Dune series: worth reading?

[Brian G Turner]

I really love Frank Herbert's Dune, but for some reason I've never really felt tempted to read the rest of the series.

Dune felt like a complete novel in its own way, so I guess I have a stubborn resistance to continuing, in case it upsets my view of the first book.

Now I wonder if I'm just being narrow-minded.

Anybody who's read the rest of Frank Herbert's series - is it worth reading?

I ask, but although I once had a full collection, I think it ended up at a charity shop at one point. I know I had to buy the first book again.

 

[Jo Zebedee]

Dune Messiah is definitely worth reading, it closes Paul's character arc. Children of Dune was pushing things I thought, although had good moments (but the bloke being the strongest rankled with me). God-Emperor of Dune was hard going and where I stopped with no regrets.

 

[Nerds_feather]

I only really care for the first one, and that's a hard slog unless you're in the mood for it. But I do think it's worth reading.

 

[Parson]

I absolutely agree with Springs. But unlike her I did push on to a few more but each book was definitely subject to the law of diminishing returns. I would recommend Dune Messiah, and less enthusiastically Children of Dune. After that; read, but don't blame me.

 

[J-Sun]

I'll just repeat my unchanged earlier opinion.

 

[Ice fyre]

I love Dune (anyone who knows me will attest to that , slight obssesion) the others, I really dont think I care, read Messah and god Emperor, just ddint feel like I wanted to go any further. May do one day, but as I read the wiki to see what happens, I think I'm happy with Dune itself.

 

[thaddeus6th]

I've only read the first. It did feel like hard work, to be honest.

 

[Ursa major]

The quality fell with each new book. I bought Dune, Messiah, Children, God Emperor and Heretics. (I borrowed Chapterhouse from the library and wished I hadn't bothered.)

 

[biodroid]

Read the first one and loved it but havent bothered with the rest, I heard it gets bogged down with politics.

 

[Foxbat]

To my eternal regret, I've read the whole lot (including the ones done by his son and Kevin J. Anderson). It irritated me at the time that I had to read a whole lot of prequels before they released the final parts of the Dune saga. I thought it would be worth it. It wasn't.

If you're curious, I'd go as far as God Emperor and not one step further.

 

[End of Time]

My 2 cents...

Worth it? Yes.

1-2-3: follow the same basic story. Building the hero and deconstructing the myth.

4: heavy on the philosophy, light on plot. The first time it took me forever to get through, but once I got the message of the novel and it's thematic importance it's one of my favorites.

5 - 6: it's not really Dune anymore, it's something else, something new, something far heavier on the action than anything else. Got some memorable moments, it's sort of fun, but it's so far removed from the originals that you could read it as a whole new thing.

There is nothing else, those are the only six Dune novels out there.

 

[Foxbat]

My 2 cents...
4: heavy on the philosophy, light on plot. The first time it took me forever to get through, but once I got the message of the novel and it's thematic importance it's one of my favorites.


There is nothing else, those are the only six Dune novels out there.

I agree about 4. One of my favourites too.

There are Hunters Of Dune and Sandworms of Dune but I guess it really matters on your opinion of what Dune is at this point. Apparently, it was written from notes left by Frank Herbert but, after reading the books, I'd be forced to agree that it's not the Dune we know.

 

[End of Time]

I agree about 4. One of my favourites too.

There are Hunters Of Dune and Sandworms of Dune but I guess it really matters on your opinion of what Dune is at this point. Apparently, it was written from notes left by Frank Herbert but, after reading the books, I'd be forced to agree that it's not the Dune we know.

Everything written by those two hacks isn't real. When you insert your own characters and have them supplant the importance of the original characters and even undo the themes of the original novels, you are just producing one insult after the other.

By the time Brian and Kevin produced their magical conclusion, they had their own characters become so grandiose and important that the conclusion of the original six novels revolved around them.

Frank Herbert was all about telling a story about the pitfalls of humanity's need to believe in heroes, our collective desire to follow heroes and ideals when it might prove our very downfall, so it stings like a motherlover when his son writes an ending where the super-duper-powerful mutant witch-lady Norma, literally wipes the super-duper-evil computer Omnius out of existence, both of which introduced in badly written prequel series.

Was that a spoiler? You're welcome, now, you no longer have to read that pile of dung.

 

[Foxbat]

Was that a spoiler? You're welcome, now, you no longer have to read that pile of dung.

Too late. Already read them(unfortunately) and so have you by the sound of things

 

[Toby Frost]

My great problem with Dune - and why I didn't get past Children of Dune - was that most of the things I liked about Dune disappeared about half-way into it. The eccentric courtiers, the complex arrangement between the various groups, the feuding of the Houses all pretty much vanished, replaced with "Fremen do Fremen stuff and are invincible". Herbert even pretty much admits this, when Paul refers to Stilgar as being his "creature". It's like knocking down Gormenghast and replacing the characters with a group of identikit Islamists.

That said, Dune is still an excellent book (one of the few SF books of that period to still be a great novel, to my mind) and the more esoteric, mystic side is explored in more detail further on. I found the change in subject and tone disappointing, but I think this is a matter of "each to his own".

 

[Perpetual Man]

I've read them all. (Well I do have one or two of the newer ones sitting on my to read pile.)

I love Dune, it remains one of the few books I have read more than once. (There are others I would like to read more than once, but I just don't seem to have the time )

And I have read Dune Messiah and Children of Dune at least twice as well.

I found Messiah to be a lot slower than the original, but with a great ending, and I really enjoyed Children.

God Emperor, strangely found a very easy read. Not as good as the original trilogy, but one of the more powerful moments in the entire series.

The last two of the original series were hard going, and in some ways seemed to be point less but....

There is the feeling that they are building toward something, particularly at the end of Chapter House which is a rather good cliffhanger.

I remember Herbert saying after that there would be one more book, but he died and it all seemed to be over until Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson decided to write the sequel from his notes. Then came to the conclusion that we would not understand what was going on and needed some prequels to set things up. Three of them. And then broke the last book in two, before deciding we needed another set of prequels and then another... but halfway through gave up and the last book was never published.

As you may tell I felt the 'modern' additions to the library are not worth reading, not as well written as Frank's, it feels as though the ideas being drawn on are not his (at least not all of them). It's a car crash of a series and I would steer well clear of them. (For me I started and seem to have to continue. It really is like a crash. You know you shouldn't keep looking, you just can't stop.)

 

[Darkness Weaves]

I have to agree with the majority here...Dune itself was a "complete" novel...hard going itself, but well worth the read for its hugeness (if thats a word)...

The rest were just too tiring for me...

 

[BAYLOR]

Absolutely , it is terrific stuff.

 

[Tim Murray]

I really love Frank Herbert's Dune, but for some reason I've never really felt tempted to read the rest of the series.

Dune felt like a complete novel in its own way, so I guess I have a stubborn resistance to continuing, in case it upsets my view of the first book.

Now I wonder if I'm just being narrow-minded.

Anybody who's read the rest of Frank Herbert's series - is it worth reading?

I ask, but although I once had a full collection, I think it ended up at a charity shop at one point. I know I had to buy the first book again.

The prequels by Brian Herbert are written well and lays out the foundation on which Dune is based on. One of the major points they clarify is the rift between house Atreides and Harkonnen. I won't give it away, but it is steeped in rumor too deep to find the truth. They also explain where their tech came from and the major orders, ie:the mentats...

 

[Ray McCarthy]

I think the first book is best, IMO the original series then goes downhill. I only read one of Brian's additions.