In the third book of Herbert's Dune series, the sand-swept planet of Arrakis has turned fertile and green but in this new world Paul Atreides’ heirs find themselves faced with an economic catastrophe and a zealous uprising.

The sand-blasted world of Arrakis has become green, watered and fertile. Old Paul Atreides, who led the desert Fremen to political and religious domination of the galaxy, is gone.

But for the children of Dune, the very blossoming of their land contains the seeds of its own destruction. The altered climate is destroying the giant sandworms, and this in turn is disastrous for the planet's economy.

Leto and Ghanima, Paul Atreides's twin children and his heirs, can see possible solutions - but fanatics begin to challenge the rule of the Atreides empire, and more than economic disaster threatens ...