Published in the online magazine Shadowdance.

The Culture novels by Iain M. Banks depict one of the masterpieces in the museum of science fiction. If there were a ranking for the most significant and impressive SF world, I know where I would put my money. In his universe, ships that are tens of kilometers long and weigh trillions of tons, carrying millions of people with the most absurd and funny names in the genre, hurtle through the galaxy, controlled by powerful AI with humanistic-consciousnesses. These consciousnesses are capable of reasoning millions of times faster and more subtly than any human and seem to invest a significant part of their computing resources to push the universe towards better (or at least stop its downward spiral). At the same time, it cannot be said that the consciousnesses are good because Banks' world is so technologically and morally distant from ours that on a global scale, such categories have long lost their traditional meaning.

The brief information in the above paragraph is a barely sketched model of a tiny part of the cosmic panorama of the recently mentioned Scottish literary master. Many of the memorable worlds in SF fascinate through the way they distort space (the immense scales of Hyperion, or the psychological interiors and their mirrors in Solaris); others are drawn by their authors as ideally functioning conceptual tools (Douglas Adams' satire, or Asimov's psychohistory). The world of The Culture draws water from both sources of science fiction world-building, without leaking a drop outside the novels in which it is collected.

Use of Weapons is perhaps the book considered the best in this unrivaled series. It is the story of Cheradenine Zakalwe – one of the greatest warriors among the special agents of The Culture, a weapon of war in himself. A story written as a novel, a collection of short stories, and poetry at the same time. I read somewhere that if the novel were not science fiction, it would long ago have been declared one of the "most literary" modern works. This book requires a lot from the reader to really work; not being impenetrable and incomprehensible, on the contrary. However, its structure turns a potentially interesting story into something that operates on many more levels and leaves a much more lasting impression.

And while Zakalwe's enigmatic consciousness unfolds in all its deceptive simplicity, dozens of extraterrestrial worlds literally appear before the reader, most often torn apart by wars. The humanistic-cynical point of view of the mind-boggling utopia that is The Culture is inevitably present, and this brings with it the usual mix of technological and social wonders for the series, seasoned with unrivaled irony. If I am asked for a novel that has almost everything – epic scales, science, philosophy, action, love, humor, tragedy, and last but not least, great writing, – Use of Weapons will be my firm recommendation.

I really did have the intention to like this book, and I still have a great desire to read more science fiction. So, I would be more than happy if someone like Rob could tell me that I have completely misunderstood it. Let's not downplay this fact. Maybe it has just gone over my head, or perhaps he could say, "Don't read that, read this instead." However, my initial thoughts about this book are far from good.

I don't even know where to start when it comes to expressing how bad I thought this was. It reads less like a well-structured novel and more like a random stream of ideas, similar to a dream of cheese on toast that was dictated into a Dictaphone and then typed up.

To pick almost at random, consider this passage: "They moved past dim bunkers, dark trenches, still figures, stopped trucks, sunken tanks, taped windows, hooded guns, raised poles, grey clearings, wrecked buildings and slitted lamps; all the paraphernalia of the outskirts of the headquarters camp. He watched it all and wished - as they moved closer to the centre, to the old castle that had become his home in all but name over the last couple of months - he wished that he did not have to stop, and could just go on driving through the dawn and the day and the night again forever, cleaving the finally unyielding trees towards nothing and nowhere and no-one - even if it was in an icy silence - secure in the nadir of his sufferings, perversely content that at least now they could grow no worse; just to go on and on and never have to stop and make decisions that would not wait but which might mean he would commit mistakes he could never forget and would never be forgiven for…"

The way the story is told is also rather roundabout and can be quite annoying.

The story features 3 main characters (although it also involves 3 other rather underdeveloped characters), all of whom speak with the same offhand cockiness as smart-alecky teenagers.

It is impossibly romantic, not in the traditional "darling your sunshine makes my knees buckle" way, but rather in a philosophically condescending manner that implies mankind should be remade in the image of the protagonist for their own good or else they will die.

At one point, the Culture's representative says, "In all the human societies we have ever reviewed, in every case in every state, there has seldom if ever been a shortage of eager young males prepared to kill and die to preserve the security, comfort and prejudices of their elders, and what you call heroism is just an expression of this simple fact; there is never a scarcity of idiots." By this stage, the reader is left wondering who is actually fooling who.

Meanwhile, the main protagonist is traumatized by a chair, due to some traumatic vision that occurred while sitting on a chair. As a result, he feels a bit odd every time a chair comes into view. So, while he is racing around the universe, battling against the forces of whatever, being torn to shreds, shot at, and chased, the reader is constantly on the lookout for the possibility that every room he bursts into may contain a chair.

