Rating: 
Summary: Not Frank but Not Bad
Review: Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson spin an interesting tale in this prequel trilogy to the Dune series. Many have blasted this series for not being up to the same level as Frank Herbert's original writing. An easy argument to make, however who can really imitate any particularly incredible writing style? Brian and Kevin do write a page-turning tale in this trilogy. I would argue that although not as deep or clever as Frank's writing it is written in a manner that keeps the reader going. I would argue that these books are much more action-oriented than the original Dune series and the trade off is depth for action. It does seem to have the feel of fan fiction; however, it is well-written fan fiction. There are minor points that are inconsistent with the original Dune and might cause hard-core fans distress but otherwise it is quite readable. My harshest criticism would be that the authors clearly do not have the life experience and depth of knowledge that made Frank such a wonderful writer. Frank was clearly influenced by his study of Arabic and other languages, mythology and the theory of myth, and a depth of understanding of several fields of study that shape our world - politics, economics, ecology. Brian/Kevin are more influenced by pop culture - especially David Lunch's film interpretation of Dune. It is amusing to note that Brian takes more from David Lunch's movie than his fathers own writing. Clearly, he was not interested in retracing the in-depth research his father had done in preparation of writing the original trilogy. It is also important to point out that it took Frank around 17 years to complete the original trilogy, whereas Brian cranked his out in 3 years. The result is the difference between a fine artisan versus someone who just needs to bang out a book every year.
Having said all that however, the books are quite readable and page turners (probably Anderson's influence). They do have some absurd moments that do smack of not having been thought through (turtle jousting - need I say more). The characters are quite simple for the most part and descriptors are used to the point of abuse - weasel-faced Fenrig. Some phrases are also used to the point of abuse (as if they were copied and pasted systematically throughout with little thought of context). Be warned, a phrase that was eminently clever in Frank's writing will be repeated ad nauseum in the Brian/Kevin trilogy. This trilogy was clearly formulated to appeal to Sci-Fi's largest target audience - young males 11 to 17 years old. It does its job well. Unfortunately, those of us who enjoyed Frank's exploration of myth, messiah, and religion will be utterly disappointed. The more tangible topics such as politics, economics, and ecology are given some depth. The depth inevitably is shattered however by radically unlikely confluences of events. Whereas Frank demonstrated a 'domino-effect' of change, Brian is more familiar with the 'massive set of synchronous coincidences' resulting in change.
Based on this trilogy, do not expect compelling depth from the Butlerian Jihad trilogy; however, a rip-roaring roller coaster ride of action and intrigue is more likely. If you go to Kevin and Brian's website, you will also notice they are speculating on the creation of a trilogy bridging the Leto to Paul years (early Paul). Note that they assume they need a trilogy. Ugh. The mantra-hobgoblin of many authors these days - Produce! Produce! Produce! Also, note that somewhere along the line they intend to complete Frank's unfinished novel tentatively the unnamed 'Dune 7'. If Brian and Kevin are reading this, please heed my request - Do NOT write a trilogy on the 'early Paul' years (Leto II only got two books - really guys). Also, please take a very deep, introspective look at what you want out of Dune 7. Frank spent enormous amounts of time learning about language, myth, and history. Do his memory justice and do the same before you set out on what should be a requiem for him. Quality over quantity, depth over distraction.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm glad it's over....
Review: The 1st of the three prequels looked like these guys might have some promise. After plodding through the 2nd, it was clear that these men aren't the masterful, deep story tellers that Frank Herbert was. Having finished this 3rd, hopefully last, installment, I'm glad that my strange addictionn can now be turned to other books.These books are repleat with lack of character and plot development. Characters are "built up" in a tedious series of un-thought-provoking passages throughout the books and it seems that, at some point, the authors looked at each other with startled expressions and said, "WAIT! These people are supposed to die! What to do?!?!"... their answer is to, with no ceremony or pomp, dispatch them, never to be revisited or thoguht about again. Just... POOF. They're dead. Move on. The original Dune was filled with complex plot twists, deep sociological observations (even if they had no basis in our reality), and brilliant characters. I felt wholly uninspired by these characters, though some were the same characters I was deeply intrigued by in the original. The though processes of this series characters was juvenile, stagnant, and dismally shallow. It's worth a read just to have done with it... there are some tidbits of entertainment here. Ultimately, I seriously feel their editors should have sent them back to the drawing board, and not relied on Dune's fame to sell these books.
