Matter
by Iain M. Banks
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Book Reviews of Matter
Book Review: I've seen this story before
Summary: 4 Stars
I've been a fan of Banks for a long time now, and I've always loved the Culture books best of all. However this one I found eerily familiar toward the end, without being sure why. Then I realized.
The last act is directly ripped off from Alstair Reynolds' Revelation Space. Spoilers follow:
In Revelation Space the last act has out protagonist traveling through a shaft toward the core of an artificial planetoid constructed by unthinkably ancient and now extinct aliens in order to prevent an apocalyptic confrontation therein. Said protagonist, evading a huge battle between AI infested defense systems arrives too late to survive but manages to take out both himself as well as this other unthinkably ancient enemy by activating an antimatter explosive hidden inside his skull. Seems a mite familiar. I am of course well aware that everything has been done before in the space opera genre, but this is a bit much.
Book Review: Well Written But Poorly Plotted and Very Self Indulgent
Summary: 2 Stars
This is the first Iain M. Banks that I have read and, for the most part, I'm sadly disappointed.
Banks is a skillful writer, in that any given page is well constructed and interesting. But plotting and character development are dismal. This 600 page book contains the kernel of a great 300 page novel. Hundreds of pages seem like filler. Perhaps Mr. Banks feels his "Culture" universe is so fascinating in general that he can just drone on about it's denizens and the reader will be content.
There are only a handful of main characters and most of them are weakly developed and poorly motivated. Major plot themes are developed and then aborted. And, when I was finished reading (and skimming in parts), I was amazed at how little actually happened.
Mr. Banks has talent. But he sure could use a hearty dose of self-discipline as well as the talents of a tough editor.
Book Review: grim but satisfying
Summary: 4 Stars
One of the things I love best about Banks' novels (specifically concerning the Culture) is the reality of the characters. They sport definite flaws, idiosynchrasies, etc...but they also have noble qualities mingled among the "dirt", in a very complex mix, giving rise to a love/hate, admiration/scorn emotion in the reader. In this aspect, he doesn't disappoint in his latest novel.
His dark humor, of course, is present, and provides a pleasant savor to this otherwise grim tale.
What I most appreciate is the ending: I found myself shocked, angered, numbed, then grinning with hope and well being, all within a few moments.
The book did get off to a rather slow start, but it built momentum that ended in a sharp burst of action at the end, which was all too brief for my tastes.
Nevertheless, I eagerly await his next Culture novel.
Book Review: Why four stars?
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the first of Banks' "Culture" books I've read and I loved it -- once I was about fifty pages into it. I read the Algebraist and had a similar experience with that book. It took some effort to get into the world Banks created. Once in, I found it fascinating, and fun to read. I enjoyed the complex plot, based around the murder of a father and the fate of his children. The story is told through the perspectives of the surviving children, each with different experiences that allows the author to weave his tale effectively.
Banks writing transported me to the world of "the Culture" and kept me there throughout the reading. I wanted to turn the pages to see what was on the next one. That's a four-star book to me. It's not a classic (five stars) in the objective sense, however I ordered the rest of his books as soon as I was through with this one.
Book Review: Great World Building, and plenty of irony
Summary: 4 Stars
I have come to admire Iain Banks' scifi works, and Matter is no exception
he drew the main characters well and provided a vivid set of landscapes for them to experience and change. Two of the three siblings developed remarkably well under their set of stresses, which makes the ending a bit of surprise. His descriptions of the environment were very powerful and his imagination was especially strong in this one. The contrast in outlooks between the culture, other advanced civilizations and the not so well developed denziens of various planets were amusing and thoughtful.
The ending left a few open questions that could have been resolved with a few extra pages, too bad he did not bother. This is not his best scifi book, but i enjoyed it nonetheless, and did not mind that i got the hardcover book, as opposed ot my usual paperback investment.