State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

I am a huge fan of Ann Patchett (author of Bel Canto) and couldn't wait until this came up in my library queue.  Oh the jealousy I felt when I saw it in Thea's e-reader a few weeks ago.

The story caught my attention right away.  It's about a young woman named Marina who works at a drug company.  Her colleague Anders goes to the Amazon to check up on a researcher (Dr. Swenson, a former professor of Marina's) who has been incommunicado.  When Anders dies under mysterious circumstances, Marina is sent down there by CEO Mr. Fox (also her boyfriend) to find out more.

This book was great. It was a mystery, although not in a traditional way.  The characters were well-developed, and there were several secondary characters, each of whom was multi-faceted. Marina's journey - first to Anders' family's home, then to South America, and finally a village deep in the Amazon, was very thoroughly described.  What I liked best, though, was that the story was surprising. There were several parts of the story that were completely unexpected, some plot twists, and some of the characters' choices. 

Highly recommended.