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ianjmax's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
eddie4102000's review against another edition
3.0
A big improvement over Matter, the last M. Banks book I read. Shame there will be no more :(
jamieperez's review against another edition
5.0
Sad to be finishing this, the last of the Culture Novels. But it was one of my favorites -- what with so much ship-to-ship business and real cost and many an interesting thing. It's been a fun 2.5 years getting to know these books and this world. You did a good thing, Banks. Glad we had you while we had you. RIP
tresat's review against another edition
3.0
Lost a star due to a action-packed yet unclimatic ending. The main charactor never actually DID anything. Still, was definitely enjoying the ride up until.
geekigirl's review against another edition
4.0
So here I am, at the end of the Culture series and I'm gutted. Really enjoyed this world and all the stories. I'll definitely have to read the series again at some point. So so good
2toastperday's review
3.0
I ended up liking it, but it took most of the book to feel like I had a decent grasp of the characters and plot. Probably would have been a good idea to read other books in the series first.
bionicbeaver's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
peregrinekiwi's review against another edition
5.0
A fitting final Culture book with a large cast of humans and minds, a large number of threads cast around the galaxy, and a sort of appropriately unsettling finality.
carduelia_carduelis's review against another edition
5.0
I think Ian Banks' work in this text is the true embodiment of science fiction.
Not only do we have an epic, sweeping plot following the last few weeks of civilization about to become post-meat, all-substance, but we take our time exploring its implications along the way. Banks is in no hurry, with each chapter setting up a couple of characters (usually a Mind or two) around some tension: be it military, strategic, political, or moral, that is then scrutinised.
The implications of these smaller scenarios feeding into the larger thesis as a whole.
For example, the Culture is now at a stage in its evolution that the vast Minds, embodied as ships traversing the galaxy, can run detailed simulations of civilizations to determine the path of best course in a situation of moral ambiguity.
But then they run into The Problem, which boils down to: if we've created a simulation detailed enough that it looks like life, is it life? And should it be done at all? This question is considered carefully, and various Mind's attitudes towards it are explained.
The real skill here is that none of this discussion feels out of place in the story because Banks is a master craftsman.
I've only read one other Culture novel, Excession, and thought that it had excellent potential but that the plot kind of petered out at the end. Not so here. No spoilers, but the journey is definitely worth it.
The story is also excellent and highly relevant: if a government thinks they can get away with it, what will they do when no one's watching?
I'm so impressed with this novel. The only, minor, criticism, is that once again I had to make a character list of which AI was which - even whilst reading it over the course of a couple of days - because most of them sound the same. But likely this is more an issue with my memory than the book itself.
Cracking book, will try and pace myself with the rest of the Culture.
Not only do we have an epic, sweeping plot following the last few weeks of civilization about to become post-meat, all-substance, but we take our time exploring its implications along the way. Banks is in no hurry, with each chapter setting up a couple of characters (usually a Mind or two) around some tension: be it military, strategic, political, or moral, that is then scrutinised.
The implications of these smaller scenarios feeding into the larger thesis as a whole.
For example, the Culture is now at a stage in its evolution that the vast Minds, embodied as ships traversing the galaxy, can run detailed simulations of civilizations to determine the path of best course in a situation of moral ambiguity.
But then they run into The Problem, which boils down to: if we've created a simulation detailed enough that it looks like life, is it life? And should it be done at all? This question is considered carefully, and various Mind's attitudes towards it are explained.
The real skill here is that none of this discussion feels out of place in the story because Banks is a master craftsman.
I've only read one other Culture novel, Excession, and thought that it had excellent potential but that the plot kind of petered out at the end. Not so here. No spoilers, but the journey is definitely worth it.
The story is also excellent and highly relevant: if a government thinks they can get away with it, what will they do when no one's watching?
Spoiler
And if it turned out religion was all a big social experiment from a prior civilization - how much would a government do to suppress that?I'm so impressed with this novel. The only, minor, criticism, is that once again I had to make a character list of which AI was which - even whilst reading it over the course of a couple of days - because most of them sound the same. But likely this is more an issue with my memory than the book itself.
Cracking book, will try and pace myself with the rest of the Culture.
raphknight's review against another edition
4.0
Theres a alien in this book who has surgically altered his body to have fifty-three penises and four hearts to maintain blood flow. Do what you want with that.