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gullevek's review against another edition
4.0
Not much to say or complain. A wonderful story in this wonderful universe, something I truly enjoy.
Some reviews say the ending is disappointing but I disagree. On the other hand when you look at all the other culture books, none of those books have really big endings. The story is what counts in those books. And they are all amazing and this one stands no lower.
Some reviews say the ending is disappointing but I disagree. On the other hand when you look at all the other culture books, none of those books have really big endings. The story is what counts in those books. And they are all amazing and this one stands no lower.
lukre's review against another edition
5.0
ok, finished Matter and I LOVED IT! The shellworlds are AWESOME! the true plot behind everything, the conflicts betweent the species.... all worked fantastic against one another. The court plotline was a perfect wrapper of the entire thing. I just feel in awe of this book and the series in general.
The way Banks's mind works and the wealth of his imagination is something else. He creates such vivid worlds and makes you feel like "of course these things exist somewhere out there." He makes the most amazing and outlandish ideas seem natural, normal even, but still worthy of being considered amazing. I'm not sure I'm making any sense, but if you've read Culture, I'm sure you would agree.
This one was not like the Use of Weapons in its emotional impact and in the language, but the humour and the plot and the world are top tier. And like Use of Weapons, this the one I see myself re-reading the soonest.
this one was a 5/5 for me
The way Banks's mind works and the wealth of his imagination is something else. He creates such vivid worlds and makes you feel like "of course these things exist somewhere out there." He makes the most amazing and outlandish ideas seem natural, normal even, but still worthy of being considered amazing. I'm not sure I'm making any sense, but if you've read Culture, I'm sure you would agree.
This one was not like the Use of Weapons in its emotional impact and in the language, but the humour and the plot and the world are top tier. And like Use of Weapons, this the one I see myself re-reading the soonest.
this one was a 5/5 for me
jefffrane's review against another edition
5.0
The early pages were difficult for me to gather much interest in but, trusting in Iain M. Banks to come through, I plowed on. Eventually it got very interesting (as expected) and very strange (also expected). Banks is never a light read and this is a nice fat book so it took me awhile. But, as usual, it was worth the effort.
sashkello's review against another edition
4.0
Another solid Culture series novel from Iain M Banks. Just as most other Culture series books, it can certainly be read separately, and I'd say it relies on the understanding of Culture less than most others in the series.
What is so good about Banks' books is that each has their own character and setting, markedly different from other novels in the series. This one is focused on a society of humans living on a verge of industrial revolution, but mostly in medieval-like setting, with some familiar fantasy elements like flying beasts and the like. So, most of the novel takes place among castles, kings, local wars and most of all intrigues. Along the way, several levels of developed civilizations (including Culture) get into the mix as well, to bring us back into sci-fi world from pure medieval fantasy.
Overall, it's an engaging read and one of the better books in the series. I'd say it's probably my favourite after the first two or three novels which I found to be really strong. So, saying that, it's rather average for Banks, but considering how amazing (and diverse) the whole series is, it is rather hard to compare. In any case, if you would like to skip half of the Culture books, then this one shouldn't be among them.
What is so good about Banks' books is that each has their own character and setting, markedly different from other novels in the series. This one is focused on a society of humans living on a verge of industrial revolution, but mostly in medieval-like setting, with some familiar fantasy elements like flying beasts and the like. So, most of the novel takes place among castles, kings, local wars and most of all intrigues. Along the way, several levels of developed civilizations (including Culture) get into the mix as well, to bring us back into sci-fi world from pure medieval fantasy.
Overall, it's an engaging read and one of the better books in the series. I'd say it's probably my favourite after the first two or three novels which I found to be really strong. So, saying that, it's rather average for Banks, but considering how amazing (and diverse) the whole series is, it is rather hard to compare. In any case, if you would like to skip half of the Culture books, then this one shouldn't be among them.
crivens's review against another edition
4.0
Superb world building, thrilling storytelling and all the accoutrements of a good culture novel.
ldasoqi's review against another edition
4.0
Wow what an enjoyable and straightforward read. We are on book 8 out of 10 here, the first book in the final third chunk of the Culture and Iain Banks' writing has noticeably matured and improved. This is probably the first book since Use of Weapons to feature a compelling main plotline, and it famously features the best worldbuilding in the entire series. A wide reaching but thematically tight romp through some of the Culture's most interesting settings, I think this is one of the best books in the series and an excellent starting point for anyone curious about the series but unwilling to read through the whole thing.
A Brief Precis to the Culture:
The Culture is a far in the future anarcho-utopian space faring civilization run by altruistic and smarmy sentient AI Minds. In their quest to do good, the Culture makes contact with space-faring but comparatively primitive civilizations and does its best to break down existing hierarchies and build up democracies. While it sounds a lot like American hegemony and imperialist meddling, the Culture promises it isn't, and they can statistically prove it.
Meat & Potatoes:
I would describe Matter as a palace intrigue and family reunion story that just so happens to take place on the Death Star; conveniently the story is arranged in halves. The first half of the book is very GOT/HoD with most of the action taking place on ground level in your standard pre industrial society. All I will say towards the second half of the book is that the scope of the novel widens about as far as imagination allows.
We meet our main characters: Furbin the new crown prince, his manservant Holse, Djal his sister who lives off world, and their youngest brother Oramen. I don't want to give anything away so I will only say that each of these characters gets fleshed out a fair bit. Not all of them go through complete arcs but Furbin goes from as my notes say, "a dreadfully stupid and bumbling cunt," to something resembling a competent adult. As far as what I found enjoyable in the book the story is very much the brussel sprouts of a larger meal; that's not to say it is bad, it's actually very good compared to some of the other stories in the series, it's just overshadowed by the rest of the metaphorical plate.
As to the quality of the writing, this book picks up after Look to Windward and while being stylistically different still hit a high note with me. Dialogue is crisp and engaging, and as previously alluded to, the world building and imagery is the best its ever been. Where with LoW we got to see a lot of the day-to-day of the Culture homeworlds, this book gives us a sweeping glance at the multitude of other civilizations and structures that populate the galaxy.
Shellworlds:
For a big series with big ideas, the Culture novels never truly painted its worlds with the same brush and scope as it has its space-ier settings. Often the stories of the Culture are set onboard everyone's favorite smartass ships, Culture orbital habitats, or on far-flung and primitive worlds. Matter finally brings that scale and grandeur to ground level, introducing the latest (Eons Old) development in megastructure engineering, the Shellworlds. The second half of this book is basically all about them, and the story is literally put on pause so that we the reader may marvel in their splendor.
Can you say layers? Shellworlds for the uninitiated are planets of nested concentric spheres, each sphere forming a level of the planet and an entire world layer of its own. This is the matryoshka doll of planetary mega structures, built by a long extinct civilization for an unknown purpose, with only half of them surviving to the present. Each layer is now home to entirely unique and specialized biomes for the races and civilizations that live on their respective layer. Shellworlds are hierarchically organized, with more primitive species and civilizations living on the inner layers and their more advanced "mentor" civilizations occupying the outermost layers and controlling the interior infrastructure.
Themes (Minor Spoilers Ahead):
It's not on accident that the arrangement of civilizational hierarchy on the Shellworld mirrors the greater galactic state of affairs. This book is uncharacteristically direct as it presents its theme and primary philosophical questions in the form of a neatly packaged microcosm: what is the point of all this? This book is harrowingly nihilistic, it presents us with a galaxy's worth of civilizational achievement only to ask us why it all exists or even if it truly exists at all, are we anything more than a simulation? This is not the first time that Banks' has presented us this question, a kind of reverse of Turtles All the Way Down, instead of looking down and questioning what the foundation of the universe rests on it asks instead who is it that is looking down from the very top.
As more of the plot is revealed it becomes increasingly clear that despite the high technological level and achievement the galactic hegemons possess, they are truly no better than the more primitive civilizations under their care when it comes to things like war and purpose. Instead of waging war themselves they stage elaborate casus beli for subordinate species to wage war, all for the purpose of their own excitement and entertainment. Drones record the action in the countless primitive worlds, and in turn even smaller means of observation watch on; layers of exploitation and observation all the way to the top, but who watches the watchers?
We never really find out because Banks' doesn't end his stories the way we'd like him to, to put all the scary questions in a tidy box and wrap it in the ribbon of human understanding. I think he understands better than most writers that A. shit happens and B. we rarely ever understand why. Some would call the ending a big weakness of the book for that same reason, but personally I've read enough of these stories to understand that asking the question alone is often the best we're going to get.
A Brief Precis to the Culture:
The Culture is a far in the future anarcho-utopian space faring civilization run by altruistic and smarmy sentient AI Minds. In their quest to do good, the Culture makes contact with space-faring but comparatively primitive civilizations and does its best to break down existing hierarchies and build up democracies. While it sounds a lot like American hegemony and imperialist meddling, the Culture promises it isn't, and they can statistically prove it.
Meat & Potatoes:
I would describe Matter as a palace intrigue and family reunion story that just so happens to take place on the Death Star; conveniently the story is arranged in halves. The first half of the book is very GOT/HoD with most of the action taking place on ground level in your standard pre industrial society. All I will say towards the second half of the book is that the scope of the novel widens about as far as imagination allows.
We meet our main characters: Furbin the new crown prince, his manservant Holse, Djal his sister who lives off world, and their youngest brother Oramen. I don't want to give anything away so I will only say that each of these characters gets fleshed out a fair bit. Not all of them go through complete arcs but Furbin goes from as my notes say, "a dreadfully stupid and bumbling cunt," to something resembling a competent adult. As far as what I found enjoyable in the book the story is very much the brussel sprouts of a larger meal; that's not to say it is bad, it's actually very good compared to some of the other stories in the series, it's just overshadowed by the rest of the metaphorical plate.
