Status
Available
Series
Publication
London : Orbit, 1998.
Description
Iain M. Banks, the international bestselling author of "The Player of Games" and "Consider Phlebas, " is a true original, a literary visionary whose brilliant speculative fiction has transported us into worlds of unbounded imagination. Now, in his acclaimed new novel, Banks presents an engrossing portrait of an alien world, and of two very different people bound by a startling and mysterious secret. On a backward world with six moons, an alert spy reports on the doings of one Dr. Vosill, who has mysteriously become the personal physician to the king despite being a foreigner and, even more unthinkably, a woman. Vosill has more enemies than she first realizes. But then she also has more remedies in hand than those who wish her ill can ever guess. Elsewhere, in another palace across the mountains, a man named DeWar serves as chief bodyguard to the Protector General of Tassasen, a profession he describes as the business of "assassinating assassins." DeWar, too, has his enemies, but his foes strike more swiftly, and his means of combating them are more direct. No one trusts the doctor, and the bodyguard trusts no one, but is there a hidden commonality linking their disparate histories? Spiraling around a central core of mystery, deceit, love, and betrayal. "Inversions" is a dazzling work of science fiction from a versatile and imaginative author writing at the height of his remarkable powers.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member mel-L-co0l-j
once again, Banks showcases his storytelling prowess, and unapologetically so. Inversions is a campfire tale for the literate and intrigued. while it has a flaw -- mainly, an over-the-top epilogue that gives us a clumsy philosophy regarding what we can ever really know -- the preceding tale is
the story is told in two alternating tales, seemingly unrelated, about two central characters. the "The Doctor" vignettes are told from the first-person by the doctor's assistant, and the "The Guardian" vignettes, in the traditional third person. The Doctor happens to be a female who is the King's physician -- unheard of during the time and planet on which this tale occurs. she's irreverent, brilliant, wise, and proud. The Guardian, a lawful good paladin-type, is the protectorate of General Urleyn, the highest station for that particular land. do the stories take place on the same planet, during the same time period on different planets, or otherwise?
if you like low fantasy with clear-cut heroes and bad guys, political intrigue on worlds far-removed from ours (extra moons and suns are always fun!), and a solid tale, pick up a copy. you'll charge right through it, wanting more with each page-turn. *this* is the sort of soap opera i can deal with!
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inventive and engrossing. also, the characters are believable -- even the ones who are obvious satires -- and we either grow to love or hate them.the story is told in two alternating tales, seemingly unrelated, about two central characters. the "The Doctor" vignettes are told from the first-person by the doctor's assistant, and the "The Guardian" vignettes, in the traditional third person. The Doctor happens to be a female who is the King's physician -- unheard of during the time and planet on which this tale occurs. she's irreverent, brilliant, wise, and proud. The Guardian, a lawful good paladin-type, is the protectorate of General Urleyn, the highest station for that particular land. do the stories take place on the same planet, during the same time period on different planets, or otherwise?
if you like low fantasy with clear-cut heroes and bad guys, political intrigue on worlds far-removed from ours (extra moons and suns are always fun!), and a solid tale, pick up a copy. you'll charge right through it, wanting more with each page-turn. *this* is the sort of soap opera i can deal with!
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LibraryThing member JonArnold
Spoiler ahead...
