Paperback, 544 pages
Published Dec. 1, 2005 by GOLLANCZ (ORIO).
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. On the eve of Armageddon, with the entire galaxy at war, seven pilgrims set forth on a final voyage to Hyperion seeking the answers to the unsolved riddles of their lives. Each carries a desperate hope--and a terrible secret. And one may hold the fate of humanity in his hands.
this book avoids a lot of the problems of its prequel. the story is richer, the characters are more interesting and interact with each other more, the gigantic world is explored and detailed more, and the large-scale philosophical + political developments are crafted with patience and precision. I feel fulfilled after being slightly disappointed by book 1 overall.
Simply amazing book even though not that much is happening after all. The different characters stories were told so differently and engaging it really felt like the character telling his story. Obviously the stories were also very good, especially the one about the child.
The beginning feels a bit overwhelming with all the terms of this science fiction world but in time you'll understand the world more and more. And all the worldbuilding is done "on the way" - it never gets in the way of the story being told itself.
If you like science fiction i'd urge you to read this book, at least the first story (you'll know when it's finished).
While its predecessor, HYPERION, served only to pose new questions and mysteries, THE FALL OF HYPERION actually answers a lot. This isn't to say I fully understand what all happened. There are still some mysteries, almost entirely related to time travel, that either haven't been unraveled yet or were to complex for me to figure out on my own. From skimming some spoiler-free reviews of the following two books, it sounds like some of these things are eventually explained. But the important thing here is that strings are tied up, characters are given resolution. Heck, this book even has happy ending.
I struggle with giving it a lower numerical value than HYPERION. On one hand, this book explains so much, and takes us deep into things that were mere mysteries previously. Repeatedly, a reveal would arrive and explain something big, and I would be surprised and delighted and pleased …
While its predecessor, HYPERION, served only to pose new questions and mysteries, THE FALL OF HYPERION actually answers a lot. This isn't to say I fully understand what all happened. There are still some mysteries, almost entirely related to time travel, that either haven't been unraveled yet or were to complex for me to figure out on my own. From skimming some spoiler-free reviews of the following two books, it sounds like some of these things are eventually explained. But the important thing here is that strings are tied up, characters are given resolution. Heck, this book even has happy ending.
I struggle with giving it a lower numerical value than HYPERION. On one hand, this book explains so much, and takes us deep into things that were mere mysteries previously. Repeatedly, a reveal would arrive and explain something big, and I would be surprised and delighted and pleased by it.
But on the other hand, time travel can make things messy, and there's enough ambiguity and contrivance by the end this book that I simply can't give it 5 stars. It's still good though. Really good.
