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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
Well I really wanted to like this book. It just didn't hold up as well as the others in the series. Additionally the ending was predictable (to me at least). Although written later, Reynold's Chasm City had a similar plot twist and maybe that's how I spotted the end before it happened. Reading the next in the series, Excession, and it seems much better so far.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Decepcionante. No malo, solo decepcionante. La trama tiene su gracia, aunque la complejidad provenga principalmente de la estructura narrativa. Intentando no spoilear, el "giro inesperado" si llega a sorprender, es solo porque carece de asidero. Leí en varios blogs explicaciones sustentadas en la complejidad psicológica y bla, pero no cierra. Deja agujeros argumentales por todos lados. No sé si fue una edición mediocre del borrador abandonado o qué. Pero hace agua. Una novela de La Cultura, disfrutable, pero con sabor a poco. Los personajes secundarios son casi caricaturescos, especialmente las "mentes". Algunas reflexiones y pasajes que convocan, pero que quedan tapados por el esfuerzo de sorprender que no termina de funcionar.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is my favourite Banks novel. The writing is very clever and the main character Zakalwe carefully developed. In the quiet moments the real personality shines through, the dark past is slowly revealed and the book ends with a bang. Highly recommended, not only because of its unusual structure.
Was torn between 2 or stars, but went for 3 as the writing is great and still worth reading if you're a scifi fan. I started to get bored with a 100 pages left and it did become a bit of a slog.
Essentially banks bit off more than he can chew, fantastic iseas, but executed poorly. The plot is all over the place and.... well I don't want to spoil it, but the pay off wasn't worth it.
Thankfully this wasn't my first Culture novel so I will return. Maybe read this if younhave read others in the series.
Essentially banks bit off more than he can chew, fantastic iseas, but executed poorly. The plot is all over the place and.... well I don't want to spoil it, but the pay off wasn't worth it.
Thankfully this wasn't my first Culture novel so I will return. Maybe read this if younhave read others in the series.
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The bomb lives only as it is falling.
Wow, what a gut punch of a book. The pacing felt a bit slow due to the alternating linear/non-linear narratives but this was not a bad thing, as I felt immersed in the tragic life of a man with a layered, painful past and the way he is used as a pawn of the Culture, and was content spending as much time in that space as was needed to tell his story.
Despite the diverging timelines, the narrative came together expertly in a soul-crushing finale.
I need to stew on this book for a while longer but it was definitely a special read and I know I will never look at white chairs the same way again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, War
Moderate: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry
Minor: Suicide, Suicide attempt
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced