Note that the first book probably isn't the best place to start, since it's an outside looking in to the Culture. It's still a good book, but Player of Games (imo) is a better starting point since it gives more background on the Culture and the main character is somebody raised in the Culture.
Note that the first book probably isn't the best place to start, since it's an outside looking in to the Culture. It's still a good book, but Player of Games (imo) is a better starting point since it gives more background on the Culture and the main character is somebody raised in the Culture.