Product Description

The mysterious Time Tombs are opening and the Shrike that has risen from them may well control the fate of all mankind. The Ousters are laying seige to the Hegemony of Man and the AIs we created have turned against us to build the Ultimate Intelligence; God. The God of Machines. His genesis could mean annihilation for man. Something is drawing the hegemony, the Ousters, the AIs, the entire universe to the Shrike.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #282421 in Books
• Published on: 1992-02-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 640 pages

Customer Reviews

Excellent sci-fi
The Fall of Hyperion is part two of the four-part Hyperion Cantos.

In Hyperion we met seven pilgrims on their journey to the Time Tombs of the Shrike. We heard their stories - distinct and vivid stories with little overlap, except that they all ended up on the Shrike pilgrimage just as war threatened to envelop the Hegemony.

The Fall of Hyperion begins as where Hyperion leaves off - the Time Tombs are opening and the Ousters are on the verge of attack.

I will resist any temptation to reveal the plot, but I will say that the Fall manages to explain an awful lot. Hyperion introduces various loose ends in terms of technology, key players and history. Rather than neatly ignore these, as most authors do, Simmons hits them head-on in the Fall and in doing so weaves a very credible story.

The two books are a natural pair, although they do work better as distinct novels rather than a single large tome, and are an excellent read. Highly recommended and amongst the best sci-fi I have read in the last 5 years.

Still not convinced?

Okay, there is more. Much more.

Hyperion sets the scene for Endymion and the Rise of Endymion - the completion of the four novel saga. The Endymion books are quite extraordinary - they are profound, absorbing and truly moving, and they set Simmons apart as one of the greatest storytellers of our time.

To read Endymion you need to read Hyperion and the Fall of Hyperion. Click to purchase!

One of the Best Sci-Fi Stories Ever!!!
"The Fall of Hyperion" is truly masterful and riveting. Told in a more conventional, linear fashion than "Hyperion", this narrative focuses on the government of the Web and its leader, Meina Gladstone, as observed by Joseph Severn, a cybernetic re-creation of the poet John Keats, as well as the seven Shrike pilgrims, who may affect the war's outcome. Simmons pits good against evil, with the religions of man and those of the machines battling for supremacy. The Time Tombs are opening and the pilgrims all must confront the Shrike in their own way. Many of the answers to our questions are answered, and I loved every minute of the unveiling. And yet there are unanswered questions: Where DID the Shrike come from? What will become of the hegemony now that interstellar travel has changed so drastically? This is truly wonderfully grand science fiction with a literary nod to the poet John Keats.

Stunning conclusion to Hyperion ... Essential Reading
Dan Simmons had a tough job ahead of him trying to write the conclusion to Hyperion. The main negative critic one can give is that Hyperion and Fall of Hyperion should have been published as one book as it's a homogenous whole, not two distinct stories.

On the positive side it is as stunning as Hyperion was and whilst Dan doesn't use as many diverging styles as he did in Hyperion, the story is strong, involving and does pose interesting philosophical and sociological questions. Simmons manages to create a very believable universe against the tapestry he wove in Hyperion. All in all I would say this is definitely a classic, rivalling with the very best SciFi has to offer to the world.