Dune: Butlerian Jihad

After their remarkably successful trilogy of DUNE prequels, Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson have managed to outdo themselves by writing a trilogy of pre-prequels; this is the first volume. Set 10,000 years before the events of Frank Herbert’s DUNE, it is the story of the Butlerian Jihad – the epic, centuries-long confrontation between thinking machines and human beings. Xavier Harkonnen, the resolute and courageous leader of the planet Salusa Secundus, has managed to lead the humans to fight the forces of artificial intelligence to a standstill. Serena Butler, Xavier’s fianc, will, in her passion and grief, ignite the final stage of the war. Against the brute strength and faultless efficiency of their adversaries, the humans have only luck, ingenuity, and courage. It will have to be enough.