Rating: 
Summary: So Brian's not Frank. Read it anyway.
Review: I came into this prequel with a lot of preconceived notions that it would not be a worthy successor to the original. And it isn't. But after a second reading, I realized it's not supposed to be. "House Atreides" is a prequel, not a sequel. It's supposed to "fill in the blanks" of what happened before the greatest book in science fiction history. NO book can ever hope to live up to that kind of hype. But I believe Brian and Kevin do a masterful job of setting up things that we =know= are going to happen in later books without killing the suspense. There's whole new storylines to explore in this series, which they do later on. So Brian's not Frank. But he's working from Frank's notes with the aid of an author who is used to working in other people's universes. If you like "Dune" give this series a chance. I believe if you come into it with an open mind, you'll find it almost as entertaining as the original.
Rating:
Summary: Slow Start
Review: The Frank Herbert Dune novels were so well crafted that the characters seemed to be a natural consequence of the future history in which they live (to which we cannot relate without the help of Herbert's carftsmanship), and a product of their own human ambitions and shortcomings (to which we can relate directly). In contrast, most of the characters of this book are unrelatable on both accounts. I read the book a mere chapter at a time for the first third, finding it uninspiring. Despite this, the story did grow on me, and I finished the book rapidly. Some of the characters did begin to take on extra dimension, and the story had some clever twists. It seems the authors' craftsmanship improved dramatically over the course of the project (assuming that it was written in chapter-order). They have infinitely huge shoes to fill, and have have done so more adequately than I would have thought possible. On the whole, I did indeed enjoy it, despite a slow start. I look forward to the other books, and my enthusiasm for the original series has been sparked anew.
Rating: 
Summary: This ain't a Dune book
Review: I pick this book up when I'm not in the mood for my main reads. I am convinced that Brian has watched the movie a few times and may have read his fathers works but, it's hard to say. I equate this to a Star Trek/Star Wars novel. Nostalgia and boredom are all that may get me through this book. If you see it at a Garage sale....buy it!
Rating:
Summary: A Major Error Per Chapter
Review: Dune: House Atreides is the first in the expansions to the Dune legacy created by Frank Herbert, this novel is set approximately 45 years prior to the first Dune novel written in 1963. Written by Brian Herbert, the son of the author of Dune, with co-writer Kevin J. Anderson, the duo has huge footsteps in which to follow. The novel takes us through the lives of the young Leto Atreides the man who would soon be Duke Leto and father to Muad'Dib, Duncan Idaho and his escape from the Harkonnen slave pits, Baron Harkonnen's early dealings with the planet Arrakis and his subsequent siring of Lady Jessica, Shaddam Corrino and his ascendancy to the emperor's throne with the help of childhood friend Hasmir Fenring, Thufir Hawat, and the original planetologist assigned to Arrakis by the Emperor Elrood, Pardo Kynes. Now if that looks like a mouthful, even to a seasoned Dune fanatic, wait till you try to chew on all of the additional characters that these key players meet and interact with. It's enough to make your head spin. When you mash all of these plotlines together into one novel like this (and the first in a trilogy, so you know that the next two will be more of the same characters and certainly an equal number of new characters) you are left with a meal consisting of delicately sipping a vintage wine in between bites of chili-cheese fries. The chapters get shorter and shorter as the book progresses and end up more akin to a few frames of an after-school cartoon rather than something worth reading, pondering, digesting, and perhaps re-reading again someday. Nope. One read through on this book and you will probably need to brush your teeth just to get the bad taste out of your mouth. The entire Pardo Kynes story simply does not belong in this novel. It is little more than a fleshed out version of Appendix One from Dune, and Frank Herbert wrote a more compelling version in 6 or 7 pages than son Herbert and co-writer Anderson do with a dozen chapters. Pluck this plotline out of this book altogether and make it a smaller, separate book of its own. It's presence here shows us how little these two really know about storytelling. For those of us who have been Dune fanatics for any portion of the past 3-1/2 decades, we get to look forward do at least one major Duniverse error in each of these