Scottish author Iain Banks dies aged 59

Yes, just spotted that, thanks.

I'll leave this here, but for anyone reading this, the discussion is "over there".

Cancer is very often completely asymptomatic until it's too late to do anything about it. We've recently developed blood tests that can detect, or maybe suggest the presence of some cancers, but they're relatively new, and the other means of detecting it are typically only employed when there's a reason to suspect they're needed. I don't know what the NHS's technology adoption rate is, though, so I can't even begin to speculate on whether or not he could have availed himself of them, let alone whether they're applicable to the rare type of gallbladder cancer Banks had.

Either way, I am a very sad person today. I've just pre-ordered Quarry, and I'm about to head downstairs to see which of his other books I've least recently read, and will probably start reading one of them again this afternoon.

Vaya con Dios, Iain. Thanks for everything.