The Devil's Garden. By Edward Docx. Picador; 324 pages; £12.99.
Buy from  State of Wonder. By Ann Patchett. Harper; 353 pages;
$26.99. Bloomsbury; £12.99. Buy from,  IMPENETRABLE forest,
strange cultures and dangerous creatures—testing man's courage
against the worst that nature can throw at him or her—have long
fascinated storytellers of all cultures, from the anonymous
author of “Babes in the Wood” to Joseph Conrad's “Heart of
Darkness”. What wilder botanical battlefield is there than
Amazonia? Its vast size and impassable interior seem to defy
exploration, which is the allure for two talented novelists, one
British and the other American. Both test their protagonists to
the limit as a way of exploring our continued fascination with
the rainforest and the extraordinary power it wields over those
who are unprepared or ill-equipped to deal with its mental and
physical demands.  Corruption in “The Devil's Garden”, Edward
Docx's third novel, comes in many guises. Dr John Forle and his
small team of researchers