Dune: House Atreides

These books just sort of run on and on with occasional bits that fascinate me. Frank has yet to be outdone by Brian/Kevin because they do not succeed in being as mystically ecological or as dense.

This is the first book in a series of Dune prequels. It is written on a junior high level and is far inferior to both the original Dune and the second set of prequels that succeeded these.

Not on the same level as most of the original series, but still worth reading.

This is horrible. It's bad enough that the man is dead. Don't ruin his works, too.

An incredible insight to the world of Dune. Once again we get great depth of characters and multiple stories that link so perfectly. A perfect starting point for anyone new to dune. Or if you have read the main 6 stories and want even more!

The added history is well worth the listen if you love Dune

Copy of my Launchpad review from 2001 of D: Atriedes and D: Harkonnen:
A second instance of ‘add-a-chapter-to-an-existing-series’ syndrome. The first two books in the Prelude Trilogy (as far as I know one - and only one - more is to be printed sometime in 2001). This time written by the son of the creator, and a man with many credits for books in long running sci-fi universes.
Again, as a lover of both the book and the film I really liked these books; they capture the way in which the universe-spanning politics of CHOAM, the Landsraat, and the Imperium (shame on anyone who does not know what these are!) are really just a school-yard brawl with bigger catapults. They also introduce the young Duncan Idaho and Gurney Halleck and give insight into the motivations of Duke Leto and his generation.
However, and this is a small thing, I re-read Dune recently and these do not have the seminal epic vision. If you liked the film, these are great; if you love Dune then they fill in gaps but are not the fix you seek.
Obscure Fact: Kyle McLachlan, star of the cult series Twin Peaks, regards Frank Herbert’s Dune as his Bible, and reads it at least once a year.

This prequel deals with the youths of the "older generation" in Dune: Duke Leto, the Crown Prince Shaddam, Vladimir Harkonnen and his viscious nephews, Hasimir Fenring,Pardot Kynes, Stilgar, Duncan Idaho, and the Atreides retainers, clarifying the universe in which Paul Atreides-Muad'dib inherits. Connections Mere hints in Herbert's classic are developed at length in a natural, unforced manner, making the reader want to re-read the series with renewed insight. Masterfully done.

Getting lost in the first of the Prequel Trilogy felt a bit like coming home. Herbert and Anderson's partnered writing has improved with each novel they have co-authored, and this feels entirely reminiscent of Frank Herbert’s works. They manage to emulate his style, diction, syntax, and mannerisms throughout the novel, which follows Paulus Atreides, Leto, Shaddam, Fenring, Emperor Elrood, Mohiam, Kynes, Stilgar, Vladimir, Rabban, Abulard, Rhombar, Thufir, Duncan, and others. (Yes, for die-hard Dune fans like myself every name in the above list is significant.)As Shaddam and Fenring work to gain the throne, Prince Leto is busy learning and training. Kynes is sent as Imperial Planetologyst to Arrakis to try to better understand spice while Vladimir gains control of Arrakis and begins skimming and stockpiling melange. Duncan Idaho is used as a hunted child in ‘games’ for the Harkonnen guards and elite on Geidi Prime until he escapes and enters the service of an impressed Duke Paulus and Leto on Caladan. While Paulus spends his time participating in the grand spectacle of bullfights and teacheing Leto to both understand and be loved by their people, the Tleilaxu and Shaddam plan the takeover of Ix as part of an attempt to create synthetic spice. Leto travels to Ix to learn from House Vernius and the Bene Gesserit discover that they are only three generations from the culmination of their most secret breeding program-- the Kwisatz Haderach.The novel is beautifully constructed and an easy way to fall back into the Dune universe. Familiar names in an earlier time show that the politics, economics, and power plays a generation before the time of Paul Atreides are as complex and ever changing as in the later (and the Butlerian era) Dune novels and the characters and stories as compelling.

