Didn't want this to get lost in the general literature thread.

Iain Banks passed away today. I really like a lot of his stuff, both sci-fi and literary fiction. He will be missed.

I read about this earlier. Horrible news, and I also enjoy a lot of his novels (Feersum Endjinn, the Culture series, etc). He will be missed, the unique voice of Scottish space opera

I actually enjoy his fiction more than his science fiction, but I'm a big fan of the culture series as well. I've got Surface Detail on my shelf, unread, so now might be a good time to crack the spine on it.

I've only ever read one of his books (The Wasp Factory), so it's hard to really comment on his work, particularly the Science Fiction stuff, but R.I.P.
It was at least an entertaining/interesting read FWIW.