The day I was approved for the digital ARC of this (from Farrar, Straus and Giroux via Netgalley) was almost exactly nine years to the day since I finished the original trilogy in a heady, feverish, confused, three-day binge.

They spoke to me, as they have so many others, on an almost primal level. didn't always know what was happening, or why, but I didn't care - kind of like watching three David Lynch movies at the same time, after a Benzedrine overdose, in an overgrown, tropical greenhouse.

To refresh my memory I reread the first three in the run up to tackling Absolution, and I'm glad I did. There was so much I'd forgotten, so much I hadn't noticed first time around, or not understood, so much that hit me different having changed as a person since my first read. I'm glad I took the time. The fourth book isn't some cash-in, it absolutely connects to the existing world, story and characters, while enriching, deepening and broadening the scope, all while casting new light on different facets of Area X itself.

Its split into three distinct, though heavily interconnected, sections. The first relates the events of an ill-fated biological expedition some two decades prior to Area X 'manifesting'. This was the absolute stand-out for me. Weapons grade weirdness while laying the groundwork for all that was still to come.

The second section following the aging and burnt-out spy infiltrating the lost coast eighteen months prior to Area X (giving a labyrinthine backstory to a character who barely registered on my radar first time around). While hugely entertaining and twisty there were issues with the pacing here (much the same as troubled the middle third of Authority [book 2]) and this is the primary reason I only gave this four rather than five stars.

The final section if from the point of view of Lowry, the brutish only-survivor of the first expedition, architect of much of what went wrong with any future expeditions. Alright so, I'm no prude, I swear like a trooper, but the first two chapters of this section were actually frustrating to read because of the amount of swearing. Almost every third word. Don't get me wrong, I get what Vandermeer was going for, it dist didn't work for me.

Overall though this is a great addition to the story and the lore. If he does a fifth book I'll be first in the queue to get it.

Yes, behold the master of what-the-hell-did-I-just-read storylines and confusing-as-fuck endings! I've come to think of him as the Tolkein of environmental/climate horror.

I love it! I am completely obsessed with Jeff VanderMeer and his unsettling science horror, from Annihilation to Salamander Hummingbird--and Absolution fits right in.

As with the other Southern Reach books, Absolution presents many questions and...sort of answers them, but these in turn lead to their own rabbit holes. The harder we push to understand, the more convoluted things become -- an important, reoccurring theme throughout the book. But the ambiguity, the mystery of Area X, has always been one of my favorite aspects of the series.

The book is broken down into three timelines, with my favorite being the second, focused around a character called Old Jim (callback, woohoo!) and his investigations into a failed experiment pre-Area X. I enjoyed Old Jim's grumpy attitude, especially with Cass, and the development of his thought process as he spends more and more time in the uncanny. This is followed by Lowry's timeline, who was...an interesting character. I know some real bad-mouth people, but the amount of 'fucks' in the third section of the story was excessive. But also hilariously in-character. So I stand on middle ground in regards to the expletives.

With Absolution being a prequel (sort of) and new characters/new takes on old characters, this is actually a pretty decent book to start with if someone wants to get into the Southern Reach series without committing to the full set. It paints a great picture in the way of worldbuilding without giving too much of the original atmosphere and story away.

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

An investigator haunted by a lifetime of work and the loss of his daughter seeks answers about the bizarre and baffling destruction of a team of biologists in Area X. This book takes place before the previous books in the Southern Reach trilogy.

This book was great: deeply weird, and as engrossing as it is unsettling. The story is complex, with lots of narrative threads. It’s a story of a man, Old Jim, who works for (and is perhaps controlled by) the shadowy government entity, “Central” as well as an origin story about Area X.

I have read Annihilation, but have not read Authority or Acceptance. I did not feel that I needed to have read these books to understand and appreciate Absolution. There is a lot of unreliable narrator/unreliable world/don’t-believe-everything-you-hear in this book, and it required close reading to follow at times.

