Thursday, March 6, 2014

Dust - Hugh Howey



The last installment in the Silo trilogy is as good or better than the first one. Here we return to the main characters moving the story to a satisfying conclusion. This doesn't mean that there couldn't be any more Silo books. In fact it's really easy to continue the series in one of many different directions. But as an ending to the story arcs created in the earlier two books, it's a great closing.
As is usual in his books, the tension keeps rising until the very end where all the loose ends are well tied and you finish with a sense of satisfaction.
I have to admit that when I was reading the last pages I was having a sense of fulfillment like I haven't had in most books. This is officially one of my favorite trilogies of all time.

If you haven't read it, do it immediately.

Shift Omnibus - Hugh Howey


Second part in the Silo trilogy, this really is the prequel to Wool. Here mysteries from the Wool universe are explained. It contains the necessary background information to make Dust, the last part in the trilogy, possible. That said, it is a great book, with great characters, some known and some new. This part expands on the dystopian universe making it bigger and more detailed.
As usual in Hugh Howey's books, it is really well written, there are multi-dimensional characters, and plot twists that keep you at the edge of your seat.
In my opinion it's not as good as Wool, but this is probably because Wool was the first, and novelty is usually more striking in fiction. However this is not to say that I was disappointed. My expectations were thoroughly met, and I was happily satisfied.
I usually read other works between parts of a series, so as not to get "saturated" with the world or characters; however in this case I was unable to follow my own rules and had to read Dust as soon as I finished Shift.
My honest opinion: one of the greatest sci-fi dystopian books I've read in the last years.