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Use Of Weapons (The Culture) [Paperback]

Iain M. Banks (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (97 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 26 Mar 1992 | Series: The Culture

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

The woman known as Diziet Sma had plucked him from obscurity and pushed him towards his present eminence, but despite all their dealings she did not know him as well as she thought.

The drone known as Skaffen-Amtiskaw knew both of these people. It had once saved the woman's life by massacring her attackers in a particularly bloody manner. It believed the man to be a burnt-out case. But not even its machine intelligence could see the horrors in his past.

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Use Of Weapons (The Culture) + The Player Of Games (The Culture) + Consider Phlebas: A Culture Novel (The Culture)
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Product details

  • Paperback: 432 pages
  • Publisher: Orbit; New Ed edition (26 Mar 1992)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 185723135X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1857231359
  • Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 3.7 x 20 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (97 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 25,463 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

There is now no British SF writer to whose work I look forward with greater keenness (THE TIMES )

In many ways his best yet... rich, vivid and great fun. (VECTOR )

To say that Banks is Britain's best writer of science fiction would be to understate the case. He's simply one of our best novelists, whatever the genre. Read him (BOOK PEOPLE )

At last SF as it should be written!... If you aren't as yet familiar with these works I urge you to become so at your earliest opportunity. (CRITICAL WAVE )

About the Author

Iain Banks came to widespread and controversial public notice with the publication of his first novel, THE WASP FACTORY, in 1984. He has since gained enormous popular and critical acclaim for both his mainstream and his science fiction novels.
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning 24 April 2009
By A. Whitehead TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE™ VOICE
Format:Paperback
Cheradenine Zakalwe is a (non-Culture-born) agent in Special Circumstances, skilled in steering less-developed planets towards the path that the Culture thinks is best for them. Unlike most SC agents, Zakalwe's speciality is fighting and the use of weapons in both prosecuting wars, and averting conflicts. His handler is SC agent Diziet Sma who, along with her drone companion Skaffen-Amtiskaw, has to set out to locate Zakalwe when his abilities are needed again.

I've read enough of Iain Banks' other work to be able to say that Use of Weapons is almost certainly his masterpiece, which is really saying something compared to the high quality of his other novels. In this book everything just works. The characters are sublimely handled, with Banks immersing you in their lives to the point where you stop thinking of them as characters and instead accept them as people. The structure of the story is inventive without over-relishing its own cleverness. The chapters alternate between a forward-moving story about Diziet tracking down Zakalwe for a new mission, and how that mission unfolds, and a backwards-moving one as we follow Zakalwe's story back to his youth. Just to shake things up, both narratives also feature flashbacks to earlier events as well. The structure could have confusingly imploded in on itself (and earlier drafts stretching back fifteen years before it was published are apparently far more complex), but in the published book it works effortlessly. The storylines may be moving in different directions and feel dislocated from one another, but they collide with impressive force at the end of the novel in a stunning final chapter.

Banks' signature creation, the Culture, has never been so convincingly portrayed or as well-handled as in this book, and its total bafflement at Zakalwe's antics (personified by Skaffen-Amtiskaw's exasperation with events) is amusing to see. In fact, there's a lot of Banks' traditional black humour running through the book, lightening the gloom that threatens to descend during some of Zakalwe's more introspective moments.

Use of Weapons (*****) is a spectacularly good science fiction novel that addresses questions of memory, motivation, guilt and conscience in a consistently entertaining and sometimes very funny manner. A masterful novel from a writer at the very height of his powers, and highly recommended. The novel is available now from Orbit in the UK and USA.
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35 of 36 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Not for the hard of thinking 17 Sep 2007
By D. MacQueen
Format:Paperback
Dark, complex, full of twists, featuring unlikeable characters in almost unremittingly bleak circumstances. Great.

Do you like heroes? Plots where good and evil are easily distinguished? Straightforward, linear narratives? That's not here.

The book is like Marmite - there are those that loved it and those that hated it. The reviews from those that hated it make the same complains - basically the reasons I list for it being a great book in the first sentence.

If that sounds like your cup of tea, buy the book, it is the best of its kind. If it's not your thing, don't buy it, it's the worst of its kind.

Personally I think it's Banks' best.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Just look at the ratings... 24 Aug 2008
By xoob111
Format:Paperback
Just thought I'd add another 5-star review to this masterpiece. The characterisation is awe-inspiring, the progression on Zakalwe's life is compelling: his relationships, his ambitions and motives, and finally his daemons. This is a rare work of literature in the science fiction world, and really stands out from the the glut of techno-babble filled action thrillers that we find in the sci-fi sector.

Read this book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars you have to bear with it
It's a difficult read, but you're in for a treat at the end. I found it hard to keep engaged because of the regular lapses into zakalwe's history but it all comes together sweetly... Read more
Published 9 days ago by S. Golzari
3.0 out of 5 stars Over elaborate
I don't understand why a plot needs to be so opaque and so complex in order to make good literature.
Published 19 days ago by PeterG
4.0 out of 5 stars ian banks
excellant book follows rhe culture to a te, will follow the series to the end. looking forward to the next
Published 23 days ago by P. Nimmo
3.0 out of 5 stars Go on read
An ok book to read jumps around a bit,will buy Iain M Banks books again hoping the next one better
Published 1 month ago by Mr. W. D. Symmington
5.0 out of 5 stars An uncultured citizen
My second favourite Culture novel (to 'Player of Games') tells the story of Cheradenine Zakalwe, a black ops agent used by the benevolent Culture to do their dirty work in... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Zakalwe
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
This the first time I have tried Mr Banks and was lured by reviews including words like "masterpiece". But I was very disappointed. Well written, yes. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Cirrus Flyer
3.0 out of 5 stars It's OK
It's OK but not as good as his others. Too convoluted and the ending is clever, but disappointing. Matter is excellent.
Published 2 months ago by D. Snowdon
4.0 out of 5 stars Not his best, but bloody good.
Really got into the culture stuff recently, and although not his best one, this is still pretty amazing. if you like the culture, read this. if you don't, then don't.
Published 3 months ago by Stu
4.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking science fiction
If you haven't read any of the culture novels before, this is a good introduction. As for all of Iain M Bank's work it asks you to challenge your preconceptions, or ideas through... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Adam
3.0 out of 5 stars The style dominates
I think whether you will love this book or whether you'll hate it depends on what you think of the style. Read more
Published 4 months ago by infrequent
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