Reviews

The Rise of Endymion by Dan Simmons

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camw's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

matteo_of_eld's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

If you like Hyperion and Fall of Hyperion, I cannot impress upon you enough how much you should not read this book or Endymion. Stupid retcons that ruin thematic content in Hyperion, weird character arcs, borderline pedophilia, long boring philosophical tracts. One of the worst books I've read in a long time, with a dumb, unearned conclusion.

Content Warnings

harrkee's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

lauradameron's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

boscol23's review against another edition

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3.75

3.8

yevolem's review against another edition

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3.0

The Rise of Endymion was an awe-inspiring mess. On a page by page basis I was unimpressed until near the climax, but as a whole it was awesome if you allow it to be by ignoring all its problems. As I wrote about the previous book it feels much more like a foundational work of religion and history. This one commits to that concept, for better and worse. This was figuratively the Second Coming. Heresies abounded, especially of the Christian variety, one of which being the secret nature of Jesus Christ was revealed and what that meant for the latter day Messiah known as The One Who Teaches, let alone the theological foundations of Christianity.

I had severe doubts about this book due to the previous one, but by the end of the book Aenea provided a lot of emotionally resonant fulfillment. Raul, the protagonist, continued to be serviceable in his role at best, and from what I've seen, he's a primary problem for a lot of people due to the nature of his relationship with Aenea. I don't think the protagonist has to be the most important character, but he is an outlier in terms of subordination. Aside from that there's so else much that can go so wrong and so right depending on the reader. For me there were a few great moments. What you may need more than anything else to enjoy this book is belief that accepts it for what it isn't rather than what isn't.

There were a lot of times where I felt that Simmons changed his mind about really mattered or how things were because he decided the story was meant to go a different way. He had to "choose again" as it were. Much of plot and most of its threads are either summarily resolved or left unresolved, because the book's defining act overwhelms all else. The vast majority of the book is once again journeying, the significance of which is both sentimental and practical. Again I must emphasize that I think the structure of this duology is unsuitable as a work of entertainment, though excellent for a personal account of a disciple loved by a messiah.

There's a lot that pushes into the fantastical, especially the implications of the ending. There's a scene that has metaphorical angels with wings of light that can extend up to hundreds of kilometers, which is described in technological terms. It's also the case that apparently sufficiently advanced empathy is indistinguishable from miracles or magic, though its given a theoretical scientific basis that is audacious. The societal implications are greater than the Farcasters were.

Reading this was definitely worthwhile and despite all my problems, I would gladly read more novels in this setting, but Simmons swore to never write another novel, though it's continued with a novelette. I'm unable to recommend this without reservations. I do recommend reading both if you read Endymion though, because it's meant to be one book.