Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died • Hacker News Board

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#41

Post by mbeex » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:35 PM UTC

layer8 wrote: post #28

Freak_NL wrote: post #9

The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read, but I would like to recommend a lesser known title of Simmons for readers who have read at least some works of Charles Dickens (self-explanatory) and Wilkie Collins (such as The Woman in White or The Moonstone ). Simmons wrote Drood (2009), which takes these two classical authors and places them in a mystery novel. What struck me as partic…

> The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read You have to have some affinity to religious/Christianity/church topics, otherwise it’s quite a turn-off.

Atheist here: Not true, there is much more in Hyperion (and even Endymion)

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#42

Post by ChipopLeMoral » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:36 PM UTC

Hyperion Cantos might be my favorite sci-fi series ever. What a great writer.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#43

Post by aerhardt » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:36 PM UTC

I read Hyperion last year. It's an ode to the English letters and a phenomenal exercise in world-building. RIP.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#44

Post by nilamo » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:37 PM UTC

pelagicAustral wrote: post #27

Izikiel43 wrote: post #24

I picked up Hyperion on a whim on Kindle because it was on sale for 2$. Amazing book, I bought and loved the other 3, I still hope they do a good miniseries with the books.

I sincerely hope they don't make any adaptation... after the slaughterhouse they've made with 3 Body Problem, Foundation, Altered Carbon, et al Not to mention all the damage done to other more traditional works of fiction.

Sometimes it's done right, like with The Expanse. Although the writers also wrote some of the episode scripts, so that probably helped...

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#45

Post by Arainach » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:37 PM UTC

ctvo wrote: post #33

Carrion Comfort is still one of the most creepy horror books I've ever read and is seldom mentioned when we talk about Dan Simmons.

Very much agreed. I haven't read all of Dan's work to comment how it ranks among his output, but Carrion Comfort is a book that I still think back on years after I read it.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#46

Post by ceejayoz » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

layer8 wrote: post #28

Freak_NL wrote: post #9

The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read, but I would like to recommend a lesser known title of Simmons for readers who have read at least some works of Charles Dickens (self-explanatory) and Wilkie Collins (such as The Woman in White or The Moonstone ). Simmons wrote Drood (2009), which takes these two classical authors and places them in a mystery novel. What struck me as partic…

> The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read You have to have some affinity to religious/Christianity/church topics, otherwise it’s quite a turn-off.

I have zero affinity for those and found it a fascinating read.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#47

Post by tomhow » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

liquidise wrote: post #10

throw0101a wrote: post #2

Obituary: * https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/longmont-co/danie...

Thanks for posting this. It should be the link in the OP frankly.

Done.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#48

Post by Kaibeezy » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

Aromasin wrote: post #39

Wow. I picked up a copy of Hyperion this morning while taking a random stroll through town - something I rarely do during a work day anymore. I popped into a book shop on a complete whim, and picked it up as it had been on my list for a while. The coincidence feels deeply uncanny.

I started reading it for the first time this week. It’s just a statistical anomaly… but humans are wired to notice and feel coincidence; it connects us to space and time in a way that must have helped make religion more believable.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#49

Post by plasma_beam » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

I see everyone talking about Hyperion, so I will play up The Terror as one of my favorites. The TV series did NOT do it justice.

Re: Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, has died

#50

Post by Supermancho » Fri, Feb 27, 2026, 7:38 PM UTC

layer8 wrote: post #28

Freak_NL wrote: post #9

The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read, but I would like to recommend a lesser known title of Simmons for readers who have read at least some works of Charles Dickens (self-explanatory) and Wilkie Collins (such as The Woman in White or The Moonstone ). Simmons wrote Drood (2009), which takes these two classical authors and places them in a mystery novel. What struck me as partic…

> The Hyperion Cantos is a masterpiece which every scifi fan ought to have read You have to have some affinity to religious/Christianity/church topics, otherwise it’s quite a turn-off.

It's interesting how different stories have different underlying religious underpinnings in different parts of the world. It's important to consider that these themes are precisely because the stories are born from the surrounding culture.

Christian references in the Cantos were probably incidental, given the expected familiarity of the intended audience (american white male young men). eg The Matrix trilogy started with the obvious messianic hero's journey, then attempted to expand it in the following films (karma, cycles of death and rebirth, etc).

For some, these religious messages can be a turn off, I agree. I happened to be raised in a culture that allowed me to ignore it more or less and I can recognize that.