chapters, whether from the Baron's lean, muscular physique, to Duncan Idaho's curiously missing sister and absence of slave pits, to just about everyone and his brother being acquainted with the Bene Gesserit's breeding programs. Gone is the mystery of the Bene Gesserit, the origins of spice, and the inner workings of Ix. We even have Vladimir Harkonnen's suggested inclination toward boy sex toys (from Dune and Children of Dune) clearly laid out as no-holds-barred homosexuality. Makes you wonder how he is going to become the father of the future Jessica Atreides, hmmm? Well, never fear, but our wonderful Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohaim will find herself the future mother of Jessica through a surprising tryst with the Baron. OMG! Where did these boys miss the repeated references in the Dune chronicles to the multiple bastard children the Baron had by his reckless youthful adventures? The son Herbert insists that upon reading his father's notes, though, that the Baron is gay (not maybe even a little bi) and is forced to father this child (and another!) through a few weak plot points and manipulations. Wow! The imaginations of a pair of writers is limited by their extreme belief in polarities and simplicities. Every nuance is good/bad, straight/gay, obviously planned out and panned out. Every attempt at complexity can't escape the suffocating breath of complicated and contrived. If the reader wanted to scrutinize the text piece by piece, consider such timeless phrases as "by the saints and sinners" or "the work of Satan" or how about "stronger than adamantium." What, is this suddenly an X-Men novel? The inherent problem with any prequel, as clearly visible in the Star Wars prequels, is how to make use of the information that already exists in the later novels, and enhance it in the prequels, while not spelling out the details of what were surprises in the original series. If we know that Jessica is Baron Harkonnen's child, then where is the surprise upon reading Frank Herbert's Dune that the Baron is Paul's grandfather? Another problem with prequels, especially with decades between the actual writing of them, is to be careful not to introduce technology or advancements that would be inexplicably absent in the later novels or would give people an undue advantage if they were so readily available. Let's call into question these strange earplugs that Baron Harkonnen uses to make himself impervious to the Voice? You would think by the time of Dune, in relation to this book, that everyone in court would have such earplugs to avoid manipulation by the Bene Gesserit. Of course what follows is sure to upset the Bene Gesserit fans: A Reverend Mother is stunned by the future equivalent of a tazer and then she is raped! Let's not even consider that some strange disappearing no-ship technology wanders into the Baron's hands. This would become real useful to wipe out a pesky Duke who took over Arrakis. Come on! Reality check! This book feels more like a color by numbers painting that a child could easily do, rather than a complex and intriguing work of art. The authors are trying to connect too many dots into one story, and they are winking at the readers repeatedly as they try to be clever with tying in as many Dune themes as possible, even themes that will not resurface for 4500 years in Heretics of Dune or Chapterhouse Dune, or more frighteningly, in the ever-present Dune 7 and 8 looming on the horizon...This reader is afraid to continue on to the next book, House Harkonnen...
Rating: 
Summary: Not Frank by a mile
Review: Good enough. It's not Frank Herbert, but it is Dune, and fans should just be thankful for that. I set out to find fault, but in the end liked it. If you're not a Dune fan then its probably a very good read, on a par with anything from the same author. If you are a Dune fan then some things will grate. Some scenes come straight from Dune with the characters changed, the baron over flying a spice harvester where in Dune it was Duke Leto, and here the difference in style is most apparent. At times it comes close to reading like an adventure, a bit like comparing Asimov's Space Rangers with Asimov's better work, aimed at a younger less demanding audience that Frank aimed at. The upside is you'll understand what's going on first time, the down side is you won't get anything from reading it twice. The only thing I had to read again was Brian Herbert's postscript, & I still don't know if we'll see Dune 7 (this is presumably Dune -3), this is the book I wanted to find out what happened to Duncan, the universe etc, not a prequel, which only exploits the Dune characters and doesn't really add anything new. Could have been one of the many Star Wars sagas, not surprising, given the author. Worth reading never the less. By the by, where's Gurney ?
