Dune Messiah

"Dune Messiah" is a more geopolitical and philosophical continuation of the action-oriented "Dune". It feels initially slow paced, but there is frequent reflection and pondering in some chapters.

I am a really big fan of Dune. I finished the original novel a few days before I went to see Denis Villeneuve's adaptation, which was a good thing, as it made the cinematic experience much more relaxed because I already knew all the twists and turns of this complicated story, which allowed me to put my feet up and enjoy myself. Afterwards I went to pick up the second volume: Dune: Messiah. It only took me a week or so to get through the fairly short novel, and while it left me wanting for more, I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed. Dune: Messiah is not nearly as compelling as Dune was, and it wears this on it's sleeve; there is an introduction by Brian Herbert, in which he aknowledges that this book is far less popular than the original. I don't want to criticise it too much, the story is fine, and I see the necessity of spelling out the dark side of Paul Atreides; some people apparently don't pick up on that in the first novel and seem to see Paul as your typical protagonist hero who will save the day and all is well... He is not, and that's what Dune: Messiah is basically about. I did find it to feel a bit rushed and the conclusion of Paul's part in this story comes very suddenly. Look, it's a fine book, and Frank Herbert is a phenomenal author, just don't expect it to be what Dune was. I found it to be a weaker entry in a great story told over several volumes and I'm sure it wasn't easy to try and come up with a follow up to Dune.

Kein Vergleich zum ersten Band, der wirklich mitreißend war. Dieser Band ist eher was für absolute Liebhaber von (zumeist) Paul's Gedanken, die sehr philosophisch anmuten. Wer den ersten Band aufgrund der verworren und spannenden Handlung mochte, wird von diesem Band eher enttäuscht sein.