A far future of Mankind, with all the science, polititcs, religion, and all the corruption one might expect. Strong characters, an ingenious plot, and a gripping setting. If you like the first one, you'll love the rest.

I came into this prequel with a lot of preconceived notions that it would not be a worthy successor to the original. And it isn't. But after a second reading, I realized it's not supposed to be. "House Atreides" is a prequel, not a sequel. It's supposed to "fill in the blanks" of what happened before the greatest book in science fiction history. NO book can ever hope to live up to that kind of hype. But I believe Brian and Kevin do a masterful job of setting up things that we =know= are going to happen in later books without killing the suspense. There's whole new storylines to explore in this series, which they do later on. So Brian's not Frank. But he's working from Frank's notes with the aid of an author who is used to working in other people's universes. If you like "Dune" give this series a chance. I believe if you come into it with an open mind, you'll find it almost as entertaining as the original.

The Frank Herbert Dune novels were so well crafted that the characters seemed to be a natural consequence of the future history in which they live (to which we cannot relate without the help of Herbert's carftsmanship), and a product of their own human ambitions and shortcomings (to which we can relate directly). In contrast, most of the characters of this book are unrelatable on both accounts. I read the book a mere chapter at a time for the first third, finding it uninspiring. Despite this, the story did grow on me, and I finished the book rapidly. Some of the characters did begin to take on extra dimension, and the story had some clever twists. It seems the authors' craftsmanship improved dramatically over the course of the project (assuming that it was written in chapter-order). They have infinitely huge shoes to fill, and have have done so more adequately than I would have thought possible. On the whole, I did indeed enjoy it, despite a slow start. I look forward to the other books, and my enthusiasm for the original series has been sparked anew.

I am not a Kevin J. Anderson fan by any stretch of the imagination (he's poisen to Star Wars, I tells ya) and I am a fan of the original Dune series (although not as hardcore as most). And with these two concepts colliding as I read "House Atreides", a shocking fact unfolded like Paul's visions in the original book... I actually liked it.

I'm not one to tally up every detail in the original Herbert series, so theres no way possible I could criticize it for missing details. All I can say it was a good read. Unlike Frank Herbert, whose writing was intelligent and made you think, Anderson prefers rather to show everything, leaving nothing to the imagination. Every scene, action and battle is told in Anderson's quaint style. And I found nothing wrong with it. It was fun to get a look at the major characters seen a few decades before the original novel.

Just the same, I still prefer to view this work as a 'what if' type of Dune story, a glamourised look at the characters and locations Herbert created. Rather than an accurate prequal, I see 'House: Atreides' as an embellished history. But a fun sci-fi romp all the same.

The biggest problem with the Dune prequels is that they do not have the engaging writing style of the originals. Of course, Frank Herbert is dead, but his son is not completely incompetant. He knows how to tell a story, and that's what "House Harkonnen" does well. You have to read "House Atreides" to understand what's going on. This book ties up some loose ends left by that book, but leaves just as many. These, I presume, will be tied up in the third prequel "House Corrino". The plot is very complicated and jumps around from character to character, but it is also engaging. You get to find out some interesting history about some of the best characters from the original series, such as the Emporer's aide Count Fenring.

"House Harkonnen" reads like one of those Star Wars novels. This makes sense, because co-author Kevin Anderson has written several Star Wars novels. His writing style (along with Brian Herbert) just doesn't fit in well with the other Dune novels, which were known for their rich style. My other big complaint with this book is that it is chock-full of torture scenes. Why? I mean, we get it - the Harkonnens are evil. Is it necessary to give all the grisly details? Frank Herbert was far more subtle and effective in portraying good vs. evil. He did not have to resort to shock value.

Still, this book is interesting, at least for its storyline and its insights into Dune's history. I think it's a worthy read for hardcore Dune fans

If "Dune: House Atreides" and "Dune: House Harkonnen" had been written by Frank Herbert and predated his Dune books, we would look at these two books as good starting points that grew into a wonderful series. If the Dune series had never been written, I think the two prequels would have been better received. If, if if. However, to stand in the shadow of one of the greatest science fiction series ever written is indeed a daunting task.

Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson might not be quite matching the philosophical depth of the original Dune books (especially the first three or four), but they are doing a good job. This is enjoyable reading with well-developed characters and some depth to the plot. They are also not just backtracking in entirely predictable ways, as they do pull out a surprise or two. They are laying a very credible groundwork to the Dune series (in fictional future history terms).

If you read the prefaces, you will know what they are also doing. The original Dune series was not finished. While some fell (with some validity) that the last two Frank Herbert Dune books feel a little short of the standards set by the earlier ones, "Chapterhouse: Dune" does not end cleanly. Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson are immersing themselves in the Dune zeitgeist in preparation for the truly daunting task of finishing Brian's father's work. I look forward to that book in a way I haven't looked forward to a book in a while. We have at least one more prequel to go, though ("Dune: House Corrino" is my guess).

I came into this series with a lot of preconceptions that these would not be worthy successors to the originals. And they aren't. But after a second reading, I realized they're not supposed to. "House Harkonnen" is a prequel, not a sequel. It's supposed to "fill in the blanks" of what happened before the greatest book in science fiction history. NO book can ever hope to live up to that kind of hype. But I believe Brian and Kevin do a masterful job of setting up things that we =know= are going to happen in later books without killing the suspense. Now they've started to explore the new storylines they created, and they do a good job. I, for one, can't wait to see "House Corrino". So Brian's not Frank. But he's working from Frank's notes, with the aid of an author who is used to working in other people's universes. If you like "Dune" give this series a chance. I believe if you come into it with an open mind, you'll find it almost as entertaining as the original.

I read this about a year ago and it took me almost a year just to force myself to finish this book it was so awful. I enjoy Frank Herberts work so much I was sorely disappointed by his son. The characters where one dimensional. He seemed to use the sci-fi aspect as an excuse to throw in ridiculous junk that supposedly justified his pathetic characters lack of reason or humanity. I only Pray that he managed to not screw up the new DUNE book he co-wrote. I'd give this zero stars if it was an option

Although this isn't your typical science fiction novel, it stands out amongst the genre as a good piece for one simple reason: the characters are so well developed. You come to know them as if they were family. I enjoyed reading this book years ago, mainly because it seemed more a mainstream novel than science fiction. It is a good piece of work, worth the time spent reading it (for me, the second time)and I would recommend picking up a copy --- if you can find one. Brian Herbert should be proud of this work!

PoA is a great book that melds a good Science Fiction Question ("What if...") with a character based story. The Question is "What if San Francisco were yanked up into space by aliens with unknown intent", and the human story is the dynamics of the totally dysfunctional family, the Fouquets. The story is compelling, and I read through the 407 page book in two sittings. The book takes it's time to find a protaginist, and the readability and "neato" concepts start showing up a third of the way through the book, alsmost as if the resolution hadn't been planned out. In addition, the resolution itself begs for a sequal, leaving much up in the air (pun clearly intended).

In this prequel series, authors Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson have succeeded in capturing the mood and tone of the fantastic Dune universe. Both House Atreides and House Harkonnen were fine additions to this most illustrious sci-fi series.

In House Corrino which, as with the other two books, doesn't focus on any particular house despite the title, the authors have drawn out a satisfying conclusion that leads in to the original Dune. Sort of. A lot is left unsaid, and I'm almost thinking there's going to be another book stuck in between. Simple logic would seem to refute this, as there are really no more important houses left to title another book.

In addition to the sense of incompleteness, there is a rather serious lack of any inventive plot in House Corrino. House Atreides presented a fantastic 'wheels-within-wheels' scheme, and House Harkonnen expanded on this. Though it wraps up the main storyline quite well, the last installation doesn't do anything you wouldn't expect. This isn't helped by the fact that you already know who will survive and die if you've read Dune.

I'm not saying that House Corrino was a poorly written title. Quite the contrary, I rather enjoyed it. The problem is, it reads more like Star Wars than Dune, which breaks the flavor of the Frank Herbert franchise.

Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson come close to wrapping up the Dune prequel series with a climactic edition in "Dune: House Corrino". This story takes place in less than a year's time, beginning after the conception of Paul Atreides, and finishing just after his birth. The book starts off a little slow; it takes the authors a while to build up the suspense, but the last 150 pages of this work are well worth the wait. The details regarding the Corrino famliy are also enjoyable.

