Dorman T. Shindler is the Science Fiction columnist for the Des Moines Sunday Register and a contributing writer/reviewer for the Dallas Morning News, the Denver Post, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel the San Antonio Express-News the St. Petersburg Times the Bloomsbury Review and The Armchair Detective. Recently, he found time to complete a first novel. The review is Copyright © 1997 by Mr. Shindler and reprinted here with his permission.

The Rise of Endymion by Dan Simmons

With this final installment in the Hyperion/Endymion saga, Dan Simmons wraps up one of the most entertaining and enlightening series of books to grace the field of science fiction since the works of Isaac Asimov or Jack Vance. Yet, to term these books a series is to do them an injustice. Just the term series conjures up visions of endless strings of bland fantasy fiction or Star Trek novelizations. But the size, scope and seriousness of Simmons' far future story has been much greater than that – ever since it's inception in an elementary classroom some twenty or thirty years ago.

It was while working as a teacher of gifted children that Simmons, spurred on by his students, first conceived many of the characters and worlds which would come into play in his "Hyperion books." For a half hour each day, throughout a complete year of teaching, Simmons would recount the adventures of a sorcerer-ape, a neo-cat, and a centaur named Raul. Many of their adventures took place on the planet of Hyperion. It was, Simmons once said, "this epic fantasy that goes with the Shrike and all of these elements I've used in Hyperion." Apparently, the remnants from his long-lost oral tale were put to good use many years later when he began a book that would result in one the most popular, best-selling sagas in the science fiction genre. With only three genre-related novels (Hyperion, The Fall ofHyperion and Endymion) Simmons established himself as a major force in the circles of SF publishing. Hyperion won a Hugo and The Fall of Hyperion won a British SF Award. All three books became college campus favorites and continue to be reprinted more than once year (the paperback of Endymion, out in '96, has already been through five reprints). With themes based in classic literature (John Keats and Virgil) and enough action and adventure to fill a dozen blockbuster movies, Dan Simmons' "Hyperion books" almost single-handedly revived the sub-genre of space opera.

The conclusion of this series, The Rise of Endymion, answers any questions left open by the first three novels, delves deeper into the problems and questions posed by a church-run society, pays homage to Ray Bradbury, Jack Vance and Carl Sagan, picks up nicely where its companion volume (Endymion) left off, and still maintains a pell-mell pace of action. It's literally a show stopper.

Taking up where Endymion left off, this book starts out with the death and resurrection (brought about via the cruciform symbiote) of Pope Julius XIV. Re-christening himself Urban XVI, the Pope (like his namesake) declares it is time for a Holy Crusade to wipe out all non-believers (only Catholics, wearers of the cruciform, are spared). The Pope dispatches troops and ships to seek out and destroy the Ousters and any fringe elements of humans. He also orders the capture and/or death of a woman Messiah named Aenea, who has eluded his grasp for six years. Pope Urban XVI declares her a threat to humankind and the sanctity of the church. She must be eliminated. Carrying out his orders are legions of Pax soldiers and the cybernetic creatures Rhadamanth Nemes, Gyges and Briareus (names taken from classical mythology).

Standing between the Pope and his misguided forces are Raul Endymion (Aenea's disciple, protector and lover), A. Bettik (a mysterious blue Android who is more than he seems), and legions of believers on various planets. Eventually, even some of Aenea’s pursuers (Father Captain DeSoya, Sergeant Gregorious) come to realize she is not a force for evil. They help Aenea and Endymion complete the mission for which she was born. Like the hero of the Aneid, the classic epic poem, Aenea is caught between human feeling and the forces of fate, compelled to visit other lands (or worlds)and fulfill her destiny.

The middle of the book sets a deliberately slower pace for some Jack Vance-type world-building (there is a gas giant planet where enormous, transparent creatures which resemble squid float through the air; jungle planets and worlds of ice, snow and freezing weather; and a planet where only the mountain tops are inhabitable, because an acidic sea covers the entire world); and, too, there are some religious and philosophical musings that span a variety of beliefs. But mixed in among such ruminations and discoveries are scenes of space battles and genocidal violence as the Pax unleashes the full force of its military might. And from page 334 on, Simmons pulls out the stops again.

As usual, Simmons’ text is filled with many levels of thought; and the multi-layered plots are peopled with a rich cast of characters. Simmons pays homage to Grandmasters like Jack Vance (via a wild and varied world-hopping trip taken by Raul Endymion) and Ray Bradbury (one of the foodstuffs on Mars is the homegrown bradberry). And there are sly, humorous "throwaways" like Madrededios (a planet whose name translates to "mother of god") or the animal called a Zygoat (a bit of science humor). Simmons also manages to tie up any loose ends and answer all of the questions posed by the first three books (such as how the Shrike was created and what its ultimate purpose is) while introducing new puzzles like the mysterious beings known as the Others.

If you are an admirer of good science fiction, this series of books by Dan Simmons is a terrific example to hold up high when someone tries to vilify the genre. And if you are just introducing yourself to science fiction, the "Hyperion/Endymion" books are the perfect place to start. Like Baedekers to a magical world, these novels will guide the uninitiated to a universe of endless wonders. No matter what genre Dan Simmons chooses to write in, he brings to each book a level of craft and style unparalleled by any novelist working today. He is, without a doubt, one of the most important writers to emerge during the late twentieth century.