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The Fall of Hyperion
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On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good...
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On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good...
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Nine hundred thousand years ago, something annihilated the Amarantin civilization just as it was on the verge of discovering space flight. Now one scientist, Dan Sylveste, will stop at nothing to solve the Amarantin riddle before ancient history repeats itself. With no other resources at his disposal, Sylveste forges a dangerous alliance with the cyborg crew of the starship Nostalgia for Infinity. But as he closes in on the secret, a killer closes in on him because the Amarantin were destroyed for a reason.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A well told and complex narrative
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- Length: 12 hrs and 51 mins
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 21
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The Muad'Dib's jihad is in full swing. His warrior legions march from victory to victory. But beneath the joy of victory there are dangerous undercurrents. Paul, like nearly every great conqueror, has enemies - those who would betray him to steal the awesome power he commands. Paul himself begins to have doubts: Is the jihad getting out of his control? Has he created anarchy? Has he been betrayed by those he loves and trusts the most? And most of all, he wonders: Am I going mad?
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The Ruhar hit us on Columbus Day. There we were, innocently drifting along the cosmos on our little blue marble, like the Native Americans in 1492. Over the horizon came ships of a technologically advanced, aggressive culture, and BAM! There went the good old days, when humans got killed only by each other. So, Columbus Day. It fits. When the morning sky twinkled again, this time with Kristang starships jumping in to hammer the Ruhar, we thought we were saved.
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Epic, entertaining, blasphemous, this is the most influential and controversial of Science Fiction novels. Stranger in a Strange Land caused uproar when it was first published as it savaged conventional religious, sexual, and social ideals. Many years in the future, Valentine Michael Smith's upbringing is exceptional. Orphan child to two astronauts killed in space, he is raised on Mars. Twenty-five years later he is "rescued" and brought back to Earth. The initial enthusiasm of the administration in Smith's safe return is soon dampened by the realisation that they cannot control him.
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At first, only a few things are known about the celestial object that astronomers dub Rama. It is huge, weighing more than ten trillion tons. And it is hurtling through the solar system at inconceivable speed. Then a space probe confirms the unthinkable: Rama is no natural object. It is, incredibly, an interstellar spacecraft. Space explorers and planet-bound scientists alike prepare for mankind's first encounter with alien intelligence.
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The Last Oracle, book one: Forced into hiding, the mages of Lumineia have been forgotten. In their absence the world has become known by another name: Earth. The humans have flourished with time, unaware that The Last Oracle is destined to unite them. At her touch magic will be unbound and known again as truth. But an ancient war harbors a deadly secret. Draeken, the Lord of Chaos, had a second apprentice, one who became trapped with the defeated fiends.
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Loved It!!
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Raised and trained in seclusion at a secret fortress on the edge of the northern wilds of the Kingdom of Ashai, a young warrior called Rezkin is unexpectedly thrust into the outworld when a terrible battle destroys all that he knows. With no understanding of his life’s purpose and armed with masterful weapons mysteriously bestowed upon him by a dead king, Rezkin must travel across Ashai to find the one man who may hold the clues to his very existence.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Absolutely stunning!
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Publisher's Summary
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.
Critic Reviews
"State of the art science fiction...A landmark novel." (Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine)
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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- Steven
- 05-02-2017
Well done, but I enjoyed the first a bit more.
The problem is that I feel like you need to have read John Keets's work to truly enjoy this book. The story from the first book is so well done, and this one glosses over a bit too much of what I would have actually like to have seen. Some things from the book are abandoned or left abstract like why the pilgrims went on the journey in the first place. Still, there are so many threads that nicely got tied together and I did enjoy it.
Probably my biggest complaint is that I wanted the book to hurry up and tie up loose ends and I wasn't actually enjoying it. Still love dan Simmons though.
Also disappointed that there's only one narrator, but it makes sense and he did a fine enough job.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Rainer
- Moonee Ponds, Australia
- 09-09-2015
Great follow-up to the first book.
I won't go into the story or anything like that, but I will review the Audio book instead.
This is an immediate continuation of the story from the first book, which ended on a cliff-hanger.
The reader did a great job. The first thing I noticed was that he pronounced some words slightly different to the readers in the first book. Most notably, Lusus. I think the pronunciation in the second book was correct.
The other thing I noticed was the stark difference in the way Silenus talked. Not in a bad way, but I never got used to it. I think I preferred the reader from the first book for Martin.
The shifting narrative from first-person to 3rd person worked well.
The only weird thing I found is that occasionally throughout the book all of the sudden music would just start playing in the background for no apparent reason. Weird.