The authors set the stage in the two previous prequel stories ("House Atreides" and "House Harkonnen") and really didn't need to build up interest over such a long novel. FYI, both previous works are musts for devoted Dune fans. However, this is the best book out of the three editions. New readers will find the style smoother and more modern than the original Frank Herbert series, but not quite as creative. These stories fill in the many gaps in Frank Herbert's background, almost as if reading historical fiction.

The final third of the book is excellent, even difficult to put down as the action reaches a crescendo. Though every fan knows what is going to happen, we have been shielded from the truth all this time. You almost feel as if the story were new. However, there is one last story to tell here. Prepare to see "Dune: Bene Gesserit" bridging the birth of Paul Atreides to the relocation of his family to Planet Arrakis.

I have read every book in both Dune series and rate this book 3.80 out of 5.00 stars, rounded up to 4.00 stars, with points for writing style and for nicely wrapping up a lot of pre-history. Still want to read about more workings behind the scenes of the Sisterhood though.

The Dune Prequel books may not have the same magic and level of complexity that the original Dune book has, but they're well written and an enjoyable read. You can become reacquainted with many of your favorite characters and read about their lives and where they came from. Leto Atreides, Duncan Idaho, Gurney Halleck, Jessica, Liet Kynes, as well as the Harkonnens, Shaddam, the Ixians, Tleilaxu, etc. These books are a welcome change from some of the tedium and lack of action in the latter Dune books. Some of the plot twists and pre-Dune events are a bit of a stretch though. I highly recommend this series for another fun adventure into the Dune universe.

I don't understand some of the very negative reviews here. If you are new to SQL, then this book will be a good compagnon.
This book worked for me, it's gives you the fundamentals you need to get to the more advanced stuff. This book is to teach SQL, as a reference I use o'reillys SQL in a nutshell. And the comment on the price? Well, i think all programming books are getting more and more expensive...

I am one of the authors of this book, so of course my rating is going to be a little prejudiced. However, I must say that I'm very proud of this work, and after reading the complete work, I thought it should be called "Beginning to End SQL Programming." There isn't a single aspect of SQL that is not covered in this book. While it is designed to cover using SQL from the beginning, and written in a style that is easy for novices to understand, it covers more about the actual use of SQL than any other SQL book that I've seen. I actually use it as a reference myself!

This book is excellent! It's clearly written and easy to follow! And, I must admit that when I read a review of this book by the one of the authors I thought that his opinion must be biased, but it wasn't, it was right on the mark! This book is an excellent reference book. It has replaced my previous #1 favorite, Sams Teach Yourself SQL in 10 Minutes. The Sams book is still an excellent title to own too! The Sams book is a good "portable" reference due to its quality and size. The Wrox book is a good desktop reference. Even though the Wrox book is a big book you'll still be tempted to keep it with you because it's so good!

This is a book that, out of boredom, I reread after having not been impressed the first time around. While certainly not on the level of "Dune," the novel nevertheless portrays a unique future (profit-driven, of course; move over, cyber-punks!). If you have a few carefree days to spend reading, you could do much worse.

This is a great book. To compare every piece of literature to the masterpiece that was Frank Herbert's crowning achievement is ludicrous. This book stands alone as a great novel. I can see Frank's hand in it as well as that of his son, Brian; it is this that kept me reading it. It was incredibly well done on the science fiction front (i.e. Frank's touch), as well as being incredibly humorous (Brian's input into science fiction). I loved it when I read "The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy" many years ago. After reading and enjoying "Man of Two Worlds" I went back and reread "Hitchiker". Enjoy this book for what it is worth, not as a comparitive study to the masterpiece that is Dune.

If you've read Frank Herbert and you've loved Frank Herbert and you expected Frank Herbert, you might be disappointed. Just as the main character is the synthesis of a curious alien and a self-indulgent human, Man of Two Worlds is the synthesis of veteran writer Frank Herbert with his less prolific son, Brian Herbert. The best way to enjoy the novel is to read it as if it is Brian Herbert's book, because you won't have all the expectations going into it. This is just like the movie everyone raved about that you didn't think was so great. Block out the pep rally and pick this book up for a very interesting twist to the two strangers on the run theme.

