As everybody else on this planet, I have an opinion. As many people do too, I like to write about it. Share it generously. And I am excellent at keeping score (mentally), so I will try tallying up my fondness of things according to balance.
Dune
I had a good time with Dune. This was the second time, and I think the balance was almost entirely on positive most of the time. The events flowed quite seamlessly and everything came together quite effortlessly.
I remember the first time everything seemed too dense. The background of the different peoples, the conspiracies and political infighting, the workings of its universe. It also felt strangely frustrating at times since it jumped around a lot, thus making it a challenge to grasp something new when other things had been barely processed.
Having seen the first movie definitely helped, but I think I also got more patient in reading these types of novels. Rather than trying to understand it all fully, I was able to go more with the flow of the story and let the story unfold itself.
This way, it really turned into a pageturner for me. The characters are all very fleshed out, even though there’s so many of them, and you can really sense how much thought went into the world building. The opening of each chapter provides some background into how much else there is available.
I rate it highly captivating.
Dune Messiah
The first time I read Dune, I did not get around to any of its sequels. After seeing the second film, I felt propelled to read the next book which would be the last film (as of now) to be adapted by Denis Villeneuve.
It surprised me that the book was so thin. I liked to learn more about what happened to the characters after the first book and see how they had changed the world. It also made its point pretty clearly that messianic figures are to be doubted and it is easy for good intentions to lead to unintentional nefative and all-encompassing results.
However, it also felt more single-minded in its pursuit of proving this point. Whereas in the firstbook, its storytelling was leading and any opinions skillfully merged with it, this time it felt more like the story was serving the point it wanted to make.
Funnily enough, Paul’s despair and boredom felt quite relatable, especially when the story would focus on the negative aspects of governing.
As a whole, the story breezed by quite easily and clearly laid the groundwork for its continuation. But it also felt more mechanical and I noticed myself more eager to cross off certain events (yes, I sometimes spoil plot points for myself), than looking forward to seeing them unfold.
I rate it an okay sequel, more setup than actual story.
Children of Dune
After finishing the second book, I was still eager for more. Especially having read the approximate events that would unfold.
The third book feels more like a proper story. I did not find the characters as interesting as the one featured in the first, but the story is clear, has some high stakes, and surprises along the way.
I like the sociological aspect thatcame through stronger in this book. The fact that the Fremen are changing, weakening some would say, and that change can only go so far. The balance of a natural environment needs to be raken into account, otherwise everything is doomed.
Again, I didn’t find it as good as the first one, but I had a lot of fun going through it. The intros are getting a bit overblown though, and I found myself quite uninterested in the extra info it gave. Mainly because it went quite deep into religion, culture and history without everything necessarily being mentioned in the story. So it almost felt more like a world building flex than interesting information.
I rate it a recommended, more entertaining than its predecessor but not quite the peak.
Bitesized Writing 