Rating: 
Summary: Dune: House Harkonnen
Review: Have just finished the book and loved it.They have provided a view into the history of the Imperium that was lacking from the original series and fills in some holes(i.e the Ginza training of Duncan).The greatest complaint with the book is the resolution of the House Vernius issue it lacked the expected intrigue I have come to expect from this series.I do however recommend this book to any reader of the DUNE series as a whole.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad...
Review: I was eager to read this book, and I wasn't disappointed. While I did find that it drifts a bit farther away from the writing style and tone of Frank Herbert, I still thought the storylines were woven togther quite well. The book has all the twists and surprise developments one would expect of a Dune novel, and is overall a fine addition to the Dune unniverse.
Rating: 
Summary: Another great addition to the DUNE universe!!
Review: House Harkonnen totally exceeded my expectations!! I've been a fan of DUNE for many years, and I can't thank Brian & Kevin enough for giving us another brilliant, epic and heartbreaking chapter in the saga of Houses Atreides, Corrino, Vernius and Harkonnen. I highly recommend this book to old and new fans of DUNE.
Rating:
Summary: Like father like son
Review: Some amount of space is devoted in this new prequel comparing the achievements of the father to the son. As noted over and over again, the son carries on better than before. Im not ready to say Brian Herbert is better than his father but its getting real close.
Rating:
Summary: another piece to the legendary puzzle
Review: Well, Brian and Kevin strike again with their second installment. after reading House Atreides, I can say (comparitively) that this one is on par with its companion. Though no one could write as eloquently as Frank, these two novels by Brian and Kevin have kept the traditions alive and well. I do rank this book highly (as I do for all Dune novels), however it still doesn't compare to the others. This is a must read for all Dune fans. However, if you are just begining to start Frank Herbert's saga, I suggest that you read Dune first to understand the complexity of what comes both before and after Dune. I will say that in reading these prequels, I have enjoyed looking at Dune in hindsight in understanding both Frank and Brian's approach
Rating:
Summary: A good second book in the series
Review: Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have masterfully kept the story going from Dune: House Atreides and set things up for the concluding book. While this book did not impart the sense of awe and wonder I felt while reading the original Dune series, this back story is a fine saga in its own right. The mythology is more global in its outlook (Japanese, Scandinavian, and more Greek, than Islamic), and the plot more like a Greek tragedy, than a religious prophecy. The reader is given some foreshadowing to events to be concluded in the next book, as well as actions that frame events from the original series. I did not agree with all of the interpretations (Gurney Halleck having met Liet Kynes before, the people related to the main characters who are never mentioned in the original series, and minor quibbles like that). I look forward to the next book and only regret that it will only delay the long awaited seventh book (third one of Miles Teg's timeline). Enjoy Dune while it is not a licensed shared world and gets totally out of hand.
Rating: 
Summary: Not up to Dune Standards
Review: I have eagerly awaited all the new books in the Dune Prequel series but this one saddly disappointed me with it's many references to old earth, in the original books earth had been abbandoned at least 25,000 years but this book made it sound like a far more recent event. And I found original books plots within plots to be almost completely missing. Over all the worst of all the Dune books.
Rating:
Summary: The best prequels I have ever read
Review: DUNE is alive again! It is a very difficult thing not to disappoint people when writing prequels to masterpieces. Mr. Herbert and Mr. Andersen succeeded. I look forward to "House Corrino" release. Thank you so much!
Rating:
Summary: different brand of Dune
Review: I think by reading the previous 150 reviews of the House Harkonnen that this is not a book written by Frank Herbert. We should be glad since Frank Herbert lies dead and may he rest in peace. However, it seem clear that many of the 150 or so previous reviewers were looking for Frank Herbert ghola to write more Dune clones. I found both House Atriedes and Harkonnen books to be relatively interesting and fast paced. Its pretty obvious that they were not written by Frank Herbert so why are so many people whining about it. The new series appears to be written in totally different style. But I thought it was pretty well written. There are four different plot lines, Duke Leto's, events on Giedi Prime and House Harkonnen, events on Dune and events with the House Corrino. And of course, them little sisters of the poor. But the book was never confusing and the authors managed to intergrate all the plotlines very nicely. You have to read each book in order to get the most out of them but overall, its an entertaining reading material. Nothing serious and nothing really deep. If someone wrote a spin off series on Middle Earth and people whine that he doesn't write like JRR Tolkien, is there any logic to that? There is only one JRR Tolkien and sadly, there is only one Frank Herbert. I think this series have to judge on its own merit and not on the merit of the original series.
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.
| 
