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I didn’t mind Consider Phlebas, but I found Excession, Player of Games, The Algebraist and Surface Detail to be more interesting. Against a Dark Background was
by Gatsky 6y ago
I didn’t mind Consider Phlebas, but I found Excession, Player of Games, The Algebraist and Surface Detail to be more interesting. Against a Dark Background was also good although strictly not a Culture book.
Other sci-fi I have enjoyed which has a very different feel: Dune (amazing), The Diamond Age (also amazing), Ancillary Justice (pretty good).
Thanks for other recommendations!
Incidentally, that goodreads review you posted is self-indulgent prattling at its worst.
- ehnto 6y agoExcession was by far my favourite. I think the concepts were the most interesting to me, and it wove the smaller more personal plots well into the grander opera.
- messe 6y agoThe Algebraist, while a great sci-fi novel, isn’t a Culture novel. I’d still highly recommend it though as it’s very enjoyable.
- Gatsky 6y agoAh yes, good point, it has been 12 years.
- matthewdgreen 6y agoI know that banks says they're set in different universes, but the Affront/Issorilians are clearly the juvenile version of the Dweller species described in the Algebraist. (Thank you Culture Fandom wiki for this moment of utter nerdery :)
- petemc_ 6y agoBeen a while since I read both books, but other than a vaguely similar shape, what makes the Affront clearly a juvenile version of the dwellers? I read the wiki you mentioned and there is a story suggesting an early version of contact rescued them from dweller hunts, but no mention of where this idea came from. I'm a huge fan and believe I have read everything Banks has written and do not recall the story.
- messe 6y agoJust checked out the wiki myself. That reads like fanfiction.
- matthewdgreen 6y agoThis is probably right and very saddening. Oh well, I guess we can still assume that Against a Dark Background is set in the Culture universe, just very far away.
- pas 6y agoOr it's a simulated world! After all it has things like the Lazy Gun.