[email protected] reviewed Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
A dark, horrorish fantasy about isolation, nature, and detachment from the world
4 stars
You might expect an ensemble cast, based on the summary, but it's really not - the main character is very disinterested in her expedition-mates. Not a single character, even herself, gets a name. The protagonist herself is well fleshed out, but don't expect too much development from the others.
You might also expect a mystery, where you slowly piece together what happened to Area X and the previous expeditions - you do get a little bit of that, but not really. By the end most questions remain unanswered.
The appeal here is mostly the setting and atmosphere. It's an unsettling story that touches on various sources of horror: the transformation into something inhuman; the feeling of facing something beyond comprehension, of knowing nothing about the dangers you're facing, of the inevitability of defeat. I enjoyed it.