It’s an absolute journey from a weird lit master. I will certainly be recommending it!

In twenty years, something strange will happen along the southern coast. Something inexplicable, incomprehensible. Landscape, people, animals, perhaps reality itself, all altered in ways both subtle and brutally obvious. But when, and how, did it begin? What happened there, before everything changed?

I had not revisited Area X for a number of years, but the announcement of a new Southern Reach novel immediately set my senses tingling with anticipation. I didn't choose to re-read the original trilogy before diving into this one, and that was... both a good thing and a (maybe) bad thing? I was able to enjoy it greatly as a standalone, but I also felt like there were things I should have remembered, connections I should have been able to make. I am greatly curious whether someone who has not read the previous books would feel the same way or not — honestly I could see it going either way.

Like Area X itself, this book can strain the reader's comprehension to its breaking point, and the answers you receive may not be ones you want, or even understand. It will get inside you, though, like a fungal bloom after a warm rain.

Dead Town
Twenty years before Area X
“Yet once they halted in their relentless cataloguing, recording, reporting…wasn't there so much to give them pause…. ‘the null effect— to create a something from the nothing in the darkness, the mind betraying you every time.’”
The biologists sent by Central arrives at the Forgotten Coast. As the scientific team continues their cataloging and collecting, strange things begin to happen. Four alligators, referred to as the Calvary, are seen. Rabbits are spotted, some with cameras and some eating crabs. Then a mysterious figure appears. The stranger…was it Rogue? He brings destruction, a shower of words, blood, and flames. Finally the heavy rains subsides and the sounds of a distant battle was heard. And all along Old Jim reviews the maps, the transcripts, and the surveillance tapes.
“…the Rogue ran forward and kept running forward, knives emanating from his mouth and blood and light spreading out from him on all sides.”
“His eyes were as a flame of fire…and he had a name written, that no man knew….And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood….And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations….”
-Revelations

The False Daughter
Eighteen Months Before Area X
“The world was filled with forgotten places that had been something else once, had contained something else once, renamed by whatever you did there now.”
Old Jim’s daughter, Cass, has disappeared and then his boss, Jack Severance, signs him up for a new mission, find and kill Rouge. Rouge, the one seen leading an alligator? He heads back to the Forgotten Coast with a fake daughter as his assistant. He reviews the files and interviews members from the old scientific team. Old Jim begins to suspect that Central has decided to terminate not merely his contract but his life.
“And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him.”
-Revelations

The First and the Last
One Year After the Border Came Down
A team of twenty-three enters Area X. One was charged with finding and extracting Old Jim. Get him, or whatever he has become.
“‘The light?’
‘The opening at the other end. And because they'd put a small, primitive camera on the chicken and the chicken went through the hole- they knew it was possible for a person to go through.’…
‘And what happened to the chicken?’
He didn't know why, but he felt very invested….He could imagine the chicken drawn by the light….head for the light, chicken. You can do it….
‘But…the chicken’….
‘Oh, unrecognizable. That's the really great, interesting part— it didn't resemble a chicken at all any more, but at least the camera was intact….’
That's when Lowry did leave the table….no way had the chicken been the first expedition….
What had the chicken…looked like in the end?”

This was everything I could have asked for in a Southern Reach prequel. I loved the middle section the best (Old Jim <3 and Not!Cass were both really captivating to read about) but the beginning was everything I love about this series, and the end (though difficult to read at first with all of the "fuck"s) tied everything together perfectly. Absolutely recommend for fans of this series.

This is honestly a fantastic follow up to the original Southern Reach trilogy. We end up looking back as we look forward, and in essence, each part ends up being smaller novellas being linked by an overarching narrative. If you're coming here looking for answers, I question your thought process, as VanderMeer is fantastic at being a plot tease. Big ups to everyone who is going to be made deeply fucking uncomfortable by the last fucking section. This is an exquisite troll of a book, in the best kind of way, as you think you're looking at one thing, but it ends up being something else entirely, and something deeper while you're at it. Almost like a sandtrap, really, if you think about it.

