luminifera's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Spoiler
has no personality outside of being Paul's love interestGraphic: Child death, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Murder, Slavery, Blood, Drug use, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Alcohol, Colonisation, Death, Physical abuse, War, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Addiction, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Violence, Death of parent, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Xenophobia, Racism, and Sexism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Genocide, Gore, Pedophilia, Rape, Vomit, Incest, Cursing, Gun violence, Medical content, and Miscarriage
It's about the colonization of a planet, and the main character is The Chosen One. Expect violence, war, and of course plenty of misogyny - this book is from the 1960s and was written by a man. Some things are simply offensive.claudiamacpherson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Spoiler
I was surprised, however, when we learn (somewhere around halfway through the novel) that Princess Irulan is actually alive concurrently with Paul—I had been imagining her as a scholar farther in the future, recording this history a generation or two later.Spoiler
I don’t know that this could really be called a happy ending, though it’s honestly better than I was expecting (I wouldn’t have put it past Herbert to kill Paul in the end). It’s not exactly a cliffhanger, but definitely feels unfinished, and I’ve already put the sequel on hold at my library!Graphic: Blood, Colonisation, Murder, Violence, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, and Slavery
Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Torture
iwi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I think part of the intention here was to show how harmful humans and power is. That I can agree with. But I still wish that I liked more about this story.
Graphic: Blood, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Sexism
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Genocide, Homophobia, and Slavery
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Incest, Infertility, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, and Sexual content