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The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The Book Barn > No Gravitas Allowed -- The Iain [M.] Banks thread
 
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darkgray
Dec 20, 2005

My best pose facing the morning sun!
I think I started out on Iain M. Banks with Against a Dark Background, and I hated it. It's so damned dark and gloomy, I just wanted to sit down and cry.

Luckily I didn't give up, and while Consider Phlebas lacks the grace and stride of the rest of the series, I think the Culture novels are fantastic on the whole. Particularly Use of Weapons, which absolutely floored me. The Player of Games must be the most accessible of the lot, and probably a good entry. Unfortunately the latest, Matter, failed for me somehow. Not sure what it was, exactly. :(

* # ¿ Feb 7, 2009 13:38
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# ¿ May 2, 2024 17:55
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darkgray
Dec 20, 2005

My best pose facing the morning sun!

DeusEx posted:

I have to really recommend Against a Dark Background. By far my favorite Iain Banks book, and for me the next best SF book after Gene Wolfs "The Book of the New Sun" tetralogy and Dan Simmons "Hyperion" books.

Someone wrote here that Against a Dark Background has a sad and gloomy mood to it, but I found it quite to the contrary a very sleek and fast paced. Like an adventure novel for a mature audience.

I wrote that. I have a thing against every single character dying, though, so we can blame that.

* # ¿ Feb 23, 2009 08:53
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The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The Book Barn > No Gravitas Allowed -- The Iain [M.] Banks thread