My first experience with Iain M. Banks' Culture cycle was
Consider Phlebas back in 2009. Regardless of its shortcomings, I found the novel to be a work of vast scope and rare imagination. The worldbuilding, especially, was fascinating. The Culture and the Idiran Empire are fighting a galaxy-spanning war; the Idirans fighting for their Faith, while the Culture fights for their right to exist. But for all of its strengths,
Consider Phlebas wasn't necessarily an easy book to get into.
Most of Iain M. Banks fans opine that
The Player of Games is an easier read and makes for a better entry point into the series, so I knew that this was the one I'd read next. Didn't think it would take me till 2017 to finally give it a shot, but that's the way love goes. For the most part I enjoyed reading that book and went through it in just a few sittings. Trouble is, it's just not something that stays with you for very long afterward. It's entertaining, witty, intelligent, and well-written. But ultimately,
The Player of Games is not a novel that makes you want to read more Culture titles. Which is why I'm not sure if it's a better starting point for newbies than
Consider Phlebas turned out to be.
Fast-forward to 2024, which hasn't been a banner year by any stretch of the imagination. My favorite reads have all been non-fiction works focusing on the Middle East and I keep trying to find speculative fiction novels that could get me out of that slump. The majority of Banks' readers seem to agree that
Use of Weapons is the author's masterpiece. So I figured that it was high time for me to finally read it.
And though I wouldn't go as far as calling this novel a masterpiece, it is the best Culture installment I've read thus far. Also, since none of the Culture books appear to follow one another, I feel that
Use of Weapons is the perfect novel for science fiction fans wanting to sample the Culture universe and get a feel for Banks' writing.
Here's the blurb:
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 and 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 lost cause. But not even its machine could see the horrors in his past.
Ferociously intelligent, both witty and horrific, Use of Weapons is a masterpiece of science fiction.
As was the case with
The Player of Games, though the worldbuilding is not as dense as in
Consider Phlebas, it remains my favorite aspect of
Use of Weapons. Problem is, three books into this series and I still know very little about these supposedly benevolent AIs that "look after" the worlds and civilizations part of the Culture. What we do discover is always in little bits and pieces and I'm now wondering if there is a novel in which the fullness of the Culture itself will ever be revealed. Once again, this was a major disappointment for me.
The worldbuilding may leave something to be desired, yet the characterization is what elevates
Use of Weapons to another level. Cheradenine Zakalwe is an agent of the Culture's Special Circumstances (an organisation part of Contact, which is a bigger institution that coordinates Culture interactions with other civilisations) who has gone rogue in the past. His former handler at SC is agent Diziet Sma. When a special mission for which only Zakalwe's special skillset is required must be organized, Sma and the drone Skaffen-Amtiskaw are sent to find him and try to convince him to rejoin SC. Even though Zakalwe takes center stage, I feel that Banks created a good balance between the three main characters. I particularly enjoyed how the drone was the comic relief throughout the book.
The structure of the novel is a bit unusual. The author went for two different timelines which alternate from one chapter to the other. The first one focuses on Sma and Skaffen-Amtiskaw's efforts to locate and then supervise Zakalwe's delicate mission and it occurs in real time. The second one, and this can be confusing at the beginning until you realize what's going on, follows Zakalwe's past and goes further back in time with each new chapter. This allows you to follow the protagonist's evolution and understand how/why he went rogue at some point. Interestingly enough, even though what is transpiring in the present is quite compelling, it is essentially Zakalwe's past that makes
Use of Weapons such a captivating read. My only complaint is that I sort of saw the big reveal at the very end coming from a few chapters away. Had I not picked up on this, I have a feeling I would have given the novel and even better score.
The rhythm is a bit slow at the start of the book, but it picks up rather quickly and there are no pacing issues to speak of. Cheradenine Zakalwe's tale, both past and present, makes for compulsive reading and you'll get through
Use of Weapons in no time. Banks brings this one to a satisfying conclusion, though the final revelation coming as no surprise to me robbed the ending of the impact it was meant to have on readers.
Highly recommended for anyone who's been thinking about giving Iain M. Banks a shot.
The final verdict: 8/10
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