hyperion 2 review

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(as of Dec 29, 2024 15:52:16 UTC - Details)

In the stunning continuation of the epic adventure begun in Hyperion, Simmons returns us to a far future resplendent with drama and invention.

On the world of Hyperion, the mysterious Time Tombs are opening. And the secrets they contain mean that nothing - nothing anywhere in the universe - will ever be the same.

Reviewer: Alan
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A Worthy Sequel
Review: While this one starts out a little slow and is more heavily engulfed in the politics of the universe Dan Simmons has created, after the first 100 pages we get right back into the thrilling mystique that is the planet Hyperion, the Shrike and the Time Tombs! The first book in this series stands as my favorite, not just in the sci-fi genre but of all time. It is a hallmark to what modern sci-fi should strive to achieve and this sequal is a worthy continuation of that story. I really don't want to say too much because this is a sci-fi MYSTERY and as someone who writes in an identical genre where I hope for my audience to read as deeply as they can and let them decipher the greater whole of the story for themselves, I'll just say, I was definitely caught by surprise in so many instances, it was well worth the read, I look forward to the next two books in the series and I hope that Bradley Cooper is able to adapt the series as a whole and do it justice!

Reviewer: Adam
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Fun SciFi Goodness
Review: The author might have gone a bit overboard, but I'd rather an author do a bit too much than not enough. This was a satisfying conclusion to the first novel even though it is not perfect and leaves a lot of questions and arguably has some plot holes. Not a perfect masterpiece but definitely a fun world, cool story, good characters and overall immersive sci-fi read.

Reviewer: Thomas Erickson
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great 2nd part to Hyperion. Together top 40 sci fi of all time
Review: I've read hundreds of sci fi books. Hyperion (5 stars see my review) and The Fall of Hyperion ( 4 1/2 stars) together are a Sci Fi epic and INMO belong in the top 40 sci fi of all time. That's saying a lot!Dan Simmons is a master of character development and has created characters that the reader develops deep empathy with. I was so sad when Colonel Kassad dies hand to hand battling the mysterious, huge Shrike creature. We see Rachel and later baby Rachel given to the Shrike. Poets, Consul and a heavy planet detective. Also intergalactic war with the Ousters only to find out they are not the really bad guys. The AI Core is. They actually destroyed Old Earth with a black hole and more. I wont ruin the book by telling you too much. Just say you are in for a sci fi treat if you read this book.The Fall of Hyperion is over 500 pages and reads fast and well. There were about 15 or so boring pages where the AI head of the core is talking to Keats the poet/cyborg. INMO it slowed the book unnecessarily. The passage was not needed as the rest was explained excellent. Also there area few pages of poetry that INMO was not needed. When I read poetry I slow way down and sometimes read the passage 2 or 3 times to make sure I understand and appreciate what the author is saying. I don't like great sci fi slowed down unnecessarily.The Fall of Hyperion has a great moving ending you will enjoy. The Fall of Hyperion 4 1/2 stars because of the small amount of slow down by the talking back and forth with the AI core leader and Keats and the little bits of slow down poetry.Now reading Endymion by Dan Simmons....a city on Hyperion taking place 247 years after The Fall of Hyperion. I'll review it.

Reviewer: ZH
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Mesmerizing
Review: An extraordinary imagination, an absorbing story of breathtaking sweep. Not entirely devoid of filler content, but more than enough ideas to fill a library shelf.

Reviewer: Stewart B. Jesse
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Incredible, simply incredible.
Review: The first book, Hyperion, is good, but this book (the second) is absolutely fantastic! Impossible to put down, and takes you for a ride you will never forget.

Reviewer: NJ
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: A teeny bit of let down
Review: It's a let down from Hyperion - one of the best Sci-fi ever - but otherwise an excellent book.The story contains amazing twists, keeps moving unpredictably and retains suspense while solving puzzles continuously. There are great theological, philosophical and existential discussions along the way. Yet, they do not spoil the tale. Rather, they should make most readers pause to consider the reality we live in, add many new possible causes/consequences behind our existence and provide new plots to the story too.Like in Hyperion, the author's vast knowledge, diabolical intelligence, phenomenal language skills and ability to imagine the unreal constantly creates something or the other new and fascinating. Yet, unlike in Hyperion, the story often stagnates and drags. There is also failure of internal logic - when forces that are past and future realities collide, even granting the uncertain possibilities and telepathic/dreamy connections and likes, there are things that appear extremely prosaic and movie-like.Overall, the Hyperion duo is one of the most audacious stories ever told - for what it aims to achieve in explaining the existence and forces trying to twist the purpose. It is unlikely to satisfy anyone completely as a result. The kudos of defining the purpose in the most fascinating first half goes to the first book while the inevitable somewhat unsatisfactory end had to be in this second one.

