Book Review: The Fall of Hyperion (Hyperion Cantos, #2) by Dan Simmons
Cover art by Gary Ruddell
The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Series: Hyperion Cantos (Book #2 of 4)
Genre: Science Fiction, Space Opera
Pages: 676 pages (Kindle Edition)
Word count: 184,000 words
Published: 1st March 1990 by Spectra
Utterly awesome. This book was phenomenal in every way. The Fall of Hyperion is a riveting sci-fi epic with heart, intensity, unpredictability, and gigantic scope.
“It’s hard to die. Harder to live.”
I have no idea what the past Petrik three years ago was thinking. But I know he made a mistake not continuing to The Fall of Hyperion when he finished Hyperion for the first time back then. It is simply astounding what some authors can invoke with their writing and storytelling. I have mentioned it many times over the past year. Statistically, it has been rare for me to feel wholly impressed or in awe of a book. But with the completion of The Fall of Hyperion, meaning I’ve now read the first half of Dan Simmons’ Hyperion Cantos magnum opus, I can safely say this. The first half of this series deserves the classic status. A standing ovation. The topics and themes tackled were timeless. It is compelling, full of dangers, grim determination, and the scope… my Lord of Pain. This is an Epic space opera with a capital letter. I miss reading epic science fiction on this level of magnitude. Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion delivered that. Yes. Despite what some readers said about The Fall of Hyperion story structure, I consider these two books one inseparable package now.
“I wish we had the technology to fight God on an equal basis. To beard him in his den. To fight back for all of the injustices heaped on humanity. To allow him to alter his smug arrogance or be blown to hell.”
The story in The Fall of Hyperion carry on immediately from where Hyperion ended. I will refrain from mentioning the details of the plot. However, the way it is told, especially initially, differs from Hyperion. Hyperion has often been described as The Canterbury Tales in space. Or, to put it simply, Hyperion is a novel of six connecting standalone novellas compiled into one volume. The Fall of Hyperion is not like that. It is the “standard” sequential storytelling structure in science fiction, even though nothing is remotely standard about the quality, story, and scale of The Fall of Hyperion.
“Mobs have passions, not brains.”
In The Fall of Hyperion, readers are bestowed with new knowledge about the Hegemony of Man, TechnoCore, The Shrike, Hyperion, the Ouster, the advanced technologies of the series, and many more. The Hegemony, the Ousters, the AIs, and the universe are drawn to the Shrike and Hyperion. But remember, the Pilgrims we read about in Hyperion are drawn there, too. As we know from Hyperion. And more importantly, they are still incredibly dominant in the narrative. They are the main characters. They are not reduced to the supporting character roles, as some readers have claimed. I am legit confused about why some readers would say it’s not worth continuing to The Fall of Hyperion. Thinking about it… this was the main reason the past Petrik did not read The Fall of Hyperion back then. A relatively mixed reaction, especially the voices who speak the sequel do not revolve around the pilgrims as much, made him waver. Do not make the same mistake. The Fall of Hyperion IS the direct and fitting sequel to Hyperion.
“Every age fraught with discord and danger seems to spawn a leader meant only for that age, a political giant whose absence, in retrospect, seems inconceivable when the history of that age is written.”
Read the passage above. Ladies and gentlemen, that leader is Meina Gladstone, and I was not prepared to read such an ironclad character and leader that she is. Dan Simmons dared to convey the first part of The Fall of Hyperion through the perspective of a new character named Severn. While it is true the first part will take a bit of time to get used to because we are put into the perspective and story of Severn and Gladstone, this does not mean we did not get to see the continuation of our beloved Hyperion Pilgrims’ story. Not at all. Severn has the ability to view the events the Pilgrims undertook in real-time progression during his dreaming session. This means we, the reader, DO get to read the next chapters of their story right from the beginning of The Fall of Hyperion. It might be safer to continue what has been done well in Hyperion, letting the Pilgrims take the central stage entirely again from the beginning, but I believe that would lessen the overall quality of this book. Without the involvement of Severn and Gladstone, I do not think all the story arcs in The Fall of Hyperion would succeed at reaching the insanely epic scope. I am still trying to wrap up everything I’ve read in The Fall of Hyperion. It seems inevitable that a second read is imminent in the future.
“Sometimes… dreams are all that separate us from the machines.”
