Book Review: Heretics of Dune by Frank Herbert

 

Heretics of Dune is the fifth entry into the epic Dune saga and boy this was a difficult one to get into. Heretics takes place 1500 years or so after the events of God Emporer of Dune and all the main characters are long dead. But they are not forgotten. The prophecies and prognostications of Leto II are still at the heart of everything that moves human activity. With the God Emporer's death, humanity lacked direction and took to exploring new parts of the universe. This is called The Scattering and from the splintered pieces come new and powerful factions that are returning to the old realms to take power away from those that have ruled since The Tyrant's long plunge into the watery grave he accepted. 

The Bene Gesserit, Tlielaxu, Ix, and Fish Speakers are part of the old world and continue to compete for dominance over the most powerful resources, melange, and information. Now that melange can be made synthetically by the Tlielaxu the planet known as Dune, Arrakis, and now simply known as Rakis, the sandworms that create the original spice are not the only resource that is being fought over. It is still completely vital but so is knowledge. How do the Tlielaxu make their version of melange? How do they create and manipulate their ghola clones? How does the new Duncan play into all this? Who controls the diary passed down by the God-King Leto II and what does it say about the future? And who is the young girl who can speak to and control sandworms?  

Sheeana, a peasant girl whose entire family was killed by sandworms, can summon even the largest of sandworms, speak to them, and somehow hear their psychokinetic voices. She is the key to finding out if The Tyrant is back and what that might mean for the interests pulling at the strings of human evolution. Is his Golden Path being fulfilled or is mankind doomed? 

The Bene Gesserit are up to their usual witchcraft with the goal of protecting humanity from those groups that would suck humanity dry. Unfortunately, a group known as the Honored Matres has evolved more powerful forms of manipulation and control more forces than any other in the universe. They seek to wipe out the Bene Gesserit and anyone else that doesn't bend the knee to their form of tyranny. Lucky for the Bene Gesserit that they have the most powerful descendants of the Atreides lineage among their ranks and the power that those ancient genes have the potential to wield. 

This book is crazy complicated and it was very difficult getting into it for me. It took almost half the book for my mind to start to grasp the new players, motivations, and all the connections to the previous books. Once these connections were made though and the book became integrated into the canon of Dune lore it all clicked and I was once again mesmerized by the genius of Frank Herbert. It is hard to tell at first who to root for and who really matters. The new Duncan Idaho is younger than any from the previous books and is something to grasp onto as a connection to the previous books but soon takes a backseat to the new characters who weave their way into the Dune canon as characters that are just as powerful, terrifying, and heroic as any others in the series.

If you are already into Dune to get this far in the series then this book is worth the mind-bending trouble of nearly starting over in regards to the names and places that matter to the story. Once you get into it the whole world is still there, just expanded from the previous. The influence of the actions of characters from day one of the series is still visible all the way into the future world of Heretics of Dune. 

I came this far so why not keep riding this crazy space train?

Read my previous Dune reviews here:

Book Review: Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Children of Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbert

 

God Emperor of Dune is the fourth book in the Dune series by Frank Herbert and it takes a different track than the previous stories. Its predecessors were stories about a myriad of characters that were all vying for power. In this book, there is only one character with power and they have had it for over 3500 years. Leto II, son of Paul Muad Dib, has transformed into a mostly giant, mostly immortal sandworm that has only the face of the boy that became a god remaining. While there are other characters and we get to listen in on their endeavors the book has a much more singular vision than any of the books that came before. This is signified by the quotes that begin each chapter. In the previous books, the quotations were from a variety of sources and about a variety of topics but in God Emperor of Dune, all of the quotes are from Leto's lost journals that were obviously found by someone. No matter what occurs in the book it is all in relation to the God Emperor and this gives the book a more streamlined narrative that is easier to follow. 

The God Emperor has been in complete control of the known universe with his powers of foresight, his control over the supernatural spice melange, and his army of devoted female soldiers. At the beginning of the story, we find out that he has been continually resurrecting versions of his faithful military commander Duncan Idaho, who was turned into a Ghola, or clone, for the first time in the second book and by now has been recreated hundreds of times. Each one is slightly different than the last but all of them seem to develop fatal flaws that see them sabotaging their own survival but this iteration of Duncan seems different. More cunning, more patient, but equally disgruntled. 

