Carrion comfort
by Dan Simmons · first published 1989
82% recommend18% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Creepy, inventive horror thriller about telepathic mind controllers. Exciting and hard to put down, it serves as a strong entry point to Dan Simmons outside his space opera, and a good pick for horror fans.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
See work: <https://openlibrary.org/works/OL1963325W> THE PAST... Caught behind the lines of Hitler's Final Solution, Saul Laski is one of the multitudes destined to die in the notorious Chelmno extermination camp. Until he rises to meet his fate and finds himself face to face with an evil far older, and far greater, than the Nazi's themselves… THE PRESENT... Compelled by the encounter to survive at all costs, so begins a journey that for Saul will span decades and cross continents, plunging into the darkest corners of 20th century history to reveal a secret society of beings who may ofte
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Just re-read the entire cantos after 10 years. Totally agree, it's one of my favorite epics and the ending was extremely touching. If you haven't I recommend Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons. It's a completely different kind of book, but it's a really good horror thriller that shows his range.
on “Ask HN: Great fiction books that have had a positive impact on your life?” ↗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.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗…vein. And generally I really like Dan Simmons. What I found fascinating is that he does not write always the same book (as a lot of author), and he can write in different genre and stay very credible. Carrion Comfort, Children of the Night, The Terror in the horror genre are really great. (Try to read the last one in the heart of a very cold winter)
on “Entitlement issues (2009)” ↗…then I suggest the legacy of the Aldenata and the black tide rising series. American nations by Colin Woodward. Great book to understand the historical underpinnings of different regions in America. Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons (who wrote Hyperion). Great horror scifi book with a nice concept. Fairly long though. Thwarting enemies at home and abroad by William R Johnson. If you like spy novels or it’s text book…
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in the past decade?” ↗Carrion Comfort was my introduction to Dan Simmons, I loved it. Not as good as some of his later stuff but it's really inventive, and never boring.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗Although it's quite a flawed novel compared to brilliant space opera like Hyperion, I have a bit of a soft spot for Carrion Comfort. I think it'd make a great movie!
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗Carrion Comfort is a ridiculously entertaining novel.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗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.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗Hyperion is the better novel but Carrion Comfort is just really exciting and creepy. And the way the mind controllers treated regular humans like toys hits far too close to home now.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗…widower goes on the run. Story inspired by Dante's Inferno, I believe. The only book I've read in one sitting overnight. Prayers to Broken Stones - a book of short stories, contains the original novella of 'Carrion Comfort' (which works rather better, I believe, than the full novel), and some other classics, including Metastasis. A really interesting author; I'm glad he was writing.
on “Dan Simmons, author of Hyperion, Song of Kali, dead at 77” ↗Such a chess game actually plays out in the novel "Carrion Comfort" by Dan Simmons.
on “Survival in chessland [pdf]” ↗Finishing listening to the Hyperion cantos by Dan Simmons (read it the first time) and reading Olympia by Dan Simmons. I think I'm all Dan Simmons'd out though I want to read Carrion Comfort. I think I'm going to return to three body problem and dune for my next books. Not sure for audiobooks yet but the sequel to fire upon the deep is on my queue
on “Ask HN: What are you reading these days?” ↗