Rating:
Summary: If only there were a Ghola Frank Herbert!
Review: I won't say the Dune "Prequel" Trilogy is entirely without merit. Any of the three books is an entertaining read for a cross-country train trip or a trans-Atlantic flight, like a Tom Clancy novel would be. But most people who know and love the "Dune" chronicles cannot help but be disappointed, even angry, at these pale imitations of the originals. The most striking lesson to be gleaned from these new Dune books is the difference between a truly gifted writer and a hack; between a serious work of imagination and literary skill, and airport lounge pulp fiction. I won't detail all of the failings of the narrative - the inconsistencies with the original series, the sometimes absurd plot development, the gaping holes and internal inconsistencies in the story. Other reviewers have dealt with these at some length. My biggest beef with these three books - all of them - is how poorly written they are (especially "House Corinno"). One would have hoped that more of Frank Herbert's literary ability would have found its way into his son's genes than apparently did. (Call the Bene Gesserit, quick! We need a new breeding program here!) The dialogue is often stilted, the character development shallow, and the structure fragmented, episodic and jerky. In contrast to Frank Herbert's elegant, even serene construction, Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have unfortunately adopted the hyperactive "jump-around" style so beloved of today's writers of second-rate entertainment fiction. Most disappointing to me was the shallowness of these new books. Frank Herbert's "Dune" books were books of IDEAS more than books about events and action. A great deal of their narrative was occupied with people's THOUGHTS, at least as much as with their actions. Brian Herbert's & Kevin Anderson's books, by contrast, are almost entirely devoid of thought, ideas or philosophy and are entirely preoccupied with who is doing what. At best, this makes their books entertaining, something with which to while away the hours. But they are simply not in the same league with the original Dune books. For the newcomer to the world of Dune, moving from "House Corinno" to "Dune" will be like moving from Harold Robbins to Steinbeck or Hemmingway. Reading my way through these three books, I frequently found myself wishing that one of the Tleilaxu had been around when Frank Herbert died, to grow a Ghola Herbert in their axolotl tanks. These prequels might have really been something in the hands of a gifted writer.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable reading
Review: Based on a lot of reviews here, I delayed picking these books up and reading them for myself. They're actually quite good. I agree with many of the reviewers that this series lacks the depth and complexity of the original novels, but is it actually fair to measure the value of these books against a standard of one of the greatest imaginative works ever created? With the exception of a couple of stupid ideas (introducing Feng Shu to the Dune universe), these books are entertaining and enjoyable reading, probably best suited for readers already familiar with their context and willing to simply enjoy a pleasant re-visit to the worlds of Dune without overanalyzing every detail.
Rating:
Summary: Bleh
Review: To say this is the best of the trilogy isnt' saying much. Terrible writing, and the fact that I see nothing of the characters from his father's work, despite the names benig the same, is a tragedy. Avoid all of Herbert and Anderson's dreck.
Rating:
Summary: A boring and dreary monotonal narative.
Review: Whoa. There are very few books that I actually quit on; not in the first 20 pages, at least. This book, however, proved to be an exception. Immediatly upon beginning this book I felt as if I were wading through something. Midway through the second chapter, I realized what it was: Anderson (or herbert, whomever) tells, but does not show. Instead of re-creating the events of the story in our minds, the author merely describes them for us, piece by excrutiating piece. The result is a dry, entirely dispassionate narrative. Worse, this dry description continues at an excrutiatingly steady pace and level of detail, with time passing constantly at the exact same speed and all parts of the stroy being described in equal measure. Ultimately, very dissatisfying. If I had to compare the twenty minutes of my life i wasted reading this book to a single other experience, it would probably be either reading the phone book on the first day of summer or eating cardboard. I quit reading after about 20 pages, even after going to the trouble to steal it from my school library. I suggest that you forgo even beginning this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Really Interesting
Review: It really answered a lot of my other questions about the other books, its nice to take a look back in time!
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