Anyway, I don't need to recommend this book, if you read the first, then you'll probably read the second. If you enjoyed Hyperion, then you'll enjoy The Fall of Hyperion.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Thanh
- 21-11-2018
This series is like a thiccc onion… so many layers
enjoyed every bit of it. I'm going to listen to it again. words can't describe the scale the story is and how well crafted everything about the Dan Simmons universe is. love it love it love it.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bronn
- Austin, TX USA
- 11-03-2018
Great sequel!
I really enjoy the Hyperion series. This was the first time I had listened to/read this sequel and I thought it was really great. I love the author's description of the world and there is a huge revelation of the plot in this chapter of the Hyperion saga. Once again the voice narration was great, however in contrast to the narration of the original audiobook of Hyperion, this sequel does not feature multiple voice actors but only one voice actor. However the voice actor does a great job at narrating different character voices and I could feel that he was really getting into the saga himself. Overall I just really enjoyed this audiobook and I would definitely recommend it for any sci-fi fiction fan.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Sasha
- 22-01-2018
Boring and irritating. Avoid.
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
Fundamental changes to everything. Nothing that I liked from the first book is here. Previously we had a tightly structured work set with interesting characters, and an intriguing supernatural force. Now we have a pathetically non-structured bore, with characters the literary equivalents of limp rags, and a nonsensical sci-fi-based "plot". There needs to be some semblance of plot, a few characters we can identify with, and a few relevant themes we can think about. How this turd of a novel won any awards is beyond me, and quite frankly, makes me think sci-fi is a bit of a joke (even though I love it!)
What could Dan Simmons have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?
For a start, quit the fetish-like jabbering about Dan Keats. I don't give a flying tiddlesquatch about him, his work, or anything that happened to him, and writing the book in a way that assumes we've read his works (or know him) is irritating to the extreme. Next, give your characters some bloody, well, character. Having the leader of humanity respond to questions like a one-word robot is not compelling. It doesn't make them seem smart; it makes them seem boring. Thirdly, decide if you're writing a fantasy novel or a sci-fi novel. Currently, the sci-fi elements comprise of Simmons randomly inserting 3 science-y-sounding words in a row together when a future technology is called for. Ugh. I have complaints about basically everything else - the depressing tone that comes off a boring, the badly-written characters, the non-existent plot, the complete and utter lack of action... do I need to go on..?
What three words best describe Victor Bevine’s voice?
Not great. Does an alriiight job, but varies to much in dynamic range so you have to adjust the volume lots. Also doesn't do characters voices very well, and they come off quite "breathy". He can't do accents either.
What character would you cut from The Fall of Hyperion?
Every. Single. One. (Except maybe for that Poet guy who gets drunk and swears at people - at least created a little drama; pity he was mostly killed off...)
Any additional comments?
Avoid. I cannot think of a single part of this book I enjoyed. After happily listening to about 10 other audiobooks it was an absolute struggle to get to the end of this bore. This is the textbook example of a wildly ambitious novel that has completely and utterly fallen apart at the seams.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Dave Baxter.
- 15-11-2017
A modern Science Fiction Classic.
Love this series, you have to read the books in order, this is the first time I have listened to audio. Good narrator, I first read this when young and I enjoyed revisiting the time tombs of Hyperion. Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Darwin8u
- 15-06-2012
Hyperion is FALLEN, am I too to fall?
Am I to leave this haven of my rest,
This cradle of my glory, this soft clime,
This calm luxuriance of blissful light,
These crystalline pavilions, and pure fanes,
Of all my lucent empire?
It is hard to restrain myself and not be overly poetic in my response to this SF masterpiece. This second novel in Simmons' Hyperion Cantos dances between magic and good old fashioned Hard SF. It isn't that I don't have critical issues with the novel. Please, Simmons, please find another way to describe the sky/heavens that doesn't involve Lapis lazuli. However, not many novelests have the skill to allude to epic poetry while dealing with issues like pain, death, time, God, gods, poetry, empathy. Simmons not only kept these threads alive, but wove them beautifully and tied them all off. Just for THAT this novel deserves five stars.
For me the Hyperion novels are on the same level as Lord of the Rings, Dune, the Foundation trilogy, the Book Of The New Sun, etc. Definitely worth the time and effort. Bevine does a great job narrating the second book. I think it made sense to switch from multiple narrators in Hyperion to a single narrator in the Fall of Hyperion (seems to me to fit with the change of narrative structure Simmons intended). Enjoy.
43 of 44 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- OldDog
- 13-01-2010
Necessary after You Enjoyed Hyperion
Single narrator this time, but excellent. When he goes over-the-top (rarely), it's where my inner voice would have as well while reading.
This, simply put, is Part II of a novel that wouldn't fit in one jacket. Again [See my review of Hyperion if you wish.] I've enjoyed the pace of this being read aloud immensely.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- T. Mcpherson
- 10-04-2009
Excellent story, Excellent Narration.