A Culture book, but you wouldn’t necessarily know it. It’s the Culture from the point of view of a civilisation which hasn’t the framework or breadth of perception to begin to contemplate what the Culture is. But then providing inverted points of view of the Culture is
A Culture book, but you wouldn’t necessarily know it. It’s the Culture from the point of view of a civilisation which hasn’t the framework or breadth of perception to begin to contemplate what the Culture is. But then providing inverted points of view of the Culture is
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something Banks has been doing since Consider Phlebas. It’s the story of a doctor and a warrior, who you can link together easily, even if you’re not paying close attention. But the resolutions of their stories are very different and the crucible of the story demands an inversion of their roles and approaches. Banks excels with the court intrigues and the contrast of the twin narratives. Show Less
LibraryThing member macha
at first glance this looks like a fairly minor book in the Culture series. it's so accessible, it seems at first a bit below his pay grade. it's not, of course. it's a book about the Culture, written from outside the Culture, by people who have never heard of the Culture. reads like some version of
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a medieval fantasy, about two opposing cultures on opposite sides of the same world. but that world is enveloped in a little personal experiment born out of that invisible far-future Culture, which contributes its worldview not via the local narrators but rather via the portraits they paint of the two Agents who once had the argument. said argument being itself expressed as an small story on page 104 offhandedly told to a child as a fairy tale about two people in a land of impossible magic who quarrel one day about whether one should set out to change a world or to leave it alone. and gradually we see the result of the argument in the world. so the whole thing, while appearing fairly straightforward, consists of a whole series of inversions: the genre shifting between fantasy (visible) and sf (invisible) depending on the point of view, the connections between everything shifting as we sift through the accounts of a series of unreliable narrators, the importance of the gameplay hidden within differing Larger and Smaller Intentions, and the whole argument buried - yet definitively answered - about the method and the morality of acting, or not acting, as an instrument of change. Show Less
LibraryThing member dulac3
This is my favourite Culture novel...probably because it has the least amount of the Culture in it. The smarmy robots, superintelligent AI Minds, and laissez-faire posthumans are all cool and everything, but after you've hung out with them for a few volumes they get kinda same-y. Also, they never
With Inversions we get, um, an inversion I guess, of what Banks seems to normally do with his Culture stories. Huh. Neat how that worked out, isn't it? Anyway, we find ourselves on one of those non-Culture 'backwards' planets that of course the Culture wants to influence (for their own good, of course) and we are thus presented with two different focuses (or I guess foci) in point of view. One follows the exploits of a mysterious female doctor acting as aide and close confidante to the king of one of the major nations of the planet; the other follows the story of the bodyguard of the de facto Cromwellian despot of another as he in turn follows a philosophically different approach in his 'influence' of events. Both of them are, of course, really Culture agents ultimately trying to prove to the other one that their philosophy is the correct one, though of course none of this is particularly obvious unless you've: a) read other Culture novels and b) read between the lines for some of the less explicable events of the story.
I found both main characters to be compelling and, most of all, interesting in a way that Banks isn't always able to pull off. In addition the narrator of the doctor's story-line, her smitten young apprentice, is quite an interesting figure in himself who displays the paradoxical elements of devoted factotum and scheming spy in equal measure. I guess I like it when Banks is understated. It doesn't happen a lot, but when it does it can be very compelling.
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pick up the tab at bars. Something about money being barbaric I think.With Inversions we get, um, an inversion I guess, of what Banks seems to normally do with his Culture stories. Huh. Neat how that worked out, isn't it? Anyway, we find ourselves on one of those non-Culture 'backwards' planets that of course the Culture wants to influence (for their own good, of course) and we are thus presented with two different focuses (or I guess foci) in point of view. One follows the exploits of a mysterious female doctor acting as aide and close confidante to the king of one of the major nations of the planet; the other follows the story of the bodyguard of the de facto Cromwellian despot of another as he in turn follows a philosophically different approach in his 'influence' of events. Both of them are, of course, really Culture agents ultimately trying to prove to the other one that their philosophy is the correct one, though of course none of this is particularly obvious unless you've: a) read other Culture novels and b) read between the lines for some of the less explicable events of the story.
I found both main characters to be compelling and, most of all, interesting in a way that Banks isn't always able to pull off. In addition the narrator of the doctor's story-line, her smitten young apprentice, is quite an interesting figure in himself who displays the paradoxical elements of devoted factotum and scheming spy in equal measure. I guess I like it when Banks is understated. It doesn't happen a lot, but when it does it can be very compelling.
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LibraryThing member isabelx
If you hadn't read any of the other Culture novels, you wouldn't understand what was happening in "Inversions" at all, as it seems to be a fantasy novel about the bodyguard of the Protector of a land that seems to be at a similar level to 16th/17th century Europe, and the female doctor who attends
But when you know the ways of the Culture, it is clear that the unwitting narrators of the tales are actually describing a Special Circumstances mission, and that agents have been sent down to influence the behaviour of two of the more moderate and forward thinking rulers, and prevent them from coming to harm while they carry out their reforms. So you have a good idea what the 'dark bird' fleetingly seen by a distraught witness to the Duke of Walen's murder really is, and you don't believe for a minute that DeWar and Perrund die in the avalanche that so conveniently prevents their bodies from being recovered.
