Nine years after Paul Atreides walked into the desert and disappeared, his twin children Leto and Ghanima - both born with the full ancestral memories of their genetic line - are the most valuable and dangerous people in the universe. Their aunt Alia rules as regent but is losing her battle against possession by the personalities within her, while the Atreides empire faces threats from House Corrino and a mysterious figure called The Preacher. Children of Dune follows Leto II as he confronts a choice that will determine the future of humanity for thousands of years - a choice his father saw but could not bring himself to make. The novel marks the transition from Paul's story to something far stranger and more ambitious.