Excession Hb d/Bx12 and Header

No cover

Excession Hb d/Bx12 and Header (1996, Little, Brown Book Group Limited)

English language

Published May 10, 1996 by Little, Brown Book Group Limited.

ISBN:
9781857234169

View on OpenLibrary

4 stars (2 reviews)

Two and a half millennia ago, the artifact appeared in a remote corner of space, beside a trillion-year-old dying sun from a different universe. It was a perfect black-body sphere, and it did nothing. Then it disappeared.

Now it is back.

7 editions

Surprisingly thin

3 stars

Rereading books is an interesting exercise. Books are unchanging. They remind us of their original qualities; what drew us to them. They can never change with us.

Excession is the first Culture novel where Banks gives us much insight into the Minds and the Culture itself. I remember loving this book in the ‘90s, it felt so fresh and original.

Now it seems more like a shaggy dog story. It never gets to the point, if there is a point, and the characters are single-note vehicles for plot alone. I was really disappointed.

Review of 'Excession' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

(Reread.) Revisiting this was rewarding. Probably my second-favorite Culture novel. I think I picked up on a lot more of the intricacies this time around. The plot is convoluted enough that motivations are hard to understand on the first go-round.