THANK YOU NETGALLEY FOR THE E-ARC

I’ve been trying to think of how to best write this review without sounding totally unhinged, and I don’t think I can manage it because no series has gotten me quite so unhinged so well as the Southern Reach does. I loved Absolution. I wish I was still reading it. I wish I knew more about Cass and the barrier coming down and what was up with the rabbits and the cameras and the Tyrant and a thousand other things. Every time I started the next part of the book I thought I couldn’t enjoy it as much as the last, and each time I was wrong. I’m gonna be thinking about all the questions I still have and all the things I want to know more about for days. What about the tower? What about Saul the Creeper! What the heck is going on in Area X?!

God I wish we could get the stories of all the expeditions because I’m sure VanderMeer could continue to creep us out and make us ask what the fuck for aaaages. This was fantastic. Don’t mind me, I’m off to reread the Southern Reach trilogy and then read the hard copy of Absolution again when it’s released in October ✌🏻

A compelling addition to the world explored in the Southern Reach trilogy and an eerie look into the early days of Area X.

My favorite portion of this novel was Book 1. The development of Area X into what we know it as was eerie and unnerving. Vandermeer has a wildly distinct voice within his writing. It's so uniquely Vandermeer to read such disturbing scenes with such beautiful prose. For me, this was best shown in Book 1. I loved reading more about the gators that were released and the devolvement of the original group of scientists. Throughout Books 2 and 3, there were sections of the story that I genuinely could not follow properly. I honestly attribute that more to me being a little simple minded when approaching cosmic/nature horror writing. Absolution brought back that Southern Reach mentality that everything and everyone, including yourself, should be approached with caution. Humankind and nature's innate cruelty must be expected, and you have to come to terms with not getting answers to the million questions buzzing around your head.

I reread Annihilation right before diving into this book and the refresh on his writing style was helpful. If you enjoyed the Southern Reach trilogy, I would definitely give this a read. It leaves me wanting to read more about the environment in Area X, as have his previous Southern Reach novels.

Thank you NetGalley and MCD for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this was a tough read for me. I was looking forward to this authors book seeing as how he’s popular amongst the book community.

Never in my wildest fantasies did I think we’d ever get another Southern Reach book. The Southern Reach series is my favorite series of all time, I will recommend it to anyone who stands still long enough. But the thing is it’s been a minute since I’ve reread it so while I know the overarching story, the intricate details have slipped my mind. This is to my own reading detriment because why did it take me almost the entire story of the first expedition to make a, ahem, certain connection. I don’t want to make excuses for myself but I didn’t ever expect to get approved for this ARC so I hadn’t gotten around to The Great Area X Reread I had been planning on so I feel like I didn’t get everything out of this reading that I could have. As usual with my ARC reviews, I hesitate to say anything of substance because just trust me, read the Southern Reach series because I don’t want to give anything away!! It will change your life!! Unless it doesn’t. People either love or hate this series, there’s no in between. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Absolution is for the fans and I will give Jeff a crisp high five for this book if I ever get the pleasure of meeting him. I guess the only thing I will say is Lowry’s swearing felt very overwhelming, as an absolute pottymouth myself, I kinda hate too much swearing in books. 😬

Thanks to NetGalley, Farrar, Straus, and Giroix, and MCD for this eARC in exchange for a honest review.

Dear Author,

I was excited to discover your upcoming 4th book concerning the mysterious universe and history surrounding Area X. I jumped at the opportunity to dive back into such a surreal and haunting landscape. Needless to say, I wasn’t disappointed.
 
With two sets of experiences from two very different characters, you shed more light on what happened before the mysterious event that created Area X and soon after its creation. You give us Old Jim, an agent of Central sent to the Forgotten Coast, still steeped in intrigue and mystery, to investigate a mysterious incident. I liked him; I was rooting for him. The second half, the second experience, is from fucking Lowery and his shitty experience on the first expedition for Southern Reach. I didn’t like him, but I think that was the point of him. It was harder reading through his story, yet I really loved the overall book.
 