Although I genuinely enjoy Frank Herbert’s original novels, these 2nd generation novels furtive attempts at capturing the essence of his universe lack finesse as well as grace (at least this one does). Having grown up reading Kevin J Anderson, I know him to be a strong writer with a firm grasp on characterization and form. I can only surmise that he deferred too much steering of the authorship to Brian, who I will refer to by his first name rather than his last to denote that he in no ways live up to Frank Herbert’s legacy. While the various plot points do manage to solidly encapsulate the evil vindictiveness of the Harkonnens and the Corrinos, the book is fracturous, with too many points of view in too many places with little connectivity, too few of which are female. In an effort to set the stage for the latter two books in the trilogy, a great many characters are introduced. While some lose their POV after the first couple chapters, other characters are given a great deal of time to develop. The three characters that one would hope would have the most consequence, both from being original Herbertian characters, as well as figuring as protagonists on the buildup toward their birth rite novel, the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, Duncan Idaho and Leto Atreides are all varieties of static. The Baron is given no valid reason for his early viscous attitudes, although Brian cleverly fashioned the impetus for his eventual bloated suspensor-assisted treachery. I considered labeling the Baron as an antagonists because probably anyone who's seen Dune would say that he is, except in this case everyone is an antagonist--virtually all of the book's characters are hedonistic, self-righteous and seek to sabotage everyone else (except for Pardot Kynes). Duncan Idaho wins the hand-wave grand prize for being a completely unbelievable pre-pubescent lone, cunning, planet-hopping soldier based solely on the death of his paper-pusher parents. To claim this character is “larger than life” would be ironic and ridiculously understated. Unnaturally lucky, 8 year old Duncan manages to thwart seasoned Harkonnen hunters and cross multiple hemispheres of a planet with no resources. Leto Atreides, raised by a doting much-beloved king in a wholesome fishing monarchy not unlike Scandinavia, comes off as sadly both stupid and weak willed. Leto’s naiveté and regurgitation of his mother’s rhetoric paints him as useless during a planetary revolt, forcing his business-minded hakoiri musume playmates to orchestrate their escape. This book does little if anything to set Leto up as the eventual martyred hero, though it should be noted that for this book Jessica hasn’t been born yet—the claim could be made that her influence changes him irrevocably…Yet, these three are still given far more development than any of the female characters. A possible love interest for Leto, Kailea, is given one brief scene to introduce her personality as haughty and profit-driven, seemingly devoid of girlish fantasies and friends. Afterwards she fades into the background, apparently since her goal of joining court in the Imperial planet Kaitain is no longer viable. Although it’s not clear if Leto actually has a crush on her, if so it’s difficult to understand why. But speaking of women connected to Leto, his mother is also quite the puzzle. Helena is possibly the worst choice to marry Paulus. Frigid, aloof and Orange Bible-thumping, Helena barely shows any warmth for her son and is constantly concerned with appearances. Leto doesn’t understand her, and the reader isn’t given the chance to. The one female narrator Brian offers us for more than one chapter is the Bene Gesserit Gaius Helen Mohiam. Helen comes to as something of an unwilling participant in the Landsaard. We understand that she has a great many powers to control her physical being and that she willing follows the edicts of the Bene Gesserit. Beyond that the only part of her personality that the reader really sees is her taking pleasure in seeing Baron Harkonnen undone. Clearly Brian doesn’t understand enough about women characters to write them with any contributing value, a huge a disappointment since he is probably the only one who will ever be able to publish in the Dune universe. Why Kevin J Anderson, a writer who has proven he can work with strong female protagonists didn’t fight harder for their inclusion is mystifying. The one aspect of House Atreides that appeals to the reader is Brian’s land and mindscapes. Doubtless Brian recognizes and tries to duplicate the use of the acid trip in his father’s work, which is definitely an important touch. Additionally, Brian paints beautiful vistas such as the cavernous stalactite city of Vernii, obviously an homage to D’ni (they even rhyme) and some descriptions of Arrakis, Kaitain and Caladan. The setting Brian paints isn’t always complete and it could stand a little improvement, but it does set the scene well. The obvious answer to the question of why House Atreides fails to impress is found in its nature. Being the first part of a trilogy that seeks to setup all the behind the scenes plot devices and innuendos for Dune, House Atreides obviously has a great deal of ground to cover. Yet, some things appear totally superfluous, such as Mohiam’s giving birth to one child that didn’t measure up to the Bene Gesserit expectation from Vladimir Harkonnen. Thus the reader has to revisit the distasteful “sexual” encounter between her and Harkonnen again, supposedly to show how serious the Bene Gesserit are about their breeding program. Beyond which it seems to contribute nothing and wastes the reader’s time. In any film adaptation (which hopefully will never exist), these two scenes would be merged but perhaps Brian found something compelling in that scenario that isn’t at first obvious.Brian also skillfully uses another homage to help the story past its built-in handicap of no faster-than-light communication between worlds. No doubt suggested by Anderson, in one case a character is given an acid trip vision of an incredible invention that he afterwards goes about creating. This device allows him to gestalt his telepathic abilities (the reader is expected to buy into his telepathic abilities since he was a candidate to be a Guild Navigator) across the light years to connect synchronously with his twin brother. The concept is lifted from Anne McCaffrey’s Talent and the Hive series (and perhaps from other places) and in addition to its nostalgic factor, the idea plays on the edict of from the Great Revolt of the Butlerian Jihad to develop the human rather than the machine mind… although its execution in story is another rudimentary hand wave.In conclusion, House Atreides, taken by itself, does little to live up to the precedent of highly sophisticated science fiction novel writing set by Frank Herbert. For the purposes of fairness, House Atreides' numerous stomach-churning bouts of amoral behavior shouldn't be wholly foisted on Brian for inheriting such a series, but too few of his characters are capable of taking the moral high ground and those that are could still benefit from further characterization. With a multitude of shallow characters, the reader is left with a bad taste and the beginnings of a search for science fiction that centers around a few characters with actual development.

