Matter concerns itself with a shell planet, which Banks defines
better than I, called Sursamen. The king of this largely agrarian realm
comes to a brutal end, and one set of plots in the book focuses on the
resulting fight for power. That alone would be a good enough yarn,
especially when told by Banks. Still, you'd wonder what all of the fuss
was about.
It's the other set of threads about the Culture, which is Banks'
science-fiction stock in trade. The Culture is a utopian
galaxy-spanning society that is full of all of the technical gee-gaws,
like A.I. and orbital habitats, that make a geek's heart beat fast. And
within the Culture is Special Circumstances, a team of agents who are
charged with keeping balance in the universe. The daughter of the late
Sursamen king is an SC agent.
Like most other M. Banks books, Matter
twists in completely unanticipated ways and offers up ampules of
philosophy along with its plot. His characters--even the most
minor--are fully drawn and fascinating. A reader can feel her mind
twist around Banks' more fantastic ideas and marvel at the complicated
whimsy he creates. That alone is worth the price of admission.
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