Review: Hyperion (Hyperion #1) by Dan Simmons

Hyperion by Dan Simmons

Summary
Seven people make the final pilgrimage to the Shrike, who will grant one wish of one of the pilgrims while the rest will die, in a last gambit to save all of mankind. On this journey we learn about the how and why these seven were chosen, and why they are willing to risk their lives on this journey.

Commentary
Wow, despite the fact that the story really only takes place on starships and other transportation while travelling to the Shrike this story has an amazing around of scope seen through the eyes of the seven pilgrims. Each story is unique; they cover so much history of what has happened in the universe we find ourselves in without ever creeping into information overload.

This book is unabashedly sci-fi, which I enjoyed especially since it is such a great example of sci-fi. There aren't a lot of characters so despite some of the names being harder to remember than others (at least for me), I didn't have a hard time keeping track of who was who. The presentation of each character's story also helped with the remembering, and the transitions between the stories feel natural, which made the multiple points of views very enjoyable.

If you like sci-fi, this is a great book to read (it DID win a Hugo AND a Nebula so make that a MUST read), but hard-core fantasy fans will probably find themselves somewhat put off by the feel of this book.

Star Rating: 4.5/5.0

For an explanation of the Star Rating go here.

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