Great book. I remember where I was and what I was doing when I read sections of that book for the first time. It really leaves a mark on you and no im not being clever

Some people will say the rest of the series isn’t worth reading, but I enjoyed them all.

Great series. My personal favorite from Simmons is the Ilium/Olympos duology, although Olympos was a bit of a letdown at the end. Simmons is brilliant but he does have a way of setting a lot of things up and occasionally failing to deliver a satisfying climax. Hyperion and Endymion, read as two complete works, do a better job of concluding things.

I distinctly remember reading Ilium when I was like 12 and just being absolutely dumbfounded by the erotic scenes with Helen of Troy. I had never encountered adult content like that in a book and it just blew my horny teenage mind.

Simmons’ fusion of historical literature with robust far future science fiction is chef’s kiss.

My favorite book of all time. Hope you’re having fun with it!