The Rise of Endymion

By: Dan Simmons

Narrated by: Victor Bevine

Length: 29 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

In the stunning continuation of the epic adventure begun in Hyperion, Simmons returns us to a far future resplendent with drama and invention. On the world of Hyperion, the mysterious Time Tombs are opening. And the secrets they contain mean that nothing - nothing anywhere in the universe - will ever be the same.

©1997 Dan Simmons (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

An Ending that I enjoyed

I enjoyed these series of books even more than the original Hyperion saga. Knowing that it was going to end - always brings an element of finality to each page that you read. This is so unusual in this genre it seems (to have an end in mind) in multivolume series. There are a few slow parts were philosophy of religion and such is debated among the priests . . . also the whole episode on Earth could have been fast forwarded . . .but I made it through those sections to the more interesting pieces.

One of the Best Books I Have Ever Read.

Would you listen to The Rise of Endymion again? Why?

Absolutely - this series is an incredible journey through humanity, love, transformation, and what wonders the universe may hold.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Raul - What a well written narrator and character

Which scene was your favorite?

The reunion of Raul and Anea - I was in tears for two hours

Any additional comments?

I would recommend this book to anyone. It is a love story at heart structured as a Messiah story and ultimately wrapped in a Sci-Fi aesthetic. In truth however, it is a beautiful insight on the inter-connectivity of the universe, on the truth and power of love, and on the wonders and beauty to be discovered in this universe.

Dan Simmons' Cantos is a masterpiece!

This series is top 5 out of over 1000 titles read or listened to in any genre. I have rarely been so moved and deeply satisfied by a book or series as I was by this finale to an incredible epic .
If you read only the first book, Hyperion, you have only the first taste and introduction of this magnificent mystery that Dan Simmons have woven for us with such breathtaking depth and poignancy.

Superb narration. Victor Bevine rocks!

Fantastic story begun with hyperion. Victor Bevine is a fantastic narrator in most cases, but I did not like his narrative of Aneyas voice. Other than that, everything was awesome.

Narrator reads too slowly for my tastes.

I found I enjoyed the series best at 1.25x speed, that way the pauses that the narrator uses aren't too long, and he doesn't read so fast as to sound annoying.

I felt the boom was long enough as it is, and I really like long books as they keep me awake on my really long drives for work.

This boom and series has a great story overall and is definitely worth a read and or listen!

An Epic Tale

One of the most incredible, well thought out epic tales. Ranks with Asimov, Tolkien and others for an epic tale for our age. Set in the distant future, combines the best of sci fi and fiction. Incredibly well written and adapted for audio.

Wow, just Wow

Very much like the preceding books but even better. Like the others, sometimes a little slow early on with the richness of description and detail, but builds and quickens. Great for listeners who want to be entertained for a long time for just one credit!

Good, Though Main Character is...Not Very Engaging

I loved the last 3 books, and i liked this one a lot as well. I would recommend anyone whose read the other 3 continue with this one. However, in this book, three things bothered me:
(1) Raul annoyed me. Hes, for lack of a better word, a “bro” -> hes jealous and dense. Specifically, his jealously is depicted in (frankly) a very basic, uninteresting way - hes always thinking things like “my heart was stabbed like a lightening rod when i thought that the others might see my darling naked.” Maybe the author was trying to depict Raul as a flawed character still caught up in normal-everyday-worries against the backdrop of universally important issues (or whatever), but it didnt work very well. More nuance and depth was needed to make the character’s inner struggles engaging. And, Raul is very black and white - he gets angry and hung up on having to immediately know the answers to extremely complicated situations...half the book is him thinking things like “if they dont tell me right now im going to use my fists to get the answers.”
(2) Given the factors i just explained about Raul, I found it very difficult to feel the realism or get excited about Raul and Aenea’s relationship. Throughout the whole book i couldnt help but feel “why does Aenea like this dense, jealous, basic dude?” And the same thing for Raul - there is no concrete illumination on the reasons Raul liked Aenea. The only aspects of his “love” and moments of their relationship we are shown are either (a) Raul being jealous, (b) them having “hours” of sex, or (c) Raul saying dramatic yet vague things about missing Aenea. And the good stuff that builds excitement about relationships (like cute/endearing interactions that show how well Raul and Aenea are matched, the things Raul admires about Aenea, which parts of her personality he likes, etc.) are almost never revealed. Just struggle, jealousy, and sexual passion.
3.) The description of the love scenes was overly dramatic and got a lil old after a while. I likely primarily felt this way given the factors i described in my first two comments - i.e. i didnt understand or feel excited by their relationship, so having to go through long passages about their lovemaking was, well, boring. Just so much “my heart felt like the explosion of a million galaxies” kinda narration. And a lot of “my darling” this, and “my lover” that. Woof. And finally, i found it kind of creepy that Raul kept calling Aenea “kiddo” even though they were lovers.

Excellent!

Haven’t read this series since I was a teenager just listen to the entire thing, as impeccably wrote and I remember! Wonderful adventure will carry you away through time and space and back again! Hope there’s another book coming!

A Masterpiece!

So imaginative and rich with detail. Incredible work! Would recommend this 4 part story to anyone.