Excession Book Summary

In 'Excession' by Iain Banks, the Culture's advanced starship, the Sleeper Service, encounters a mysterious and powerful object known as the Excession, which transcends known reality. As factions within the Culture and beyond scramble to understand and control this enigmatic phenomenon, political intrigue and philosophical questions about power, consciousness, and existence come to the forefront. Characters from various backgrounds—human and AI—find themselves ensnared in a web of manipulation and unexpected alliances. The narrative ebbs and flows with the tension of impending conflict and the quest for knowledge, leaving readers questioning the nature of intelligence itself. Will the secrets of the Excession unlock a greater understanding, or bring about catastrophic consequences?

By Iain Banks

Published: 1997

"In a universe rich with potential and mystery, the measure of one's existence often hinges not on the answers we find, but on the questions we dare to ask."

Book Review of Excession

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. 'Banks is a phenomenon ... wildly successful, fearlessly creative' William Gibson 'Thrilling, affecting and comic ... probably the finest science fiction he has written to date' New Scientist 'Banks has rewritten the libretto for the whole space-opera genre' The Times

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In a universe rich with potential and mystery, the measure of one's existence often hinges not on the answers we find, but on the questions we dare to ask.

Excession

By Iain Banks