As to the quality of the writing, this book picks up after Look to Windward and while being stylistically different still hit a high note with me. Dialogue is crisp and engaging, and as previously alluded to, the world building and imagery is the best its ever been. Where with LoW we got to see a lot of the day-to-day of the Culture homeworlds, this book gives us a sweeping glance at the multitude of other civilizations and structures that populate the galaxy.
Shellworlds:
For a big series with big ideas, the Culture novels never truly painted its worlds with the same brush and scope as it has its space-ier settings. Often the stories of the Culture are set onboard everyone's favorite smartass ships, Culture orbital habitats, or on far-flung and primitive worlds. Matter finally brings that scale and grandeur to ground level, introducing the latest (Eons Old) development in megastructure engineering, the Shellworlds. The second half of this book is basically all about them, and the story is literally put on pause so that we the reader may marvel in their splendor.
Can you say layers? Shellworlds for the uninitiated are planets of nested concentric spheres, each sphere forming a level of the planet and an entire world layer of its own. This is the matryoshka doll of planetary mega structures, built by a long extinct civilization for an unknown purpose, with only half of them surviving to the present. Each layer is now home to entirely unique and specialized biomes for the races and civilizations that live on their respective layer. Shellworlds are hierarchically organized, with more primitive species and civilizations living on the inner layers and their more advanced "mentor" civilizations occupying the outermost layers and controlling the interior infrastructure.
Themes (Minor Spoilers Ahead):
It's not on accident that the arrangement of civilizational hierarchy on the Shellworld mirrors the greater galactic state of affairs. This book is uncharacteristically direct as it presents its theme and primary philosophical questions in the form of a neatly packaged microcosm: what is the point of all this? This book is harrowingly nihilistic, it presents us with a galaxy's worth of civilizational achievement only to ask us why it all exists or even if it truly exists at all, are we anything more than a simulation? This is not the first time that Banks' has presented us this question, a kind of reverse of Turtles All the Way Down, instead of looking down and questioning what the foundation of the universe rests on it asks instead who is it that is looking down from the very top.
As more of the plot is revealed it becomes increasingly clear that despite the high technological level and achievement the galactic hegemons possess, they are truly no better than the more primitive civilizations under their care when it comes to things like war and purpose. Instead of waging war themselves they stage elaborate casus beli for subordinate species to wage war, all for the purpose of their own excitement and entertainment. Drones record the action in the countless primitive worlds, and in turn even smaller means of observation watch on; layers of exploitation and observation all the way to the top, but who watches the watchers?
We never really find out because Banks' doesn't end his stories the way we'd like him to, to put all the scary questions in a tidy box and wrap it in the ribbon of human understanding. I think he understands better than most writers that A. shit happens and B. we rarely ever understand why. Some would call the ending a big weakness of the book for that same reason, but personally I've read enough of these stories to understand that asking the question alone is often the best we're going to get.
tombomp's review against another edition
3.0
I feel almost churlish complaining about this but like it just... ends? It's a pretty long book and then the ending just comes with no explanation, leaving a decent amount unresolved. It reminds me most of the first book in the series, I think.
The lead up to it is interesting - the drama on a small section of a giant world and how that's connected to the greater alien species and the various machinations etc. And the ending is sort of appropriate and kind of resolves stuff and it's not quite as grim as but it's still an anti climax, especially coming after such a long build up. Like (major ending spoilers>
I had a LOT of trouble visualising the geography of stuff, particularly the in between the levels stuff - the ending scenes in particular I had no clue what was going on but also the nestworld.
I mean it was good writing and there was some cool stuff (although not as good as some of the others of his I've read imo) but the ending was just a big disappointment to me. Maybe I was expecting too much, I dunno.
I will say I appreciated the glossary/appendix although I didn't notice it until too late, heh.
The lead up to it is interesting - the drama on a small section of a giant world and how that's connected to the greater alien species and the various machinations etc. And the ending is sort of appropriate and kind of resolves stuff and it's not quite as grim as
Spoiler
Consider PhlebasSpoiler
did the other aliens contesting the Oct know that the thing was Bad and that's why they tried to warn the prince? if they did, did anyone else know? what was going on there? What was the Thing all about, we get an explanation but it gives the start of a sort of villain speech which SOUNDS like it'd be interesting but gets cut off right at the interesting part. What was up with the ship they were using. Why did the thing want to kill the world god first. Why was there an ENTIRE CITY on the planet apparently dedicated to something that when activated would try and destroy the planet? Who made the city? How did the thing arrive there? How did it get deactivated? How did it survive so long?I had a LOT of trouble visualising the geography of stuff, particularly the in between the levels stuff - the ending scenes in particular I had no clue what was going on but also the nestworld.
I mean it was good writing and there was some cool stuff (although not as good as some of the others of his I've read imo) but the ending was just a big disappointment to me. Maybe I was expecting too much, I dunno.
I will say I appreciated the glossary/appendix although I didn't notice it until too late, heh.
jpspencer's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
readingthething's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5