I couldn't be happier with this purchase. I reviewed Hyperion immediately after I finished it because it left me very excited about this series. I decided to wait until I finished the remaining 3 books before reviewing any of them individually. It is not very often that you come across a story that is so promising and I was afraid that the remaing books in the series would fall flat, or even worse, tank completely. I am very relieved to say that this is not the case at all. Simmons continues to weave a fantasic world in this second book and it leaves you hungry for more. The narration truly is excellent. After the first book, there was a slight transition in getting used to hearing a single narrator rather than a full cast, but Victor Bevine is definitely the correct choice for this project. As I listen to more and more audiobooks, I'm beginning to realize that narrators fall into roughly three categories. Class "C" would be the ones who are terrible and should not be allowed anywhere near a microphone. Class "B" are the ones who do a competent job, but don't really stand out or excell at their craft. And the class "A" narrators who provide truly excellent performances and who display an abundance of talent. Bevine is definitely a class "A" in every way. With audiobooks, when you have the combo of a good book helmed by an outstanding narrator, it just doesn't get much better than that.
11 of 12 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Robert
- 08-03-2011
This will spoil you for anything less
I don't write separate reviews for books in a series. Especially here, where Hyperion has been called the prologue to the Fall of Hyperion (FoH), it's been intimated that the former cannot stand on its own and I agree. Some have compared and contrasted the two connoting that there is perhaps a lack of cohesion and that they are very dissimilar. To that end, I disagree. The "prologue" smoothly transitions into the main body of the work and feels completely natural. Taken together, the two seem very much a part of a cohesive whole.
I was skeptical that the stellar cast of narrators of Hyperion could be equaled by a single actor, albeit Victor Bevine in FoH. Mr. Bevine was phenomenal and I never, at any point in the listening, felt like the work was diminished.
It is good that I have listened to this author later in life. Having been brought up reading the classics of all genre of literature, it is often difficult to appreciate lesser works after having experienced the masters. Dan Simmons is a master when compared to authors of any genre. I have heard Simmons compared to Dickens. Truly in his development of characters, the comparison seems a fair one. It would be hard to compare the plot of this work to that of any other.
Often fraught with and characterized by fantastic imagery and incongruous juxtapositions, the work is almost too much to be believed. But somehow Simmons makes it all believable for some time in the future. Unlike some classic, older SciFi which seemed futuristic when it was written but then later became seemingly dated, this piece is fresh, modern or hopefully even timeless. There's religion, technology, philosophy, excitement, a great deal of love and caring among seven pilgrim strangers and funny, now that I think about it, only one real villain in a world that is more vast than I can even imagine. This is truly a magnum opus in every sense of the word.
33 of 38 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Trex
- 26-05-2013
If I'd wanted hours of rattling poetry . . .
This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?
Hours upon hours of rattling poetry to get to the end of the story that was only pretty good. I did want to know what happened in the end but I'm not sure it was worth the effort.
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Olaf
- 24-10-2013
couldn't finish it
My introduction to Dan Simmons' books was Endymion. Apparently, the third book in the cycle, pretty good in my humble opinion, so imagine the excitement about three more books in the series that will keep me entertained for weeks.
If your patience can handle it, the author's imagination is wild and command of the language is impeccable. On the other hand, I listened to the Hyperion and if the ending had been anything but the cliffhanger it was, I would have stopped there. But I had to find out what would happen to the pilgrims, so I bought this one.
The book is long - I would have lost patience and skimmed through it if it was the printed copy. Infinite amount of details and monotonous descriptions that don't add anything to the story nor to the characters... Switching narration speed to x1.5 helped for awhile but I'm in the middle of the second part and I just can't go on...
I don't usually write such negative reviews but I'm upset enough to do so, despite a high overall rating for the book. Maybe it will stop someone with similar taste from unnecessary aggravation.
21 of 25 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- James McGinley
- 25-10-2009
Science fiction must
This series is pure science fiction entertainment, with a prolific cast of characters, and one of the most evil antagonists ever designed by an author. The story is wrapped up nicely in the final volume, although the plot is excessively complicated, so there might be a couple of questions unanswered. Overall very satisfying and it keeps the reader hooked from beginning to end.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Ronald Albury
- 09-02-2015
Okay book - but I'm stopping the series
Whereas the first book in the series had boring gaps due to development of some unlikable boring characters - I think this book got carried away with mysticism. Now, I enjoy some mysticism blended into a good story, but not when it is 'in your face' like a blinking neon sign.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Allison
- 08-02-2015
Worth every penny.
This is a masterwork of far future science fiction. Manages to tell intimate personal stories about characters without losing sight of the bigger world picture. Excellent voice performance.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Benny
- 05-02-2015
Tried to be too deep.
Unsatisfying ending. So much left unexplained. And I feel like that's because it was just essentially unexplainable. Between the time traveling and cyber metaphysics....
