2 stars for Annihilation (Southern Reach Trilogy book 1) by Jeff VanderMeer.
To say that I am disappointed with this science fiction novel will be an understatement. It is not that the story is slow or boring, in fact, the mystery and suspense intrigue me and motivate me to keep the pages turning. The thing is, I keep on reading and reading, waiting to be sucked into the story. But it never materialise. This is so disappointing because there is so much potential in a story with such a great concept and theme.
In the end, the story is as elusive as it has started off. I expect some discoveries, answers or explanations, perhaps not in all its gory details but at least some to appease my inquisitiveness. Sadly, there is none. Zilch.
The mission:
To continue the government’s investigation into the mysteries of Area X, slowly working the way out from base camp.
The people:
Four women: a biologist, an anthropologist, a surveyor, and a psychologist. All chosen as part of the complex set of variables that govern sending the expedition.
The duration:
There is no hard and fast rule. The expedition may last days, months, or even years, depending on various stimuli and conditions.
The findings:
........
What ahout the findings? Well, your guess is as good as mine. So, either you read this trilogy or you don't. As for me, to spare myself of further grievance, reading book 2 is not something I have in the pipeline.
Publisher: FSG Originals; First Edition edition
Publication date: 4 Feb 2014
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Area X has been cut off from the rest of the continent for decades. Nature has reclaimed the last vestiges of human civilization. The first expedition returned with reports of a pristine, Edenic landscape; all the members of the second expedition committed suicide; the third expedition died in a hail of gunfire as its members turned on one another; the members of the eleventh expedition returned as shadows of their former selves, and within months of their return, all had died of aggressive cancer.
This is the twelfth expedition.
Their group is made up of four women: an anthropologist; a surveyor; a psychologist, the de facto leader; and our narrator, a biologist. Their mission is to map the terrain and collect specimens; to record all their observations, scientific and otherwise, of their surroundings and of one another; and, above all, to avoid being contaminated by Area X itself.
They arrive expecting the unexpected, and Area X delivers—they discover a massive topographic anomaly and life forms that surpass understanding—but it’s the surprises that came across the border with them, and the secrets the expedition members are keeping from one another, that change everything.
*Blurb from Goodreads*
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