Loved it. It's a million times better than "Excession".
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the King of a nearby country. The doctor's story is told by her assistant in the form of reports to his master who is getting him to spy on her, while the bodyguard's tale . . .But when you know the ways of the Culture, it is clear that the unwitting narrators of the tales are actually describing a Special Circumstances mission, and that agents have been sent down to influence the behaviour of two of the more moderate and forward thinking rulers, and prevent them from coming to harm while they carry out their reforms. So you have a good idea what the 'dark bird' fleetingly seen by a distraught witness to the Duke of Walen's murder really is, and you don't believe for a minute that DeWar and Perrund die in the avalanche that so conveniently prevents their bodies from being recovered.
Loved it. It's a million times better than "Excession".
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LibraryThing member imyril
Two neighbouring countries are each inhabited by an outsider with influence over its ruler, mistrusted by the nobility and given to odd ideas. To the initiated, it is an obvious guess (and one soon rewarded) that these outsiders are embedded Culture agents; but their stories are related by an
Whilst there are some vibrant characters (UrLeyn's son Lattens is a joy, as is conflicted Oelph) and entertaining politics, these could belong in any fantasy setting and play second fiddle to the delight of recognising and second-guessing what is really going on. The actual stories of the Dukes' attempts to reveal the good Doctor and the question of whether there is a traitor in UrLeyn's entourage are finely drawn but - I felt - less absorbing than other Culture novels; not least because the relayed narrative device distances us from the protagonists and thus the threat. As ever though, Banks teases us with plenty to think about in the layers within layers of his story.
Given the POV, this is arguably the Culture novel with the least Culture in it, but I found it satisfying in its own right and the late-encountered line that 'she was indisposed due to special circumstances' may be a favourite Banksian witticism.
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ignorant local, leaving it to the reader to read between the lines. Whilst there are some vibrant characters (UrLeyn's son Lattens is a joy, as is conflicted Oelph) and entertaining politics, these could belong in any fantasy setting and play second fiddle to the delight of recognising and second-guessing what is really going on. The actual stories of the Dukes' attempts to reveal the good Doctor and the question of whether there is a traitor in UrLeyn's entourage are finely drawn but - I felt - less absorbing than other Culture novels; not least because the relayed narrative device distances us from the protagonists and thus the threat. As ever though, Banks teases us with plenty to think about in the layers within layers of his story.
Given the POV, this is arguably the Culture novel with the least Culture in it, but I found it satisfying in its own right and the late-encountered line that 'she was indisposed due to special circumstances' may be a favourite Banksian witticism.
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LibraryThing member RobertDay
A novel with a medieval setting is not what we expect of Banks - but you should always expect the unexpected. Two stories set on the same world have interesting parallels but apparently no connection until the end.
Meanwhile, there is another mystery. Who is the King's favoured doctor, the woman
At the end, Dr.Vosill has left - and more, has vanished in a mysterious way. And there are mysteries attached to her. She can defend herself in terrifying and frightening ways. And she seems to have no past, even when others try to trace her origins in a distant land.
The powers and knowledge Dr.Vosill posess suggest that she is from an alien society; possibly even Banks' 'Culture' (which would make her a part of Special Circumstances) - but we have to guess this.
Meanwhile, in another part of the world, a monarch's bodyguard tries to protect his charge, even when the monarch himself seems bent on self-destruction; and at the same time, tries to avoid falling in love with the monarch's favourite concubine (who harbours a terrible secret) and fails.
I found this novel compelling reading; and I was pleased that my expectation that the doctor character would turn up in the second plot strand to treat the monarch's epileptic son was not realised. The alien society was subtly drawn with some distinct hints of otherness - this was not an identikit "MedievalWorld (TM)". Definitely interesting.