And on page 380, he says, "But he realised even as he thought about it all that he no longer really cared," and you can't help but think to yourself, "Well, if you don't, I'm bloody sure I don't either."

It can be truly awkward when an author I hold in high regard does an excellent job of narrating an exciting story, yet it's about a character I couldn't care less about.

Cheradenine Zakalwe, yes, it's a sci-fi name that requires a glossary to pronounce correctly. He is a soldier hired by the Culture, a post-scarcity, high-minded civilization that loves to meddle with other worlds and systems. People like Zakalwe assist the Culture in carrying out unsavory activities with the intention of making the universe a better place.

However, here lies the problem: Zakalwe is an incredibly uninteresting character. Every other chapter is a narrative that runs backwards, describing his life up to the present. These chapters mess up the story in two ways. Firstly, they disrupt the flow, and secondly, they fail to truly engage me with the protagonist.

He's just a bland soldier with some upsetting things in his past. There, I've just saved you 400 pages of what feels like aimless writing.

What's even more aggravating is that all of the peripheral characters are more interesting than the protagonist. Throughout the entire book, I kept getting hints of more captivating stories that were left unexplored in favor of following Zakalwe's boring macho sensitive warrior act.

The final straw is the twist that comes in one of the last chapters. It negates most of Zakalwe's character while suggesting a more interesting personality that the reader is never allowed to access.

All the information that the writer withholds would have made Zakalwe a character worth investing in, but this book took me months of lackadaisical reading to finally finish. The only reason it gets an extra star and the only thing that kept me going is the quality of the writing. Banks is great at描绘 fantastical scenarios, but it was still a difficult read.

Kurt Vonnegut once said, "Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To hell with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages." Iaian M. Banks would have benefited greatly from heeding this wisdom.

Rounding up to I liked it, though this was an odd one.

Much of half the book I liked, most of the other half I didn't much. Partly this is due to the book's structure. The second half of each chapter is a flashback to the past, mostly going further back in time each flashback. But these flashbacks are often so incomplete as far as context that it's frustrating. Worse, it felt like the entire story was designed to be frustrating. Perhaps it was done in a clever way, but still frustrating, even though I like good mystery.

Plus, I never found the central character sympathetic or even terribly interesting. Sma and Skaffen-Amtiskaw saved this one for me. If not for them it would have been a DNF. The beginning of chapter two is a scene referenced in the synopsis, that I'd only wish there'd have been more of. Not necessarily that sort of action, but more action involving those two.

Beyond that, it'd be hard to say much without spoilers. If you want a big spoiler as far as a final frustration with this book, here: It turns out the guy we've followed all book isn't the supposed MC at all, but a well-known enemy who has gone so insane he firmly believes he's the supposed MC. Not only is this a final FU in what seems a deliberately frustrating work, as another reviewer said it adds nothing to the story. To me, the story would have been more impactful if the MC was who he was supposed to be. Because I'm much more moved by a character who is trying to redeem himself and find forgiveness when he might be worthy of it than when it turns out he absolutely deserves only contempt.

This one gets a provisional recommendation: If you're not bothered by a purposely confusing narrative, or want to enjoy the bright spots enough to put up with things you might enjoy much less, go for it.

The thing that I continuously love about Iain Banks is that he never underestimates the intelligence of his readers.

Perhaps this is more common among British authors, but his novels are concise, witty, and demand the reader's full attention.

He expects us to be an active part of the reading process.

It's not easy, but it's always engaging.

Just like many science-fiction authors, Banks has created a "universe" that he revisits in several of his novels.

This is a "Culture" novel.

The Culture is an extremely advanced civilization, presumably human, who have liberated themselves from need to the extent that they can interfere in the affairs of others.

They inhabit massive ring habitats and intelligent continent-sized General Systems Vehicles.

In Use of Weapons, our protagonist is Zakalwe, a mercenary soldier for the Culture's Special Circumstances division - roughly equivalent to the CIA or MI-5.

A brilliant tactician and soldier, but an extremely troubled individual, Zakalwe's past continues to haunt him throughout assignment after assignment.

Banks peels back the story in layers - a chapter of the current challenge, a chapter of Zakalwe's past - one at a time until they converge at the very end and we discover that what has truly haunted Zakalwe is not what we anticipated.

So far, my favorite of Banks' novels is The Player of Games, which is a grown-up version of Ender's Game and, in my opinion, even a little better.

Use of Weapons is more aggressive, more physical, and less cerebral.

But that just demonstrates how broad Banks' range is.

I've seen Use of Weapons being mentioned as a favorite Iain M. Banks Culture novel by many people. I can understand the reason. It is indeed one of his finest works. However, personally, I would rank this as my third favorite Culture novel, behind Excession and The Player of Games.

Use of Weapons has many advantages. There is plenty of action, an interesting and mysterious protagonist, a pleasantly wicked and sideways look at the Culture's (well, Special Circumstance's) willingness to exploit non-Culture collaborators for their own purposes, and an ending that really gives a big impact and makes the book worthwhile in the final analysis. All the classic hallmarks of Banks are here.

And yet, there are also some structural issues that tend to reduce the quality of this book to some extent. Firstly, the constant switching between time and location can sometimes be a bit overwhelming. We are often lost in a maze of "Where are we? When are we?" speculation, which takes some time to figure out and requires some patience to get through. More annoyingly, there are several places in the narrative where the point of view suddenly jumps from one character to another in the middle of a paragraph. This seems very disturbing. And finally, there is a point in the middle to late part of the book where the flashbacks no longer seem to be strictly necessary and do not contribute much to the progress of the plot.

Fortunately, these issues are alleviated by the action and characters in the book, as well as the ending of the book, which seems very brilliant (although in retrospect, it also has some of its own illogical and mind-boggling aspects that are probably best not thought about for too long or too hard).

Excession surpasses it in terms of its uniqueness and its exploration of the Culture's machine-AI controlled society; and The Player of Games is superior in terms of tight pacing and overall internal structure. But Use of Weapons is still a fine 4-star work and well worth the time.

“Hey, my boy, it’s you and us knife missiles now,
Our lunge and speed and bloody secret:
The way to a man’s heart is through his chest!”

Wow, yeah, wow, um...

So I have a friend who is completely obsessed with Banks. He highly recommended that my initial two Banks books should be The Wasp Factory and this one. And here I am! I think I'm going to continue exploring Banks' works. A part of me had initially felt intimidated by his writing, but now I'm not intimidated at all. This book, in many ways, was quite silly, with a lot of humorous elements that I really appreciated, along with many exciting action scenes. And despite its numerous flaws, it's definitely a book that will stay on my mind.

I absolutely loved almost everything related to the Culture. Even at the beginning, I was like: sign me up to be their pet, it seems like it would be fun. But that perception changed as I delved deeper into this thick volume. My desire to understand the Culture better is the reason I will keep reading the books in this cycle, as I'm not entirely satisfied with the aspects we see here. The humans it employs seem happy, having all their needs met, which includes parties, drugs, sex, and amazing healthcare. There are many details that I really enjoyed, like the drone Skaffen-Amtiskaw and the furry baby that was the Xenophobia ship (no, I won't explain, lol).

However, there are numerous wars in this book, both in the forward and backward timelines. And it's never really clear who exactly the Culture is supporting and what those supported sides are fighting for. There's a sort of genericness to the wars going on here. While it may work thematically, it rather robs the Culture of a clearer picture of their goals and methods.

And oh yeah, the main character is terrible. He is maybe just a couple of steps above the cliché of the warmonger/mercenary. He believes in nothing, is completely lost, and of course, can't connect with people at all. Is there trauma there? For sure. A whole lot of it. But there doesn't seem to be much else, just emptiness and festering. And I've seen this story play out too many times. Zakalwe is the most prominent weapon in the title, used by the Culture for its own ends. And damn, that made it so boring to read at times. I really couldn't care less about what was happening to this guy.

Also, there's a twist/reveal at the end that I'm not sure really works. Maybe it would work on a reread, but I feel like it's not entirely fair to leave it to a reread when the author could have helped the readers integrate it better into the narrative. All the chair foreshadowing did pay off in a rather big way, though!

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the gender dynamics in this book are very much of the 90s. Most of the female characters are just in cliché roles, and Zakalwe's sexist perspective may have something to do with that. But it's really not enjoyable to read, not at all. There are a bunch of casual rape mentions (of both genders, and they're not addressed at all) and a whole lot of fridgings. It feels very much from a male perspective. The most prominent female character is Diziet Sma, and she is quite sex positive as a character, but it has a very 'cool lady of the 90s' sort of vibe.

So yeah, I will read this again at some point (we're doing a Banks book club, reading all his books in order, but I read this out of order because I couldn't wait for so many months to get into the Culture). And I will also try some more Culture books soon!

Upon finishing Use of Weapons, I was truly surprised to realize that I hadn't enjoyed it as much as I had expected. I had a suspicion that this might be the case at various points while reading, but it didn't really hit home until the plot finally worked itself out. I then realized that everything that came before was in service of building up to the conclusion, with the intention of leaving the reader with a big "WOW!!" moment. Unfortunately, my reaction was more along the lines of "What? That's just ridiculous!"

The sacrifices made to Bank's style in order to carry out this plot also had a negative impact on my enjoyment. The narrative revolves around Cheradenine Zakalwe, and it does so in a very strict sense. Banks spends a significant amount of time inside his protagonist's head, delving into memories and mixing them with supposed reality. While this is done well from a technical perspective, as a reader, I simply didn't care about the character. I think this was because I was constantly confused about what he was trying to achieve. The Culture's motivations are clear, and to some extent, Zakalwe's past is his own, but the purpose and strategy used during the missions seemed unnecessarily convoluted.

Spending so much time with Zakalwe means that we spend less time with the characters and their dialogue interactions. This is a significant problem because this is one of, if not Bank's strongest attributes as an author. His ability to give drones real character is a consistent achievement in each of his books. However, in this entry, we see less of them and their human colleagues.

Another issue that carries over from Player of Games is that his alien societies are simply too similar to our own. I understand that he wants to use science fiction as a way to explore our intrinsic human problems, but couldn't these worlds be constructed with more imagination for allegorical purposes?

There are some enjoyable moments in the book, specifically when the plot zooms in from the macro and focuses on the immediate purpose. Here, Bank's creates some truly impressive action sequences that easily come alive in the reader's mind. The character interactions are good, although limited, and using the title of the novel to apply to everything and everyone in the story was an interesting touch.

But overall, these positive elements were heavily outweighed by the negative aspects, leaving me with a somewhat disappointing reading experience.

Every time I finish reading another book about culture, I find myself overcome with a profound sense of emotion. I weep for the deep and complex feelings that the author manages to convey through the written word. The stories, the traditions, the values - they all touch my heart and make me reflect on the rich tapestry of human experience.

And then, I weep again for the inevitable death of the author. These brilliant minds who have dedicated their lives to sharing their insights and knowledge with the world are no longer with us. Their passing is a loss not only to the literary community but to all of us who have been touched by their work.

What a book! It has the power to move us, to make us think, and to connect us with the past and the present. It is a testament to the human spirit and our ability to create something beautiful and meaningful.

I will always cherish the books I have read and the emotions they have evoked in me. They have become a part of my life and have shaped the way I see the world.

I have been pondering for quite some time on how to pen down a review for this book.

To be frank, I am still at a loss as to how to accurately describe it, so I'll just ramble on.

The book continues the narrative of The Culture. However, to be honest, I read the other books in this series so long ago that my memory of the story is rather hazy. I find Ian Banks' books to be quite like that. I read them, and then I forget.

Here, we have a story presented in two parts. One part progresses forward from chapters 1 to 10, while the other part goes backwards from chapter X to I. This can be quite confusing because both stories revolve around our protagonist, Zakalwe, who is an agent of The Culture. His task is to prevent major wars by initiating smaller ones (sort of like back burning, isn't it?).

The confusion intensifies when you are reading the two stories simultaneously. At some point in his past, Zakalwe has a similar experience to the one he is currently having, leaving you unsure which part of the story you are in. Confused yet? This isn't the first time Banks has written in such a style.

Apart from that, the story is actually quite engaging. There is a major concern regarding a huge galactic war that needs to be quelled, which is the job of The Hidden Culture, with their main assassin/warlord, Zak. Simultaneously, we have a story about how Zak became who he is. Going back to his youth, you can see right from the start that he has some serious psychological issues concerning his sister, and this story is gradually unveiled as the plot progresses.

What I liked the most about this story was the humor. At times, I literally burst out laughing at the hilarity. Most of these moments occurred when a drone, whose name I can't recall and could never pronounce, was involved. His interactions with Zak and the ship minds were just uproariously funny.

There are also some rather bizarre moments in the story. Banks' readers will recognize his style of suddenly throwing in something completely unexpected, like a body part swapping orgy, to keep you on your toes and make you double-check the cover of the book to ensure you didn't pick up someone else's book on the train.

The second half of the story progresses very quickly. I was struggling at around 25%, but I couldn't put it down once I passed 75%. If Goodreads gave us half stars, then this would be a solid three and a half. It is not a 3-star book, but I can't give it a 4 either.

It's an interesting read, but it's rather difficult to discuss while reading.

**Expanded Review of 'Use of Weapons'**

Basic premise rundown: Tired of a lifetime filled with war and interference, former Special Circumstances agent Cheradenine Zakalwe longs for retirement and to vanish from the grid. However, the Culture has other plans for him. His handler, Diziet Sma (alongside her dry and sarcastic drone companion), arrives to pull him out of retirement for one final job. The task? To coax an old politician out of retirement and use him to quell a brewing war in the system.

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(Sidebar: The premise interestingly mirrors the book's creation on a meta level, as seen in the acknowledgments. Banks blames Ken MacLeod for the idea of convincing the old warrior to come out of retirement and for suggesting the fitness program too. It's quite a revelation to discover that this was one of the first books Banks wrote, back in 1974, while the first Culture novel wasn't published until 1987 and 'Use of Weapons' in 1990. Essentially, he dusted off this novel and brought it back into the spotlight.)

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Review: As I neared the end of this book, I was initially inclined to give it 3 stars. But then, the ending completely blew me away, elevating its rating by a full star. I won't disclose the details, but trust me, reaching the end is truly worthwhile, although overall, I did have a preference for some other Culture novels.

This book solidifies Banks, in my opinion, as one of the most innovative writers I'm currently reading. What I adore about him is his extensive experimentation with narrative techniques, format, and structure. Sometimes it doesn't quite hit the mark, but that's okay. At least he showcases a playfulness with form that keeps his writing from being dull and predictable. Whether it's through epistolary transcripts, dual narrators, hopping perspectives between universes, or in this case, two narrative threads moving forward and backward in time - one following Zakalwe's present-day adventures and the other counting backwards through his history and origins. It's difficult to describe, but TV Tropes summed it up nicely: "The two main approaches to the ending is one story working forwards towards the events, and a second story working backwards to their meaning."

I think I would have benefited from knowing this aspect from the start. To my dismay, it took me a while to engage with the book and understand the flow of the chapters. This very narrative experimentation also slows down the pace of the book somewhat. Despite all the action, the numerous flashbacks and shifts away from the present-day arc make it feel surprisingly sedate, portraying Zakalwe wallowing in his guilt, seeking meaning in his life, and taking a break from everything to, almost literally, stop and smell the roses.

That being said, those flashbacks are a wonderful portrayal of a soldier attempting to escape the soldiering life, even though it's the only thing he excels at. Especially when aligned with the present-day arc, it's clear that his retirement failed miserably as he's back in the thick of things once again. War, strangely enough, is one of the few things that brings him happiness. The character arc of Zakalwe coming to terms with this fact about himself is quite poignant. You don't want to view him as unhinged, but when he takes mass death in stride and approaches war like a delightful mathematical problem to be solved, well... (I also enjoyed the juxtaposition of poetry and war; Zakalwe's attempts at writing poems are rather comical.)

'Use of Weapons' is also a fascinating exploration of the Culture, Contact, and Special Circumstances, and their tendency to use people as unwitting pawns. One of my favorite throwaway quotes, from near the end (not really a spoiler), is:

  The man was a walking mess and there were still two bullets inside him, but he refused to accept any treatment until he'd seen this woman. Bizarre, Skaffen-Amtiskaw thought, using an extended field to block the path of a small insect as it felt and picked its way up the trunk of the tree. The insect changed direction, feelers waving. There was another type of insect further up the trunk, and Skaffen-Amtiskaw was trying to get them to meet, to see what would happen.


Bizarre, and even — indeed — perverse.

What's brilliant is that 'bizarre and perverse' is meant to describe the man, but it can be applied even more fittingly to the drone. In that moment, Skaffen-Amtiskaw's aimless, omnipotent meddling represents the entire Culture's insatiable curiosity and meddlesome nature.

The book is melancholy, full of twists, and disturbing, exploring how people (and even the most seemingly innocuous objects) can become weapons. Again, to quote TV Tropes (sorry, I just love that site): "It's not called Use of Weapons just because of the guns." Throughout the book, the constant references to the chair made me roll my eyes. What could possibly be so traumatizing about a chair? But given Banks' penchant for twisted and sordid tales, I should never have doubted it. Just... Oh.

Anyway, this leaves me with only one Culture novel remaining, the brand-new 'Hydrogen Sonata', and I've been procrastinating because I don't want to run out. The Culture is one of my favorite settings to explore.

I firmly believe that there is a remarkable short story that could be gleaned from this overly verbose novel. The poor-quality prose and the tiresome repetition of uninteresting and unjustified events have transformed the reading experience into an excruciating and mind-numbing journey.

It is truly unnecessary to pad the narrative with 300 filler pages just to convey the rather simplistic point that "all wars are the same."

A more concise and engaging approach could have been employed to effectively communicate this message.

Perhaps the author could have focused on a few key scenes or characters, eliminating the extraneous details that serve only to bog down the story.

In this way, the essence of the novel could have been preserved while presenting a more streamlined and captivating read.

As it stands, however, the novel suffers from its excessive length and lack of editorial refinement.