Over the 3500 years, the God Emperor has been engaging in two major systems of control. One is a breeding program that selects for characteristics that he deems valuable and just so happens to favor his own family line of Atreides genetics. This breeding program allows him to continuously improve on the effectiveness of his minions, including his all-female army, the Fish Speakers, and his second-in-command Moneo, who was once a rebel but is now his most trusted aid. Moneo and his daughter Siona are both Atreides but Siona is the leader of the current rebellion and seeks the God Emperor's demise. Will she find out how to defeat the despotic God or will she be converted to his side like her father? 

The other form of control is through his militant religion that takes despotism to a new and terrifying level. He rules with sheer force and destroys those that offend him. His prescient vision allowed him to plan his attacks with brutally effective countermeasures and win aggressive strategic victories. Some of his subjects attempt to conceal their actions while feigning allegiance, while others simply comply to his every whim knowing he will see their treachery coming. Previously powerful families and factions are reduced to simple pawns of the Emperor and his rule is complete, or is it? Can a living god live forever or are there flaws to be exploited?

God Emperor of Dune is like previous entries in that its characters are drawn with elaborate detail and they come alive as we learn of their emotions, motives, and vulnerabilities. If you like Frank Herbert's writing then this does not stray from that form but it is different in that the intrigue comes from a central place that spreads outward instead of the peripheral power struggles in the past that all were leading toward an assumed central location. The God Emperor Leto II is that central location and has occupied that position for long enough to shape the rest of human history. The Golden Path is still his goal but his grasp on it is slipping. 

This entry might be my favorite so far and I really enjoyed the political and psychological philosophy it demonstrates. Eternal conflicts of power justified through moral reasoning and the way the powerful manipulate others to see their goals met are major themes in this book. How the powerful see themselves as above their subjects and how subjects always rebel against tyranny are lessons that this book illuminates. Human motivations can often be short-sighted but true wisdom comes from the vision to see the long game. If you are reading the Dune series then I think you will enjoy this book and I recommend the series in general. It is a sci-fi masterpiece so far and I can't wait to read the next one.  

Read my previous reviews of Dune books here:

Book Review: Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Children of Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Children of Dune by Frank Herbert

 

I think I just keep reading these books because they offer my mind an exercise. The writing is so poetic and ethereal that it takes me to another world. Frank Herbert's unique voice and one of a kind tone are hypnotizing. The whole experience is like grasping at a dream. Every step gets you closer and yet every step takes you farther away. Toward what? The Golden Path maybe?  

In this, the third in the epic Dune series, we follow the story of Paul Atreides' twin children Ghanima and Leto Jr. These are not average children. They were conscious inside the womb and have the memories of thousands of people including their mother, father, and grandmother. The key to this is a combination of genetic manipulation from thousands of years of breeding programs and a high dose of melange, the addictive substance that in the right circumstance can unlock the secrets of consciousness and time. Ghanima and Leto are the heirs to the Empire that their father left behind, possibly dead but maybe not. 

Before Ghanima and Leto can take the throne they have to contend with everyone thinking they are the age they look, as well as their aunt Alia who is the regent in control of the empire and doesn't want to give it up, as well as a growing plot from the Corrino Family who was displaced by Paul Atreides when he took over Arrakis in the first book. To make matters worse the Preacher is running around sowing doubt about the moral authority of Alia and the path that the government is taking the people down. 

As the fight for the Empire rages on a new threat emerges from the sand. A threat that is destroying the infrastructure that has brought water to the desert planet and is creating a new mythology. Is it a god or just another passing contender? 

If you like epic sci-fi worlds with fantasy elements and can handle diving into a world with its culture and language then I recommend reading the Dune books. Obviously, you have to start with the first one but once you get into this epic story it does not disappoint. It continues to intrigue and mystify. The series is like the additive melange. While it might be confusing at times its allure is undeniable.  

Read my reviews of the previous books:

Book Review: Dune by Frank Herbert

https://joesnotesblog.com/blog/book-review-dune-by-frank-herbert?rq=dune

Book Review: Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

https://joesnotesblog.com/blog/book-review-dune-messiah-by-frank-herbert?rq=dune

Book Review: Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

 

Frank Herbert is something else. While reading this book my mind is drawn and quartered a thousand times. It is pushed and pulled this way and that. I am like a child grasping for meaning, knowing it is there but just out of reach. On the edge of understanding, I sit, in awe of what might be on the other side. Comprehension, just out of reach and yet in the back of my mind, it has been there the whole time. The words are new but they make sense, like some dream that tries to incorporate elements that seem, at first, to be disconnected, only to discover later, maybe after a day or two of contemplation, that the meaning was there amidst the confusion. Then, he brings you back. Frank Herbert, the man that sent you down the rabbit hole is there holding your hand and makes everything clear. 

