This week's reading

[andrewducker]

Just finished the new Iain M Banks (Surface Detail), which I thoroughly enjoyed. I'd been worrying about it a bit, as I've given up on the mainstream Iain Banks novels a while back, but it hung together incredibly well, and I found the book incredibly hard to put down. Recommended (although I'm not sure how well someone who hasn't read some of the previous Culture novels would get on with it.)

Now I've started The Quantum Thief, which was recommended by a couple of people who got advance reading copies. Only about 10 pages in so far, but it's ticking all the right buttons (the opening scenes are set within a virtual prison based around The Prisoner's Dilemma). Oh, and the back cover has a recommendation by someone called "Charles Stross", who also seemed to like it.

Comments

[heron61.livejournal.com]

Wow, The Quantum Thief looks like exactly my sort of book - damn you for reading books only avaiable in the UK :)

[coalescent.livejournal.com]

US edition due from Tor next summer.

[heron61.livejournal.com]

That's far too long away :) I suspect that paying for this booked to be shipped from the UK is in my very near future.

[andrewhickey.livejournal.com]

Will have to check out The Quantum Thief - looks exactly my kind of thing.
(Though I'll have to get through the collected works of Mr Stross first - after years of seeing him comment on your LJ, finally bought one of his books three weeks ago. And another two weeks ago. And another last week...)

[andrewducker]

Oooh, which ones.

My favourite is definitely Accelerando.

[andrewhickey.livejournal.com]

The last two Laundry ones and Halting State.

[communicator.livejournal.com]

I have just started Surface Detail on audio, and now I am keen to devour it

[dalglir.livejournal.com]

I'd seen that Banks had Surface Detail out and popped into Waterstones with dalglivk (as we were passing) so she could pre-emptively get a copy as my birthday is coming up soon.

Then I also spotted The City and the City AND Kraken by China Mieville (sadly neither of which appear to be Bas Lag novels) AND The Evolutionary Void by Hamilton (part 3 of a trilogy of which I have read the first 2).

So I came away with a haul of 4 books, none of I get to read until the end of November. Quite looking forward to the Banks book. Was a bit disappointed with The Algebraist. I need more Excession type writing :)

[snarlish.livejournal.com]

The City and the City is my favourite of Mieville's books now, very pared down from the Bas Lag style, while you may recognise tropes and themes of Bas Lag in Kraken.

and speaking of Mielville...

[dalglir.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link - China's letter to Facebook certainly makes amusing reading :D I loathe Facebook...

[d-c-m.livejournal.com]

One of my colleagues gave me a Culture novel to read. Very good. I am trying to read another one. They are very detailed and I feel like I am an archeologist sifting through sand to find the pottery shard and when I do, wow it is worth it!

[andrewducker]

ooh, which ones?

My favourite one to start people off is usually Player of Games.

[d-c-m.livejournal.com]

I got Matter of Time. I would have hated the book had it not been for the epilogue. I got so involved with the characters and the universe that if the epilogue hadn't happened I would have been furious. However being the freedom & person loving person that I am, I loved the book. I'm now considering reading Consider Phlebas. Thanks to your Culture link I now know it is the first book. I might try reading them all in order.

[snarlish.livejournal.com]

I've read no iain m banks books, and didn't really plan too, but i recently finished iain banks' transition and enjoyed it quite a bit. Since I did, any M banks I should dip into?

[andrewducker]

Player of Games is the easiest one to get into, and if you don't like it then you won't like any of them.

I can lend it to you if you like.

[snarlish.livejournal.com]

thanks, heyoka was reading these, so i think it's on our shelf.

[soon_lee]

"Player of Games" is more accessible but I prefer publication order which means "Consider Phlebas" first. Generally, I've liked his earlier Culture books more, so am curious about "Surface Detail", but I have "Quantum Thief" in my to-read pile at the moment.

[soon_lee]

This may be of interest: it's A few notes on the Culture by Banks which provides background to the universe (easily serves as source material for a RPG). It's non-spoiler except for a couple of oblique references to something pertaining to "Consider Phelbas".

[snarlish.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this link, and, ugh, on reading it, it makes me wonder why bother. I liked the parallel worlds concept he was doing in Transition, so perhaps i can stomach the harder sci-fi of the Culture to get through to to speculative concepts he's working with.

[andrewducker]

If you don't like SciFi then I suspect you won't like it. I love it to bits, but if SF bounces you then I can't see you getting past it.