It's just a license for preachy writing. To make things worse, Simmons takes his brilliant, unique creation, the Shrike, and tries to outdo it. No! Some things must not be touched. You don't hire a better butler than Jeeves. You don't come up with a cleverer detective than Sherlock Holmes.

So it was a long time before I could work up the nerve to read the fourth book -- but it was worth it! Simmons finally returns to his form of the first book, with characters you can care about and questions that matter. Plus, he's got all the great backstory that he's developed in books one through three, and he manages to tie it up with a very satisfying conclusion. And yes, it's tragic. Even though you've known for way too long that the messiah, Aenea, is bound for the fate that messiahs usually suffer, the way she orchestrates it and the redemption that she offers are wonderful.

So what do you do? Definitely, read the first book. It's a must. After that you have a tough call. Slog through two disappointing books just so you can read the magnificent finale, or just leave the first book alone and unspoiled. It's up to you!

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!!
Review: I actually picked this book up on a whim. It was excellent!! I could not put it down! I love reading science fiction -- especially when it is good, and this was great.
I would say that this is more than a book, it's an experience!
As an idea of what I would compare this book to (even though that is incredibly difficult to do), I would say that it is a cross of "Ten Little Indians" and "Neuromancer". I say "Ten Little Indians" because the book brings together several people who have no idea why (and need to try to find out), and "Neuromancer" because of the unique future it brings to life.
I have been recommending this to everyone I know, and I thought it was only appropriate to write a review. Needless to say that as soon as I finished this book, I immediately purchased the sequel -- it's that addictive! Only the Dune series has ever held my attention this much.

Rating:
Summary: I'm too busy reading the next one to review this
Review: Hyperion is the first in a series of four, the next three being "Fall of Hyperion", "Endymion", and "Rise of Endymion". At this time I've only read Hyperion and it's difficult to review because it ends without any real closure. But after nearly 500 pages of wonderful science fiction, I think it was an appropriate place to break the series. Since I don't know how the story turns out, my rating is based on the quality of the narrative so far.

The setting is around a thousand years in the future from our time. Humankind has settled on hundreds of worlds, most of which are part of a powerful empire called the Hegemony. Instantaneous travel between many of the worlds is possible thanks to a technology known as "farcasting". These portals are developed and controlled by ultra-powerful computers who have formed their own governing entity called the Technocore, which cooperates with the Hegemony but is independent of it. And then there are the Ousters, former human beings who have evolved physically to adapt to zero-g enviroments. The Ousters were originally a faction of humans who refused to be ruled by the Hegemony. The Hegemony allowed them to go settle their own worlds.

The strangest planet discovered so far is Hyperion. The Technocore is adamantly against installing a farcaster on Hyperion, due to the enigmatic presence there of structures called Time Tombs that are actually flowing backward in time within anti-entropic fields! Due to the lack of a farcaster, access to Hyperion is limited to expensive conventional space travel. Both the Hegemony and Technocore are completely baffled by these fields around the Time Tombs. Who created them? Why? And what's the nature of the dangerous creature called the Shrike who seems not to be affected by the fields and who takes people's lives for reasons of his own?

There is evidence that the Time Tombs may reveal their secrets soon. The Ousters also are very interested in the contents of the mysterious structures and are threatening war with the Hegemony over control of the planet. It's on the eve of this momentous war that seven pilgrims from various parts of the Hegemony set out for Hyperion. Each pilgrim has a compelling reason for visiting the Shrike and carries a desperate hope that his/ her prayers will be answered.

The bulk of the novel consists of independent narratives by six of the pilgrims. Each reveals their reasons for coming to Hyperion and it is through their stories that we become familiar with the marvelously imaginative universe that Simmons has constructed. Tons of new concepts and ideas are presented and developed. The quality of the writing is superb. Simmons's pen is versatile: he switches from action to religion to poetry without missing a beat. The pilgrims are a priest, a soldier, a poet, a scholar, a starship captain, a detective, and a diplomat. Also note that this is a mature book for adults: it has a fair amount of sex and violence.

Highly recommended for science fiction readers! And for anyone who likes to test their powers of imagination.

Rating:
Summary: Uncrown Dune; All Hail the Hyperion Series
Review: I've read series written by the best of them: Herbert, Williams, Niven, Mccaffery and many others. Dan Simmons has a power few will ever possess,even for fleeting moments. This review reflects my opinion for this 4 book series, not just the first novel. To understand the scope of his universe you must read all 4.
That said, Hyperion started out to me as a book with a fantastic cover, and once opened it became much more. His education on religion is a focal point here. And weather you love religion, or just love to hate the idea of it, you will be captured and changed forever in ths series. He writes about hundreds of worlds each seeded with people and DNA from Earth's most wonderful creatures and sets them into motion. He tracks their history in retrospect, and subtly tells tales of 700 years of evolution, never once becoming dull or predictable. And he sends 7 pilgrims to a distant world named Hyperion where they will either recieve the one thing they want most or they will forever be tormented in death at the hands of the mysterious Shrike. A creature from the future? Or Death itself?
Hyperion, the book is the story of these pilgrims. Like the Canterbury Tales, it isn't the journey itself, rather the reasons and paths that brought these strangers together. All of this set against a ticking clock! These stories are so detailed and powerful that I felt I knew them and actually cried over Sol Weintraub's Tale. (If you have a daughter you will also.) And marveled at the poet's tale. A man who, through stasis is the only man to have seen and lived on the Earth before its destruction. Yes, there is no homeworld anymore. Not so hard to believe considering human nature to destroy that which has nutured us for thousands of years.
Simmons weaves a complex web as detailed an silent as a spider.
You hate who he wants you to and trust who he wants you to. You never give up on those you feel closest to, and just when you think he left you hanging and you need a new fix, you get it in The Fall of Hyperion.
Just wait until you get to the Rise of Endyminion, a race for your life against an enemy which is not slowed by death or time!
All to save humanity. You will be brainwashed. You will be angry that there is no fifth book. And you will be sure Dan Simmons has a gift few others posess, even for fleeting moments.
Thank you Dan.

Rating:
Summary: Mostly gripping, with a few false notes
Review: A mostly gripping story that's dragged down in a few places by politicaly correct storytelling.

The PC stuff includes a military-commercial attack on an environmentally perfect world of people and dolphins. It also includes some female characters who seem forced. One of the major characters is supposed to be a female version of the private detective Sam Spade, only tougher. There's also tough- but-wise female leaders of the dolphin world and of the broader star systems. These characters are flat, at least compared to the surroundign action. Also, there's a throwaway reference to a male military character as a descendent of "Palestinians." The reference appears in a single paragraph and then disappears.

In most stories with this kind of PC stuff, the silly politics sinks the art. This story is good enough to overcome it.