Rating: 
Summary: Not a strong beginning
Review: I just finished the first half-book of this series and am not sure I will read any further. The book has some pluses, including an interesting and in some ways original view of what the future might look like. My biggest complaint is that I can't find much to like in any of the myriad characters that are introduced and frequently dissappear at the drop of a hat. In fact I might summarize my view of this book as "many characters are introduced, most are killed off quickly, and I wish the others had been too." There's lots of unnecessary sex, which doesn't in and of itself bother me, but I would say that the sexual exploits of the two main characters made them much less sympathetic. My only real hope for the series would be that Calvert goes through a fundamental character transformation-but my hopes aren't high-I kind of think that Hamilton likes Calvert the way he is.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Book Ever
Review: Pulp, poorly written, poorly researched. It's a rare event I find a science fiction book I don't like, and this one tops a short list. The most irritating thing is the comparisons to the Dune and Foundation series on the book jacket. I'm surprised more than one book in the series was published. Perhaps the later books get better, it is unlikely I will find out.
Rating: 
Summary: All Start and No Finish
Review: I waited until I had read all six vols. of this marathon. Thus what I'm going to say relates to the entire series, not just this first part. As to the first part, it will suck you in with the hope that all of the following five long, long, long episodes are as good; they are not. Nothing about the final books is as good as the first, or even the second.Marion Zimmer Bradley says (Why Stories Get Rejected) that one of the fatal errors of science fiction is resorting to some outside power to resolve the story rather than having the main character(s) do it on their own. This series has outside forces to spare. One is introduced in the first installment, but seems to be put in hibernation. But in each subsequent book more and more unexplainable outside forces, omipotent, all-intelligent, supra-normal, beings or forces come on the scene. And the end. . .well, let's just say the main characters DO NOT resolve the issues by themselves. Another thing about this series that got my goat was the disappearance of primary characters at the drop of a word processor. The first two books and the middle two books (The Neutronium Alchemist) introduce a plot and characters that simply disappear on a single page toward the end of the fourth installment (oh, one of them comes back as a crew-member, but of no signifigance). This disregard for plot line and point-of-view really drove me crazy. I kept expecting them to come back right up to the end. For example, the main character has a brother suddenly show up and present a nice plot twist. Is the twist resolved? No, the brother just disappears into the background (as another crew member). I realize that long, long, long series are all the rage in SF these days, but the last couple of books in this series don't make any sense. I was not only disappointed, I was down right ticked off that I'd been tricked into spending my money but worse, my time. I finished this series in Australia but hauled the final book back with me so that I could rail about it. I probably should give this one or two stars, but in all fairness, the first two books, and maybe the third, were pretty good. Especially the action descriptions. But, if you are looking for this entire series to be of that quality, you will be very upset.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good Fantasy in Pseudo-Science Setting
Review: This is a pretty good read, tho it drags in spots. For a while, it keeps one wondering whether it is going to turn out to be science-fiction or fantasy. If you like large, expansive novels, you will probably enjoy this one. If not, don't even start.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: As a lover of SciFi in general and epic inter-planetary novels in particular, I really expected to like this book (especially after reading the glowing reviews here on Amazon). Instead, I found the plot to be disorienting and confusing, the characters to be flat, and the writing to be dull. Not sure what the other reviewers on this site were thinking (maybe they think people like them more when they write gushy reviews?), but I got so bored after halfway through the book that I stopped - which I almost never do. So maybe it gets really good in the second half ... but I doubt it. Overall, very disappointing.
Rating:
Summary: pulp, but damn well written
Review: First of all, do NOT buy all books of the series in advance. Buy part 1 and 2, and THEN decide what to do (I suggest you skip the neutromium alchemist but that is only a suggestion). The story is not as good as Dune or Lord of the Rings or even Hyperion, but the author is a lot more talented than Iain Banks if you ask me (he comes to mind when thinking about the genre). The first hundred or so pages are hard to get through; The plot is brilliant, but it is too much of everything. The author should have learnt to strip more text. I give 3 points because one should not write half a dozen books about just one great plot with not much else going around, and not much character development. On one hand a very nice someting (evil) is emerging on a colonist planet, colonists put into a green jungle unknown. Every few other pages the author changes subject and writes about the emergence of the (I assume) main character who then lives in a highly sophisticated part of the galaxy. It explores dark fantasies in your own brain, and it opens to you unimaginably beautiful planets. I never regretted going on reading, but it reminds me too much of a North vs. South America comparison and when I read sf I don't want to be reminded of that. One final point: while reading I felt the urgency to repeatedly wash my hands. It seems to have something to do with the low quality of the ink (or was it the raunchy stories?)...
Rating:
Summary: Too blown up
Review: Why am I bothered to write this review? Because I feel offended by the comparison to geat works this series receives.
I must say I liked the 1st book but it was a torture reading all 6. After using up most good ideas in the 1st volume the later ones are dominated by generic application of ridiculous superhuman powers instead of sophistication or a smart plot - and the ending is the crown of unimaginative conclusions.
I gave the complete set to a friend and he didn't make it past 1 1/2 volumes. The whole saga should have been compressed into 2 books - this way it is just a money making pain.
Rating:
Summary: In need of an editor
Review: I usually love this sort of epic SF novel. But I found the first book of this series to be lurid and gratuitous in many respects. The dialog is wooden, the plot overly moralistic, and the thing just goes on and on. The first two books could have easily been edited into a book about one-third the size without losing anything. Needless to say I won't be reading volumes 3-6.
Rating: 
Summary: wow! what an amazing universe!
Review: Hamilton creates an amazingly realistic universe in this series! I believe the 2 parts were originally published as one novel which makes this book feel like a total cliff hanger at the end and leaves a lot unresolved. The second part, you won't be able to put down!
Rating:
Summary: Sci Fi equivalent of the Wheel of Time...
Review: ... and everything that implies. Hamilton has created a very deep universe with a fascinating backstory, and the story itself is quite entertaining as well. While Hamilton's characters aren't as annoying as Jordan's (particularly Jordan's females), character interaction can be very soap-operaish. However, the plot itself is very imaginative and makes for addictive reading. Unfortunately, the ending of the series is perhaps the worst case of ... rushed Deus Ex Machina I've ever encountered and left me soured on the series as a whole. I can only conclude that Hamilton wrote this series ad hoc without a specific ending in mind and was rushed into finishing it by his publisher or due to flagging interest. If the series had actually had a good ending I'd give it five stars.
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