Ammonite

Ammonite is the 1992 debut novel by British-American author Nicola Griffith. Styled as a meditation on queer ideologies, the novel explores themes of gender, illusion, and humanity. Setting aside typical feminist tropes, Griffith tackles the question of whether a world run by women would be a better or gentler one. American author Ursula Le Guin cited Ammonite as “a knock-out first novel, with strong, likeable characters, a compelling story, and a very interesting take on gender”. Critically acclaimed and academically praised, the novel won several literary awards, including the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT themed science fiction/fantasy, and the Otherwise Award, formerly known as the James Tiptree Jr. Award, for science fiction or fantasy that explores or expands our understanding of gender. In 2008, the Italian translation of Ammonite was awarded the Premio Italia award, an Italian literary prize for astounding works in science fiction and fantasy. The novel was also shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award, the British Science Fiction Award, and the Locus Award for a debut novel. In September 2012 Ammonite was included in the SF Masterworks relaunch series of softcover editions (2010 - present). The series is composed of classic science fiction literature that is deemed important and considered deserving of being in continuous print. Plot summary Ammonite is the story of Marghe Taishan, an anthropologist and employee of a government agency, the Settlement and Education Councils (SEC). She is sent as an SEC representative to the planet Jeep (Grenchstom's Planet – "Jeep" being the pronunciation of the abbreviation "GP"). Centuries in the past, Jeep was colonized by people from Earth, but contact was lost with the colony, and now the planet is a target for recolonization by the sinister Durallium Company (mostly referred to as "Company"). Some years prior to the beginning of the story, Company sent an expedition of technical and security personnel (the latter called "Mirrors" for the mirrored helmets on their combat armor) to the planet; a short time later, all of the men and many of the women in the expedition died from a virus, also known as Jeep, which was endemic to the planet. As a result, the planet was placed under quarantine, and none of the surviving members of the expedition have been allowed to leave.