So I’m basically a Star Wars transplant lol. Once the new canon took over in 2016-2018 I lost interest in reading Star Wars.
Did a quick Google search on thing similar to Star Wars and found DUNE. Loved the books but REALLY don’t want to leave the universe quite yet & I’m very open minded to the Dune EU.
So I’m asking the people who enjoy or have read a lot of the Dune EU… is there ANYTHING there to like?? I’m not asking for extremely heavy, intricate, over arcing stories… I just don’t want to leave Arrakis yet.
Navigators has really caught my eye and I’m thinking of picking it up.
Is it worth my time??
This is going purely off what we gather from Chapterhouse and the preceding 5 works by FH.
Bolded, are the main players entering the arena from Chapterhouse onward.
The Kwisatz Haderach(s)?
Daniel and Marty imply that they have gathered enough personas as face dancers through the years of the scattering to essentially became Kwisatz Haderachs. Specifically Tleilaxu brand face dancer Kwisatz Haderachs.
[The point of note here is that they seem to have acquired a transcendent quality, alluding to themselves as gods of a sort. In fact FH goes to the extent of comparing them to the capital G bearded deity itself. Interestingly, the only time this comparison has been made before was Leto II shunning this idea when made in reference to his on god-like status. So a few resultant questions:
- What is it about this Tleilaxu face dancer transcendence method that made them uniquely powerful?
- Powerful enough to deserve the same parallel that Leto II himself drew?
- What was FH implying about this type of ascendance as opposed to lets say the traditional "genetically ideal being going through the spice agony to become to Kwisatz Haderach" methodology?
Duncan Idaho in his latest incarnation, has awakened his memories of his serial lives spanning nearly 4000 years. The implication similarly, is that he has attained a Kwisatz Haderach-like state as well.
Miles Teg is suggested to have achieved a sort of prescience as well as the ability to see no ships. What is going on here? Is he a pseudo-KH as well?
Considering the Kwisatz Haderach is probably FH's literary representation of the ubermensch, what do you think was the significance of having these different types of KH's in contest?
The Bene Gesserit Successors
Sheeana has the ability to commune with the sandworms, but she has a streak of nihilism in her the Odrade was very worried about. (Sheeana's sculpture that she named 'The Void').
As far as I can gather, the greatest threat the Frank Herbert seemed to regard most fearfully in the literary universe is not chaos, nor is it even platonic evil, it seems that Frank's idea of humanity's ultimate foil is nothing less that complete nothingness; the idea of nihilism.
The golden path never shied away from traditionally grotesque ideas such as eugenics or even galaxy wide genocide. The supra-goal always seemed to be survival at all cost against entropy itself.
Hence, if the big bad of the dune universe is stagnation and noth
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I know that Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson's contributions to the Dune series are thought to be controversial at best, but after finishing Chapterhouse, I find myself wanting to spend more time in this world. For those who have read some of the expanded novels, which would you say are the best? I have heard some positive things about the Prelude to Dune trilogy (House Atreides, House Harkonnen, House Corrino), and I am intrigued by the Sequel novels Hunters of Dune and Sandworms of Dune. Please let me know if these are worth a read, and if there are any other books by them that are worth a shot!
In this interview he states that the Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam is Lady Jessica's mother. He says this was based on Frank Herbert's working notes for Dune. What are your thought's on this?
F. Herbert left them as notes so I personally don't agree with this inclusion (them being related doesn't make sense to me) but I'm curious to hear your thoughts.
With the release of Dune, I remembered one of my best literary summers of my life: reading all of Dune books by Frank Hebert. Was just an unforgettable travel, but it ends suddently. I thought about reading the sequels written by his son but I'm not sure if is worth it. Hebert had a very big and complex idea and I don't know if his son could meet it. What do you think?
Does it well represents the universe that Frank Herbert made? No.
Is it deep and philosophical? No.
Are their contradictions to the original universe? Yes (theirs also some from the original author in later books)
Their fun tho lmao I mean I look at this the same way I look at the Lynch film..their insane, wtf did I read/watch type of material & I do think fans of the first 6 books should give it a shot just for that.
I've only read Dune and Dune Messiah, so far, so please avoid any spoilers for future books.
Though I'm only starting to read the saga, something that I constanly see, is how much Brian's books are hated, however I wonder... Is it better to finish with an open ending (assuming that happens) with Chapterhouse, or make it all the way to Sandworms to have an actual ending to the story?
What's your take on this?
I ask this genuinely. I would appreciate responses that aren't just "No". If you don't think any of them are worth reading at all, I would appreciate if you could tell me a reason why.
From Comic-Con International:
Everything you need to know about what’s coming up in the DUNE publishing universe, novels, stories, graphic novels, and comics. Join bestselling authors Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, along with Frank Herbert’s collaborator Bill Ransom, along with Christopher Morgan from Tor Books, Charlotte Greenbaum from Abrams ComicArts, Jonathan Manning from BOOM! Studios, and audiobook narrator Scott Brick. Several exclusive new announcements. Moderated by Brendan Prout.
I just started Dune Messiah and I'm loving it so far but in the back of my mind I'm bothered by the fact that Frank Herbert was never able to write the conclusion to his series. Is there a natural stopping point within his six books?
And if not is there a conclusion within the Brian Herbert books? Are the Brian Herbert books even worth reading?
