Book Review |The Annual Migration

In the post-apocalyptic future, much of humanity is scattered and infected with a mind-altering heritable symbiont—a fungus called Cadastrulamyces. Reid is one of the infected, living in an abandoned science building and hunting for survival.

However, when Howse University, one of the last bastions of human civilization, invites Reid to join their Environmental Science program, she’s torn between staying to take care of her community or a possible chance at a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The Annual Migration of Clouds by Premee Mohamed is a thought-provoking and poignant cli-fi novella about inheritance, identity, and family ties.

Going into this book, I think it’s important to note that this is a very literary feeling piece of sci-fi. It’s poetic and in parts it reads like a fragmented stream of consciousness, reflecting Reid’s own mental state, which I think works really well.

There’s also some wonderful moments of body horror and fungi protruding out of people that'll leave you squeamish and make your skin crawl.

However, there were some huge unexplained gaps in the plot that really nagged at me, and that’s especially in regards to the mysterious Howse University that may or may not exist. For instance, why isn’t Reid (who has been isolated and has had to fight for her survival her whole life) more skeptical of their offer? Also, how on Earth is Howse still standing, and why hasn’t another rival group taken them over yet?

Maybe I'm overthinking things (as I often do), but it strikes me as odd and implausible.

Overall, I love the idea of an inherited symbiotic fungus. However, I wish the story had fleshed out its premise and worldbuilding to make the story more believable.

Thank you, NetGalley and ECW Press, for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Book Details:

Publication Date : September 28, 2021

Publisher : ECW Press

ISBN : 1770415939

Pages : 164

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