Meanwhile, there is another mystery. Who is the King's favoured doctor, the woman
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Dr.Vosill? Is she just a foreigner, a skilled physician with some strange ideas about medicine (such as 'infection' and the importance of 'cleanliness'); or is there more to her than meets the eye? Her servant, who is also a spy in the pay of the commander of the palace guard, begins to understand that there may be.At the end, Dr.Vosill has left - and more, has vanished in a mysterious way. And there are mysteries attached to her. She can defend herself in terrifying and frightening ways. And she seems to have no past, even when others try to trace her origins in a distant land.
The powers and knowledge Dr.Vosill posess suggest that she is from an alien society; possibly even Banks' 'Culture' (which would make her a part of Special Circumstances) - but we have to guess this.
Meanwhile, in another part of the world, a monarch's bodyguard tries to protect his charge, even when the monarch himself seems bent on self-destruction; and at the same time, tries to avoid falling in love with the monarch's favourite concubine (who harbours a terrible secret) and fails.
I found this novel compelling reading; and I was pleased that my expectation that the doctor character would turn up in the second plot strand to treat the monarch's epileptic son was not realised. The alien society was subtly drawn with some distinct hints of otherness - this was not an identikit "MedievalWorld (TM)". Definitely interesting.
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LibraryThing member DanTarlin
This book is a Culture novel technically, but it's not like others in the series. The book jumps back and forth between two stories on a pre-technological world with medieval levels of advancement and feudal systems. One story is of a doctor who seems to be a Culture agent and attends to the health
The stories come together only tangentially and at the end. We never see any of the tech that we've seen in all the other Culture novels. I'm not sure I understood the point of the story. The bodyguard gives some hints that he is from the Culture, but it's never very clear and I'm not sure if I'm missing something or if it's supposed to be ambiguous.
Anyway, the story still moves along well, though I rate it the lowest of the Culture novels that I've read.
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of a reasonably enlightened king. The other is of a bodyguard to a ruling general some distance away, whose membership in the Culture is more ambiguous. Oddly, the doctor's story is told from the perspective of her apprentice, while the bodyguard's story is told by a third person narrator. The stories come together only tangentially and at the end. We never see any of the tech that we've seen in all the other Culture novels. I'm not sure I understood the point of the story. The bodyguard gives some hints that he is from the Culture, but it's never very clear and I'm not sure if I'm missing something or if it's supposed to be ambiguous.
Anyway, the story still moves along well, though I rate it the lowest of the Culture novels that I've read.
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LibraryThing member asciiphil
Not surprisingly, Banks plays a bit with the form of the storytelling in Inversions. He tells the stories of two people in different kingdoms, alternating between them for each chapter. Not unique, to be sure, but not a simple, straightforward tale, either.
Honestly, I wasn't terribly impressed with
Banks has certainly written books I liked more. This was a decent read; not bad, certainly, but nothing special either.
Spoilers below.
Well, it's clear (to me, at least) that this is actually a Culture book, merely told from the other side. Even so, I don't think it added much that we couldn't already have figured out about the Culture. One could argue that it wasn't meant to, but I suspect that Banks specifically intended to tell a tale of the Culture's interference from the point of view of those being interfered with.
As further spoilage, I nailed early on the fact that Oelph's master was Adlain. (Despite toying with the thought for a bit that it might be DeWar.) I wasn't expecting the narrator of the other half of the story to have been Perrund, though.
Honestly, I wasn't terribly impressed with
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this one. The story was average; not one I found immensely gripping. I did enjoy piecing together the surrounding world from things mentioned in passing by the characters, and figuring out things about Vosill and DeWar via the same methods, but there wasn't a whole lot of depth the the information derived thereby. Nor did I really feel the characters were all that interesting.Banks has certainly written books I liked more. This was a decent read; not bad, certainly, but nothing special either.
Spoilers below.
Well, it's clear (to me, at least) that this is actually a Culture book, merely told from the other side. Even so, I don't think it added much that we couldn't already have figured out about the Culture. One could argue that it wasn't meant to, but I suspect that Banks specifically intended to tell a tale of the Culture's interference from the point of view of those being interfered with.
As further spoilage, I nailed early on the fact that Oelph's master was Adlain. (Despite toying with the thought for a bit that it might be DeWar.) I wasn't expecting the narrator of the other half of the story to have been Perrund, though.