Filled with fantastical images of a world on the verge and in the midst of mind-bending changes, you took me back to the inexplicable, the mesmerizing beauty, and altogether the frightening landscape of Area X. I loved it all and my hope is for you to continue unfolding more mysteries of the world of Area X in future installments of this amazing series.

Yours truly,
J. D. McCoughtry

Thank you NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux Publishing for the chance to read this e-arc.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6572451433

We return to the Southern Reach in this collection of prequel stories which after all these years is beyond exciting!

This book contains 3 separate stories that kind of jump around the timeline of the trilogy.

The first story Dead Town shows Old Jim, an agent for central, as he goes through files about a group of biologists expedition too Area X. This one is my favourite. It felt like we were peeling back the walls on Area X again in a scientific way and things don't go as planned. Lets day things get weird. It definitely reminded me the most of Annihilation which is my favourite of the series.

The False Daughter we are with Old Jim again several years before Area X. This one he is on a bit of a secret mission but also struggling with the disappearance of his daughter. This one you get some fascination information about Central which was satisfying for sure. I like Old Jim as a character.

The 3rd story is titled First And Last we follow Lowry as he goes on the first ever expedition to Area X. It can be a little hard to get into just because of the pure profanity in it. The dudes a touch insane and says fuck every sentence no joke. If you can stomach being in his head it was an interesting read.

Jeff Wanderer's prose is as captivating as ever. I love his writing so i was definitely happy with this new book. I feel like questions were answered but perhaps not everything was wrapped up nicely with a bow. There is still a lot of unknowns. But that's OK, keep Area X mysterious and weird!

Even though this is a prequel, I wouldn't recommend reading it until you've read at least Annihilation but really do the entire trilogy. This book is definitely more for fans than as a place to just get your feet wet but hey, isn't that was prequels are these days.

Thank you to Netgalley and Farrar, Straus, and Giroux for providing me with an ARC for my honest review.

4 stars.
Absolution by Jeff Vandermeer is a prequel to his Southern Reach or Area X trilogy. I guess the first question is whether it is readable without having read those first and I have to say, I don't actually know. I read the entire trilogy once a few years ago and loved it, and have read the first book, Annihilation, multiple times otherwise. But I have forgotten enough of the trilogy that I was kind of scrambling to connect the pieces of this book to that trilogy. I can't say if this was a detriment to my reading experience or not. It's entirely possible that having no information on the trilogy or full memory of the trilogy would be almost equally as beneficial as each other. I guess… I do not recommend reading it with half knowledge. It's still amazing to me! But I was slightly distracted the whole time trying to figure things out that I probably should not have been trying to figure out.

The book itself is essentially 3 novellas. And from what I do remember of the trilogy, they kind of align with the trilogy in vibes and style and focus.

The first novella is Dead Town, and in this we have Old Jim going through a bunch of records about an incident that happened on the Forgotten Coast (where Area X happens) several years before Area X actually happens. He is an agent for Central and he's been given access to many files about this incident. The incident is about a bunch of biologists who arrive on the forgotten coast and what they get up to, as well as some of the things that happen in the local bar of the nearby village. The things that happen with the biologists are… crazy. It's all just creepy and crazy and wild. And in that it is a lot like the first book, Annihilation. It has that same creepy discovery feeling to it, the research and unknowable, the weirdness. I found it extremely enjoyable, which makes sense as Annihilation is my favourite of the trilogy as well. Oh, and it has the bunnies.

