In Hummingbird Salamander, a thriller that takes place ten seconds into the future, Jeff VanderMeer poses a question across pages that are part spy drama and part eco-thriller. Using an intimate knowledge of ecology, VanderMeer layers in incidents of high drama and disturbing possibility.

The protagonist of Hummingbird Salamander, who protects herself—or tries to—behind the pseudonym “Jane Smith,” is a security agent who is thrust into a mystery when a barista hands her an envelope of mysterious provenance. She opens it.

In the envelope is a key and an address, and when she visits the location she finds a locked storage room containing one puzzling item—a hummingbird preserved by taxidermy. From there, Jane follows each successive clue like a chain forging itself link by link, leading to secrets far bigger than she could have conceived. These secrets could spell the end of the world. This thriller asks deep questions about climate change, the world we live in, and who we are.