#144 in Science fiction
The Hydrogen Sonata
- 517
- Pages
- about 9 h
- Reading time
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Our view
“The Hydrogen Sonata” is a playful, idea-driven final Culture novel that sends its cast hunting for something lost. Behind the chase, a whole civilisation prepares to leave material existence. There are no simple villains, only parties at odds with reasons of their own. Some readers find it overlong, and a newcomer may not take to its humour and dense narration; earlier Culture books make the best preparation.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
The Hydrogen Sonata is a science fiction novel by Scottish author Iain M. Banks, set in his techno-utopian Culture universe. The hardcover edition was released on 4 October 2012 in the United Kingdom, and on 9 October in the United States. The book's release marked 25 years since the publication of Banks' first Culture novel. A paperback edition of the book was released on 5 September 2013 in the United Kingdom, and on 10 September in the United States. The Hydrogen Sonata was Banks' last science fiction novel, as he died of gall bladder cancer in June 2013.
Reading order · Culture series
Full order & progress →
Where the score comes from
The sources average 8.3 across 267 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 64% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Science fiction average of 7.8. That is how 8.1 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.0 | 31 | 12% |
| Google Books | 7.0 | 6 | 2% |
| Hardcover | 8.4 | 230 | 86% |
Frequently asked
How long is The Hydrogen Sonata?
It has 517 pages — longer than 68% of the ranked books in Science fiction.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
The same shelf — Science fiction — and a score of 8.1, the closest to this book.