The second novella is The False Daughter, and here we follow Old Jim several years later, about a year before Area X happens. He is sent to the Forgotten Coast and becomes the owner of the bar that is mentioned multiple times in the first novella. He acts like he used to live there and so it's not so odd that he knows things about the patrons. He is there to find out the truth about the incident from years ago, well, some of it anyway. This one has a much more noir feel to it, and reminded me a fair bit of the second book, Authority. We're following a member of Central, investigation rather than scientific research antics, and a touch of bureaucracy. Authority was not my favourite of the trilogy, but I actually really enjoyed this one for the most part and possibly will enjoy Authority more on reread. Things do not go as Old Jim plans or hopes, and things get crazy. Like, craaaazy. It's great.

And in the third novella, The First and the Last, we follow a member of the very first expedition sent from Southern Reach, down that corridor, and into Area X. Lowry. And man, I swear a fair bit, I'm low class Aussie, so yeah, I swear like sailor. But the fucks in this story sent me over the edge. Seriously, almost every sentence had at least one "fuck" in it, usually multiple. It got easier and less as the story unfolded, but they were annoying and distracting nonetheless. This one felt a lot, to me, like Acceptance - it's like the first book but with way more introspective insanity. We are stuck in Lowry's head and it's hard to tell most of the time what is actual Area X weirdness and what is just him being and absolute psycho fuckwit. And so this was my least favourite of the three novellas, but it also had a pretty good number of reveals, so it's still a good entry despite the awfulness that is Lowry.

My main issue as someone who barely remembers the trilogy, is that I know that names like "Lowry" and "Old Jim" should mean something to me. I know it. But I cannot remember why. And it's infuriating. So, the only recourse is to go reread the trilogy.

If you haven't read the trilogy, you can possibly read Authority and be fine. But I do recommend doing the trilogy first though. If you have read the trilogy and remember it well, go right ahead and enjoy the connections in this book. If you're like me and can barely remember the trilogy - please, do your sanity a favour, and reread the trilogy before reading this.

Absolution is a prequel to the Southern Reach trilogy that adds information from before the creation of Area X. I was very much a fan of the original Area X trilogy, so I was very eager to read Absolution. However, the style is more like the experimental style of some of the author’s later books, to the point that at times I was not totally clear on what was even happening. Although there are some interesting events, Absolution did not seem to me like it was necessary, and was nowhere near as fun to read as the original trilogy.

🐊 x 🐇 x 🦀

Science fiction is the oxygen I need in that keeps my nerd brain alive and Absolution gave me life. The Southern Reach Trilogy is one of my favorite books and when I heard there was a fourth book, I became desperate to read it.

Thankfully, the folks at @fsgbooks via @netgalley approved my request for an advanced reader copy before October 22, 2024, the book's release date.

I loved Absolution, it gives and yet doesn't give answers to questions brought up in trilogy (I don't always want answers. I want feelings and reactions so my brain can live in what if's). The book is wild and fantastical, beautifully written, very much so when nature is described.

The book is divided into three parts, giving three different perspectives about Area X and those involved in its exploration and research. Some consider these parts like three separate novels, but honestly I felt a deep current that connected each together. It felt like a cohesive novel.

The first part is my favorite because of the horror elements. Some of the scenes here played out so smoothy and vividly in my mind. Again, lush writing that always evokes the real power of nature and how it can make you feel, not just awe but also fear.

With the second part of the book I became attached to the characters therein. Thought the shadowy organization and spy angle fit in well with the mystery of Area X.

It was the third part that tripped me up a bit, and I think others may have difficulty here in the beginning, however, I pushed on. By the time the book was over, what was happening that tripped me up in the beginning of part three made sense. I never walk away from this author's writing feeling like something's missing so I trusted the process.

I think for anyone who loves sci-fi, The Southern Reach Trilogy + Absolution are must reads.

Now I just have to longingly wait for the new editions of Annihilation, Authority, Acceptance, (and a copy of Absolution) with their utterly new gorgeous cover to come out so I can add them to my library.

“You did not want to be there. You didn’t want to be anywhere, ever again.” (*Quote from early copy of the book.)

