From Dan Simmons’s Hyperion books; kind of a time-manipulating demigod of pain.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperion_Cantos
The Shrike
Added on January 10th, 2013 by HoChunk | Report Post
Tags:Books, Fantasy - Science Fiction, Religion, Technology
Tags:Books, Fantasy - Science Fiction, Religion, Technology
Gonna go out on a limb and call this the best space opera novel series ever. But all these interpretations of the Shrike look like ass. Top one gets it close, specifically remembering that there’s a giant horn/blade-type thingie poking out of his forehead but he’s also described as being entwined in barbed wire and razor wire all over, every surface being pretty much bladed in some way, not to mention the giant additional blade/horn sticking out of his chest upon which he impales people and takes them to his Tree. He’s also described as having a carapace, which makes it seem like he’d be plated and appear more insectile or reptilian. Top one looks too mechanical. Don’t think anyone in the book ever confused him with being a machine.
I always thought the entwining barbed/razor wire thing seemed kind of dumb –what a teenage kid would think was ‘badass’ as he doodled Shrike drawings in his notebook during Algebra (and this sometimes makes me wonder if the Shrike wasn’t a concept that Dan Simmons came up with in his youth and held onto until he could include it his magnum opus.) I’m glad they left it out.
Guess I should read this then. My go-to space opera series are Alastair Reynolds’ Revolution Space series, and I liked Peter F. Hamilton’s Night’s Dawn trilogy quite a bit. I had *no* idea what direction that series would be taking halfway into the first (massive) book.
It’s more than well worth it. If you’re already a fan of science fiction and space opera, it will still blow your mind with how original and expansive it is. The depths to which the galactic human culture is developed is insane. The storytelling is beyond epic, the battle scenes are intense, and The Shrike has practically developed a real life cult around itself because of how utterly awesome and terrifying it is. Second best literary villain. 😉
Go home dorix, you’re drunk. “Revelation Space”, not “Revolution Space”.
WHO’S THIS NUTSACK
I AM THE KING YOU WILL BOW TO ME I RULE YOU, FUCK YOU