#89. HYPERION By Dan Simmons

Published : 1989
Pages : 473
Overall Mark : 8/10

The universe of the Human Hegemony is under threat. Invasion by the warlike Ousters looms, and the mysterious schemes of the secessionist AI TechnoCore bring chaos ever closer.

One the eve of disaster, seven pilgrims set out on a quest for the legendary Time Tombs on Hyperion, home to the Shrike, part god and part killing machine with powers that transcend the limits of time and space. The pilgrims have resolved to discover nothing less than the secrets of the universe itself.

DAN SIMMONS (1948-)
Born in Illinois, Dan Simmons won the World Fantasy Award for his first novel, Song Of Kali. In 1990 Hyperion, the first book in the famous Hyperion Cantos series, won the Hugo Award for Best Novel.

VERDICT
Simmons manages to make his version of The Pilgrim's Progress a fascinating journey of unusual tales that are as similar to each other as they are different. He comes up with some very imaginative ideas of how the pilgrims have been lead to Hyperion and what they think they are expected to do there, as well as their various experiences with the Shrike. The tales are perfect to read as stand alone stories, but together they create an interesting background for what is to come in The Fall Of Hyperion.