My Annihilation

What transforms a person into a killer? Could it be something as small as a suggestion?

Turn this page, and you may forfeit your entire life.

With My Annihilation, Fuminori Nakamura, master of literary noir, has constructed a puzzle box of a narrative in the form of a confessional diary that implicates its reader in a heinous crime. Delving relentlessly into the darkest corners of human consciousness, My Annihilation interrogates the unspeakable thoughts all humans share that can be monstrous when brought to life, revealing with disturbing honesty the psychological motives of a killer.

©2022 Fuminori Nakamura (P)2022 Recorded Books

Nakamura's Most Convoluted Novel. Had to Quit.

To state that I'm a fan of Fuminori Nakamura would be a vast understatement. He is one of, if not the most prolific writer of Japanese crime-noir and his novels are typically brilliant from the razor's edge of back alleys, gangsters and Tokyo's dark underbelly. "My Annihilation" is pure internalised noir with all of the trappings of internal monologues, puzzles within puzzles and an infantry of quirky and dangerous characters. But this book becomes so convoluted, so deeply entrenched in it's own self-indulgence that I simply could not continue. There are masterful puzzle writers such as Thomas Pynchon (never an easy read), but for this genre, the writer takes us deep into numerous psychologies, too many Russian dolls within Russian dolls; replicating the same personality in numerous characters whose names become a muddle of confusion. Brian Nishii, our faithful narrator of Nakamura's audiobooks delivers and masterful and well-crafted performance but when you're lost in the maze of Nakamura's fanciful puzzles it simply became too frustrating (for me). I love this author's work, almost every time. But not this time.

Unsettling and Cerebral

This book is like a lovely hors devours. it's the right length, full of complexity and flavor, and remains in your mouth long after you've gobbled it down.

Could have been better

Creepy and boring.

A twist that could have been better revealed. Not terribly interesting and could have been more convincing.