David Colborne reviewed Endymion by Dan Simmons (Hyperion Cantos, #3)
Huckleberry Finn vs. Space Catholics
4 stars
Much as Hyperion set the table for The Fall of Hyperion, Endymion leaves a cliffhanger for The Rise of Endymion to settle.
Endymion is largely told in the voice of Raul Endymion, a man captured in a high tech space prison who is effectively dictating his last will and testament. The book is the first half of the story behind how he ended up in his predicament — his near-execution, followed by his assignment to protect Aenea, a 12-year-old girl who emerges from the Time Tombs and speaks fondly of their future romantic relationship.
Raul, it should be noted, is 27 when he meets Aenea — but to Simmons' credit, he writes Raul to be appropriately chaste and protective in a fatherly way towards the young child.
The Catholic antagonists are more reliably interesting and believable than the protagonists, who are largely relegated towards being set pieces for Aenea's precognitions. …
Much as Hyperion set the table for The Fall of Hyperion, Endymion leaves a cliffhanger for The Rise of Endymion to settle.
Endymion is largely told in the voice of Raul Endymion, a man captured in a high tech space prison who is effectively dictating his last will and testament. The book is the first half of the story behind how he ended up in his predicament — his near-execution, followed by his assignment to protect Aenea, a 12-year-old girl who emerges from the Time Tombs and speaks fondly of their future romantic relationship.
Raul, it should be noted, is 27 when he meets Aenea — but to Simmons' credit, he writes Raul to be appropriately chaste and protective in a fatherly way towards the young child.
The Catholic antagonists are more reliably interesting and believable than the protagonists, who are largely relegated towards being set pieces for Aenea's precognitions. Having said that, Raul and the rest of Aenea's party makes the most of whatever free will they have within the constraints imposed upon them by her visions of the future —and the story moves at a steady pace overall.
