I remember really liking "Annihilation" when I read it years ago and quickly followed it up with the other two books so was curious to read the fourth installment in this series. VanderMeer has a unique ability to weave intricate narratives that challenge our perceptions of reality, and while "Absolution" certainly delivers some of that signature style, it ultimately left me with mixed feelings.

VanderMeer's prose remains beautifully atmospheric, immersing readers in a world that is both familiar and unsettling. His ability to create tension and evoke a sense of dread is as strong as ever, and there are moments in "Absolution" that are truly mesmerizing. However, despite the lush writing and intriguing concepts, I found the pacing to be uneven. There are sections where the narrative feels slow and meandering, causing me to lose some of the momentum that I had come to expect from the trilogy. While the exploration of new characters and their struggles adds depth to the story, I sometimes felt that it detracted from the core mysteries that initially drew me into the series.

Overall, "Absolution" is a thought-provoking addition to the Southern Reach Trilogy that will likely resonate with devoted fans of VanderMeer's work. It offers a fresh perspective on the themes of identity and the nature of existence, but it may not fully satisfy those seeking the same intensity and cohesion as its predecessors.

Told in VanderMeer’s typical cryptic style, Absolution is a prequel that sheds some light on Area X.

I struggled with this one a little bit. Let me backtrack before that statement, though, by stating that I am generally a VanderFan - I love City of Saints and Mad Men (and Finch and Shriek), I loved Annihilation, and I really enjoyed the other two in the trilogy. I thought Bourne was great and really liked Dead Astronauts.

All this to say, I was stoked to get this as an advance reader copy … but I really struggled to stay engaged at times, and the last section (there are three) I will admit I really disliked.

The best section is the middle, which is sort of a spy thriller with two characters who are likable and interesting and a timeline that is actually chronological, and you didn’t have to work hard to understand what was going on.

The first section is cryptic, and while there were some things I wished had more explanation, I could follow what was going on, and there were some really interesting parts. Yet, it felt a bit too short/fast though. It was like Annhilation-light; had it been broadened out a bit, or had it been told more as it happened - with characters who had actual names and personalities, and we could really watch react to things (not just be told about it from a guy reading what happened) I probably would have loved it.

The third section is like Finnegans Wake in the worst way and if every other word was “fuck”. For a lot of it, I had no idea what the hell was going on and while I think I get the gist of it, it’s not an answer to the questions posed in the Southern Reach books, so it felt honestly like I just slogged through a shitty side quest in a video game only to get a level 2 sword. The main problem with the section is that the main character is incredibly unlikable and a huge jackass, so much so that it distracted me from the scenes with the lighthouse, which was something I was very much looking forward to (as that was my favourite part of Annihilation).

While I did enjoy the novel (minus the third section), I’m not sure we needed this book. The Southern Reach trilogy made sense to me and ended in a way that was open-ended but still definitive. This prequel didn’t really add anything to the story for me. Yet, if you are an Annihilation mega-fan, this book is sort of a partner to the story rather than a direct prequel, so you’ll probably enjoy it.

Now, of course, there were some really good things about the book. As I said, the section with Old Jim and Cass was excellent - their dynamic was interesting, and I loved the mystery and sleuthing around and how they had to put everything together. It could have started a bit quicker, though; I didn’t really care about the pissing contest between Old Jim and Jack. The first section has some really creepy and fascinating moments that could only come from VanderMeer. There are also moments when he lets his prose shine with some evocative descriptions of the landscape and the weird shit happening in Area X.

And this book has layers of meaning that fold in on themselves. The entire time, just like reading Annihilation, you are piecing things together from other parts of the book. It’s like a puzzle that you don’t know the completed image of, so when two things seem to correlate, you slide them together and hope to understand what they convey. This happens a great deal and it is rewarding when you come across it.

Overall, this book just had a few things about it that didn’t really work for me, but I’m still a VanderFan.

Absolution by Jeff VanderMeer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

What a trip. And I mean that most druggily. For all those fans of Area X, you probably wouldn't have expected another novel, but here we are, in all its life-and-mind-desolving goodness.