"Annihilation" is tied with "American Psycho" as my current favorite book, except that "Annihilation" is the one that I feel comfortable recommending to people that I barely know. The Southern Reach Trilogy is a masterpiece of environmental fiction infused with cosmic horror, and Jeff VanderMeer is a brilliant author. He makes it look effortless even though we all know it isn't. When I found out there was going to be a fourth installment in this series I was SO excited, and almost immediately I saw it pop up on Netgalley and requested it. I couldn't believe I managed to get the approval. (Maybe it was just the luck of the timing.) And look at that cover! I was so eager to return to Area X and all of its horrors. I'm not going to spoil anything big for you because that's not my style, but I will say that for the most part I was very happy with this book. It wasn't quite the satisfying conclusion I was hoping for, but the experience was thrilling.

Here’s the thing. The novel is divided into three sections and here's how I rate each of those individually:
Book 1: 5 stars. Everything I wanted, absolutely incredible.
Book 2: 4 stars. A bit confusing, but still pretty damn good.
Book 3: 2.5 stars rounded up to 3. Tough to understand in places, but with a couple of wild moments that made up for that.

20 years before Area X, we finally get to find out what happened to the first group of Biologists that studied the land. The different sections of this book jump around in time a bit, but without question Book 1 was my favorite. It had horrifying natural anomalies that were so satisfying. (How does VanderMeer come up with this stuff?!) He can make you feel fright in ways you had never considered before. You'll be afraid of nature, afraid of your own body. Strange combinations of both at once. There was a scene in Book 2 involving Centipedes that absolutely made my blood run cold. (But it didn't just involve Centipedes, it was also psychological. I can't wait for more people to experience it and be messed up like I was.) VanderMeer is so good at writing from the perspective of a person losing their mind in real time.

This book alternates between satisfying horror and beautiful prose. You'll be admiring the scenery one second and then completely unnerved the next. And I love the themes. The cruelty of nature, the cruelty of humanity, the fragile beauty of both. It’s sad, it’s disturbing, it’s beautiful. This is a great addition to the series. Haunting and disturbing imagery, gorgeous language. Characters that feel like you know them off the page. A sense of deja vu that you can’t put your finger on. (And perhaps you don't want to.)

I liked the main characters in this one. "Old Jim," while a bit standoffish from the reader, had a sort of sentimental quality to him that made him intriguing and both the visual and auditory imagery of the piano was really cool to think about. Cass was very likable as well and I would read an entire book that was just about her. Dare I say, though, that I was personally more invested in the environmental setpieces overall than the people populating them. (I've been a big fan of that lighthouse since the beginning.)

I highly recommend reading at LEAST “Annihilation” before reading this one, though it would probably be best to read the full trilogy first. VanderMeer calls back to previous installments without shining a spotlight directly on the references. Sidenote: I recently played the game “Control” and Central in this book series reminds me a lot of the Federal Bureau of Control. It's always fun for me when one thing I love makes me think about another thing that I love, and then the two sort of blend together.

At around the halfway point things began to get extra complicated and he lost me just a little bit. I really had to focus on what was going on. Then eventually I got to a point where I had no idea what I was reading, honestly, and I couldn’t follow it at all for several chapters. (Definitely a "Me" problem.) The prose was still lovely, though!

But then came the last 70% or so, told from the perspective of a character that’s supposed to be kind of obnoxious and also on very strong drugs. So every other word is “fuck,” (literally) which doesn’t bother me in real life but it’s a pain in the ass when I’m trying to read and follow a character’s thoughts. After the smooth and poetic language of the novel up to this point I felt like I was following up a high quality meal with a bag of licorice. It was SO confusing. (Luckily this narrative style didn't finish out the ending.) Honestly, I got some answers to my question by reading other people's reviews. Sometimes I can rely on other readers to explain things much better than I can! (And I appreciate that.)

VanderMeer remains one of my favorite authors. Even when I hit a few snags near the end, he still brought me back and amazed me with his ability to horrify and craft a gorgeous image. I plan to revisit the first three books soon. There were so many vivid and beautiful (and horrifying) moments throughout this novel and I will remember parts of this book forever. (They are burned into my brain, like the glowing words on the wall of the sunken staircase.)