This is not a bad book, there is some of humour in it, some characters are the same as in Sydney's comet, but Sydney's comet was much better.

I read this "book" a while back and waited to calm down to write this review. That was a mistake, in that I mercifully have purged much of it from my head and would not accept anything less than a fortune to read it again.

The characters are bad, the science awful and the attention to details from the original (read "good") indicates they just didn't give a damn. (Admittedly, history can change over millenia but back it up with some kind of rationale.) I had thought the three prequels to be the worst perversions I'd ever see; I was wrong.

While I'd like to go on and on about how much I hate this book it just isn't worth it. Others have done so quite well. The fact 38/132 (as of June 26, 2003) have given it only one star should be evidence enough.

Please heed this warning, however: SAVE YOUR MONEY; MOREOVER, SAVE YOUR TIME. YOU'LL REGRET PUTTING EITHER OF THESE INTO THIS BOOK.

...

I grew up on Dune. I actually loved all the books, up to Chapterhouse: Dune.

What I've always liked about the Dune series is it's sheer believability and consistency. The complexity of it's storyline and characters made the books a challenge to read and understand - but well worth the effort.

Enter Brian Herbert. I had read "Man of Two Worlds", which was a collaboration he did with his dad - and was amazed at the difference. It sucked. The story was a joke. It had some interesting ideas, but I have a feeling they came from Herbert Sr.

Now - I just read the 3 Dune "House" novels. The series had some promise in the beginning, but it quickly decayed into typical and mediocre mass-market space opera for which Kevin J. Anderson is well known. Now - if you like the innumerable Star Trek and Star Wars series out there - you'll probably love this. But to me, franchise stories lack any kind of real passion and creativity. Being a fan of the originals - I stuck it out. Read the 3 books, and tried to like them. But the awful truth is that they're [garbage] - filled with transparent plots, one dimensional characters, and a complete disregard when convenient for Frank Herbert's original ideas.

So - with some trepidation, I approached the new book. It covered one of the most intriguing periods of the Dune timeline.

I could not begin to comprehend how this book got released.

The characterization of the Titans is laughable. And the sentient machines should be called "Artificial Sort-of Roman Hedonist Bad Guys". There are some solid ideas which obviously came from Frank Herbert in there - but the rest is fluff.

"Oh the machines are soooo bad, and they're kicking the humans' collective [butt]... I wonder how the humans will triumph?!?!?!".

I'd say skip it unless you're a devoted Dune fan, or like the first three in the series. But then again, if you liked those books you probably thought "The Phantom Menace" and "Attack of the Clones" were good.

If you want to read some good books about humans struggling against machines, I'd recomend William Barton's "When Heaven Fell", and Dan Simmon's "Hyperion" series.

I was waiting patiently for this book to come out after having read the House trilogy. When I got it, I finished it pretty quick because there is a lot of action and some interesting ideas. It was extremely easy to read and follow. However, I cannot help feeling that they did not hit the mark with this book. They were supposed to be taking us back in time in the Dune Universe to that pivotal time 10 000 years prior to the events of Dune. Somehow, they did not capture the mysticism of this legendary time. Truthfully, this book could have been written to stand on its own just by changing the characters' names and getting rid of the sandworms. It almost seems like they wrote it so that they could fill in the important preceding events with another series. Despite its grandiose title, The Butlerian Jihad, which was alluded to tantalizingly in Frank Herbert's novels, this book did not live up to my expectations in terms of developing the mythology and legends of Dune. But, being a die hard Dune fan, I did not regret buying it and will buy the upcoming novels in the series.

My main concern with the book is that it is not a collection of notes from Frank Herberts Dune, rather it is a collection of quotes from the series. If you are looking for a book that gives you insight into the creative process of Frank Herbert, look elsewhere, because you wont find it in this book.

This book puts the nuggets of wisdom in Frank Herbert's Dune series all in one place. Compiled in a thin, paperback book, you won't have to search for the "litany against fear" or other wise sayings. Chock full of life truths and insights into human behavior, it's best taken a quote at a time, digested with a bit of thought afterward.