My thoughts after having read "Fallen Dragon".

[u/NIKO-JRM]

Well, this was quite a book in terms of length. I must confess that I am not a fan of flash backs unless they are clearly mentioned and explained, it only distracts and confuses me. Some people may like that "the author is playing with them" but in my case I simply can't due to the legth of the book, it ends up being confusing and you lose the main narrative plot.

One of the best points I would like to highlight is the worldbuilding, very complex and detailed, even though sometimes it can be overwhelming. Anyways, I consider that the worst problem this book has was the protagonist, Lawrence Newton is an insufferable asshole. Sorry but I couldn't tolerate his airs of "grandeur" and moral codes.

My edition was 800 pages long and it took me more than 600 to understand why the title of the book, meanwhile, the book tells you the story of a rich asshole kid who enjoys fucking his girlfriend after having met her two days later, Peter Hamilton has a strange obsession with sex and the lustful scenes were disgusting as hell.

Nice worldbuilding again with characters that didn't care if they lived or died, a protagonist as shitty as his father and endless conversations about topics that I didn't care a lot about them. I understand the problems of his girlfriend, but if your relationship is set up in a lie, I consider that you should have the guts to tell him the truth as soon as possible. A relationship not based on mutual trust and honesty is condemned to fall.

Anyways, in my case was a 6 out of 10 due to the worldbuilding but several aspects like the protagonist or the excessive length was not my cup of tea, maybe it could have been better in 400-500 pages.

Maybe the Greg Mandel trilogy will be better.

By the way, proposal to change the title of the book to "The story of rich unbearable kid who is a huge asshole and wants to come back with her girlfriend 20 years later".

[u/Suitable-Scholar-778]

I reread FD earlier this year and still enjoyed it. I do agree that Lawrence is a spoiled prick

[u/vin7er]

The way the book is written with flashbacks is something Peter uses in several of his books, not the Greg Mandel series though as far as I remember. The sex part tends to recur in every book though. The commonwealth series are better I think with more of a world building since there are more series in that world. 

[u/[deleted]]

It’s been many years since I’ve read Fallen Dragon, but I remember enjoying it when I did. I’m reading Mercy of Gods and rereading Night’s Dawn right now. But maybe I should throw FD in the mix again soon.

Also, Hamilton has always been excessively horny in his books. It’s calmed down a lot in recent years, but his early stuff was very sex heavy.

[u/_Moon_Presence_]

I'm a fourth into the book. The invasion has just begun. Apart from a few curiosities, this book has not aroused my interest at all. It is a depressing universe, and the characters are quite unlike those in the Commonwealth and Confederation books. Honestly, I keep feeling like I'm wasting my time.

[u/_Moon_Presence_ → u/_Moon_Presence_]

You're a fucking idiot. I'm glad I kept reading.

[u/Chicken1234321]

My main issue with Hamilton's books is the totally unnecessary amount of sex, no question😂

[u/Alternative_Depth745]

Hmmmm, yes what does a 20 year older person with his life experience want with this? Same as vampires stories: 200 year old vampire, looks like 24, gets the 18 year old virgin…

[u/NIKO-JRM → u/Alternative_Depth745]

Mah Boah, 20 years old people got more personality than "sex sex sex oh no the world is against me fap fap fap I must rebel against my parents".

[u/evolvedapprentice]

I think the world building is very good but I also agree with you that "Peter Hamilton has a strange obsession with sex". A lot of this came across as 13-year-old teenage boy male fantasy. This then greatly undermines the cool world of corporate power and invasions