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LibraryThing member paulmorriss
I've really loved other Iain M Banks books, but I didn't feel this one was as good as the others. It's set on in a mediaeval society on another planet, which seems like an easy way of doing a mediaeval story without having to do the research. There are two storylines which come close only at the
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end. Maybe the points of contact between the two were too subtle for me and I'd get more out of a second reading. (I write reviews before reading what other people think because I'm so easily swayed by what others think, so once I've saved this I'll see if it was too subtle for me.) Show Less
LibraryThing member antao
I always thought the most interesting Literary Utopia was Iain M. Banks' The Culture and “Inversion” is one of its finest examples, not because I thought it was a utopia per se, but because it sparked such interesting debates. It was always a fun point of discussion between me and a friend of
Anyway, It's this sense of nuance that I feel is lacking in today’s SF, where a kind of cheap nihilism and cynicism reigns. I enjoy “Black Mirror”, but over the years it seems to have adopted a more teenage sense of nihilistic transgression that becomes a little tiresome and seems out of whack with humanity in general (at least if you ask Steven Pinker or Johan Norberg).
“Star Trek” is an interesting example, but it does involve a lot of hand waving: even with the backdrop of the wars, there's very little explanation of how the politics actually holds together compared to say Babylon 5. It's still a good example, as the Federation have an Utopian ethos, but it does do plenty of interestingly hypocritical meddling of its own. Another good example of Utopia is Asimov's Foundation novels and the suggestion (which seems to being revived in popular culture re: “Game Of Thrones”) that what may eventually bring people together is an existential and alien threat rather an a humane and winning argument.
I think Banks always left it up to the reader to make up their own mind on whether they considered it an Utopian society or not, and even though I know they might not be considered highbrow, the way he was always able to show the almost symbiotic relationship between the Culture's anarchic positiveness and freedom within with its aggressive desire to pacify and manipulate other societies: all of course in the name of good (how often have we heard that in real life). Interestingly, both the Culture and Gaia involve a sacrifice of autonomy in a sense.
"Inversions" is possibly the most character-based of the Culture novels with two beautiful love stories at its heart. At times it might seem like the coma/dream passages from "The Bridge" until the knife missiles appear at the denouement and you realize you are seeing Special Circumstances from the inside...
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mine. Banks believed it was a vision of an ideal future thriving on freedom, I thought it was a kind of insidious metaphor for forced democratisation: you can have heaven on earth, but you'll have no choice in the matter and, if you don't like it, your society will be conquered (“Consider Phlebas”) or subtlety couped (“The Player Of Games”).Anyway, It's this sense of nuance that I feel is lacking in today’s SF, where a kind of cheap nihilism and cynicism reigns. I enjoy “Black Mirror”, but over the years it seems to have adopted a more teenage sense of nihilistic transgression that becomes a little tiresome and seems out of whack with humanity in general (at least if you ask Steven Pinker or Johan Norberg).
“Star Trek” is an interesting example, but it does involve a lot of hand waving: even with the backdrop of the wars, there's very little explanation of how the politics actually holds together compared to say Babylon 5. It's still a good example, as the Federation have an Utopian ethos, but it does do plenty of interestingly hypocritical meddling of its own. Another good example of Utopia is Asimov's Foundation novels and the suggestion (which seems to being revived in popular culture re: “Game Of Thrones”) that what may eventually bring people together is an existential and alien threat rather an a humane and winning argument.
I think Banks always left it up to the reader to make up their own mind on whether they considered it an Utopian society or not, and even though I know they might not be considered highbrow, the way he was always able to show the almost symbiotic relationship between the Culture's anarchic positiveness and freedom within with its aggressive desire to pacify and manipulate other societies: all of course in the name of good (how often have we heard that in real life). Interestingly, both the Culture and Gaia involve a sacrifice of autonomy in a sense.
"Inversions" is possibly the most character-based of the Culture novels with two beautiful love stories at its heart. At times it might seem like the coma/dream passages from "The Bridge" until the knife missiles appear at the denouement and you realize you are seeing Special Circumstances from the inside...
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LibraryThing member TheCrow2
Another great Banks story with a twist. It's a culture novel which you can read like an 'ordinary' medieval fantasy. But if you know the Culture series and pay attention to the little hints, you'll discover a whole new level of the book.... Flawless!
