“Those who would repeat the past must control the teaching of history.”

I really enjoyed this one. I think it was the one that felt the closest to Dune out of the entire series. I loved that the focus of this one is really just the two powerful sects of women. We have an intense battle going on between the Honored Matres and the Reverend Mothers. It's this interesting power struggle because each side is handling it vastly differently. The Honored Matres tend to rely on brute strength and the control they hold over everyone around them. They shoot for destruction. The Bene Gesserit and the Reverend Mothers have taken a different approach. They are working to ensure the survival of at least some of the Sisterhood in various different ways. Even being willing to bargain with their enemies; of course as we've all learned by this point the Sisterhood always has an angle. 

I enjoyed that though we had a slight time jump in this one we still got some familiar characters. I was getting tired of following new characters each book. The political scheming is back in full force in this one and it was interesting to watch how it played out. Odrade had a plan pretty early in the book that we don't fully get until the very end. The spice control dynamic is still super important in this one, with the Bene Gesserit willing to destroy their home in order to control it. I enjoyed the way we illustrated the differences but also the similarities of the two factions of women. I thought it was interesting that the book really focused on the lack of emotions and how this played a role. However, I felt like it was unfinished. It just didn't seem like an all wrapped up series. I was left with lots of questions and it just felt too open.