'Banks is a phenomenon' William Gibson War rages across the galaxy. Billions have died, billions more are doomed. Moons, planets, the very stars themselves, face cold-blooded, brutal destruction.

The Idirans ­fight for their Faith; the Culture for its moral right to exist. Principles are at stake. There can be no surrender.

Within this cosmic conflict, a crucial battle of wits is waged. Deep within a fabled labyrinth, on a Planet of the Dead forbidden to mortals, lies a fugitive Mind. Both the Culture and the Idirans desperately seek it.