It's a book that begins like a light-hearted sci-fi actioner (albeit salted with darkness from the memorable prologue onward) and ends in a nihilistic explosion of death, loss, and recrimination. A cult is responsible for the death of Sharrow's mother and the contract on Sharrow's life, while many other cults with strange beliefs and practices are encountered during the novel. On an island with a glass shore - relic of some even more ancient conflict - she discovers she is to be hunted by the Huhsz, a religious cult which believes she is the last obstacle before their faith's apotheosis.

The sky beyond the cliffs was filled with pale layered clouds which looked soft and clean and calm, while the mists below and behind the slowly rising car afforded hazy patchwork views of the canals, wharves and harbours of the city. She gave another small laugh and came forward, rising of the toes of her boots and kissing the android on its cheek. The cult has the government’s permission and approval to capture and kill Sharrow, and she’s got one year plus one day to evade them and gain her freedom.

Like many Ian m Banks, the story meanders, only really getting onto gear on the joining of the Android, about halfway through. Banks has something prophetic in mind in "Against a Dark Background," but it may have been a bit too subtle for most of the critics to get. Iain Banks was educated at the University of Stirling where he studied English Literature, Philosophy and Psychology. The shoes she'd been carrying dropped from her fingers to the cobblestones; she hopped on top of the shoes, lost her footing, and fell with a yelp into the luminous bushes. And the ending is almost as poignant, if a bit bleak, as some of my favorite parts of the Culture (almost, anyway).

The Culture: The Drawings– an extraordinary collection of original illustrations faithfully reproduced from sketchbooks Banks kept in the 1970s and 80s, depicting the ships, habitats, geography, weapons and language of Banks’ Culture series of novels in incredible detail. Sharrow's squad is a likeable bunch, each with their own specialisations and contribution to the team. It experienced a degree of regret that she could reappear so unexpectedly - and so delightfully - after its resurrection, only to give it another cause to mourn the passing of the old world .

A great example of this first edition first printing title, by Iain M Banks, that looks smart on the shelf in the archival fitted cover.

Banks makes up worlds, concepts, laws, forms of life, cultures and societies, he gives them all names and it all seems so natural.He was a (Lazy) gun on the table, needing to be fired, and some kind of villain was plainly waiting to emerge. She whistled and watched the sparkling sky, where Maidservant -- Golter's second moon -- shone blue-gray and bounteous near the horizon -- a great stone-and-silver ship escorted and surrounded by a school of flickering, glittering lights: habitats and factories, satellites and mirrors.