Dune Messiah is the second in the Dune series and it is a wonderful rollercoaster. One minute I'm trying to follow the story and figure out what is happening, what might happen, and then the next minute I'm lost in the jargon and intrigue of a world I barely know. The internal ruminations of the characters, the dialogue, and the world that Frank Herbert created is so thoroughly it's own that it is like turning on a documentary from an alien world at an alien time. As much as it is unfamiliar it is just familiar enough to cause a fury of excitement and suspense. The intrigue is palpable and enticing. It keeps you going and gives you hope. 

In this, the second story about the desert planet known as Dune, we take up the story of Paul Atreides, AKA Muad 'Dib AKA Usul, AKA the ruler of the known universe. The book starts about twelve years after the end of the first Dune book. We find that with the help of violence, religious ideology, his prescient sister Alia, his Fremen soldiers, and his monopoly over the invaluable resource known as melange, Paul has brought his form of justice and leadership to all. He is known by some as a god and by others as a devil. He is not unaware of this duality and is plagued by his own doubt about the legacy that he is creating. 

Paul tackles internal and external threats to his dynasty but with his powers of foresight, he seems to be one step ahead of his enemies. While he attempts to root out the spies in his midst he is also dealing with the matter of his succession plan. Chani, his concubine and true love, is pregnant and there are many who want to take advantage of her vulnerability and Paul's potential weakness toward her. He knows who to trust but he doesn't always know if he can trust himself and by the end, the true plot is revealed. Will Paul fall to the wiles of his enemies or will he continue his violent conquest? Read to find out! 

Read my review of the first book Dune here:

Book Review: Dune by Frank Herbert

Book Review: Dune by Frank Herbert

Click here to get more!

"There would be tricks within tricks within tricks."

My friend recommended this book to me several times and I am very glad that I decided to take the suggestion. This book was a non-stop rollercoaster of intrigue, action, and suspense. From the very first chapter, the reader is thrown into a mysterious world where pieces to a massive puzzle are introduced through context while eluding simultaneously to a known future and an unknown present. The author introduces such puzzle pieces in a myriad of forms such as excerpts from unknown tomes that refer to unknown events, words that can only be contextualized to determine, and the names of people, cultures, and religions that will only make sense once the reader has delved deeper.

It is impossible to overstate the intricacy that exists in the text of Dune and it is difficult to explain the story without giving away what makes it so entertaining. Above and below the surface layer of the story there are layers of macro and micro examination and the interplay between layers as well. Everything in the universe of Dune is connected through thousands of years of interconnected human endeavors. Just like in real life the humans of Dune are in a constant race to manipulate the environments they occupy including both the ecology of planets and social dynamics of competing sects. Frank Herbert navigates these intricacies with a rigorous methodology that at no point takes away from the fun that the reader experiences in discovering the world through its players. 

We learn about Dune from its newest royal inhabitants and overlords led by Duke Leto Atreides. He is joined by his precocious teenage son Paul and his enchanting concubine Jessica. While these names may appear mundane I assure you Paul and Jessica are not to be trifled with. Paul's quick reflexes and Jessica's intelligence and cunning prove to be powerful assets. With political turmoil all around them and betrayal lurking around the next corner, Duke Leto is charged by his Emporer to take over the planet Dune and extract all the spice he can and the spice is nice. Mmmm spice!

Dune is an exercise in keen observation. As the book continues the reader sees into the mind of the highly trained Mentat assassins, seductively selective sorceresses and more. You notice every vocal tonal change indicating to you that someone is afraid or hiding something or straight-up lying. Words become codes and a couple of hand gestures can communicate an entire conversation. These are just some of the mysteries that exist in the cut-throat world of Dune.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in an epic adventure that explores both the internal world of the characters' thoughts as well as an in-depth external sci-fi world with a healthy dose of fantasy to round out the excitement. The only negative thing I could come up with is that while the vast majority of the story is unpredictable the ending was mostly expected, which doesn't take away from the enjoyment in the least. If anything it allows for a satisfying resolution that entices the reader to continue the saga with the next book which could be Dune Messiah although there are so many Dune stories one can get wrapped up the world forever. I will certainly be reading more of these novels and I hope that any movies or shows based on the Dune world do the story justice.