A good background to the events leading up to Paul Atreides. I found it thoroughly enjoyable and am looking forward to the next book. This is really a wonderful collaboration between Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson. In this novel, you learn about the work behind the scenes and the political actions.Sean

Most Dune fans either love the "Classic" books and think the continued series by his son is just shallow and uninspired, or they love the continued series by his son and think the "Classic" books are ponderous and convoluted. I am definitely in the former group.I have known and loved the first four books since I was in highschool, and have accepted the final two "Classic" books as being acceptable continuations of the series. I absolutely avoided the books by Brian Herbert, fearing that they would simply be tired extensions of the work of a giant: continuing the series for the sake of continuation. That was my bias, and as a result it isn't until now (at the age of 37) that I've finished the first of these books.It isn't as bad as I thought it would be. It suffers from the same discontinuity of many "prequels" in the first half of the book, as it struggles to situate well-known characters from the series (e.g. Duke Leto, Duncan Idaho, Vladimir Harkonnen) in their context for the story. The beginning of the book therefore feels a little disjointed and frenetic, jumping from storyline to storyline in order to get everything "in place." The real meat of the book is in the story of the Harkonnen plot and the trial of Leto that takes place as a consequence, but that really takes up only the final 1/4 of the book. As a result, I was mostly disappointed by the book, although I was decidedly more impressed with the last half than the first. Hinging on the hope built by that trajectory, I probably WILL pick up the next book (House Harkonnen). But so far my impression is that the level of writing and philosophy is not NEARLY a match for the original books.But I say that with this disclaimer: I *liked* the philosophy of the first books. I have friends who find the original books ponderous and slow, lacking in action and over-doing the obscure intellectual tangents into the meaning of prescience. So my dislike for the "shallow action scenes" in this book reflects at least as much on my own tastes as it does on the skill of the book itself.

The three books are okay to read, definately a must for Dune fans. I read them before rereading the original Dune novel, and while reading the books, I couldn't wait to start reading Dune. Great as an appetizer!

Nothing Kevin j Anderson is a hack who couldn’t sell his own books

The words to describe how ineptly this book was written are simply not available in English. Dune was an enjoyable series, but you have to be seriously addicted to the diminishingly interesting Dune universe to plough through this bit of pulp.

After I began to read all the various Dune novels in chronological order, I was worried the Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson books would burn me out. So many people have given them such drastically negative reviews, I was unsure what would happen. First I read the Legends of Dune trilogy, which I enjoyed quite a bit as a space opera on it's own, but now I am getting into the direct prequels and was worried they would fall flat. Thankfully I discovered the book was very enjoyable, even more so than the Legends trilogy. They are not quite as good as Frank Herbert of course, but very few writers in history have been. This book focused a bit more on politics than action, a stark contrast to the Legends of Dune trilogy, and while I thought this would be boring it ended up providing a really interesting view of the Dune universe leading up to the original novel. Overall the novel did a great job fleshing out the various characters, one could easily read this without ever touching the original novel and not feel confused or lost. I still do not understand the hate and vitriol people have for Brian Herbert deciding to continue the story his father created, and feel he definitely does the original series justice. Even if you don't like the books, they do nothing to take away from the original. I for one am glad he decided to finish the original series and write various other books in the Dune universe.