![]() Minds - sentient thinking computers - are the secret stars of the Culture novels, but here they take centre stage. It shows exactly how tough the utopian Culture can be. But the star of the show is the Mistake Not, a Culture ship of “non-standard” type IE packing lots of high-level weaponry. It’s the most openly satirical of all Banks’s SF novels, offering an angry critique of “third-way” liberal leaders like Tony Blair. But first some old scores must be settled. The Gzilt are ready to “sublime” to the the next plane of existence. ![]() The final published Culture novel was a return to top form for Banks. Matter (eight), Inversions (nine) and Surface Detail (10) all have their own strengths, but lack the genius of Banks at his best – which I think you’ll find here: Five: The Hydrogen Sonata ![]() Seven would be short-story collection The State of the Art, which contains only brief glimpses of the Culture. ![]() I’d put Use of Weapons at six, which might perplex fans of Banks at his most gung-ho. ![]() These are my top five Culture novels, but I wish have included at least five more. ![]()
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