Rating:
Summary: Weakest of the Prequel novels
Review: I am HUGE Dune and Herbert fan-Frank that is-but I enjoyed House Atreides and House Harkonnen. They were not as well written as the original Dune novels, but they were a chance to live in the universe. I loved that Mohiam was Jessicas mom, that she gave Baron H his disease. I liked the info about the Spacing Guild Navigator training, The Sword Master School-for Duncan Idaho, info about the BG training academy on Wallach IX, and the time spent in the Sietch with the Fremen.
However, there are glaring discrpancies which really bothered me. Slight though they are, they take away from the spirit of the original Dune novels. I hate that Gurnery Halleck is not actually saved by Duke Leto Atreides-but is a stow away in a shipment of that he ordered-Much is made of Hallecks devotion to Leto because he saved him which makes no sense at all if he was a stow away-which had little to do with Leto helping him at all. I also disliked the telling about the ghola tanks-that was just wrong. I did not like that Paul was born not on Caladan which is stated like the first page of the original Dune novel. Stuff like that ruined the series for me. I could have more easily handled the weakening of key characters-most notably Count Fenrig-if the novels had stayed truer to the facts established in the other novels. Maybe if it had been written further from Dune begins it would have been easier to stomach. I do not know, but I found House Corrino the weakest of the novels because I felt it did a poor job tying into Dune.
I would read the prequel novels, they are an easier read for those who felt Dune ovberwhelming and not be missed for fans of the series.
Rating:
Summary: What happened???
Review: Yes House Harkonnen was not as good as the first novel but what hapened here? It's almost as though they kept the downward spiral going as each book progressively gets worse. I liked Atredies and enjoyed Harkonnen but this edition was pitiful. The first half is boring and simple. Never really gets to anything especially since I thought the second book set it up to be exciting. Then the second half, while picking up the pace, it seems as though the authors were bored and couldn't wait to start the butlerian Jihad trilogy. They just kind of hurry things along and wrap up the story with no real compelling conclusions. The last few chapters are so simple I felt cheated. If you have started the series you have to pick this book up to finish it off but don't expect to have an real compelling ending.
Rating: 
Summary: Better than House Harkonnen but not as good as book 7.
Review: This picks up right where House Harkonnen left off and I would have to say its a better written story. Its almost as good as House Attreides. Book 9 expands upon the Emporer's plans to manufacture synthetic spice, and House Attreides attempts to restore Prince Rhombur back to power on Ix. When House Corrino's rulers are executed and Ix invaded and occupied by Harkonnens, House Attreides makes an effort to put Prince Rhombur, the only surviving heir to House Corrino, back into power. Meanwhile, the Emporer has plans to destroy Dune so that he can corner the spice market with his synthetic melange, 'amal.' The story climaxes when Gurney Halleck runs a Harkonnen blockade setup around planet Ix to get 'medical supplies' to House Corrino. All in all, a well told story and I would certainly recommend this book to all who love Dune.
Rating:
Summary: Read it if you must, but beware this is not real Dune
Review: It's appaling what the due Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have done to the incredibly complex universe created by the late Frank Herbert. What was formerly the stage of speculations in ecology, political science, military strategy, religion, biological sciences, etc., was trivialized into the most blatant form of space opera. The Dune prequels are anything but science fiction. Sometimes they read like Days of our Lives in the distant future. So, why three stars, you would ask? Because if you're a Dune fan, you may still enjoy them. House Corrino is not the worst of the three, though it's not the best either. It neatly ties off the several subplots started in the first two books and establishes connections to the real Dune books. That means, all in all, it may be worth a read. I enjoyed them somewhat, but not nearly as much as I enjoyed Frank Herbert's books.
Rating:
Summary: A good conclusion -- but again mostly for fans
Review: House Corrino is the third volume in the House trilogy -- a compendium of books that tell the story of Duke Leto Atreides and the events that preceeded Herbert's epic novel Dune. I've already posted reviews for the first two and the same theme runs through this one -- it's a good book, definitely worth the time of Dune fans but probably not for the casual reader. Corrino is the best of the three books -- wrapping up most (but not all) of the threads from the previous two books into a thrilling conclusion. The best parts deal with the attempt to create a substitute for the spice melange. We finally see the horrible method of the Tleilaxu. Also very strong is the portrayal of Leto Atreides -- who has grown from an uncertain teenaged ruler to a brilliant politician -- by the end of the book you'll wish HE were Emperor instead of reckless Shaddam IV. Still, the book is not perfect. The style is still a little torpid and irrelevant plot threads are still present. However, both problems are reduced compared to previous books and the relevance of seemingly useless plot threads in the previous two books is explained. Still, I could have done without Baron Harkonnen's attempt to learn polish and protocol. If you've liked the first two books, you'll be very happy with this one. It won't haunt you like Dune. But it will entertain you for a few hours.
