Use of Weapons is a challenging book to read, and a book that challenges by nature: it's about war, the necessity of it, the uses of it, and the sorts of people it creates and requires. It's memorable, exciting, and packs an emotional punch.

A gripping book when you get into it, but a difficult read at first. The chapters vary between non-chronological and often chaotic episodes from the life of warrior-protagonist Zakalwe and the more accessible, easy-to-follow narrative of his Culture contact and handler, Diziet Sma. Diziet's chapters are perhaps less interesting, but give more context clues and reference points for constructing the narrative. That's why I call this book a difficult read: it requires more of your help in constructing itself than the average book. I believe it rewards the effort, and by the middle, I was far more interested in the bizarre and often brutal life of Zakalwe than in the Diziet storyline.

Zakalwe reminds me of a Roger Zelazny hero: competent but self-deprecating, jumping from frying pan to fire and getting burned, bruised and broken in the process. Wise-cracking in the face of death, and escaping, albeit scathed. I found most of the book hard to put down while I read it, and haunting afterwards.

I've only read a few Culture Novels thus far, but this one is part of a pattern I see emerging: protagonists who are outsiders, completely or partly, to the Culture. It's a good way of telling stories around a rather utopian setting. Due to the challenging beginning of this book, my current recommendation is that new Culture Novel readers read Player of Games, my favorite of the books so far (and one of my two favorite books read this year.) ( )

This is my favourite Banks novel. The writing is very clever and the main character Zakalwe carefully developed. In the quiet moments the real personality shines through, the dark past is slowly revealed and the book ends with a bang. Highly recommended. ( )

This is my favourite Banks novel. The writing is very clever and the main character Zakalwe carefully developed. In the quiet moments the real personality shines through, the dark past is slowly revealed and the book ends with a bang. Highly recommended. ( )

As the cover notes state: witty and horrific. ( )

Cleverly written to unfold the the life of Special Circumstances agent Zakalwe while at the same time exposing the way the civilisation known as the Culture uses people and whole civilisations as part of their game of Rebuilding the Universe to Fit Our Standards.

I have not read any of the other novels in the Culture suite and so initially knew less than nothing about the Culture. Initially it worried me, usually I start from the beginning of a series, but I was told this could stand on it's own, and so it did.

Shockingly revealing as (one of) the end(ings) was I personally feel that it is the greater questions asked that lingers with me, after I closed the book for the last time. Questions linked with the colonial/post colonial discussion (among others who has the right to intervene, and when) but also touching issues as ethics and morality.

I highly recommend anyone who enjoy thinking about such topics to read this book, but perhaps the fragmented writing style, with constant shifts in from whose perspective the tale is told, isn't for everyone. But to me that was part of what made this book a great experience. ( )