Instead of thinking or expecting the Pilgrims would be left in a supporting character role, the way I see it is this. Severn and Gladstone were two additional main characters on top of the Pilgrims. The balance of the spotlight on these characters has been done with meticulous precision. I did not feel like one character took the spotlight the most. They are equally important in this journey. If you read my review of Hyperion, I mentioned that The Detective’s and The Consul’s Tale, while they’re more enjoyable on reread, were my least favorite parts of the novel. Reading The Fall of Hyperion has shone a new perspective for me. I have faith rereading Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion will ensure another upgraded reading experience. I honestly cannot imagine Hyperion without The Fall of Hyperion now. These two form an absolute union. You haven’t finished the story in Hyperion if you haven’t finished reading The Fall of Hyperion. Father Dure/Hoyt, Kassad, Martin Silenus, Sol Weintraub, Brawne Lamia, and The Consul. Their story came to a rewarding end in The Fall of Hyperion. Not Hyperion. The Fall of Hyperion developed and finished everything setup in Hyperion. All of them have their respective crucial part, and I am not ashamed to admit I was left emotional, stunned, satisfied, and in awe with everything that transpired in their harrowing expedition.
“In the end—when all else is dust—loyalty to those we love is all we can carry with us to the grave. Faith—true faith—was trusting in that love.”
Personally speaking, one of the things that impressed me the most about the two books in Hyperion Cantos so far is the myriad of elements and intricacies Simmons packed into the world-building. There were also some organic implementations of real-life figures and titles in the story, such as John Keats (who I ashamedly didn’t know was a real poet and he wrote a poem named Hyperion) or Dying Earth by Jack Vance, to name a few. And I am confident the Endymion books will amplify this factor further. This book was ahead of its time, and I am not surprised why it became such an impactful inspiration to many science-fiction authors. Not only that, just like in Hyperion, Simmons managed to flex his versatility in writing and storytelling here. From engaging multiple third-person narration, first-person narration, past tense, present tense, poetry, and philosophical writing to pulse-pounding actions, brutality, and emotionally heartfelt moments. The Fall of Hyperion has it all.
Picture: The Shrike by Jaime Jones
Simmons never ceases to escalate the stakes and magnitude of the narrative with each new chapter. Juggling the themes of godhood, technology, machinery, artificial intelligence, parenthood, found family, faith, leadership, and art constantly. Eventually, everything reached an explosive climax sequence brimming with palpable sacrifice, pain, glory, love, and hardship. Simmons did all of this with a relatively short word count. Both Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion cumulatively range about 360,000 words long, and it felt like I’ve read an entire hefty trilogy. Readers, if you haven’t met The Lord of Pain and its Tree of Pain in the Time Tombs of Hyperion, you don’t know what you’re missing out on. But believe me, you are missing out on something devastatingly brilliant.
“Those who ignore history’s lessons in the ultimate folly of war are forced to do more than relive them … they may be forced to die by them.”
To conclude this review, I am elated that I decided to reread Hyperion and continue with the series this year. The Fall of Hyperion is a magnificent example of grand science fiction executed with finesse. It is one of the best sci-fi novels I’ve ever read. The last 5-star rating I gave to a sci-fi novel was to Disquiet Gods by Christopher Ruocchio in April 2024. That was a year ago. If you’ve been following my YouTube channel, you’ll know I’ve been more stingy with my 5-star rating since the end of 2023. However, it would be a grave mistake for me to rate both Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion with anything below a 5-star rating. They are now on my list of greatest science fiction books of all time. I am curious to find out how the second half of the Hyperion Cantos, the Endymion books, can top the Hyperion books. I will find out about that sooner rather than later. I predict we will learn more about the Ouster in the Endymion books, and I am pumped about that prospect.
“Love was as hardwired into the structure of the universe as gravity and matter.”
You can order this book from: Amazon | Blackwells (Free International shipping)
I also have a Booktube channel
Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!
My Patrons: 406Raider, Andrew. S, Andrew. W, Arik, Arliss, Barbara, Bearded Book Beast, Ben, Benjamin, Biskit, Cade, Chris, Christopher, Crystal, Cullen, Dan, Dylan, Edward, Elias, Erich, Francesca, Frank, Gary, Gregory, Hamad, James, Jason, Jeff, Jenn, Johnny, Joie, Jonathan, Katrina, Kim, Kristina, Lara, Lourdes, Melinda, Michael. S, Michael. T, Mike, Mike S, Miracle, Mordie, Nicholas, Radiah, Rando, RCT, Redmischief, Sally, Samiadji, Samuel, Sarah, Scott, Sean, Shawn, Shawna, Stephanie, Trish, Tyler, TS, Wendy, Wick, Xero, Yuri, Zachary, Zammar.