Reviewer: Larry
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Metaphysical
Review: I really enjoyed the book; I also really like philosophical discussions.

Reviewer: Régis Antônio Coimbra
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: More alternative history than character development, but with more depth in the characters than in Asimov's "Foundation"... In fact, I'm already on the third book and my thoughts are on the set of the first three books in this series. There are elements, finally, of a perspective of long history and phases, as in the aforementioned trilogy and Asimov's extensions, as well as in those of "Dune" (Frank Herbert) and "The three-body problem" (Cixin Liu) - with the positive exception that Dann Simmons has greater literary quality. Curiosity: I used google translator to generate this text and I didn't notice any errors... even the titles of the books I wrote in Portuguese and they came out correctly.

Reviewer: Jack Baker
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Fantastic depiction of the human tug of war with technology. The ideas portrayed alongside the remarkable story can spring your imagination into the changing times we will undoubtedly face in future decades. Highly recommend a beautifully written story with thought-provoking concepts.

Reviewer: Carlo
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: If you are able to reach a "willing suspension of disbelief" this is a great sci-fi book, complete with some clever caveat on human behaviors

Reviewer: Stephen W.
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: No spoilers, just reassurance that for those of you who have finished the previous book (Hyperion) and are wondering if the build up was worth it, I happily say to you YES! The Fall of Hyperion'is not a repeat of the first book, it takes over right where the first book left off. Everything that I enjoyed from the first book is expanded on massively in this book. The characters are brilliant and feel so alive, it felt like I was on their journey alongside them, as corny as that may sound. If there is a spinoff book just of the dark humored poet Martin Silenus alone, I would love to read it! The characters are so diverse in how they speak, interact and react to different situations. There is great variety in this book including war politics, poetry, travel between and through multiple worlds, moral dillemas, a parallel virtual universe where AI reside, time travel (and the interesting reason for why the author uses it for this story), cosmic horror, adventure, labyrinths and much more. For those of you who read the prequel and are wondering if this book explains what the Shrike is and why the heck it impales people onto the Tree of Pain in this book, the answer is also yes (you will be relieved to hear that I bet) and it is an interesting reason as well. There are little two paragraph tangents which the author goes off on at some points throughout the book which could be the seed for great books on their own, even one surprising brief moment where the premise for The Matrix is mentioned by a character, but it actually make more sense (I won't spoil) than the approach which Lana and Lilly Watchowski took with that movie (though this book was written almost 10 years earlier). I have to tip my tricorne hat to the author because he has done incredible work here with The Fall of Hyperion, how he weaves all of the stories from the different planets and characters and timelines, it must have taken huge effort and he managed to do it so incredibly well. Here are three minor criticisms for the book (which shouldn't put you off reading it!):1. Jumping in and out of the different character stories can get a bit overwhelming at times, but hanging in there does pay off2. This sentence appears several times throughout the book: "Person X made a gesture with his/her hand", without ever telling us what kind of gesture exactly. Waving? Pointing at something? Flipping the bird? I can tell what gesture is used by the context sometimes but other times not.3. Just a personal thing, other people might not care, but I would have liked if the author were a little more descriptive about how some of the technologies (weapons and ships for example) worked and what they looked like. I don't like when the author just lazily mention technologies, only briefly explain what they output and leave the inner workings as vague as some kind of magic. I don't expect a thesis on how the technologies worked (because obviously if we knew how to build them then it wouldn't be sci fi!), but at least give us some high level explanation which shows that the author did some science and engineering research.For me, after reading this book, the story has come to its conclusion. I might come back and read the sequels at a later date, though I am in no rush to now. I have many other books which take priority over 'Endymion' and 'The Rise of Endymion' for now.

Reviewer: Kindle Customer
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Smart and beautifully written.Not as striking as the Hyperion, but a worthy read full of great ideas.I want to read more books by this author.