A passable adrenaline fueled adventure set in the Hyperion universe.
If I were told this was fan fiction I would believe it. A clear and dramatic drop in quality compared to books 1 (especially 1) and 2. Almost like the writer is aging backwards, got to be careful around the time tombs!
Feels like a movie franchise churning out a CGI driven sequel, devoid of the original magic. Terminator 3 compared to the first 2 is maybe the best fit - considering the 'baddie' at the end maybe this comparison is lawsuit close!
A lot of the writing is uncharacteristically clunky, I lost time at the number of times I rolled my eyes at a line like "don't ask me why, but I just knew" or "to this day I still don't know why I turned left" this may be on purpose, due to the main character being a one dimensional jock but it's annoying. The other main character, the Father Captain, is both better written and has a more interesting arc.
The story of the universe is moved along a few hundred years, and has a couple of interesting developments, I liked the comeback of the church and the adoption of the now fully working cruciform, but the larger twists are a bit flat.
The adventure sections are generally well done and exciting, but there are so many it becomes tedious, they could have just visited fewer worlds. Maybe them I could have heard less about what's packed in our heroes belt and bag. Give me strength. Most of the planets are devoid of people and interest anyway! (I do see some parallels with the ice world people and the Inuit people he portrayed so much better in 'The Terror' some years later).
The err 'love story' is gross. Absolutely no need to have a 12 year old girl floating about naked in a zero G pool.
Sadly don't think I will be tuning in for the conclusion, the author maybe should have let sleeping dogs lie with this one.