Before spice. Before sandworms. Before empires.
Ten thousand years before Dune, humanity fought for its soul against a terrifying enemy—thinking machines. In The Butlerian Jihad, Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson bring to life the war that reshaped the galaxy. Serena Butler’s grief ignites a rebellion. Xavier Harkonnen rises as a hero. And ancient rivalries take root between the Atreides and Harkonnen bloodlines.
As humans battle their machine overlords, legends are born—the Bene Gesserit, the Mentats, the Suk Doctors, and the Navigators of the Spacing Guild. Meanwhile, enslaved Zensunni wanderers flee to a forgotten desert world: Arrakis.
This is the war that gave birth to the Dune universe.
When the future is written in blood and silicon, what does it mean to be human?
