Review: Annihilation

This book is disturbing. At nearly every level this story examines the end of a life while exploring a world that is also in a kind of slow decay. There's a lot to like about this book. It's obviously a well thought out world that is complex and interwoven between the mysteries of the primary location, Area X, and the "real world" which is full of conspiracies and mysteries.

The narrator is likable if for nothing else than her observational skill and the ability to maintain a thorough accounting of the fantastic and phantasmagorical events of the story. Things that range from strange fungus and lovecraftian unspeakable entities to human duplicates and alien infestation. 

Ultimately I find that the story takes itself into the range of chaos narrative and the philosophy of that narrator moves to a kind of fatalism that perhaps gives the story its title. Ultimately I don't think this book is very enjoyable, and my review is going to reflect that. Mostly I'm ranking this lowly to avoid giving people the idea that I'm recommending this. This is a well written book, and I think the author put a lot of thought and careful work into it's creation.  All of which are evident. The scope of the story, the themes and ultimately the resolution of the book are things that I know most of the people who are going to read this aren't going to enjoy and probably actively dislike. Myself I at some point came to admire them if not actively enjoy them. 

One star out of five.