A fascinating work of 'thinking' science fiction. The characters are well rounded and the overall setting and situations keep you reading right until the end. I really enjoyed this story.

VanderMeer is not just an author with the coolest name around, but he also writes the most beautiful words. Reading his books is like daydreaming in HDR. This is my second foray into his work (after reading Annihilation, also excellent, and soon to become a film apparently), and it didn’t disappoint. His depiction of Borne the green lump who becomes something so much bigger, is stunning. Borne is a child – a powerful, different child, one that holds the ability to change the world – and for me, his experience is the most profound in the book. Seeing the world through his responses qualifies the hardships and traumas of the main characters. It adds a perspective so little seen in such dark settings. It reminds me of Atwood’s Oryx and Crake series. It’s beautiful, horrendous, and ultimately one of the happiest books I’ve read in a long time. To be fair, I might have a warped view of happiness, but read it for yourself and we’ll see.

Favourite line: “I mourned the child I had known who was kind and sweet and curious, and yet could not stop killing.”

Read if: You want a beautifully rendered vision of a harsh future reality, a biotech apocalypse, laced with hope.

Read with: Your child, your pet, or your Tamagotchi. Whichever you have to hand. And treat them well.