Wait, how many Dune books are there?

Reah Thorolund

Reah Thorolund

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Oct 12, 2016
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I've just finished what I thought was the trilogy omnibus. But not only has the ending not really brought any closure to the story, but now I'm Googling Dune books and finding all kinds of works.

I was following the fall of House Atreideis, and Muad-Dib rising to ruler of the Arrakis natives, and him reclaiming the planet from the Harkonnens.

I absolutely love this universe and want to read more, but I don't understand what book is about what and what I should read in what order. ._. It's all confusing, can anybody help me?
 
Hi Reah: welcome to SFFWorld.

Ah, Dune. OK.

Here are the five, in order, that Frank wrote:
1. Dune (1965)
2. Dune Messiah (1969)
3. Children of Dune (1976)
4. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
5. Heretics of Dune (1984)
6. Chapterhouse: Dune (1969)

The series was extended by his son, Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.

The first books were prequels to just-before Dune, and told of the formation of the world the Guilds and the families, the fall of the machines and so on: all just before Dune.

In order, they work in the following sequences:

Prelude to Dune (with Kevin J Anderson)
1. House Atreides (1999)
2. House Harkonnen (2000)
3. House Corrino (2001)
(These are what I think you've read.) The next series also goes further back, about 10 000 years, telling of the rise and overthrow of the machines.

Legends of Dune (with Brian Herbert)
1. The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
2. The Machine Crusade (2002)
3. The Battle of Corrin (2004)

The Road to Dune (2005) (with Brian Herbert and Frank Herbert) is a collection of short stories from throughout the series.
Tales of Dune (2011) (with Brian Herbert) is the same.

They then went and added to the end of Frank's original series by adding the following:

7. Hunters of Dune (2006)
8. Sandworms of Dune (2007)

and filled in gaps with:
Heroes of Dune (Between Dune & Dune Messiah)
1. Paul of Dune (2008)
2. The Winds of Dune (2009)


The latest series goes back to the early days, just after The Battle of Corrin, and deals with the formation of the Bene Generit and the Spacing Guilds.

Great Schools of Dune
1. The Sisterhood of Dune (2012)
2. Mentats of Dune (2014)
3. Navigators of Dune (2016)

Think that's right - so far.

Others may well point it out, but the Brian Herbert/Kevin Anderson books are not unanimously well-received, to put it mildly.

Hope that helps!
 
Thank you for the information, Hobbit. I love the first Dune but have never been brave enough to read the rest of the series because I've heard the quality really drops off. If you don't mind sharing your opinion about the rest of the series I might reassess. :)
 
Pleased that helped, EJ.

I may not be the best person to ask on this, as I haven't read all of them. Dune is still a favourite, and reread many times.

Dune Messiah I really didn't like on first reading. However I had a Damoclesian about-face when I reread it last year (Review HERE - there may be slight spoilers there.) It is different to Dune, but I think I now get it.

Children of Dune was more of a return to form. It is slower than Dune, but I think I now get it. I'm due a reread, when I get chance.

But after that..... I haven't finished the series. GodEmperor is glacially slow, and all talk.


Of the Herbert/Anderson series they're not really comparable. Much simpler, but quite padded and repetitive. They are quite fun, though more Space Opera and at a much simpler level, which is why many don't like them. Characterisation is now caricature, and dialogue and events often become cliche. The ones i read I actually didn't mind, but they are not as groundbreaking as the first book was.
 
Hi Hobbit,

Even that much information is helpful. I've heard similar things so maybe I'll back to it after I've exhausted my other reading material. Though who knows what that will be. I'm looking to start the RA Salvatore things with Drzzzt (however you spell it!)
 
OK: So, putting them in order chronologically, I think it goes:

Legends of Dune (with Brian Herbert)
1. The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
2. The Machine Crusade (2002)
3. The Battle of Corrin (2004)

Great Schools of Dune
1. The Sisterhood of Dune (2012)
2. Mentats of Dune (2014)
3. Navigators of Dune (2016)

Prelude to Dune (with Kevin J Anderson)
1. House Atreides (1999)
2. House Harkonnen (2000)
3. House Corrino (2001)

1. Dune (1965)
2. Paul of Dune (2008)
3. Dune Messiah (1969)
4. The Winds of Dune (2009)
5. Children of Dune (1976)
6. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
7. Heretics of Dune (1984)
8. Chapterhouse: Dune (1969)

9. Hunters of Dune (2006)
10. Sandworms of Dune (2007)

with the short story collections (The Road to Dune (2005) and Tales of Dune (2011) throughout the eras.
 
