What a mess. The first two books told a great, and complete, story. To begin this one, however, is to open a new can of worms, and invest yourself in a new set of characters -- with only a few attachments to the ones you already grew to know.That's fine -- lord knows the Dune series batted me around for a few thousand years before letting it end. But this book is little more than a chase. Two ships, chasing each other. Two VERY SLOW SHIPS chasing each other. It's like watching glaciers play tag. And, in the end, all its done is set you up for book number four.This all comes with a caveat.... the fourth book is fabulous. So -- if you want to read the fourth book, which I encourage, you'll want to swallow this one beforehand, just for the plot details, or you'll be well lost. It's quite a penalty, really... but, I swear, the last book will make it worthwhile. Really.