Guilherme Lima
asked:
Why does the first book has so many more rating than this one? Don't people care about this book?
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Dune Messiah,
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Jack
My impression is that the "Dune" series, while considered a classic in science-fiction, doesn't have much of a contemporary cult following, such as Lord of the Rings. "Dune" is in a similar to the "Foundation" or the "Rama" series in which are also considered classics, but the average reader probably won't go beyond the first book unless they find the first book especially engaging.
Scott Newman
Having finished reading it on my re-read of the series I think there are a couple of things at play:
1) I suspect for any series there will statistically be less people who read subsequent books. Very few people would start with book 2 while not all the people who read book 1 will carry through. Pick any series and that is likely the case.
2) There is a definite tonal shift from Dune to Dune Messiah with Dune being quite action packed with this scrappy super-powered "underdog" while Dune Messiah has minimal action and tackles a number of cerebral themes and messages to the reader.
3) I also wonder how many people who read Dune did so because it is a classic and actually do not like science fiction. Tick that classic off the list with no need to follow through?
1) I suspect for any series there will statistically be less people who read subsequent books. Very few people would start with book 2 while not all the people who read book 1 will carry through. Pick any series and that is likely the case.
2) There is a definite tonal shift from Dune to Dune Messiah with Dune being quite action packed with this scrappy super-powered "underdog" while Dune Messiah has minimal action and tackles a number of cerebral themes and messages to the reader.
3) I also wonder how many people who read Dune did so because it is a classic and actually do not like science fiction. Tick that classic off the list with no need to follow through?
Damir Odobasic
I will not settle until I finish all 6!
Oleta Blaylock
I think that there is less action and more statecraft. All the drama and conspiracy of a royal court. The powers of Dune are all fighting for a place of power and this book goes into that with great detail. It can be difficult to read.
Mel Cooke
The first book is a standalone, uplifting and exciting adventure. It deserves to be a classic. I have just finished the second book and started the third. The second is much slower paced and feels like a transition book. There is not much shape to the story and little action. Already the third is much more engaging. Dune Messiah is necessary, but a harder read compared to first and third installments. All of them are very well written.
Scott
It also could be that Dune Messiah is a downer at the end. Despite everything I've read and heard about Frank Herbert's stated thesis that we should "beware charismatic leaders," it's very easy to read "Dune" (mild spoiler here) as a traditional hero's journey where Paul - the ultimate charismatic leader - avenges the wrongs done to his house and topples a corrupt system. (It sure seemed to have fooled David Lynch in his film version, based on how he rewrote the ending.) But there is a lot in "Dune" that undermines our confidence in Pauls' victory. Herbert makes the hollowness of Paul's victory much more explicit in the next two books. So many find Messiah and Children interesting but unsettling, and many give up along the way.
Nicolas
It's a shorter book than the first and it also delivers at a slower, more cerebral pace. In comparison, it is definitely less exciting and can seem like a slog to get through sometimes.
Mauricio Garcia
That's usually the case with sequels. Apparently a significant portion of people who read Dune on Goodreads decided not to follow through.
Isaiah
There is the chance that less people have read the sequel. There is the chance that the people who have read it, don't have a goodreads account. There are many explanations. I have read the first book and I may not read the second, despite owning it for over a decade.
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