Rating:
Summary: Old Dune with a new flavor
Review: I read 'DUNE' when I was 14 years old. The book opened a new world for me, named: Arrakis. After reading the whole epiloge, I had a lot of questions that weren't awnsered. Some people don't want to know the awnsers and leave DUNE as it ended with Frank Herbert. Other people (including myself) want to keep DUNE alive and read these books from Brian Herbert. If you want the awnsers: Go and read the Dune trilogy by Brian Herbert. (including 'the Butlerian Jihad')
His writing style is differend as his father's, but it still drags me into that world of DUNE and makes a brilliant story even better.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but predictable
Review: In this prequel series, authors Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson have succeeded in capturing the mood and tone of the fantastic Dune universe. Both House Atreides and House Harkonnen were fine additions to this most illustrious sci-fi series. In House Corrino which, as with the other two books, doesn't focus on any particular house despite the title, the authors have drawn out a satisfying conclusion that leads in to the original Dune. Sort of. A lot is left unsaid, and I'm almost thinking there's going to be another book stuck in between. Simple logic would seem to refute this, as there are really no more important houses left to title another book. In addition to the sense of incompleteness, there is a rather serious lack of any inventive plot in House Corrino. House Atreides presented a fantastic 'wheels-within-wheels' scheme, and House Harkonnen expanded on this. Though it wraps up the main storyline quite well, the last installation doesn't do anything you wouldn't expect. This isn't helped by the fact that you already know who will survive and die if you've read Dune. I'm not saying that House Corrino was a poorly written title. Quite the contrary, I rather enjoyed it. The problem is, it reads more like Star Wars than Dune, which breaks the flavor of the Frank Herbert franchise.
Rating:
Summary: The Dune House Trilogy concludes without much suspense
Review: I had a hard time getting through "House Corrino," Book 3 of the "Dune: House Trilogy" by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. On the one hand, the brevity of most of the sections was nice, because I could easily read a section or two at any and all opportunities. But, more importantly, the book has an inherent problem in that the sense of suspense is extremely limited. Is Emperor Shaddam IV going to succeed in his secret program to create a synthetic substitute for melange? No. Will someone succeed in stopping the Lady Jessica from bearing a son for her beloved Duke Leto? No. Is Gurney Halleck going to be stuck forever on a lost highliner? No. The reason I know all these answers is not because I am giving away spoilers to the book but because we know all the answers from having read Frank Hebert's original epic novel "Dune." So the surprises here are few and minor, and there is no real sense of suspense. This may be a problem inherent to most prequels, as George Lucas is certainly proving over and over again on the big screen. Towards the end, as the various scenarios played out to their conclusions, things did got a bit more interesting. This was where Herbert and Anderson were able to fill in some gaps in the "Dune" backstory; my favorite would probably be the whole bit with the Bene Gesserit breeding program for producing the Kwisatz Haderach and the continuing ecological plan of Leit-Kynes for Arakkis (although less so with the latter than in previous volumes). I was even rethinking the rating I was planning on giving this book, but then Duke Leto announced the middle name for his son Paul and I went directly to my "Give me a break" mantra: how do you think the Lady Jessica would feel about Paul having that middle name? Especially when you take into account how Leto feels about his own mother. Then again, clearly the goal here is to show what Frank Herbert's giant cast of characters were doing before the events of "Dune." Obviously, your decision to read "House Corrino" should already have been made. No one is going to read the third volume in a trilogy if they have not read the first two volumes. My general observation about the entire trilogy would be the closer the trilogy gets to the events of "Dune," the weaker the narrative; the converse would apply as well. I certainly enjoyed "House Atreides" the best of the three, but I think "House Harkonnen" and "House Corrino" are a toss-up down on the next level. Of the trio of titular characters the authors do the most fleshing out with Shaddam, who is certainly a lesser figure in Dune than Duke Leto or the Baron Harkonnen. I was reading the "Dune: House Trilogy" as background work for teaching "Dune" in a Science Fiction course this semester and I will interested to see as I reread the original novel how well this trilogy fills in the book's massive backstory. For fans of the Dune series this is something you should probably read once, but my prediction (done without the use of melagne) is that you will not be going back and rereading it again.
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