Ammonite

An award winning book with some great world building, interesting and varied characters, and a few unfortunately loose threads.

The main character is an anthropologist, and we see much of the novel colored with her perspectives. Since this is a new world being described, this point of view is wonderful, despite the traumas suffered. The point of view sometimes shifts to the expedition commander, who ends up with her own pile of problems to deal with. Both characters grow and learn.

The science of this world was also interesting, and I wanted to know more about how the virus interacted and changed the people of this world. Healing, sensing and even survival are hinted at. This isn't the main characters strong suit, but I wanted someone else in the story to pick up this topic and run with it.

All of this comes back to history and prior anthropology, and I feel this is where the author let us down. The people of GP are likely related to people of earth, which would change all kinds of things for the company. There are indigenous peoples (the Goths) that also should affect things, but the closest we get is a sadistic hunter. It could very well be their genes are closely related to the virus, but again, nobody is studying.

That aside, I think the author achieved her goals, and this SF masterwork did win awards. I read this as an audio book, and the reader did a fantastic job. This is Griffith's debut novel, which makes it that much more impressive. I look forward to reading more from this local author in the near future!