Thank you so much to Netgalley and to the Publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own. I feel honored to be among the first readers for this one.

TW: Animal harm (graphic), Cannibalism

A well written prequel for the Southern Reach Trilogy.
Great writing again and very good stories to the whole universe that the author created.
After ten years it was great to get back to this kinda story.

4/5 stars
Recommended if you like: The Southern Reach trilogy, eco horror, spy flicks, mind control

This review has been posted to Goodreads as of 6/23 and will be posted to my review blog 7/11 and to Instagram 7/20.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year. I read Annihilation a few years ago and absolutely loved the weirdness of it. I loved the rest of the Southern Reach trilogy as well, particularly Acceptance, and so was eager to see what VanderMeer had in store for this book.

Absolution reads more like Authority than like Annihilation and Acceptance, but it still stands as a different form of storytelling from the other three books (much like each of the others tells their stories differently from the other two books). We get to know some more about Central and the kinds of things going on in the background, even before Area X became known as such (but with all that terroir, can Area X really be said to have never been Area X?). And Central plays a much bigger role than you might think, even based on the hints dropped in Acceptance.

The first story in this book, taking up maybe the first 1/3, is about an expedition of biologists who came to the Forgotten Coast for research 20 years before Area X took over. It's told from Old Jim's (from Acceptance) point of view, though Old Jim wasn't actually there when the biologists were. Like most expeditions to the area, as we know, it doesn't go well for very long. Even then there are odd goings-on on the Forgotten Coast, made all the worse by an underlying Central experiment (or experiments).

This story definitely felt the most similar to Annihilation but it still lacks the overall inching creepiness that that book has. I did enjoy the breakdown of the expedition and the way it coincided with both environmental and human-made events/objects. It was definitely interesting to see how the Southern Reach's influence permeated even then and helped result in part of that breakdown. It was really fun to see some of the stuff discussed in previous books come out on the Forgotten Coast.

The second story took up the bulk of the book and focused on Old Jim....who was not as native to the Forgotten Coast as one might think. Old Jim actually worked for Central and was sent there on a mission disguised as retirement by none other than Jack and Jackie Severance. Poor John never knew just how deep his family's connection to the Forgotten Coast ran. Old Jim's story reveals a lot more about Central than what was previously known, and we also get to see more of the Seance and Science Brigade (forget poor John, poor Saul).

I think Old Jim's story is my favorite even if it did feel more like Authority (my least favorite of the original 3, though I still like it). Old Jim teaches us a lot about Central and, more specifically, about the mind control and the breakdown of Central that we see come out more in Authority. And man, there is a lot of mind control going on. Or at least attempted mind control. While the hypnosis is never truly hidden in the other books, Old Jim has a different view than the Biologist, Control, Gloria, or Ghost Bird, and thus we get to see just how much hypnosis and mind control are used. It's insane. And really goes to show that no one really had a chance.

I also liked Old Jim as a character. He's clearly in a bad place and has been used badly by Central besides, but as the story unfolds, he develops more as a character and comes into this kind of gruff fatherly role that wants to know what's going on and wants to be on the right side of things. Old Jim can't help the situation he's been forced into, but he can certainly open his eyes and ears to what the Forgotten Coast is trying to tell him and do the best he can. 'Cass' is a fun character too and I liked seeing how she and Old Jim got along, and then later how she came back into things. I did so want to see more of Saul, Gloria, and Charlie though.

The final story in the book focuses on the first expedition into Area X after it becomes known as Area X. More specifically, it focuses on Lowry, my absolutely least favorite character in the entirety of the series. I even like Henry and Suzanne more. Even Jack and Jackie. Lowry, perhaps no surprise, is just as terrible in the first expedition as he is when we meet him in Authority and Acceptance. He's mean, he's vulgar, he's self-centered, and he's got nothing particularly going on in his brain except curse words and a desire to have sex and do drugs. Just the kind of guy you'd want on a mission into Area X. Not.

