Today the latest in the Dune novel series, The Winds of Dune by Kevin Anderson and Brian Herbert, is released to bookstores. I got my hands on an early copy, and after the break will give you my review, with only minor spoilers, providing just enough information to tempt you and hopefully get you to pick up the book yourself to see what happens.

Let’s get this out of the way, in case you haven’t already figured it out from previous volumes of this column, I’m a Dune fan and a Kevin Anderson fan. I’ve been reading Dune for a long time, have read every book and will read every upcoming book in the series. That said, I think there are some books in the series that are better than others, and The Winds of Dune is one of the better ones.

It may not be one of the most approachable books however. The majority of the story takes place immediately after Dune Messiah, the second book of Frank Herbert’s original series. This book is also a pseudo-sequel to last year’s Paul of Dune (which itself took place in between Dune and Dune Messiah), though like that book, the story jumps around in time. Basically, The Winds of Dune is meant to fill in additional backstory and details into events only hinted at in previous novels.

The Winds of Dune begins with the main characters in mourning over the supposed death of Paul Maud’Did Atreides. As Emporer he had committed many atrocities, claiming that because of his ability to see into the future, it was the only way to avoid a fate that would lead to the destruction of humanity. He was treated as a god by the people, who fought a jihad in his name to suppress humanity and bring them all under his rule. Now his sister Alia is acting Regent until Paul’s children are old enough to assume the throne, and she is willing to go further and do much more terrible acts than even Paul was capable of.

Paul’s mother, Jessica, returns to Dune to help during this time, only to find that Irulan, Paul’s wife (though not the mother of his children) has been jailed and is under investigation as a conspirator against him. Bronso from House Vernius, a former ally of House Atreides, is now spreading propaganda about Paul, claiming he was no god. Alia cannot allow this to continue, and so Irulan is freed to begin writing her own propaganda in support of Paul again.

But Jessica begins to relate to Irulan a story about Paul that is told through flashback and will span two different time periods; from when he was still just a boy to a time during his reign as Emporer. Along the way, we’re reintroduced to some characters who’ve become more important in the newer Dune novels as well as some shocking twists and turns to their fates. Jessica must call into question her choice to conceive a son against the wishes of her Order, when that same son is now responsible for so much death. Will she try and kill him herself, or will she ultimately have her own part to play in Paul’s master plan to save humanity.

As mentioned before, The Winds of Dune may not be a great ‘starting point’ for a newcomer to the series, but at the same time it is an excellent novel in it’s own right. The flashbacks were just enough to fill in the details behind the rift that forms between House Atreides and Vernius, as well as introducing important characters for the story, without overstaying its welcome. I enjoyed seeing the fallout of Dune Messiah, since the next book from Frank Herbert (Children of Dune) takes place when Paul’s children are teenagers (and here they are only newborn). This is all new territory, and one which will continue to be explored in the forthcoming The Throne of Dune. This is a very good time to start reading the Dune series for anyone who enjoys great science fiction stories, and The Winds of Dune is definitely one that comes with my recommendation.