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chris_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Confinement and Gaslighting
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Body horror, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol
wispy_reviews's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Gaslighting
Moderate: Death
jiaojiao's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Like Annihilation, Authority switches between present events and an intensely introspective look at select events from the character’s past. Unlike Annihilation, these events don’t seem to relate directly to the mystery of Area X; instead, they seem to exist primarily to provide insight into John’s character and motivations. Worse, the frequent narrative switch to his past interrupted any sense of eeriness/creepiness that the present events were struggling to maintain.
It became clear halfway through the novel that VanderMeer had no intentions of solving the mystery of Area X in Authority. I thought VanderMeer had done an amazing job of setting the scene and mood in Annihilation; Authority felt like a diversion from both that was unnecessarily long while contributing very little to the story.
Aside from that issue, I didn’t like John as a character at all, and I struggled a lot with connecting with him. That could definitely have influenced how much I like (or dislike) Authority as a novel.
My rating system:
★☆☆☆☆ - DNF.
★★☆☆☆ - I really wish I’d read something else.
★★★☆☆ - Glad I finished, but I’m probably not re-reading this.
★★★★☆ - I really enjoyed reading this! Would probably rec/re-read.
★★★★★ - OMG.
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Confinement and Death of parent
aileron's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Cancer and Confinement
scifi_rat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Moderate: Cancer, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Vomit
mayr3adsab00k's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Grief, and Gaslighting
Minor: Animal cruelty and Alcohol