Or should I think of it more like a saga without end? Any opinions would be appreciated! Thank you!
I’ve heard that the new movie might incorporate a little bit of Brian and Kevin’s work and lore in it. Is this accurate or is it simply just a theory at this point?
Currently about halfway through the first book and absolutely loving it, planning on buying the box set and finish all of those as well.
I’ve been obsessing over the Dune Universe and have found out that much of the books written by Brian Herbert are hated. Why is this?
I was really hoping to read the prequel novels, especially interested in the Butlerian Jihad, but after hearing so much negative about those novels I’m wondering if they’re even worth it.
Why are they hated so much?
The book contains the unpublished chapters and scenes from Dune and Dune Messiah. It also contains some of the original correspondence between Frank Herbert and editor John W. Campbell, Jr. It also features papers and manuscripts of Frank Herbert and an original BH/KJA novel Spice Planet, based on a detailed outline left by Frank Herbert.
https://preview.redd.it/1kk9bsgjv9571.jpg?width=2500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a5a0db61dce07b4cd5ec2dba8f75f6eae51cbeab
Dune: The Heir of Caladan is now under way
Brian and Kevin recently announced that they have started work on Dune: The Heir of Caladan, the third volume in their Caladan Trilogy. They are still brainstorming by phone and Zoom rather than in person, but even so this part of the project is the most fun for them. They will soon start writing their draft chapters. Heir will be their 21st book together as collaborators. Meanwhile, Brian and Kevin have just finished going over the copy-edited manuscript of The Lady of Caladan, which will be released on September 21.
I listened to all the Dune audio books by Frank Herbert, and am trying to decide whether to continue on with Brian’s books. Is it worth it? Are they as good as the originals?
Edit: I get that this is a heated topic. I’m new to the series though and would really appreciate some valid feedback comparing writing styles, themes, character development, etc so I can make an educated decision. I’m genuinely having a difficult time finding any real info about it.
"One winter evening, I heard him read my mother a passage about a young man named Paul Atreides who was forced to place his hand into the blackness of a box while an old woman, the Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam, held a poison needle at his neck, the gom jabbar. Though I didn't realize it at the time, this was the opening chapter of Dune.
Paul's hand would feel intense pain, the wrinkled crone told him, but if he withdrew it from the box she would kill him with the poison needle. I was transfixed by the drama of the scene and by the strange words... gom jabbar, Maud'Dib, the Gesserit, jihad, kull wahad.. the throaty, mysterious resonance of words and names as they rolled off Dad's tongue, in his powerful voice. I was intrigued by the sounds. And by the way the Reverend Mother used "the Voice" on Paul to control him, similar to methods my father often employed against me.
"The language is beautiful," Mom said, after listening to the chapter. Frequently over the years she spoke of the poetry of his writing, and rarely made suggestions for improvement in that area. Her comments primarily concerned plot when she thought he was getting too convoluted, and characterization, particularly the motivational aspects of female characters.
I heard Dad speak passages aloud in his study as he wrote them, before presenting them to my mother. He understood the psychology of human society, the way stories had been told orally for centuries before anything was ever written down. The way troubadours and jongleurs traveled from castle to castle, telling tales and singing songs. He believed readers subconsciously heard the written text through their ears, receiving them as oral transmissions. As a consequence, he labored long hours to obtain just the right word selection and rhythm. The best writing, he believed, touched the subconscious.
He enjoyed relating his stories to my mother, a process that recalled times as a boy spent around scouting campfires when he captivated the attention of scouts and scoutmasters alike. It brought back as well darkened bedrooms Frank Herbert shared with his cousins, in which they hung on his every word. Mom enjoyed hearing his tales. She was an excellent listener, as she had been in her childhood when her Scottish father told her clever mystery stories about caves and secret panels..."
Why not let Henry be the primary interviewer? Why include Ben at all?
- Knows next to nothing about Dune
- Sidetracks the interview away from Henry's interesting questions because he knows nothing about Dune
- Ben tends to assume this "interview personality" which seems forced and fake
Why not just let Henry interview the man, since he has such an intimate knowledge of Dune and could lead the interview in more interesting directions?
I get that Ben is supposed to "Ground" the interview, but he tends to detract from it by simply dumbing it down
Still love Ben, just love Henry and Marcus more <3
Identical books, just BH writing them instead of Frank.
Honestly, if Brian Herbert came up with beefswelling and chairdogs, I think it would be ridiculed by the community to no end.
I see these questions asked often but I never got any definitive answer. I personally have never read any of their books and I tend to be more of a purist (i.e. Frank Herbert is the only canon). However, I see these types of topics and comments always downvoted when someone brings up these books. It's quite clear that the community clearly hates the books.
So I'd like to have a discussion about these books. For those who don't like them, have you read them? If you've read them, what don't you like about them (no spoilers, please).
For those who do like them, what do you like about them? How do they compare to Frank Herbert? If you've read many of these books, which ones would you recommend and which ones can be skipped?
I hope this discussion serves as a resource for new readers to Dune who can use this information to make an informed decision about whether to only read Frank Herbert's books or to continue with the books by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.
I'm still reading the original Dune books, I'm in Heretics of Dune right now, but once I finish the original 6 I plan on trying some of the non-Frank books. I'm looking forward to reading Paul of Dune, based on the description.
