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Kevin Anderson and Brian Herbert's second sequel to the Dune series expands upon Hunters of Dune in a relatively logical way. It is ultimately an entertaining book. However, the reliance on characters who have already had their time in the sun in addition to a generally lackluster plot form an overall okay book. Their attempt to develop a book that tied their prequel series with the original series left me saying "Huh?" far too many times. Ultimately, I prefer to think of the end of Chapterhouse: Dune as the true end of the series, and of Sandworms and Hunters as fan-fiction.

This book is fantastic. It's just far enough in the future for the technology to be almost understandable. It throws you into the world without explanation, expecting you to pick up the necessary information as you go along. The characters are interesting. The concepts are wild. This is the first "hard" science fiction novel I've read, and if the others are anything like this then I will definitely read more.

So much of science fiction has been influenced by this novel, and I can see why. It was a fantastic read throughout. The plot made sense, the characters were believable, and there was plenty of world-building without resorting to holding the reader's hand.

I read Echopraxia as part of the Firefall collection, so immediately after reading both Blindsight (although I did take a break to read The Colonel). Honestly, I was underwhelmed. It feels like it is trying too hard to be Blindsight. The sudden twists are there, just like Blindsight, but without any of the buildup. The characters are interesting, but many of them lack nuance. Some even do things just for the sake of being shocking. The ending made the entire book feel pointless. Ultimately, I'd only recommend reading Echopraxia if you just really want more of the Firefall universe.

It isn't a super dark and gritty tale where everyone dies all the time. It isn't high fantasy. It's a heist story that wraps itself in fantasy, with a logical system of magic. Honestly, it's an excellent break from what I've been reading, and I enjoyed it immensely.

The Colonel introduces the reader to a little more of the world of Firefall. In general, it is very short, but actually pretty interesting. I'd say if you wanted to read Echopraxia that this is recommended reading first. It explains a little more about a couple characters and events that are important to Echopraxia and are somewhat referenced in Firefall.

Kevin Anderson and Brian Herbert attempt to revive the Dune series 21 years after Chapterhouse: Dune was released with Hunters of Dune. While it isn't a bad book, it falls short of the mark. I understand that this book and Sandworms of Dune, its sequel, are based in part on Frank Herbert's notes about a potential Dune 7. I am not certain if the notes were not sufficient, or if the base idea for the book was flawed. However, the result is a lackluster sequel to a series that had ended on a mysterious, but mostly satisfying, note.