Rating: 
Summary: A triumph for science fiction fans.
Review: If you loved Dune, then you must read this book. It's been at least 10 years since I read Dune and now I can't wait to read the whole series again. Mr. Anderson and Mr. Herbert stayed true to the details and vision of the series. I absolutely couldn't put it down. I don't want to give anything away, but you will be thrilled with this read!
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining, but not Dune by a longshot
Review: I finished reading D:HA a while ago, but in the name of fairness and a level head, decided to wait and mull over the book before I came online and wrote out a scathing review. Anyway, I have taken the time to wait, jot down thoughts and whatnot as the days moved along, seeing how I saw the book as time went past, jostling it around a bit in my mind to see what came out. And here it is.On the outset I would like to state that I have been skeptical, to say the least, about the existence and veracity of the ever talked about notes that Brian and Kevin claim to have found. After reading and mulling over the book, I am forced to reconsider. There are two distinct possibilities; either they do indeed have notes penned by Frank about the DC or they just went through the DC looking for ideas. You see, Franks's ideas are there, albeit rearranged, altered, and distorted. A conglomeration of Dune-ish ideas are mixed and changed into something that 'feels' like Dune but really has just been reduced to be merely a showcase of FH's rejected plot ideas. Configurations, or patterns if you will, of ideas that he felt wouldn't work, weren't fitting of the grand scope of Dune or were too lacking in depth, with interjections of poorly planned and written dialogue and characters far twisted from what this lifelong Dune fan has come to know and love. There are other problems as well: 1. Elrood is played to be a doddering old fool, easily manipulated and not befitting a man who has maintained 100+ year of rule over the known universe, way out of character for the character, much like others we know and love/hate. Fenrig, Mohaim, the Bene Teilax, the Bene Gesserit, and others are all altered and changed, some so diametrically opposed so as to preclude them even realistically developing into the characters from FH's Dune. 2. Too much is either not left to the reader to find and deduce on his own, explaining in painstaking detail, or not there for the reader to notice at all (i.e. basic character development). Both cases left and still leave me thinking 'don't tell me or make me just guess, show me dammit!' 3(or 1 part II). I still want to know why it is made so obvious that the BT are religious zealots in HA and it is such a surprise in HoD and CH:D, as well as why House Atreides would take such risks with their heir apparent. It just doesn't reconcile with the character of these things in FH's Dune. 4. And none of this even touches the either FH rejected, or Star Trek borrowed No-Ship anachronism, or even something as basic as the Baron's hair, which will undoubtedly, since it has been pointed out, be conveniently explained in the next book. But I digress. All this goes to say, if BH is the detail man of the two, then he really needs to go and look over his 'details' another time. These errors are inexcusable to people with sharp enough minds to even comprehend and enjoy FH's DC. Bottom Line: House Atreides is at best on par with a fan-fic work; it is almost as if someone is playing 'what-if' (i.e. giving the Hark's a no-ship and seeing what they would do, changing the BT or the BG and seeing what would happen, etc.) with the original Dune works. Marginally, House Atreides tells a story that, while somewhat entertaining, isn't fitting to be called 'Dune.' Dune:House Atreides is a day or two read, suitable a day at the beach or a rainy afternoon, but not much else. What could have saved this book, and at least given it a redeeming quality as a Dune for the pre-teens? New Characters, New plot vehicles, and New Settings, and avoiding using anything that is even mentioned in FH's Dune works.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic and WOW
Review: I am extremely pleases in this book. It gives increased depth and life into characters that that were minor in the original series. I highly recommend it to any lover of the Dune series. I can't wait for the next one -House of Harkonnen.
Rating:
Summary: Dune: House Atreides is the best book I've read this year!
Review: I'm psyched, I'm jazzed and I'm incredibly excited about Dune: House Atreides. I had heard rumors about D:HA about two years ago and I have been eagerly waiting for it since. Finally, D:HA arrived and I loved reading it. Dune: House Atreides is the best book I have read this year. Dune: House Atreides is filled with all the factors that made Dune such an outstanding work. Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson captured the style, theme and spirit of Dune. D:HA takes place four decades before Dune and gives the reader wheels within wheels, plots within plots and conspiracies within conspiracies. D:HA is filled with political intrigue and family sagas and conspiracies. Baron Harkonnen hatches various nefarious schemes. The Bene Gesserit Sisterhood continue their secretive breeding programs which even the most advanced Mentat has not solved. Many of the Great Houses are jockeying for favors from the Emperor and the spice melange affects everybody's life. Melange is only found on Dune, also known as Arrakis. Dune: House Atreides is as addictive as melange. I couldn't put the book down, but I also didn't want the book to end. It was great to revisit with House Atreides, house Harkonnen and the myriad cast of characters populating the Imperium. Dune: House Atreides is a superb addition to the Dune canon.
