Dune by Frank Herbert

I had been putting off reading Dune for the longest time. My book is ugly, fat and has the tiniest font going. I got slightly tempted when Common Touch of Fantasy decided to host a readalong for it. But it was his First Impressions video that made me decide to give it a go. After that, there was no stopping me. I finished the book before the readalong even got to the end of the first part.


Paul Atreides and his family are sent to the desert planet Arrakis. It is a trap - even they know it. But besides the political threat they face, there are the dangers in the world - the fact that water is the most valuable commodity. And let's not get talking about the sand worms - the HUGE sand worms.

I was under the impression that this was going to be a tough one to slog through. Was I wrong! Dune is easy to read and the plot keeps the pages turning - at least, in my opinion. My mom is reading it at the moment, and she is finding it slow going. I think it might be because she has been on a Clive Cussler binge for the past few months, whereas I have been reading a huge variety of different things. Anyway, I am just putting that out there, as with all things, what I think might not apply to everyone.

Dune is divided into three books. (I am not talking about the continuation of the series, which I have no intention to read as I have heard nothing good about them.) The first and third books were my favourites. I thought Book 2 was a little slower and that the pacing of it didn't quite match the other books. The third book was a little more jagged and jumped, initially, two years ahead.  I felt that there were scenes that were spoken about that I would have love to have read. I would have loved to have read about raids and battles.

I really enjoyed some of the characters in this book. I thought Jessica was a wonderfully strong female character. I also enjoyed Chani for the same reasons. I did think that some characters were a bit thick in places. I know why Herbert did what he did (for the plot), but I was not completely satisfied with the justification for these characters doing what they did. (Ahh, the joys of giving non-spoilery reviews. Everything is vague.)

I loved the world he created. I really appreciated the depth of detail and thought he put into it. There was no point in the story where I felt that this was a fictitious world. It had its history and geography - but most impressive was the way the people adapted to survive.

I have shelved this Sci-Fi and as fantasy too, because it definitely has a fantasy feel in the story telling. But as Neil Gaiman and Kazuo Isiguro pointed out, what exactly is genre? Anyone who enjoys a well thought out story line, particularly one revolving around battles etc. would enjoy this.

This is the 30th(!!!) book I have read for the 2015 TBR Pile Reading challenge.
I gave Dune 4 stars on Goodreads.