State of Wonder is a sort-of estrogen-infused version of Heart of Darkness. A major drug company sends Dr. Marina Singh deep into the Amazon rainforest to track down a rogue doctor working to develop a a blockbuster drug that will end menopause and enable women of any age to get pregnant, something that is common in the remote Amazonian tribe that the doctor is living with. Dr. Singh is the second person the drug company has sent down there and part of her mission is to find out more about the circumstances of the death of the doctor that came before her.

The writing is consistently enthralling, especially the descriptions of the rainforest that range from the insects to the snakes to the wonderous and unique ecosystems that are at the heart of the mystery of permanent child bearing.

At its best, the plot is also very good -- and I will not spoil the ending but suffice it to say that the last third or so of the novel was particularly exciting.

The characters are much less consistent -- the rogue doctor, Dr. Swenson, is an outstanding portrayal of a larger-than-live figure who feels as tangibly alive and real as any character in a recent novel. But a number of the other characters are more flat backdrops, which would not be a major issue if they did not occupy so much space in the book -- including an unnecessary third of the book spent in a Brazilian city before Dr. Singh heads out into the rainforest.

Overall, very good and well worth reading.