Reviews for Matter

The average rating for Matter based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-01-06 00:00:00 Carroll Pierce Like an onion or a profound human, the many layers of shellworlds and similar superstructures may give living space to trillion of human or whatever beings in the future. One of the most stunning features may be to mix different physics, geology, biology, mentality, and prosperity in each shell, open the gates from time to time to let them fight or cuddle and interbreed with each other and to manage everything with an AI-controlled, almighty, self-replicating, permanently morphing infrastructure that uses probability calculation and coincidences to let the system run for the only reason to generate data, knowledge, or entertainment for the ones running the shellworlds/amusement park studies. Another option and motivation for the builders of such megastructures might be to enable alien races to develop and evolve in different or optimized or hellish living conditions and form endless, ideological bloodlines by giving the species more and more power until they can begin uplifting or genociding others in neverending circles. There are many concepts for megastructures, some including the use of black holes, suns, etc., directly built inside, or better said around, those space anomalies to get endless energy. And all of it will be needed for such large scale building projects, including all the manipulation of physics, artificial gravity and suns and the avoidance of system errors and computer bugs that could wipe out a whole or some civilizations at once. Banks´ legendary Special Circumstances are around too to make the reading the ultimate Sci-Fi overkill. These unconventional problem solvers are the James Bonds of the culture, having to deal with all kinds of escalations and ethical disputes in this amazing universe, using creative problem-solving techniques and sensitivity. Or the sledgehammer. Tropes show how literature is conceptualized and created and which mixture of elements makes works and genres unique:

Review # 2 was written on 2016-09-13 00:00:00 Criss Ceci This is one of those horribly complicated books that is simultaneously strong and weak in the same exact areas at the same time. *groan* I mean, it starts off strongly with fantasy-type trials and tribulations in the empire, a king dying and his son being supplanted by the king's best friend, taking over the kingdom. Pretty standard... but then the whole other part of this novel is chock-full of purely wonderful heavy SF ideas that isn't entirely obvious at first but then becomes an infodump masterpiece of oddness and wonder and a world that really belongs as a movie just because the visual elements are completely amazing. The world. Oh my lord, the world. Layers and layers and layers with ancient species and high tech and even ascended species. These humans are only on some outer layer. The infodumping doesn't do it justice. Just... wow. Plus there's also different factions of the Culture, Special Circumstances against the rest, and no one seems to agree how to deal with people. :) And then there's the rogue Culture fragments that may or may not be in with the actual culture (either side), and the sister of the poor deposed kingling decided to quit Special Circumstances to help him out. Everything else just devolves into a huge technothriller with huge stakes and ships and some really amazing descriptions and adventure. So why am I only giving this a 4 star? Because while the ideas are amazing and this author is known for his wonderful characters and his ability with traditional fiction, too, the character's names are too difficult and the ideas are too info-dumpy rather than a flowing masterpiece. And to be entirely fair, I don't know how he could have done it better except by turning this novel into something much longer and gentle. So it feels flawed and utterly brilliant at the same time. Which is a shame. I really want to LOVE this novel, not just appreciate it to death. Which I do. Hell, I want to kind of worship it, but I can't quite LOVE it. How frustrating. I'll keep going! For straight ideas, Banks is one of those grand masters of SF. :) His characters, for their flaws, are still some of the most richly imagined. The plots are usually mind blowing. And if he could ever keep it all flowing and working together right without tripping over each other, I might start worshipping the man as a god. :)