Book · 1989
Hyperion
by Dan Simmons
Seven pilgrims journey toward a monster that grants one wish and kills everyone else, and each tells the story of why they came.
What does Reddit think of Hyperion?
Hyperion is the biggest number in this dataset: 6371 mentions, and 5663 of them on r/printSF, which treats it less as a recommendation than a reflex. That reflex gets mocked from inside the sub. One joke (↑324) recommends Hyperion for being 'EXACTLY like Hyperion by Dan Simmons,' a dig at how automatically it gets named regardless of the actual ask. r/suggestmeabook (501) and r/Fantasy (195) barely register by comparison. The praise, when it's specific, lands on individual set pieces: the Cruciform gave one reader (↑165) actual 'nightmares the night after reading' as a teenager, and the priest's story gets called out (↑140) as one of the book's most interesting sections. The complication Reddit doesn't skip past is the author. One comment (↑207) says Dan Simmons' 'decades long backslide into a really weird vein of reactionary conservative politics' is already detectable here, not just in his later books, a caveat attached to a book otherwise treated as canon alongside Dune and Left Hand of Darkness.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · reflexive top-of-list recommendation on r/printSF
- · the Cruciform as genuinely disturbing
- · author politics complicating the text
- · multi-narrator structure with standout individual tales (the priest's story)
Common praise
- + It's the reflexive answer to nearly every 'looking for a book like X' post; one top comment (↑555) just says 'check out Hyperion, sounds exactly what you're looking for.'
- + The Cruciform sequence gets singled out as genuinely upsetting; one reader (↑165) says a chapter gave them 'nightmares the night after reading' as a teenager.
- + The priest's story is called out by name as one of the strongest sections, 'one of the most interesting' installments in the book (↑140).
Common criticism
- − Dan Simmons' own politics get raised as a real complication: one comment (↑207) says his 'decades long backslide into a really weird vein of reactionary conservative politics' is already detectable 'in Hyperion,' not just his later work.
- − Even the sub's self-awareness cuts against it: one joke (↑324) recommends Hyperion for being 'EXACTLY like Hyperion by Dan Simmons,' needling how reflexively the sub reaches for it regardless of what was actually asked.
Who it's for
This is the book r/printSF reaches for by reflex, so much that one comment (↑324) jokes it's recommended for being 'EXACTLY like Hyperion by Dan Simmons,' go in expecting a genre-defining reference point, not an underdog pick. If body horror sticks with you, brace for the Cruciform; one reader (↑165) says a single chapter gave them actual nightmares as a teenager. Know Dan Simmons' politics before you start, since one comment (↑207) flags a 'reactionary conservative' streak as already present here, not just in his later work. Readers chasing Dune or Left Hand of Darkness comparisons will find the company it keeps accurate.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
Which Reddit comments matter for Hyperion?
Top-upvoted quotes across the subreddits where this book is mentioned. Click through to read the full thread.
“You make some really good points. You should check out *Hyperion* by Dan Simmons. Sounds like exactly what you’re looking for!
“I recommend Hyperion by Dan Simmons. It's EXACTLY like Hyperion by Dan Simmons.
“Dan Simmons has been in a decades long backslide into a really weird vein of reactionary conservative politics, which you're getting a whiff of in Hyperion. A lot of his recent work has been focused on what he sees as the negative ramifications of the liberal state and the rise of Islam on the globa…
“I'd also say Hyperion, although Fire Upon the Deep, Use of Weapons, and Oryx and Crake are right up there
“I hate this question, and I love that you asked it. I think gun to my head, **it’s gonna be Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy**. It’s very hard to choose it over Hyperion, Dune, or the Left Hand of Darkness, because I think those are *objectively* better, but it gives me the most joy, and I’ve re-read…
“This is science fiction, but I'd say it was the Cruciform from Dan Simmons' Hyperion Cantos. I was reading the book as a teenager, and that chapter gave me nightmares the night after reading.
“75 - The Echo Wife, by Sarah Gailey 74 - The Calculating Stars, by Mary Robinette Kowal 73 - Redshirts, by John Scalzi 72 - Beautyland, by Marie-Helene Bertino 71 - The Ten Percent Thief, by Lavanya Lakshminarayan 70 - Midnight Robber, by Nalo Hopkinson 69 - Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson 68 …
“In the priest's story from Hyperion, the impetus of the plot is said priest wanting to prove that Christianity had happened elsewhere than Earth. The story is well worth the read, it's one of the most interesting from the book.
Convinced? Pick up Hyperion
Readers also mention
All books like Hyperion →Books that share discussion threads with Hyperion — counted from the comments, not curated.
Dune
Frank Herbert
A duke's son survives his family's betrayal on a desert planet and becomes the prophet who leads its people to war.
Blindsight
Peter Watts
A crew of post-human specialists meets first contact and reports back that consciousness might be what's holding humanity back.
Children of Time
Adrian Tchaikovsky
A terraforming experiment goes wrong, a nanovirus lands on spiders instead of monkeys, and evolution builds a civilization nobody planned for.
The Left Hand of Darkness
Ursula K. Le Guin
An envoy is sent alone to a planet where everyone is genderless most of the month, and he has to unlearn who he assumes is in charge.
Ender's Game
Orson Scott Card
A six-year-old is drafted into a war academy that trains him to command a fleet, and he doesn't find out what he actually did until it's over.
Neuromancer
William Gibson
A burned-out hacker banned from cyberspace takes one last job to breach the AI that might already own a piece of him.
Hyperion — frequently asked
Is the Hyperion Cantos the most recommended series on r/printSF?+
Functionally, yes. Hyperion alone has 6371 mentions across seven years, and 5663 of them are on r/printSF, dwarfing r/suggestmeabook (501) and r/Fantasy (195). The recommendation happens so often that one comment (↑324) jokes Hyperion gets suggested for being 'EXACTLY like Hyperion by Dan Simmons.'
Does the Hyperion Cantos hold up despite Dan Simmons' politics?+
Reddit flags the issue directly rather than ignoring it. One comment (↑207) says Simmons' 'decades long backslide into a really weird vein of reactionary conservative politics' is already visible 'in Hyperion,' not just his later, more overtly political work. Read the comment thread before deciding how much that matters to you.
What's the most disturbing part of the Hyperion Cantos, according to Reddit?+
The Cruciform. One reader (↑165) says that chapter 'gave me nightmares the night after reading' when they encountered it as a teenager, singling it out specifically among the book's multiple narrator storylines. The priest's tale gets separate praise (↑140) as one of the strongest sections, but the Cruciform is what actually stuck.
How does the Hyperion Cantos compare to Dune or Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy?+
It's named in the same breath as both. One comment (↑167) says Hyperion, Dune, and Left Hand of Darkness are 'objectively better' than Hitchhiker's Guide, even while admitting Hitchhiker's Guide wins on personal joy and rereadability.