Annihilation, by Jeff Vandermeer

Annihilation is an unusual science fiction novel, and it immediately seized my attention. I knew only a little about the story going in - somewhere along the southeast coast of the United States, a team of scientists enters the otherworldly Area X, seeking to understand what it is and how and why it has come to be. Strange events begin almost immediately, as the scientists wonder what is out there and how much the shadowy government agency that sent them already knows about it.

The story, simple in some ways and startlingly original in others, blends elements of weird fiction and psychological thriller, with amazing results. Our narrator, a biological researcher who focuses intensely on the object of her study, is not the warmest character, but I quickly and easily fell into her way of thinking. As the scientists unravel the secrets of Area X - and the biologist reveals her own secrets to the reader - they wonder to what extent they observe, or are the subject of observation.

Annihilation is the first in a series of three books: it works as its own story, but leaves plenty of loose ends, and I ordered the next two titles as soon as I was finished.

-Joe, bookshop & beard owner