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Notes -
Question though - after UoW and Player, did Phlebas grow on you a little?
In particular, I think having the main character be an avowed enemy of the "main character" of the rest of the series is just such an excellent expository vantage point. The world was built around The Culture before you started seeing things from its point of view. It was a multi-hundred-page prologue.
I'm not going to read the spoiler because I'm 10% into Excession but... now I'm nervous. Damnit.
Don’t worry, it’s not a serious concern. More of an aesthetic preference.
I read Phlebas second, having heard Player was a better starting point. So the comparison was always going to be biased. But I’d say my problems with the book were more about structure than vantage.
It’s a series of set pieces. Some of them were pretty neat, but they really don’t go anywhere until the finale. In hindsight, it sort of reminds me of The Last Jedi, adding destinations more for visuals than for advancing the plot or characters. The characters live on top of the setting rather than in it. In contrast, the other novels have a better linkage between place and purpose.
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