Sandworms of Dune
Hunters of Dune and the concluding volume, Sandworms of Dune, bring together the great story lines and beloved characters in Frank Herbert's classic Dune universe, ranging from the time of the Butlerian Jihad to the original Dune series and beyond. Based directly on Frank Herbert's final outline, which lay hidden in safe-deposit boxes for a decade, these two volumes will finally answer the urgent questions Dune fans have been debating for two decades. At the end of Frank Herbert's final novel, Chapterhouse: Dune, a ship carrying a crew of refugees escapes into the uncharted galaxy, fleeing from a terrifying, mysterious Enemy. The fugitives used genetic technology to revive key figures from Dune's past - including Paul Muad'Dib and Lady Jessica - to strengthen their chances of survival by using their special talents to meet the incredible challenges of the journey. Sandworms of Dune will reveal the tantalizing future of the planet Arrakis, the final revelation of the Kwisatz Haderach, and the resolution to the war between man and machine.
Stats for nerds
2recommend
6mentions
5people
2009–2023years
33% recommend17% neutral50% critical
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- I'm in a bit of a minority in most discussions in that I enjoyed Heretics and Chapterhouse for the galactic scale threat introduced and additional world building elements, and I even enjoyed (to some extent) Hunters of Dune and Sandworms of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson as a "best we could do" finale. I do think that the time skips and lack of original resolution hampered Heretics and Chapterhouse a little, and the ones written by Frank Herbert's son and someone I consider more of a "session" writer (akin to session musicians) were carried by momentum of story alone. The writing of Hunters/Sandworms had a significant decline in complexity, and Frank Herbert's writing wasn't exactly difficult prose to begin with.
One of the greatest tragedies to me is that the notes for the finale were not given to someone like Alastair Reynolds or Kim Stanley Robinson, both of whom I think would have done the material proper literary justice.
- After reading entire original series (Dune through Chapterhouse), I eventually read Butlerian Jihad, Hunters of Dune, and Sandworms of Dune. Taken together I felt they provided sufficient context and closure for questions posed in the original series. And notably, although they are written by Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson, the last two in particular are based on notes of Frank Herbert’s for a seventh book, discovered in a safety-deposit box[1].
[1] https://web.archive.org/web/20070703213605/http://www.digita...
- > If a show like the X-Files was going to get cancelled on a cliff hanger of the "main story", it didn't really matter because 9 out of 10 episodes didn't involve the main story and therefore wouldn't be retroactively devalued by a cliffhanger cancellation.
This is probably the root of the difference in my take on media - I don't believe it's possible for a later instalment to retroactively devalue previous ones.
e.g. The enjoyment I got from reading Dune wasn't diminished by Sandworms of Dune.
- My standard advice for people reading the books with the movies/mini-series mixed in:
Read the first one. It's not for everyone, it's a little dry, POV is all over the place, and it's very political and thoughtful. It can be a slow read, but it's worth it.
Watch the Lynch movie. (Lament that this could have been Alejandro Jodorowsky's Dune if so inclined.)
Watch the Sci-Fi Channel's Frank Herbert's Dune.
(Probably watch the Villeneuve Dune due out in December this year.)
If you happened to like it, read Dune Messiah and Children of Dune. You'll probably like these books as well. (If you didn't like Dune, it's okay to stop here.)
Watch the Sci-Fi Channel's Children of Dune.
If you happened to like those, try God Emperor of Dune. Be warned it is extremely different from the previous books. It's become my favorite book in the series after multiple re-readings of the entire series (previously was Dune Messiah), but it is certainly not for everyone. It's okay to quit here.
If you made it through God Emperor, read Heretics of Dune.
If you enjoyed it, read Chapterhouse: Dune. (If you didn't enjoy Heretics, don't bother).
Lament that it is over.
If you must, read Sandworms of Dune which is written by the son, but is supposedly based on the father's notes. It is the least bad of the books I've read by the son. Don't read anything else.
Edit: Formatting
- In my opinion: Yes!
Here's the advice I give to people about the entire Dune series:
Read Dune. If you don't like it, stop.
Read Dune Messiah. If you don't like it, stop.
Read Children of Dune. If you liked Messiah you'll probably like this as well.
Read God Emperor of Dune. This one stands alone. Lots of people hate it. Whether you like it or not, don't stop.
Read Heretics of Dune. If you don't like it, stop.
Read Chapterhouse: Dune. Weep that it's over.
In my experience, people who like Dune generally will enjoy at least through Children of Dune. Anyone who enjoys God Emperor of Dune is insane (maybe why it might be my favorite).
Regarding the other Dune books, read them out of curiosity if you like, but they're not really Dune books despite being in that universe. I've read about seven of them out of optimism and hope but didn't enjoy them at all. Even Sandworms of Dune which is ostensibly based on Frank Herbert's notes for Dune 7 wasn't enjoyable to me, although it was least bad.
- Sandworms of Dune was such a disappointment that I'll check the books out of the library now. The "prelude" and "legends" series were good enough that I went out and bought my own copies of them.