I'm sure Lowry got messed with by Central, but the fact of the matter is, I'm not sure his brain was screwed on straight to begin with, and I'm 100% certain he's only on the expedition because of the Severances. I did not like being in Lowry's head and wasn't a fan of the cursing, the latter of which is saying something. That being said, we do finally get to see what Area X was like after the border came down, and we get more insight into the other side of things with Old Jim -- the side where Jack Severance holds the strings and knowledge. I did like piecing together more of that puzzle, as well as getting some more Easter eggs to the other books (I'll reiterate, poor John. Poor Saul, poor Old Jim, poor 'Cass'). That being said, Area X is still not weird enough for me. I want insane levels of weird, and this is only somewhat disturbing levels of weird. (but also, wtf Whitby. I'm going to need a Whitby book à la Dead Astronauts)

Overall this was an interesting addition to the trilogy and provided some new information about the Forgotten Coast and the inception of Area X. I wasn't sure I'd like Old Jim, was pleasantly surprised; knew I didn't like Lowry, was not surprised. I definitely wanted more Area X weirdness than I got and less Area X explanations than there were (thankfully not much is explained still, but it went in a direction I'm not sure I like). Interesting though.

In Absolution, Jeff Vandermeer returns to the world of the Southern Reach trilogy after more than a decade. The Southern Reach trilogy, especially the first volume Annihilation, is one of my all-time favourites and so I approached this new volume with a mix of enthusiasm and slight trepidation. And it was a very interesting read.

The main allure of Area X and the Southern Reach trilogy to me has been the sense of mystery - the fact that the more we try to find out, the more questions we end up with, much like our relationship with nature in its many manifestations. This powerful theme is carried by Jeff Vandermeer's beautiful, evocative and atmospheric writing.

Absolution is once again an extremely well-written book, Vandermeerian in every way. Timeline wise, it is a prequel to the events of the Southern Reach trilogy and consists of three novellas, vignettes if you will, of how Area X evolved. However, it does not give away any definite answers, consistent with the theming of unknowability.

The first section "Dead Town" discusses the field experiments of a group of biologists pre-Area X (or is it? Read to find out and decide for yourself!) and the eerie happenings that defy scientific explanation. It is very different from Annihilation where the central protagonist, a biologist, remains an excellent character for me, but also has some descriptions which rekindled memories of that exceptional book.

The second section "The False Daughter" is about Old Jim (remember him from Acceptance?) working on a covert mission while simultaneously dealing with personal challenges. Until inevitably, things start to go awry, the professional and the personal coalesce as does reality and illusion (or is it?) in an indistinguishable whole. This was the most fascinating of the three sections for me and had an excellent conclusion.

The third section "The First and the Last" is about the first expedition to study Area X. In the Southern Reach trilogy, we had some hints about the fates of previous expeditions and here we get to see the team members venturing into this unknown frontier, without the benefit of previous data. The excessive profanity from one member of the expedition, while possibly consistent with character, was very jarring to me but otherwise I liked reading about their investigations and drawing parallels to the later expeditions, such as the one in Annihilation.

Absolution, much like the Southern Reach trilogy, is greater than the sum of its three parts for me. It serves as an intriguing prequel which gives insight into how Area X might have come to be while leaving plenty of room for theories and mystery. Area X remains fundamentally unknown to me and this I accept, as I did at the end of the aptly titled third volume of the Southern Reach trilogy.

A very good Vandermeerian title, recommended, but perhaps not as the best entry point to his work or the world of Area X. I recommend reading the Southern Reach trilogy first to get the most out of Absolution. That being said, if one is curious about Southern Reach, this could be an interesting book to sample Vandermeer's writing, worldcrafting and theming and then go back to the Southern Reach trilogy and read all the books.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the eARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.