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Thomas
- 11-08-2011
Great!
On the book...
The fall of Hyperion is well named, with each new calamity coming after the last. I've just finished all four audiobooks, so I can't remember the exact details of this one - but I really liked them all!
On narration...
I didn't really think much of the narrator - it sounded like English wasn't his first language maybe. He pronounced every single word - like 'to' and 'a' - fully, which - when you actually hear it done - is quite strange. He occasionally made little errors in pronunciation - saying the 'chasm' with a soft 'ch' sound - which is a bit weird - or maybe he just did the whole thing in one take without bothering to fix the error. He also pronounced 'Aargh' exactly as it is written, with a clear 'r' and then a hard 'g' sound on the end. No-one really says that when they scream - that's just obvious - again - weird. The thing I disliked the most though was his inability to portray anything other than a small range of emotions. Whenever he took on a woman's voice - there was one set tone - and any emotion - such as anger - was not portrayed at all - it was always just 'the soft woman tone'. The range of accents for the different characters was good - just a bit more attention to tone and emotion was needed.
27 of 27 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Keith Rogers
- 30-01-2011
Great book
Great book, and well read, but it is a shame that they didn't continue with the full cast recording from Hyperion
21 of 21 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Peter
- 02-12-2009
More great writing
Brilliant sequel to Hyperion. Continues pretty well where the last one left off and reveals what happens at the Shrike 'Time Tombs' to the pilgrims. Superb characterisations by both the author and the narrator make this a great listening experience that has some amazing sci-fi concepts embedded in a truly rivetting story. I will definitely be investing in the two "Endymion" sequels. Highly recommended to people who enjoy intelligent Sci-fi.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Cubano343
- 29-03-2018
Great book but ditch the music
Excellent book, really gripping in parts and a sensitive continuation of the characters' fates as they prepare to meet the shrike.
The narration is hit and miss, with some passages moving me to tears but others sounding like he's turned the page and realised he should have intoned the first part of the sentence differently. This makes for a patchy experience.
Also, music fades in from time to time, without any apparent logic and to deleterious effect. It sounds cheesy and it takes the listener away from the world in which they were immersed. So seriously guys, remaster this and ditch the music.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 04-09-2017
Makes me remember why I loved the first book
I enjoyed the Fall of Hyperion, just not as much as I enjoyed Hyperion. A lot of the elements that really made the previous book for me, the mysteries and the cast of different narrators for different characters, aren't in this book. It's still solid, I enjoyed the new characters and different viewpoints the book offered, but as the story went on it felt like the mysteries set up in the first book were just a lot more compelling without answers.
Out of the original cast I'm glad Victor Bevine was chosen to narrate. While he wasn't my favorite from the previous book there's a certain quality to his voice that I really enjoy. I've read reviews that call him monotone and dull and honestly those kind of reviews do make me hesitant about a book. I'd advise anyone unsure about him to listen to the audio sample in full if they're worried, I personally loved his performance and maybe you will too.
Overall it's a worthy successor to Hyperion. The original book remains one of my favorite audio books but this sequel is a solid and engaging follow up. Less a fall from Hyperion and more a very slight decline. I know that's a terrible joke, I just wanted to use it.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Michael
- 13-02-2017
Excellent Story. Dreary Narration
What made the experience of listening to The Fall of Hyperion the most enjoyable?
I think I would have enjoyed reading it more.
What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?
The narrator does not pace the story at all. I found his narration monotone and boring. It wasn't until the third book that I realised that listening to the stories at double speed helped retain my attention on the narrative.
Any additional comments?
As with the rest of the books in this series (only the main narrative in book one as the other narrators were excellent) this would be much better with a different narrator or if the current narrator redone it at a higher pace.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Tom
- 19-11-2009
Brilliant
Not much to add to other reviewers except that excellent doesn't begin to describe this book. But read "Hyperion" first as this book follows on right from the end of it. Narration was faultless too. What a great book. Strongly recommended.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Jade Wong
- 12-05-2018
Massively overrated, convoluted, long drawn out descriptions, muddling characters
Good AI, bad AI, superfluous description all around and meaningless characters ... conflicts before the characters been built nor established ... saga of rubbish
Do not buy and I would return it if I can even when bought on daily deal fee bucks .. rather take a tasteless starbucks latte than this !
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 14-04-2018
Compared to Hyperion
Hyperion had many players voices, this has one ( however talented) which is a shame as you tend to identify with the original voices. Other audio Sci-Fi books have extensive music and effects this has none. The story however is compelling. If you listened to Hyperion this listen is essential.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mr. M. Bleck
- 21-03-2018
Hegemony fights back
I preferred the pace of revelation of wonderment and awe better in the first book but this one packs a huge amount of crazy good stuff in its second half. Can’t wait for book 3.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful