I have a deep affection for the Banks’ Culture series. In my perspective, they present a universe that would have a distinct flavor if colonized by the English rather than the US peoples. The irony and subtlety within these books are profound, and nowhere is this more evident than with the Minds. These are the supercomputers that govern everything and enable the dominant species to lead a hedonistic lifestyle. As the story progresses, the Minds develop unique personalities and interests, which further enriches the plots.

"Excession" is dedicated to the Minds within the Culture universe. Initially, I struggled with this book, and it truly frustrated me. It wasn't the language or the main plot that was the issue, but rather the ship's names. These significant characters just didn't seem to stick in my mind, and it was quite annoying. Additionally, the secondary plots, which would later prove to be crucial, also felt like a strain. They appeared to be meandering aimlessly, without any clear connection. However, suddenly, it all clicked! Everything made perfect sense.

This book can really be seen as an allegory of world politics. Two countries desire something, and they are willing to go to extreme lengths, even wiping each other out, in order to gain ownership. Often, they don't even know what that "thing" truly is - it could be pieces of land or perceived technology. The big players are always the military leaders, who manipulate each opposing party through devious means and intricate plans. These plans are so convoluted that they have a high probability of failing, putting everyone at risk. In this regard, there are elements of James Bond or Jason Bourne in the story, although not in a traditional sense.

The wit and personalities of the Minds were enjoyable and held my interest throughout. Some of the human characters were also quite interesting. For example, Genar-Hofoen desires to become an Affronter (an alien species) after his assignment. This reminds me of those who defect and wish to be assimilated into the foreign culture that they have worked for as a diplomat (the Cambridge Five come to mind). However, there were other characters that I simply didn't care about, whether they appeared in the pages or not. There is one very unsatisfactory plot line that seems more important than it should be and then simply fizzles out in the final pages. I can't help but wonder, what was THAT about, Mr Banks??!!

This is not one of Banks’ strongest Culture novels. I would definitely not recommend this to someone new to the series. It is really more suited for lovers of the Culture universe, who are able to overlook the numerous weaknesses that are present in the book.

**Expanded Article**

Excession takes us into a rather strange part of the Culture, the Minds. In prehistoric times, they were sometimes called AI, though that image is as evocative as calling humans quasi-rats. We discover a society far removed from the SF and hard-science future promoted by Maya Banks. Instead, it is much closer to the underlying power structures: plots, counterplots, and revelations are the lot of these entities whose lives can span thousands of years. Of course, there is the will to describe a realistic power, but in fact, Banks is deluding himself. What he describes is the structure of American power, with shadowy figures lurking everywhere, "agencies" or rather interest groups that trip each other up for the greater good of the nation. We clearly see this aspect, hidden beneath the rather complacent use of inferior civilizations, especially the Affront. Apart from this philosophically awkward aspect, it remains for me one of the best Culture novels, as it immerses us most deeply in this pan-galactic civilization, quite comparable to an idealized America (but that's just my opinion).

Point of view better developed in a debate on fr.rec.arts.sf (unfortunately undated)

The quoted text is from an unknown contributor, and the responses are mine.

>I appeal to those who have recently read Excession by Ian M. Banks or who remember it well. Before that, I want to warn you that there are spoilers, so I will do what I believe is customary (stop me if I'm wrong).

As a preamble, let's simply state that this book is a study of political fiction in an anarchic universe. The objective is thus to study, within a system where power is evenly distributed, how a pressure group can achieve its ends without ever (or if it does, only in a veiled and utilitarian way) revealing itself.

>I'm fine. Generally, I understand the story and the meaning of the books I read (or at least I have the impression of understanding them, and that's what counts!!!), but I didn't fully understand the whole thread of the story (maybe reading 3 - 4 pages here and there between two subway stations doesn't help at all). In fact, what was the plot (or rather conspiracy) of the "Band of Interesting Times"?

Let's first set the initial situation. The Culture dominates the galaxy as a political power. However, its bases prohibit it from attacking anyone, or even defending itself (since as a pacifist society, it does not officially have an army). Moreover, although theoretically tolerant and likely to accept any form of deviance, it can only reprove the Affront, a young band of barely evolved galactic savages who have built their power on extortion, murder, and the pain of the oppressed. The description of the Affront society is simply delicious: prey that secrete hormones similar to adrenaline as soon as they see Affronters, to companions who have been modified to be unable to live without being oppressed by a male, it's like a fantasy of total power. Since it cannot tolerate the Affront as it is, the Culture *must* transform it. However, it can only propose its mutation (this is the role of the ambassador sent to the Affront planet). However, this is not enough. This is where the Band of Interesting Times intervenes. It prepares a trap that should allow it to gain the upper hand over the Affront and emasculate all these fierce conquerors (sic). The Band of Interesting Times thus prepares a whole mechanism that should allow it to politically destroy the Affront by militarily destroying it (at least that's my interpretation). Then all that is needed is an event, and that is the Excession which, by appearing on the border, will stimulate all the hatred accumulated by the Affront and launch it into a war lost in advance.

>Who were really its members?

I don't remember the names anymore, but generally, all the Minds involved in the discussions quoted in the book are part of it, as well as, of course, Couch-Potato, who is clearly the dormant agent of the band.

>The Excession was it there to test the members of the Culture?

Not the Culture, but the Affront: for the Culture, there are only a few losses, but for the Affront, everything is lost.

Mxxxxxp wrote with an inspired pen on fr.rec.arts.sf

>It's also, and perhaps the worst danger of the Affront: its subversiveness. Genar has as a dream to become an Affronter... and somewhere, it's described like that that we're not far away! Yann, have you read Excession? There are things you might like, I think :)

I didn't really understand your whole sentence. But it seems to me that I read in it a certain metaphorical vision of the Affront. You would imply that it could represent, using the right reading grid, a pessimistic vision of a possible future for humanity in which genetic manipulations make us the equals of gods, who modify their environment to their liking with the sole aim of satisfying destructive impulses? This is a possible reading, which of course brings us back to the good old moral dictum on science: in this case, the Culture represents a moralizing order that seeks to normalize the rest of the world (oops, of the universe) according to its moral criteria only, and the Affront is the young pretentious, undeniably immoral, who will be punished by the great power.

>>Then all that is needed is an event, and that is the Excession which, by appearing on the border, will stimulate all the hatred accumulated by the Affront and launch it into a war lost in advance.

>Yes, but one can ask questions about this, because it falls rather neatly!

Yes, but the objective of the novel is not to know how it appears, but rather to demonstrate how it can be used.

>>I don't remember the names anymore, but generally, all the Minds involved in the discussions quoted in the book are part of it, as well as, of course, Couch-Potato, who is clearly the dormant agent of the band.

>Almost all, in fact (I think the kamikaze is not part of it, or at least it seems to me).

Yep.

><> Not the Culture, but the Affront: for the Culture, there are only a few losses, but for the Affront, everything is lost.

>There, I don't agree. At the end with Couch-Potato Service, it seems quite clear to me that the Excession is really an Excession, isn't it?

What's the difference between an excession and an Excession? ;) Joking aside, it seems to me that Couch-Potato Service sacrifices itself, but with full knowledge of the facts, and with the objective of going to see what is behind this excession, which takes us out of the novel.

>>You're welcome. I've been waiting for a long time for a great discussion on this wonderful book. Marypop, bring your wisdom here!

>Heh heh... I talked about it not long ago, I think, right?

Yeah, but too few people talk about it, and that's a shame, in my opinion.

>Well, I really liked it. The humanity of the VSG and others is really interesting. However, one can say that the female characters are a bit over the top in this book... Did the author have a fantasy or something?

Only the female characters? I find them all a bit exaggerated, myself.

>But okay; we had some stories of drones before, here we can see that it's nothing compared to the ships!! And finally, poor human companions.

Yes, that's really what we understand: the average human of the Culture is nothing, except a convenient means of expression for the various Minds. This does not detract from my thesis of the political novel. Let me explain, don't panic. For me, Excession is a political fable intended to demonstrate, as indeed most of the Culture novels can be, that the average man is manipulated by forces that exceed him, and whose own interests are privileged over the common interests. Thus, the Band of Interesting Times *wants* to see the Affront cease to be one and therefore takes all the measures to deal with it, even though for the rest of the Culture the Affront is nothing more than just another extra-terrestrial people. In this context, the manipulation carried out by the BTI (Band of Interesting Times) aims to give the Affront an image likely to motivate the Culture a little so that it gives it a good thrashing. Transposed into contemporary terrestrial geopolitics, this novel takes on all its flavor: from Kuwait to Afghanistan, there are always good reasons for armed troops to intervene, which are very rarely the legitimate desire to see other peoples emancipate themselves.

This book is not by any means the best in the Culture series. However, it is an interesting addition.

I really liked the atmosphere of menace and mistrust that gradually builds up throughout the book. The focus on all the non-human minds enriches the portrayal of the Culture.

Nevertheless, the story seems overly ambitious and overloaded. At times, it is extremely difficult to keep track of which of the amusingly named ships are doing what, with whom, and under what pretenses.

After a well-paced build-up for approximately three-quarters of the book, the last few chapters come together a little too rapidly to be truly satisfying. It feels as if the author rushed to tie up all the loose ends instead of allowing the story to unfold more naturally.

Overall, while there are some enjoyable aspects to this book, it also has its flaws. It could have benefited from a more streamlined plot and a more gradual conclusion.

This is the first of Banksie's Culture books that I've read.

Lots of people suggest that Player of Games is a better starting point. However, this was a group read, and thus start here I did. Consequently, I got dumped in at the deep end. For the first few chapters, it's very much a case of sink or swim.

Once you've overcome the shock, it settles down into an interesting, albeit never really "exciting" read. There were far too many diverse characters. Almost everything is a "character", from people to aliens, drones, bots, ships, and even the space suits. It was difficult for me to really keep track of or care much about what happened to them. So, at the end, I wasn't fired up to immediately go and seek out another Culture novel. Nevertheless, I'm certain that I shall read more in the fullness of time.

3 1/2 stars.