That's a lot of Dune. Thank you for the list! Let's see what the library has to offer.
 
Hoooly cow, that was an amazing post, thank you my jolly Hobbit! Yeah, turns out I've only read the first Dune, though it's strange that it's split up into three chapter purporting to be three books spread over the one book, I was puzzled by the third book only being 150 pages or whatever it was long.

That... is a lot of Dune. ._. Hubba hubba!
 
Welcome Reah :).

Great posts, Hobbit! I've only read the original novel, Dune. I loved Dune, but I haven't read much else in that universe. Thanks for your posts, I didn't know the exact order of how everything fitted in.
 
Dune is up there with TBOTNS and Helliconia in my opinion. I loved the next two as well. Despite my loathing of God Awful Of Dune, the two that followed were pretty good imo. The reception for what followed I think says it all… ;)
 
Stephen Palmer said:
Despite my loathing of God Awful Of Dune, the two that followed were pretty good imo.
Click to expand...
Ha ha! Thanks, Steve. To be honest, 'God Awful' put me off the series so much I couldn't face the last two. But I have been told on more than one occasion that they are better. Hmm. Am quite tempted.... but no, Children next. :)
 
Children Of Dune is really good, I liked it a lot. Wow, that Bruce Pennington cover did help though...

children-of-dune-cover-by-bruce-pennington.png
 
Hobbit said:
1. Dune (1965)
2. Paul of Dune (2008)
3. Dune Messiah (1969)
4. The Winds of Dune (2009)
5. Children of Dune (1976)
6. God Emperor of Dune (1981)
7. Heretics of Dune (1984)
8. Chapterhouse: Dune (1969)
Click to expand...

It may be worth mentioning that these actually form two series with God Emperor in the middle when you consider the internal chronology:

Dune through to Children covers approximately 20 to 25 years or so (I haven't read the Brian Herbert / Kevin Anderson entries though).
God Emperor is set around 3,000 years later
Heretics and Chapterhouse then take place another couple of millennia or so after that (and I think Hunters and Sandworms are supposed to be direct sequels to Chapterhouse, but I'm operating on hearsay on that - haven't read them)
 
dune is a great sci fi series, it takes a certain taste in reading to get into them, i prefer if more people read the dune books, we would have more intiutive readers
 
To answer the original question, there are six and only six Dune novels: Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God-Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse Dune.

Everything else is grave-robbing fanfiction written for money and in a manner that was massively, intellctually dishonest, not to mention being utterly awful to read.
 
Werthead said:
To answer the original question, there are six and only six Dune novels: Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God-Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse Dune.

Everything else is grave-robbing fanfiction written for money and in a manner that was massively, intellctually dishonest, not to mention being utterly awful to read.
Click to expand...

I never finished God-Emperor of Dune and gave up on the series with that.

When Herbert's son took over I figure it was just a money making scheme and didn't even want to spend time evaluating it. There is too much good SF that is hard enough to find.

psik
 
psikeyhackr said:
I never finished God-Emperor of Dune and gave up on the series with that.

When Herbert's son took over I figure it was just a money making scheme and didn't even want to spend time evaluating it. There is too much good SF that is hard enough to find.

psik
Click to expand...

I finished my reading of the series with God-Emperor of Dune.....seemed to go off the rails even with that book....
 
Stephen Palmer said:
Dune is up there with TBOTNS and Helliconia in my opinion. I loved the next two as well. Despite my loathing of God Awful Of Dune, the two that followed were pretty good imo. The reception for what followed I think says it all… ;)
Click to expand...
Hey, thanks man! Even if I find God Emperor boring, I'll stick it through to get to the two after, then just erect a mental Cordon Sanitaire between me and the Brian series. I'll also check out the other books you mentioned. Thanks for the helpful welcome people, I could really get used to this place xD. Got 2001 Space Odyssey ordered at the local library... I'm actually really rather excited to pick it up. ._.
 
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