Casual gamer, author of books about video games, online course instructor with a day job.
Casual gamer, author of books about video games, online course instructor with a day job.
Member since:11.01.2001
Reviews:19
First, a slightly contraversial statement. Do not read this book if you are not a SciFi Banks fan. Not understanding the difference between Iain M. Banks and Iain Banks (of Wasp Factory fame) will cause extereme bewilderment.
That said, this book caused me genuine emotion - largely complete and utter disbelief. How does he consistently manage to get so much into his mind at one time, and yet pull it out in a coherent manner?
The story revolves around a conspiracy between the controlling AI of a community of spacecraft. Several communities, in fact. This conspiracy comes to light only because the wider spacefaring society comes under threat from an anomaly (the Excession) in the fabric of space.
And that is as much detail as I'm going to give - Banks fans will by now have rushed off to buy the book, since it is a pure Mind/Culture novel.
For the non-Banks fans (those who have yet to test the waters) there are a few words of warning. Some of the book will not make sense without having first read some background material : 'Player of Games', 'Use of Weapons' and 'The State of the Art' will be the best introductions to the scinece and spirit of the Culture.
Excession moves along at a great pace, blink and you'll miss the details, which makes speed-reading it almost impossible, but since it is so compelling, the temptation is to rush through just to see what happens.
This led to me reading it cover-to-cover four times before I really got to grips with every detail. I kid you not : it is a complex story with great plot twists.
In summary, a must-have for Iain M. Banks fans, but those not familiar with his space opera genre should lokk elsewhere first.
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popular Culture series, where life is devoted to fun and ultra-high-tech is de rigueur. But more than two millennia ago the appearance--and disappearance--of a...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
It's not easy to disturb a mega-utopia as vast as the one Iain M. Banks has created in his ... more
popular Culture series, where life is devoted to fun and ultra-high-tech is de rigueur. But more than two millennia ago the appearance--and disappearance--of a...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...