Use of Weapons Audiobook By Iain M. Banks cover art

Use of Weapons

Culture Series, Book 3

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Use of Weapons

By: Iain M. Banks
Narrated by: Peter Kenny
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The novels of Iain M. Banks have forever changed the face of modern science fiction. His Culture books combine breathtaking imagination with exceptional storytelling, and have secured his reputation as one of the most extraordinary and influential writers in the genre.

'Banks is a phenomenon' William Gibson

The man known as Zakalwe was one of Special Circumstances' foremost agents, changing the destiny of planets to suit the Culture through intrigue, dirty tricks or military action.

Though the woman known as Diziet Sma had plucked him from obscurity and aided his stratospheric rise, she did not know him as well as she thought.

The drone Ska­ffen-Amtiskaw thought it knew both of these people. It had once saved the woman's life by massacring her attackers, and it believed the man to be a burnt-out wreck - but not even its superlative machine-intelligence could see the horrors in his past.

Praise for the Culture series:

'Epic in scope, ambitious in its ideas and absorbing in its execution' Independent on Sunday

'Banks has created one of the most enduring and endearing visions of the future' Guardian

'Banks's sci-fi, at its best, is staggeringly inventive, beautifully written, dramatic and often very funny. His stories are packed with ideas, warships with minds very much of their own, alien races, charismatic drones and intergalactic politics' New Scientist

'Jam-packed with extraordinary invention' Scotsman

'Compulsive reading' Sunday Telegraph

The Culture series:
Consider Phlebas
The Player of Games
Use of Weapons
Excession
Inversions
Look to Windward
Matter
Surface Detail
The Hydrogen Sonata
The State of the Art

Other books by Iain M. Banks:
Against a Dark Background
Feersum Endjinn
The Algebraist

Also now available:
The Culture: The Drawings - an extraordinary collection of original illustrations faithfully reproduced from sketchbooks Banks kept in the 1970s and 80s, depicting the ships, habitats, geography, weapons and language of Banks' Culture series of novels in incredible detail.©1990 Iain M. Banks (P)2012 Hachette Digital Science Fiction Space Opera
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I know the structure of it is rather unusual, but to me it was just confusing and not a plus. Great fun at times but overall a disappointment. By far the weakest of the Culture Series; I've currently finished the first six books of the series.

A bit of a mess really

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Use of Weapons is the most compelling novel I’ve ever read, weaving a masterful, non-linear narrative that keeps you guessing until its haunting final twist.

Best ending in Sci fi history…no hyperbole

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This is one of the more demanding Culture novels with a bit more of Ian Banks and a bit less of Ian M Banks despite setting. Non-linear story telling at its finest.

Thematically and structurally complex

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Starts slow but is worth sticking to it. The plot structure is a bit confusing, especially on audio book, but the individual chapters are immersive and interesting.
Not my favorite Culture book , but it was actually quite good and probably will re listen to it eventually.

Slow but fascinating !

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Despite the excellent narration the story itself was confusing. It's multiple interwoven timelines which aren't easy to keep track of in the audio version, might have been easier in a physical version of the book.

Great narration but confusing story

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