Rating: 
Summary: A good read, but inherently strange....
Review: If you like the Dune series, this book is worth it, if for no other reason than to return to the universe (which, if you're like me, you do often) I enjoyed it, but it felt ... wrong. It flowed strangely ... it seemed to lack the seriousness that marked Frank Herbert's work. All in all, good background for the Dune series, and I can't wait to see what else comes from the Herbert/Anderson collaboration. There is still alot of uncovered ground between "House Atreides" and the opening to "Dune". Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Whew! Did the authors "channel" the late, great F. Herbert?
Review: It must be tough to walk in the hallowed footsteps of the late, beloved Frank Herbert, but the heir apparent, Brian Herbert and his co-creator, Kevin Anderson, pulled it off in great style! Great collaboration, Brian and Kevin!
Rating:
Summary: I found it hard to put down once I started reading it.
Review: It didn't take reading too many pages before I found this prequel nearly impossible to put down. I enjoyed more about the characters that made Dune so rich, the plot twists, the better look at some of the worlds only touched upon in the six-volume series, and just about everything else in the book. I like the authors' style of moving the setting from one planet to the next from chapter to chapter (most of the time), in order to make the story run linearly, with the story on two or more planets converging later somewhere else. My only concern is that good and evil may be a little too black and white, one (of many) faults of the movie, which to me had an ending that sounded like "The Greatest Story Ever Told". Wasn't the bottom-line theme of the original trilogy "Beware of Messiahs"? That having been said, the side of me that likes an adventure came up with the 5 star rating. The plot carried the day(s) for me, and I'll defer looking at the consistency of message for the prequels to those of the real thing until the whole prequel trilogy comes out. I am really glad, by the way, that this prequel covered only about one-third of the time from when it started to when the original starts, because it means that more is to come. Bring it on!
Rating:
Summary: DUNE/House Atreides,Frank Herbert's legacy lives on!
Review: The Prequel to Dune is powerful and compelling!!Brian Herbert & Kevin J. Anderson have done it!!Frank Herberts legacy lives on through them and I'm sure he would be proud of the work they have done, its as if Frank Herbert is writing it himself!!Being a Dune fan for so many years, and to see the characters 40 years prior and their characters shape into the powerful characters they become in DUNE is wonderful!!A must read book.I couldn't put it down, I look forward,and can't wait to read the sequels to Brian and Kevin's work!!!
Rating:
Summary: Massively Disappointing
Review: The original Dune series is one of my favorite works of fiction, but "House Atreides" does the original an immense disservice by association. "Dune: House Atreides" is a poorly-written, badly-constructed, and barely-readable effort. The characters aren't true to the original series, the technology is weak and contradictory, and the plot could be described in two pages. Also, I'm not sure the authors know the meanings of the words "akimbo" or "penultimate". If you're a Dune fan, re-read the originals instead of wasting your time with this... book.
Rating: 
Summary: Tantalizing
Review: When I saw this novel available, as a hard-core Dune fan, I HAD to have it. When I finally received it, I immediately curled up on the sofa by the fireplace and sat down to read. What I found was a mix of both insighful writing, flashes - almost echoes - of Frank Herbert's original ideas and phrasing, and unfortunately, jarring use of slang and interruptions in narrative flow. I enjoyed the long phrasing and flow of the original "Dune", and later, "Heretics..." and "Chapterhouse." This book occasionally went there, but the phrasing was too tight, too condensed at times to flow for me. As for the reviewer who thought the "no-rooms" concept was out of place, it was not. Remember Lucilla and Duncan in (I believe) "Heretics"? An ancient Harkonnen no-room was the description given. Yes, enjoyable and a nice addition, but I hope that if there are any books forthcoming, they be more intense and elaborate.
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