Matter
Feb 2009 · Sold by Orbit
4.5star
151 reviews
Ebook
624
Pages
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About this ebook
A novel of dazzling wit and serious purpose. An extraordinary feat of storytelling and breathtaking invention on a grand scale, it is a tour de force from a writer who has turned science fiction on its head.
"Unexpectedly savage, emotionally powerful, and impossible to forget." —The Times
In a world renowned even within a galaxy full of wonders, a crime within a war. For one brother it means a desperate flight, and a search for the one — maybe two — people who could clear his name. For his brother it means a life lived under constant threat of treachery and murder. And for their sister, even without knowing the full truth, it means returning to a place she'd thought abandoned forever.
Only the sister is not what she once was; Djan Seriy Anaplian has changed almost beyond recognition to become an agent of the Culture's Special Circumstances section, charged with high-level interference in civilizations throughout the greater galaxy.
Concealing her new identity — and her particular set of abilities — might be a dangerous strategy, however. In the world to which Anaplian returns, nothing is quite as it seems; and determining the appropriate level of interference in someone else's war is never a simple matter.
The Culture Series
Consider Phlebas
The Player of Games
Use of Weapons
The State of the Art
Excession
Inversions
Look to Windward
Matter
Surface Detail
The Hydrogen Sonata
"Unexpectedly savage, emotionally powerful, and impossible to forget." —The Times
In a world renowned even within a galaxy full of wonders, a crime within a war. For one brother it means a desperate flight, and a search for the one — maybe two — people who could clear his name. For his brother it means a life lived under constant threat of treachery and murder. And for their sister, even without knowing the full truth, it means returning to a place she'd thought abandoned forever.
Only the sister is not what she once was; Djan Seriy Anaplian has changed almost beyond recognition to become an agent of the Culture's Special Circumstances section, charged with high-level interference in civilizations throughout the greater galaxy.
Concealing her new identity — and her particular set of abilities — might be a dangerous strategy, however. In the world to which Anaplian returns, nothing is quite as it seems; and determining the appropriate level of interference in someone else's war is never a simple matter.
The Culture Series
Consider Phlebas
The Player of Games
Use of Weapons
The State of the Art
Excession
Inversions
Look to Windward
Matter
Surface Detail
The Hydrogen Sonata
Ratings and reviews
4.5
151 reviews
Brill Pappin
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December 22, 2012
I actually feel ripped off by that ending. I was starting to feel in the last quarter of the book that the author was getting board with the story, but I did not expect such a terrible sending.
Chris White
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October 11, 2013
There were some fun moments but.... This book was all over the place...and the ending...give me a break! Mr Banks went all George Martin. I guess writers just run out of gas sometimes.
1 person found this review helpful
Edwin Leskin
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August 10, 2019
Culture fans who don't like this book are entitled to opinion; mine is they're rabble. Sure, its a bit silvery, and hey, it might even be considered obtuse, at worst, a little flacid. But it does have heart, and sometimes that is all you need to win the fights that matter. Well, that and a good head on (or off) your shoulders.
2 people found this review helpful
About the author
Iain Banks came to widespread and controversial public notice with the publication of his first novel, The Wasp Factory, in 1984. Consider Phlebas, his first science fiction novel, was published under the name Iain M. Banks in 1987 and began his celebrated ten-book Culture series. He is acclaimed as one of the most powerful, innovative and exciting writers of his generation.
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