I first read Dune in college, so it’s been a hot minute. My main memory is of a certain heft to the text – there was weight there, and it took me a while to get through it. It’s still got a weight to it, but I read through it much faster this time.
I’d forgotten how internal this book is – so much of what happens is tied up in several different characters’ heads. That’s very important in this world –so much of this story can only be conveyed by character’s innermost thoughts.
I did read all six of the original books, and I definitely remember by the end, it was because I just wanted to know what kind of screwed up thing was the author going to do next. But these initial books aren’t that weird – we are far in the future, but the story is about destiny, and fate, and fear. And because I read all the books, I was surprised when I got to the end of this one – it very much felt incomplete. As long as this book is (and it’s a doorstop), it really is only the beginning of the story. I think I’m going to have to get myself up through God Emperor of Dune to scratch the itch to see this arch through again.