LibraryThing member pgmcc
I first read this novel when it was published in 1998. On that first reading I enjoyed the book but did not consider it great. On re-reading it I find my opinion of it has improved to the level of its being a good, enjoyable book but still not a great book.
On my first read I had not at first picked
The main theme I am taking away from this story is something I have known for a long time, i.e. we can never be sure of history, or even the present. As for predicting the future, we only run the risk of making fools of ourselves by trying to do so, even in relation to what appear to be the most obvious potential outcomes. There are various points in the novel where this point is brought to the fore, e.g. on page 22:
”I have read, I think, all the various accounts of what happened in Tassasen during that momentous time, and the most significant difference between those reports seems to be the defree to which they depart most outrageously from what actually happened.”
Also, on page 22:
”-so truth is a question of where one stands, and the direction one is looking in at the time.”
Iain goes on to explain how the past is unknowable because any accounts we read or hear are invariably going to have been filtered in some fashion and amended, and that the present is just as unknowable as time must pass to gain access to the different accounts which will have been distorted based on viewpoint, stance, bias, or whatever, of the source of the accounts.
A key element of this book is its description of how Special Circumstances personnel may operate. It also introduces the debate of how a superior civilisation should behave towards a less developed civilisation.
This is a book I would recommend for fans of Iain M. Banks Culture novels, but it is not a must read. It is, however, an enjoyable read.
On my first read I had not at first picked
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up that it was a Culture novel. It was only towards the end that I noticed the traces of the Culture, such as the note from the Doctor to the ship’s captain that she could not attend dinner due to special circumstances.The main theme I am taking away from this story is something I have known for a long time, i.e. we can never be sure of history, or even the present. As for predicting the future, we only run the risk of making fools of ourselves by trying to do so, even in relation to what appear to be the most obvious potential outcomes. There are various points in the novel where this point is brought to the fore, e.g. on page 22:
”I have read, I think, all the various accounts of what happened in Tassasen during that momentous time, and the most significant difference between those reports seems to be the defree to which they depart most outrageously from what actually happened.”
Also, on page 22:
”-so truth is a question of where one stands, and the direction one is looking in at the time.”
Iain goes on to explain how the past is unknowable because any accounts we read or hear are invariably going to have been filtered in some fashion and amended, and that the present is just as unknowable as time must pass to gain access to the different accounts which will have been distorted based on viewpoint, stance, bias, or whatever, of the source of the accounts.
A key element of this book is its description of how Special Circumstances personnel may operate. It also introduces the debate of how a superior civilisation should behave towards a less developed civilisation.
This is a book I would recommend for fans of Iain M. Banks Culture novels, but it is not a must read. It is, however, an enjoyable read.
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LibraryThing member mgreenla
Banks' attempt to write a culture novel without mentioning the culture. If you have never read another of the culture novels, this isn't the best starting point, many parts of the story will just pass you by. In a a nice quick read, and it seemed much more straight forward that most of Banks' work.
LibraryThing member m.a.harding
Not normally my cup of tea. But it is Iain M Banks. After 20 pages I was hooked. Humane. Suspenseful. Witty.
LibraryThing member Karlstar
This is unusual for Banks, it is a Fantasy novel, not science fiction. As you might expect from the title, it is about characters that turn things around, or that are not quite what you'd expect. It is really a collection of 3 short novels, but either as 3 separate or one long story, they are
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really excellent. I enjoyed this very much. Show Less
LibraryThing member iayork
A fun read of intrigue: This is the first Ian M. Banks novel I read. I am confused why it is considered "SF"- the setting is supposedly on another planet with three moons and two suns (I think), but there's no "science". The setting is in a medieval like time in terms of technology and culture, and
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the story is about court intrigue and human-made suffering. After reading several of the amazon reviews here I feel maybe I missed something by not having read previous Banks novels, but still I enjoyed this book on its own. Other than the complications of the court intrigue, it is a very light read. I think it works best on the level of allegory as suggested by the stories within stories form. I was most interested in the "Doctor" character, particularly in the details which show her humanity and her sense of dignity. The sudden unexplained event which involves her toward the end of the novel works because of the depth of her character, and suggests a metaphysical level that is almost believable- Banks is clever enough to give the reader room to intuit its significance, while avoiding a deux ex machina ending by tying up the less subtle plot elements. Not a great book, but an entertaining read which convinces me to look at more of his novels. Show Less
LibraryThing member MickeNimell
Was expecting the usual high-tech space setting of The Culture and instead I got kings, fiefdoms and medieval politics. Everything is elegantly wrapped in two parallel storylines. Very good.
4.5
4.5
LibraryThing member clong
This was an interesting book, although ultimately not as compelling as Banks' best. It is part of the Culture series, but doesn't explicitly address the Culture. If you have never read a Culture book, this book would leave you with no idea what the Culture is, or how the two protagonists in this
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book fit into it (not that this necessarily detracts from the story, but I think Banks veterans will read this story quite differently than a first time reader). Inversions a story of two mysterious people trying to gently guide two rather barbaric rival medieval countries towards a more enlightened future. In the end, it becomes clear that any success they (or the reader) may have thought they were having was probably illusory. The story provides plenty of opportunities to raise interesting ethical questions. It is an effective novel that builds tension, but I was disappointed by the ending, which left me feeling manipulated. Show Less
LibraryThing member santhony
This is listed as a “Culture” novel, the fourth I have read in the series. In truth, there is almost absolutely nothing connecting this book to the Culture series, other than a vague inference (through the telling of an obviously autobiographical “tale”) that certain characters originate
In fact, the entire book takes place on a single planet, whose level of technology is roughly medieval. There is no reference to other planets, space travel or even technology of any sort. Think Game of Thrones without dragons or magic. This is not science fiction by any stretch.
The book consists of two threads. In one thread, the protagonist is a female doctor, charged with care of the local King. In the other, the chief character is a bodyguard for the Lord Protector, who has recently deposed a King (think Oliver Cromwell). The two “kingdoms” are on the same planet, though widely separated and have only very remote relations.
The story lines are moderately entertaining, though if you are looking for science fiction, or even Culture, you might be disappointed. So far, all the Culture books I have read pretty much stand on their own. If you are reading Culture for science fiction, I would advise skipping this one.
Of the four Culture books I have read, I thoroughly enjoyed one, A Player of Games. Two others, Use of Weapons and Excession, I found difficult to follow. This novel was a disappointment. If my next Culture book does not rise to the level of A Player of Games, I am probably done with Culture.
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from that “universe”.In fact, the entire book takes place on a single planet, whose level of technology is roughly medieval. There is no reference to other planets, space travel or even technology of any sort. Think Game of Thrones without dragons or magic. This is not science fiction by any stretch.
The book consists of two threads. In one thread, the protagonist is a female doctor, charged with care of the local King. In the other, the chief character is a bodyguard for the Lord Protector, who has recently deposed a King (think Oliver Cromwell). The two “kingdoms” are on the same planet, though widely separated and have only very remote relations.
The story lines are moderately entertaining, though if you are looking for science fiction, or even Culture, you might be disappointed. So far, all the Culture books I have read pretty much stand on their own. If you are reading Culture for science fiction, I would advise skipping this one.
Of the four Culture books I have read, I thoroughly enjoyed one, A Player of Games. Two others, Use of Weapons and Excession, I found difficult to follow. This novel was a disappointment. If my next Culture book does not rise to the level of A Player of Games, I am probably done with Culture.
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LibraryThing member crosbyp
Not my favorite Banks. Characters were not vivid. Many episodes ran on much too long. Strong ending, however.
