What is the Shrike?

Science fiction was never a genre that attracted me strongly. When it comes to fantasy literature I prefered the authors that were continuing the legacy of J.R.R Tolkien. These four books by Dan Simmons though changed my mind completely. "Hyperion" and "The Fall Of Hyperion" introduce you to a future of mankind, not far from the end of the millenium we just entered. Humanity has colonized part of the galaxy and Earth has been destroyed completely by human error (or has it?). Dan Simmons has done a lot of research on the latest advances on theoretical physics and the technologies he describes, while clearly as wondrous as television would be to the Pharaos, are not hard to accept as the technology of that age. Despite the technological advances though, mankind has a lot of lessons to learn still. On the planet Hyperion, lie the Time Tombs; monuments of unknown origin where time doesn't behave the way it should. But this isn't the end of Hyperion's mystery. The being called the Shrike, a giant four-handed metallic humanoid, appears and disappears at will, wreaking havoc in the process. Nothing can stop it; the Shrike seems to manipulate time. You can't kill something that impales its spikes on you in the past of your killing attempts. Humans on Hyperion evacuate cities to escape the Shrike, while others build temples in order to worship and appease it. The Shrike Cult believes that the being's purpose is the destruction of humankind. But humanity faces another perceived threat. In the process of colonizing there were populations that failed to find suitable planets. The desperate alternative was to adapt to unsuitable ones. Thus, genetically modified humans, beings of many shapes and forms, now have different agendas that threaten human civilization. On the verge of war, seven people are invited for a pilgrimage to the Shrike Temple. Each one is connected to the monster in different ways and one of them is a traitor to humanity. As their stories unfold, pieces of the puzzle come together to form a most unexpected picture.
"Endymion" and "The Rise Of Endymion" are the books that follow. In the aftermath of the story of "Hyperion", the seeds of a Messiah have been sown. Hundreds of years after the Hyperion pilgrimage, only one of the pilgrims is still alive. Their discoveries gave power to the dying christian religion who now dominates humanity once again. A power that comes with a terrible price. The post-humans continue to be a threat. New technological secrets are made available by the community of artificial intelligences who are fighting their own civil war. During this turmoil, the dying last pilgrim enlists Endymion to guide the Messiah as she emerges from the Time Tombs. Will she be able to uncover the deepest secrets of the universe to a humanity that isn't sure of who is its real enemy?
As I said, science fiction wasn't my cup of tea. Dan Simmons, however, writes with such skill and describes a world in such detail that is totally enganging and believable. Philosophical matters couldn't be missing in a book that deals with humanity's future and survival. Questions about ecology, society, science and religion are raised and let the story and the readers answer them. Nothing more to say than to declare my fascination with these books. Expect a review of "Ilium" and "Olympos" soon, a duet of books that describe a much more distant and weirder future of humanity.