Rating: Summary: Not a worthy sequel for «Hyperion» Review: The two first books were, in my opinion, masterpieces. This third book of the serie is, at best, an entertaining adventure. Gone are the well depicted, complex, credible characters, the historical fresque, the surprising inventions and descriptions that serve as the background for the plot. Three somewhat tame characters will undertake a journey through wich they meet different friends and foes. The action is somewhat entertaining but linear, the plot is unoriginal,the vilains unconvincing, the stereotypes abundant, the surprises nonexistent. The worst part of «Endymion», however, is that you are led to read the fourth and last opus of the serie: «The rise of Endymion» wich is one of the worst piece of litterature I have read since I learned to. So read the «Hyperion» suite and stop there. The «Endymion» suite is NOT even remotely as good.
Rating: Summary: An excellent continuation of the Hyperion story Review: Endymion is an excellent followup to the events in the finale of the Hyperion novels (Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion). Simmons builds upon The Fall showing the reader the aftermath of this event two centuries later through the journeys of Aenea and her companions. Having read the Hyperion novels, I was glad that there were several references to the characters and events in those novels although the story wasn't totally dependent upon them. The appearance of the Cruciform was especially an unexpected twist. All in all I'd have to say that I probably enjoyed Endymion more than the previous two novels and I'd highly recommend it.
Rating: Summary: Finally, Simmons starts moving... Review: Along with the interesting theological implications of his work, it seems that Simmons actually got the ball rolling in this cat and mouse chase across worlds with the Shrike making appearances from time to time as well. Very good read.
Rating: Summary: Try to catch me,said Aenea to the Great Inquisitor Review: I got soon tired of this pretentious book and of the involuntary humour of having a fierce inquisitor hopping from planet to planet only to discover that his prey has hopped a planet away.Portals centuries old that are somewhat functioning,but only for the good guys are another absurdity.Endymion is a ponderous novel not worthy of Hyperion and the Fall of Hyperion.And for Dan's humour,it can be glimpsed only by the aid of a particle accelerator.Sorry.
Rating: Summary: Downhill since Hyperion... Review: Hyperion was one of the best books I have ever read. It was a wonderful combination of many genres of science fiction in a mixture inspired by John Keats and Geoffrey Chaucer. It turned out to be a masterpiece of science fiction. The Fall of Hyperion was disappointing, but did create a resolution. Endymion is an adventure/action tale set in the same universe. It does have it's high points (the cyborg assassin was chilling, and the journey of the main characters was interesting), but don't expect anything even as remotely fascinating as Hyperion was. Only read the first book and skip the rest.
Rating: Summary: The Long Strange Trip of Raul Endymion Review: From the non-place of a Schrodinger cat box (a physics thought experiment) We are introduced to Raul Endymion whose family name we recognize as a city in the HYPERION series. This guy has no idea what is about to befall his simple existance as a hunting guide. First some jerk kills his pet, Raul wastes this guy in self defense later and is sentenced to death. First view of the Cruciform... the dead jerk comes back to life to testify against Raul and pretty much helps to cook his goose. Raul is sitting in the deathwhip chair ready to go into non-resurrection oblivion (having opted out of "salvation" by not accepting the Cruciform or the Church), then he wakes up from "death" to be taken to our old friend Martin Selenus. From here it gets better and better. Poor Raul is charged by Martin to rescue a messiah who is coming thru time in the good old Tombs-while facing down the entire human armed forces; then destroy the chokehold of the Church and its technocore puppetmasters, and.. oh yeah, rescue Old Earth from the Magellanic Clouds. Only Dan Simmons could pull this off. The old hawking mat appears again to save the day more than once. The Shrike is a menacing presence again but believe it or not there is a creature that will cause you to root for the Shrike. The Church unveils a brutal ship that destroys every crewman each time it travels. There is a lot in this work. I usually dont get into reviewing a plotline but a lot of people seem to need to be reassured that this is a continuation of HYPERION. It is all that and more. Ride the River Tethys, closed off by the destruction of the portal net by the hegemony over 200 years ago. Raul has himself a group of wonder-workers here, folks. Plenty of action, unexpected turns and twists GREAT new characters, and old friends. The clouds of total war loom over the Ouster swarms... not forgotten here. Everthing fits, everything works. The ending is a bit cryptic. That is my only complaint (minor) See you at THE RISE.
Rating: Summary: Poor follow-up to great Science Fiction book Review: Perhaps this book would have been much better if it didn't suffer so much by comparison to _Hyperion_/_The Fall of Hyperion_. Like the two previous books this actually tells one story when combined with its sequal, _The Rise of Endymion_. Rather than expand on the ideas in that book, Simmons goes off in a new direction contradicting the previous books and giving us a story far less compelling. Don't expect the questions remaining at the end of The Fall of Hyperion to be answered. Simmons wisely leaves the mysteries of the first book intact, but this new adventure is one long and frequently boring chase scene. The Catholic church's use of the crucifixes from _Hyperion_ is an interesting development, and Simmons' writing style is still good. But ultimately there just isn't much here.
Rating: Summary: A satisfying return to the Hyperion universe Review: Though not as sweeping or intricately woven as the previous two Hyperion stories, Endymion is nonetheless an interesting and satisfying read for fans of the series. While we're left guessing for the most part about the fate of the Pilgrims, we do get a fascinating sense of the depth of the Fall and it's impact on humanity. At least two very intriguing and thought-provoking twists on the "original" material kept me turning pages well into the night.
Rating: Summary: A disappointing follow up the Hyperion/Fall of Hyperion Review: Perhaps this book would have been much better if it didn't suffer so much by comparison to Hyperion/The Fall of Hyperion. Like the two previous books this actually tells one story when combined with its sequal, The Rise of Endymion. Rather than expand on the ideas in that book Simmons goes off in a new direction contradicting the previous books and giving us a story far less compelling. Don't expect the questions remaining at the end of The Fall of Hyperion to be answered. Simmons wisely leaves the mysteries of the first book intact, but this new adventure is one long and frequently boring chase scene. The Catholic church's use of the crucifixes from Hyperion is an interesting development, and Simmons' writing style is still good. But ultimately there just isn't much here.
Rating: Summary: a pro written book without tru energy or vision Review: I quite much liked the Hyperion story, but this book was a dissapointment. The main characters do not have much to offer, and as the plot starts to jump between plantes the novel turns into a clever adventure story. It is kind of all there, but it is not really interesting. You have heard it all before. I find the imagination easy going and in a way boring, and do not find the book comming true as a sf-vision in any way as the Hyperion story did.
|