LibraryThing member AltheaAnn
My favorite book by Iain [M] Banks, who is one of my absolute favorite authors. It's in his "Culture" series of novels, but that's only shown by a couple of minor details. It's fully a stand-alone novel - sci-fi with a fantasy feel to it. I stayed up late-late-late last night finishing this - it
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was a GREAT book. I was really impressed by the way all the little clues fit together... without giving it all away too soon! Show Less
LibraryThing member topps
First published in the U.K. in 1998, Banks's latest novel steps back from the usual grand scale and ultra high-tech of his well-known "Culture" SF series (Excession, etc.) to the intrigue-ridden courts of a politically fragmented world. In Haspidus, a woman named Vosill, a foreigner from the
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distant archipelago nation of Drezen, serves as personal physician to King Quience, in spite of social mores that treat women as little more than property. Vosill's servant--actually a spy reporting to one of Quience's trusted right-hand men--finds himself doubting his master's claims that Vosill is a danger to the king, even as he uncovers evidence that suggests that Vosill is much more than she seems. Meanwhile, across the mountains, the stern warrior DeWar serves as chief bodyguard to General UrLeyn, the Prime Protector of the Tassasen Protectorate. His close contact with UrLeyn earns him the distrust of UrLeyn's fellow generals; those loyal to UrLeyn fear DeWar himself could be the perfect spy and assassin, while others worry he will discover their own secret plots. As conspiracies unfold and loyalties shift dangerously in both lands, the story of Vosill and DeWar and their unspoken connection unfolds with masterful subtlety. Banks's new novel should further expand his reputation for creating challenging, intelligent stories full of notable characters trapped in complex situations that have no easy solutions. Show Less
LibraryThing member endolith
Good concept but a lot of slow parts that are difficult to stay interested in. Was going to give it 2 stars but ending was good so I'll give it 3.
LibraryThing member BornAnalog
Based on the description, I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much as other works from Bank. It sounded a little contrived, and as a "Culture novel that isn't a Culture novel" it seemed, well, indecisive at best. But this has turned out to be one of my favorite Banks novels so far. It has
The world of the Culture is hinted at in places in the novel, but in fact it drives all the action: the reason for the split narrative, is that the protagonists represent two opposing views on how to intervene in other civilizations and cultures, a debate that often plays out on a larger scale in Banks other work. The genius of the book however is that what is essentially a philosophical investigation never feels heavy-handed. This is a novel of ideas that never throws those ideas or the dilemmas in your face but trusts in the reader to notice them, think about them, or not. The two stories are tightly focused on their own action and plot arcs, but always implicitly interwoven (and then explicitly so) but the ideas that play out on sprawling epic canvases in Banks other work are presented on a smaller stage which, ironically, gives them a chance to breathe and assume greater impact. This accounts, I think, for the way book continues to nag at me even many months later.
The two protagonists are also two of the most interesting characters that Banks has crafted. He is often (unfairly, I think) slighted for being a better writer of action than he is of people, but the characters here are refreshingly ambiguous; admirable, annoying, conflicted, frustrating and frustrated.
It is a violent book, sometimes disturbingly so, and each tale takes place in lands that seem to have been abandoned by morality in any meaningful sense. This is typical of one of Banks preoccupations: if you remove one or more pillars that people often rely upon to guide their behavior, what remains?
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certainly stayed with me in the kind of low-level way that many of the best books do, its ideas and images subtly churning around in the background. The world of the Culture is hinted at in places in the novel, but in fact it drives all the action: the reason for the split narrative, is that the protagonists represent two opposing views on how to intervene in other civilizations and cultures, a debate that often plays out on a larger scale in Banks other work. The genius of the book however is that what is essentially a philosophical investigation never feels heavy-handed. This is a novel of ideas that never throws those ideas or the dilemmas in your face but trusts in the reader to notice them, think about them, or not. The two stories are tightly focused on their own action and plot arcs, but always implicitly interwoven (and then explicitly so) but the ideas that play out on sprawling epic canvases in Banks other work are presented on a smaller stage which, ironically, gives them a chance to breathe and assume greater impact. This accounts, I think, for the way book continues to nag at me even many months later.
The two protagonists are also two of the most interesting characters that Banks has crafted. He is often (unfairly, I think) slighted for being a better writer of action than he is of people, but the characters here are refreshingly ambiguous; admirable, annoying, conflicted, frustrating and frustrated.
It is a violent book, sometimes disturbingly so, and each tale takes place in lands that seem to have been abandoned by morality in any meaningful sense. This is typical of one of Banks preoccupations: if you remove one or more pillars that people often rely upon to guide their behavior, what remains?
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Subjects
Awards
SF Site Editor's Choice (1998)
British Science Fiction Association Award (Shortlist — Novel — 1998)
Italia Award (Winner — 2004)