Reddit reviews Matter (Culture)

You might be interested in Matter by Iain M. Banks, which deals with pre-industrial people living in a shell world, among other things.

Implied Spaces by Walter John Williams starts out in that milieu, but then proceeds to the science fiction aspect.

Matter by Ian Banks weaves the sci-fi (and this sci fi is so advanced that I believe you can consider it meeting Clarke's definition of magic) in with a fantasy/low tech story. You could even consider it a send up of several YA themes.

Trapped By James Alan Gardner has the classic fantasy elements mixed with technology, and all of the magic IS someone's technology, just not understood by the characters.

You can probably throw the Safehold series by David Weber in there too... Humanity nearly wiped out by the Gbaba (great big alien badasses) last surviving colony was specifically set up anti-technology, etc.

Great series of books. You do not need to read them in order; I read book 4 first, and it spoils nothing.

Supposedly, Amazon Prime wants to do a miniseries of this, or at least the first book, to the level of quality of Game of Thrones. I'll... believe it when I see it.

Anyway here are Amazon/Audible links! (Or hit up your local library, etc.)

1. Consider Phlebas paperback / Audible
   
   
2. The Player of Games paperback / Audible
   
   
3. Use of Weapons paperback / Audible
   
   
4. The State of the Art (collection of short stories) paperback / Audible
   
   
5. Excession (I read this one first, it's great) paperback / Audible
   
   
6. Inversions (sort-of a Culture book) paperback / Audible
   
   
7. Look to Windward paperback / Audible
   
   
8. Matter paperback / Audible
   
   
9. Surface Detail paperback / Audible
   
   
10. The Hydrogen Sonata (my favorite - Vyr Cossont is my hero) paperback / Audible
    
    I really like this stuff as space opera type stuff. It's usually not "hard" sci-fi like Asimov or even Philip K. Dick or anything, but I rather hope humanity heads in the direction of the Federation, and then ultimately to The Culture.
    
    Fun fact!! Elon Musk named the autonomous drone barge ships (the ones that SpaceX rockets land on) after some Culture ships. Namely the Of Course I Still Love You, and the Just Read The Instructions. I also rather like the full name of the ship Mistake Not… (Don't Google it! It's a spoiler!!!)

These are favorites of mine that I don't expect will make it on other lists:

The Great Book of Amber by Roger Zelazny

Blindsight by Peter Watts

The 1st Chronicles of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever by Stephen R. Donaldson

• Lord Foul's Bane
  
  
• The Illearth War
  
  
• The Power That Preserves
  
  The 2nd Chronicles of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever by Stephen R. Donaldson
  
  
• The Wounded Land
  
  
• The One Tree
  
  
• White Gold Wielder
  
  The Culture Saga by Iain M. Banks
  
  
• Consider Phlebas
  
  
• The Player Of Games
  
  
• Use Of Weapons
  
  
• Excession
  
  
• Look To Windward
  
  
• Matter
  
  
• Surface Detail
  
  The Takeshi Kovacs series by Richard K. Morgan
  
  
• Altered Carbon
  
  
• Broken Angels
  
  
• Woken Furies