Way too much happens in this book to even try to summarise it properly. The plot is phenomenal, how all seemingly seperate storylines and characters come together is brilliant. I found nothing predictable and was really happy with it considering it was a random charity shop purchase I knew nothing about. 10/10 would recommend. 

Like her other books the dry has a small but well written cast of characters. The dual storylines

which appear to be connected but ultimately aren't

are really good. I'm not sure how much I like the flashback structure but ultimately it's a good read and quite easy. 

I really like the structure of this book. Written from the perspective of multiple characters some of which are the same but at different stages of the story. The plot and premise of the universe are quite unique and fun to read. Ultimately I would have liked more about the concern and rebellion, but even without this i still rate it a 4.5

I found the plot of this book compelling and it progresses at a nice smooth pace. The characters are all well done but a bit one dimensional. I find Jules Vergnes style of describing characters directly rather than allowing the reader to understand via their thoughts or actions a little bit dull. Overall its a good read and quite exciting, worth a read but the style of characters leaves a little bit to be desired. 

The book has small, but very well written, ensemble of characters. The protagonist is relatable yet unique and his journey in discovering the truth about his family is absorbing. Ultimately the book is a redemption story of the protagonists transition from loneliness and depression to happiness and companionship set to a back drop of a crime mystery. Highly recommend and will search out more of the authors works

Like the first in the series (Consider Phlebas) the protagonist is not a member of the culture but his story is closely linked to it. The structure of the book of 2 stories alternating each chapter with one moving forward in time and the other backwards ultimately meeting at the end was a really nice style. The ending is surprising and exciting, as always with culture books it's well worth a read. 

This is one of, if not the, best Sci fi book I've ever read. Of all the culture series I find this one the most enjoyable to read. It's a true demonstration of what the culture really is as a civilization showing the discrepancies between the values of society and the actions taken to preserve those values. The main character is fully relatable and the plot is engaging. I couldn't recommend this book more, you can read it as a standalone without the rest of the series and arguably is a good one to introduce people to the series. 

If you don't know much about probability but have some interest this book will be a good one for you. However if you are already aware of a lot of the concepts and come from a mathematics background I wouldn't recommend it. Unfortunately I found very little new in this book beyond specifics of names and dates which makes it like reading a reference textbook for me. It's not the fault of the book, it just seems I was not the target audience for this book. 

I really like Pullmans works normally but I didn't enjoy the style of this book. The concept is good and the overall plot is good which gains it a couple of points but the writing style feels very simplistic. I found it was very much x happened then ý said, then z said etc. It felt a bit like a childrens book in the style. 

The first entry in the culture series is brilliant. It builds the universe of the culture well, whilst still telling a great story from the view point of a protganist from outside the culture. You feel empathy for both horza and the culture throughout even though they are on opposite sides. The behaviour of the idrians is explained in a way that doesn't justify it but makes it believable beyond the simplicity of bad guy is bad. However there's one chapter in the middle which I really disliked and can't think as to why it is in the book as it doesn't seem to add anything to either the plot or the universe as a whole and as such I can't give it more than a 4 star rating. Highly recommend reading it though as well. As the rest of the series I've read so far.