Hyperion

By: Dan Simmons

Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, Jay Snyder, Victor Bevine

Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it.

In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all. On the eve of Armageddon, with the entire galaxy at war, seven pilgrims set forth on a final voyage to Hyperion seeking the answers to the unsolved riddles of their lives. Each carries a desperate hope - and a terrible secret. And one may hold the fate of humanity in his hands.

©1989 Dan Simmons (P)2008 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

Hugo Award, Best Novel, 1990
Locus Award, Best Novel, 1990
"Dan Simmons has the Midas touch: Every genre he writes - whether SF, horror, mystery, historical, or thriller - he turns to gold. Hyperion and The Fall Of Hyperion set a new standard for grand-scale science fiction." (Kevin J. Anderson, author of The Saga of Seven Suns)
"Dan Simmons was a star from the outset. It was the Hyperion books that made him a superstar. The man, quite simply, is what we in the trade call a writer's writer." (Mike Resnick, Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author)
Each of [the pilgrim's] stories would make a superb novella on its own. ( The New York Times Book Review, Gerald Jonas)

Great voice cast

Good sci-fi novel read by a fantastic voice cast. I'll be buying the sequel to it.

Awesome on every level

I've read Hyperion several times and as others state here it is an amazing book. This audiobook production added new dimensions and an aesthetic that complements and augments the story. Engaging readings and solid performances lend emotional components to the characters and breath life into Simmon's expansive disruptive narrative. Well worth the listen. Enjoy!

When it is strong, it is very strong indeed.

I wish I had been warned that hyperion was merely the first half of a book. The (non) ending is abrupt and jarring. The book creates a fascinating universe but chooses instead to focus in on specific people and small stories. All that said, these small stories are compelling and beautiful. I am sure they will each be stuck in my mind forever. Now on to the next book!

Liked it but....

Would you consider the audio edition of Hyperion to be better than the print version?

I never read long books because I don't have time so I never read this in print.

Would you recommend Hyperion to your friends? Why or why not?

If they were the right type of listener - willing to be patient and follow a choppy story.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

??

Any additional comments?

I liked the book and the readers' voices (except for the chopped in female voices at times, that sounded like the type of dubbing we did on home cassettes back in the 70s). HOWEVER, when it came to an end, really a beginning, I was left thinking the author was lazy in choosing the format of each character telling their story at length. It was like, "This is ___'s story, so now I don't have to write clever interactions to develop this character, you have the whole back story in GREAT DETAIL. " The whole book is just character back ground with a little world building thrown in. So I feel either the author was lazy, incapable of editing, or distrustful of readers' ability to fill in any gaps with personal impressions. Again-HOWEVER- some of the personal stories were great on their own. I got very involved in them and thought some could stand alone with a not much change. The sarcastic poet was my favorite, which was a clever way to depict a poet: as a wise soul and a good story teller. I probably will listen to the next book because I am curious to see if anything actually happens in a present setting. But I'm glad I got this one on sale.

Needs a better ending.

Narration was decent. I loved the characters individual stories and the plot weavings. The science and how the characters deal with relativistic flight was good but the ending left me flat.

Excellent Story, Characters, and Cast of Narrators

Would you listen to Hyperion again? Why?

Not only was the book an amazing story, with vivid characters, but the that fact that most of the main characters had their own excellent voice actors really brought this story to life. The characters speak and act like real people. Unlike the predictable plots of some other books, I had no chance of guessing how the characters stories all intertwined and combined as I reached the story's conclusion. Admittedly it was a bit of a cliffhanger ending, but luckily the sequel is next in my queue. The universe Simmons creates is vast, complex, and very believable. This really blew me away.

I only wish I would have found this sooner

Would you listen to Hyperion again? Why?

Probably not for awhile, but there's a lot to digest, so maybe.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Fave character was Martin Silenas. Combination of bacchanalian satyr (literally) and pure devotion to true poetry was interesting.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

No idea.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Some moments with Rachel regressing to childhood were deep, as a parent.

Wow - what an incredibly rich story!

An enjoyable tapestry of human misery, delight, action, romance and space battles. Rich characters, engrossing story telling, picturesque descriptions of far away.

Anticlimactic

Interesting, long and finally unsatisfying. Will definitely check reviews before deciding whether to listen to the sequel.

Wonderful, wonderful book!

This is one of the better books I've listened to on audible. The production quality was top notch; multiple narrators and a musical score, yea it's wonderful.

The story is excellent too; It's really, really good. Each of the pilgrim's tales are wonderful and could stand alone among fine tales in each of their respective genres (romance, adventure, detective, and others).

The author's imagination is grand and sweeping. His ability to create worlds and communicate action is stellar. His descriptions of future combat outdoes the first chapter of Heinlein's starship troopers.

I wanted to listen to this book all the time, and I did. And when I was finished I quickly obtained the sequel with my last credit.

You will not regret this book!