Matter

I discovered these books (and the author) entirely by accident - at an airport, back in 2009 - I think it was Matter. Was hooked, and then read the entire series (inasmuch as they're a series) over the next twelve months. Banks was an author with a truly singular style. He is sorely missed.

I thoroughly enjoyed Iain M. Banks 'Culture' novels [1] (sci-fi), in particular 'Surface Detail', 'Matter' and 'The Player of Games'. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culture

Fiction, mostly. Declare, by Tim Powers. Cold war espionage with black magic. Entertainingly bleak, and probably did a lot more weirdness with real history than I knew how to appreciate. Producing Open Source Software (http://producingoss.com/), by Karl Fogel. A very thorough look into all sorts of practical matters in running a large open source software project. The Engines of Light trilogy by Ken MacLeod. Entertaining, though a bit erratic. Makes a bunch of Forteana fit in a hard SF framework. Also the second MacLeod book I've read that has a weird pixie dust immortality treatment that seems incongruous with the rest of the technology level. Matter by Iain M. Banks. Culture again after Algebraist. Still good. The Dark Side of the Sun by Terry Pratchett. Finally got around to reading this one. Was surprisingly fresh. It would have been interesting to see Pratchett write more science fiction after this and Strata around 30 years ago. The City and the Stars by Arthur C. Clarke. Another old SF book. This one wasn't very fresh, seemed like two or three different novels stapled together, with bits and pieces that might work pretty well if it weren't for the other bits and pieces.…