gullevek's review against another edition
4.0
Although it starts not really very well and the writing and conversation feels very wooden and clishe like after about half into the book the whole story picks up to a really nice finale.
sashkello's review against another edition
2.0
Probably my least favourite Banks novel so far. Generally, very much similar to his Culture novels in style and language, which is as usual great. However, I felt world building and plot structure let this one down.
First of all, this novel strongly reminded me of The Use Of Weapons. There he has brothers in conflict since childhood, here it's sisters. The way of revealing more from the past by alternating present day and distant past is also similar. But other than that, it simply lacks the brilliance of its more famous counterpart. It has its moments, there are some nice concepts, but the world is simply too complex yet not well-explained and the author tried to cover too much ground which resulted in complete lack of depth.
Some things I found very much unlike Iain Banks I know. What I love about his books are complex heroes, when you question morals of protagonist(s) and yet even if they aren't perfect, you understand their motives. There are unexpected endings and big events which lead to nothing - that's how reality often is, life is unfair and heroes who can single-handedly change the world don't exist. Here, we have a protagonist who of course do what protagonist is supposed to do - survive til the end and kill all the baddies... It's just boring, I guess, and very expected. All the people who died on the way - well, I can't say it really impacted me that much. I didn't learn to care for them, as they all had no identity outside of interactions with the hero of the story. Motivations of the characters, especially the villians of the story don't make much sense to me at all. By the end of it I got completely confused by who was doing what and why, but I simply stopped caring anyway.
Also, this is such a cliche, but androids not needing to eat, sleep, or generally have any energy input for days is simply not how it works. You perform work (and yes, that includes thinking), you need an energy source. Come up with it; simply being made of metal isn't good enough reason to be all-powerful. And controlling your extremities while your head is cut off isn't a plausible idea either - why on earth would one install a whole bunch of wireless receivers all over android's body just in an off-chance it comes handy if they get hacked in pieces... give me a break.
I remember enjoying some parts of the book - there are some awesome ideas. Like, a planet with religion not allowing any tech and being stuck in medieval times - awesome stuff, pity their stay there was short and hectic. Lazy gun - an ancient chaotic weapon which works similar to "The Monkey's Paw", creating unexpected destructive events which technically reach the intended target, but with unintended consequences. That idea gets thrown out of the window at the end where the gun... simply shoots I guess...
It wouldn't be so bad if it was half the length, but honestly I just couldn't wait for it to be over when I reached about 70% mark. It's just way too long. I wish I could like it, but I'm just bored and tired.
First of all, this novel strongly reminded me of The Use Of Weapons. There he has brothers in conflict since childhood, here it's sisters. The way of revealing more from the past by alternating present day and distant past is also similar. But other than that, it simply lacks the brilliance of its more famous counterpart. It has its moments, there are some nice concepts, but the world is simply too complex yet not well-explained and the author tried to cover too much ground which resulted in complete lack of depth.
Some things I found very much unlike Iain Banks I know. What I love about his books are complex heroes, when you question morals of protagonist(s) and yet even if they aren't perfect, you understand their motives. There are unexpected endings and big events which lead to nothing - that's how reality often is, life is unfair and heroes who can single-handedly change the world don't exist. Here, we have a protagonist who of course do what protagonist is supposed to do - survive til the end and kill all the baddies... It's just boring, I guess, and very expected. All the people who died on the way - well, I can't say it really impacted me that much. I didn't learn to care for them, as they all had no identity outside of interactions with the hero of the story. Motivations of the characters, especially the villians of the story don't make much sense to me at all. By the end of it I got completely confused by who was doing what and why, but I simply stopped caring anyway.
Also, this is such a cliche, but androids not needing to eat, sleep, or generally have any energy input for days is simply not how it works. You perform work (and yes, that includes thinking), you need an energy source. Come up with it; simply being made of metal isn't good enough reason to be all-powerful. And controlling your extremities while your head is cut off isn't a plausible idea either - why on earth would one install a whole bunch of wireless receivers all over android's body just in an off-chance it comes handy if they get hacked in pieces... give me a break.
I remember enjoying some parts of the book - there are some awesome ideas. Like, a planet with religion not allowing any tech and being stuck in medieval times - awesome stuff, pity their stay there was short and hectic. Lazy gun - an ancient chaotic weapon which works similar to "The Monkey's Paw", creating unexpected destructive events which technically reach the intended target, but with unintended consequences. That idea gets thrown out of the window at the end where the gun... simply shoots I guess...
It wouldn't be so bad if it was half the length, but honestly I just couldn't wait for it to be over when I reached about 70% mark. It's just way too long. I wish I could like it, but I'm just bored and tired.
whippycleric's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Quite fun, if not dark, Sci fi heist novel. As good as some of the culture series, with an exciting ensemble of characters. Feels quite jovial in places but with dark overtones throughout, so the title is on point. Ending is a little abrupt in my opinoin, but definitely worth a read of your am Iain M Banks fan
saursi's review against another edition
3.0
It seemed like a collection of parodies rather than a strong story. I felt like the setting was interesting but felt that the way it was written didn't show Banks at his best.
iamedterry's review against another edition
4.0
Not my favourite Iain M Banks. The writing was choppy and I often found it confusing as to where things were. It was like a story mixed up into a bowl of spaghetti. I researched the book and it was one of Bank's earlier works (1975) which he rewrote in the 90s and I think his earlier style was still carried through in this book.
As I listened to the Audible version read by Peter Kenny, Peter's reading of the book was excellent and helps smooth off the rough edges. I nearly gave up a couple of times but persevered to the end where all the pieces were dutifully tied up and the story brought to a conclusion and all the pieces duly made sense and Chekhov's Gun (or even the Lazy Gun) was satisfied.
In my opinion, this looks like Bank's own commentary on the sorry state of humanity with all its empires, factions, sects, cults, tyrants, and whatnot, and its inability to get its shit together and grow as a society. Instead, Golter (the planet where the story is set) acts as a proxy for Earth and it's a bit depressing at times. Bank's humour does happen along and raises a smile from time to time and the cyclical and repetitive nature of the civilisations of Golter are reflected in the individual stories of the central characters of this piece. I even have a sneaky feeling that Molgarin may have been the inspiration for The Mandarin in Iron Man III.
And my reading of Bank's sci-fi canon is now complete.
As I listened to the Audible version read by Peter Kenny, Peter's reading of the book was excellent and helps smooth off the rough edges. I nearly gave up a couple of times but persevered to the end where all the pieces were dutifully tied up and the story brought to a conclusion and all the pieces duly made sense and Chekhov's Gun (or even the Lazy Gun) was satisfied.
In my opinion, this looks like Bank's own commentary on the sorry state of humanity with all its empires, factions, sects, cults, tyrants, and whatnot, and its inability to get its shit together and grow as a society. Instead, Golter (the planet where the story is set) acts as a proxy for Earth and it's a bit depressing at times. Bank's humour does happen along and raises a smile from time to time and the cyclical and repetitive nature of the civilisations of Golter are reflected in the individual stories of the central characters of this piece. I even have a sneaky feeling that Molgarin may have been the inspiration for The Mandarin in Iron Man III.
And my reading of Bank's sci-fi canon is now complete.
hallucigenia's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
dereckson's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
msaari's review against another edition
4.0
Science fiction Banks, but not Culture? What is this madness! A dark heist novel, really, and quite a fast-paced one, too. Lots of stuff in it; perhaps a bit too much. The book feels a bit crammed. Some of these ideas might've been best used elsewhere. But despite the heaviness, the book was captivating enough to finish and quite interesting.