Annihilation

I'll give it 3 stars based on the Goodread guidelines - I liked it, but didn't REALLY like it but it was still better than “ok”.

It's a difficult book to pin down for me. I haven't read any of Jeff VanderMeer before so I can't comment on the ‘creepy' aspect of his other work - this wasn't creepy for me.

Annihilation was compelling enough to keep me reading - I wanted to see what was going to happen next; I wanted answers! - and yet I'm not sure whether or not I want to continue the series.

It was a satisfying read and I still felt there could have been more - of what? I am not entirely sure. I just had a feeling of something out of grasp upon finishing.

I will be curious to see how they adapt this into a film given the overall lack of human interactions/conversations and the biologist protagonist being alone for the majority of the time. Time, again, would be interesting to see how it is played out as the book only really lasts a week in expedition time.

As this book seems to have split opinions quite dramatically, if you are reading this looking for an answer on if you should read it, I can only give you what I based my choice on. I stood in a bookshop, thought the cover looked interesting and the back jacket blurb intrigued me. It was in a 3 for 2 offer and I was buying my mother 2 gifts at the time. I didn't read reviews until I'd already got half way through; if it intrigues you, go for it, if you're sceptical, leave it. See what the film's like and maybe that'll convince you either way.