The Player of Games

By: Iain M. Banks

Narrated by: Peter Kenny

Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

The Culture - a human/machine symbiotic society - has thrown up many great Game Players, and one of the greatest is Gurgeh. Jernau Morat Gurgeh. The Player of Games. Master of every board, computer, and strategy. Bored with success, Gurgeh travels to the Empire of Azad, cruel and incredibly wealthy, to try their fabulous game... a game so complex, so like life itself, that the winner becomes emperor. Mocked, blackmailed, almost murdered, Gurgeh accepts the game, and with it the challenge of his life - and very possibly his death.

©2008 Iain M. Banks (P)2011 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Poetic, humorous, baffling, terrifying, sexy - the books of Iain M. Banks are all these things and more." ( NME)

"An exquisitely riotous tour de force of the imagination which writes its own rules simply for the pleasure of breaking them." ( Time Out)

Fantastic story read by wonderful actor

Iain Banks is a hugely creative author, Peter Kenney nailed the reading. One of my top 3 books ever read next to the Hitchhiker's Guide series and Iain Banks' Use of Weapons.

Excellent story, highly recommended

Just fantastic, the world of The Culture is hypnotic and alluring on so many levels. The narrator did a top notch job and I'm looking forward to more tales from The Culture!

Sci-Fi at its Best

The Player of Games is an excellent, engrossing story. The book starts with a fascinating expose of the world, falls flat a bit in the middle, but finishes with brilliance.

The writing, particularly in the final third, is technically excellent and manages to be at once pithy and flowery. The performance of the voice actor is outstanding, with only a slight gripe being the chosen accent for a major group of characters.

Overall, I would highly recommend The Player of Games to any sci-fi fan who enjoys political intrigue, social commentary, and imaginative scenery.

Brilliant.

This is a splendid book. It is highly imaginative and skillfully plotted. The writing, which is graceful and unlabored, is enhanced by a narration that never hits a false note.

Culture at its finest

Great definition by comparison between the Culture v. Despotism rule and life. Actually applicable to today in our divided society. Puts forward an outcome of underestimating a preference for peace and education with the will +ability to back that up vs the stepping off first with force and aggression ruled along rigid artificially created lines of fear, disinformation, and differentiation.

Great introduction to The Culture series

On the surface this is a great adventure story in which the playing of games becomes as exciting as a physical combat scene in an action movie. Underneath it is a provocative discussion of how intelligent individuals who live as part of larger social groups might best arrange their relationships with each other. The themes are abstract, brilliantly captured in the game play itself, yet never, ever tedious or boring. I agree with reviewer Guy that this is a great introduction to the The Culture series, so this is especially recommended for those who have not previously encountered Banks. Peter Kenny read the story brilliantly, doing an exceptional job of giving each character a unique voice.

Excellent and entertaining. Highly recommended.

Would you listen to The Player of Games again? Why?

Probably not -- but I almost never do repeat listens, mostly because there's too much else out there to read / hear.

What about Peter Kenny’s performance did you like?

Strong delivery, always easily understandable with a wide variety of voices and accents.

Any additional comments?

This was my first Culture novel. It won't be my last. Highly recommended.

A Beautiful Game

What made the experience of listening to The Player of Games the most enjoyable?

The idea of a culture or society as an elaborate game is an old one, but rarely developed better than here. Games usually attempt to be a reflection of life, but a concept of one which is life in all its complexity is a fascinating idea, and one which Banks really brings to life here.

Have you listened to any of Peter Kenny’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have, and this one, as with all of his performances, is excellent. He does a great job of fitting his voice to the story and allowing you to get lost in the plot.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There is a moment where the protagonist is describing how he feels about winning, and the hollowness it creates. In games and in life there is a far greater satisfaction in playing beautifully than in winning, and this is something well captured by this scene.

excellent story, excellent reader.

the reader does the voices perfectly, the story is deep and intriguing. 10/10. would listen again.

This book is perfect.

I loved this book. This is the logical starting point to the Culture. Everything about this book is so good. It has triumph of the human spirit, it has hard sci-fi, it has super smart machines, it has perfect games being played and described perfectly.