The alligators hooked me. The trackers enticed me. The flesh--well, the flesh--did something to me. The words, lol, the words, they set me up, entangled me in so many styles, and then threw me to the ground, tickled me, made me laugh, and then, when I didn't know what I was doing or thinking, they ate me. Yes. My expedition into this book ate me.

And here we have it, the fateful original expedition into Area X, the original Terror of the Weird, all come home to roost.

*shivers* The surreal alien madness, slow-cooked over the fire, was everything I thought it would be, and more.

Honestly, I think it's on par with the first book, tho that one had tight PoVs going for it, rather than a full menagerie of madness, in this one. Both have their strong points. But either way, I loved this. I'm still vibrating with that end.

All hail originality! :)

Oh my god.

I got an ARC for this book and i’m so happy i did.

This was everything I wanted from the 4th book in the southern reach series. It was every bit as eerie and twisted as I hoped.

I actually really liked how the story was broken into 3 parts. I was really invested in Old Jim’s part of the story and how Area X was beginning to infiltrate the forgotten coast even before what we see in acceptance.
The third part with Lowry was convoluted and obscure but I enjoyed how the root cause or entity that is Area X remains a mystery. I feel as though it’s supposed to be something that we can’t make sense of. My favourite books tend to be the ones that come back and haunt me and i’m sure the end of this book will continue to do so.

Overall I thought the book was better than I was initially expecting considering the time between the last book and now.

Trippy and unusual, which seems like Vandermeer's calling card.

I liked this one more than books 2 and 3, but not much more. I think he is fantastic at atmosphere, and subpar at story. Probably should have remained a standalone.

Oof, okay, I have a lot to say about this book.
If you are a fan of the Southern Reach trilogy reading this review to get a better understanding of what's in this fourth book, don't worry, the first part of my review will contain no spoilers, then the second part will contain light spoilers (themes, characters mentioned, nothing Vandermeer himself hasn't said on Twitter already).

Review of the book as a whole :
Up until 65% of this book I thought it would be a 5 stars, and then, the novel ended and the novella began and I unfortunately disliked the novella's writing style so much I couldn't even read it (I had to skim through to get the main ideas).
The first part, the novel, is a perfect addition to the Southern Reach story and universe. Just like the other three books, it has this surreal, sometimes confusing sometimes incredibly brilliant feel and as you read you keep finding answers (?) to your questions but then just having way more questions. I cannot wait to read it again to see what I grasp even better on the second read, and also to reread it along with the original trilogy to fully get all the references. I loved it, and would absolutely recommend it to everyone who read and enjoyed the other books.

Do I think you need to have read the trilogy to read this one? Yes, but I would be very curious to read someone's thoughts if they started the series with this book because I think they would have a completely different perspective on the events described and that would be really cool.





Review of the story (including light spoilers) :
The first part of the book (novel) is set before most of the events of the original trilogy (it's set at the same time as when we follow the lighthouse keeper and Gloria as a child and most of the intrigue/questioning is linked to events that happened 20 years before that) and I was so so excited to learn more about what happened to the people who lived in the area before the border came down. We also get more info on how Central works and how people end up working for the Southern Reach, loved it. It is much more similar in style and content to the second and third books of the trilogy, I would say if you only liked Annihilation and didn't vibe with the other two you probably won't like this one as much.

The novella that follows is about the first expedition once the border is down, which is the main reason I was so excited to pick up this book as that's what Vandermeer talked about on Twitter, but it turned out to be unreadable to me because it's all told in Lowry's point of view and every third word is fuck or fucking or shit and he's just so not likeable and his way of describing things I don't know, not for me, and it annoyed me so much because I want to know what happened on that expedition so I just skimmed through and read the paragraphs that were directly linked to the characters of the novel (as the first expedition happens shortly after the novel's events end).




All that said, I am so so thankful to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada | McClelland & Stewart for the opportunity to read this ARC and I will be picking up a physical copy on the day it comes out to reread it.