emilywemily6's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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? It's complicated
3.0
This book was weird just like the last one, but it was much slower and lots compelling to read. We got relatively few answers for the length of this book, and while it was interesting to take a different perspective on Area X, it was mildly frustrating. I think this writing style is not for me and most of the book said nothing and then big moments were passed over too quickly for me to grasp. It was still intriguing, and kind of a pseudo-character study, but the payoff was not as much as I anticipated when I started reading it. I’ll probably read the next one to get more answers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Animal death, Body horror, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Torture, and Confinement
Minor: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Cancer
zombiezami's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Stalking, Misogyny, Cancer, Terminal illness, Confinement, and Alcohol
Minor: War, Sexual content, Gun violence, Cursing, and Abandonment
mosshaunt's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
struggled to get through this one. something about it made me reread passages a lot, thinking i missed something.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Animal death, Cancer, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Animal cruelty, and Body horror
Minor: Alcohol, Fatphobia, Racism, and Vomit
calico_camaraderie's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, and Cancer
Minor: Death and Death of parent
samdalefox's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Incredibly disappointing after the first book. For the first 10% of the audiobook I actually quite liked the change in perspective, I thought it would be interesting to gain insight into the authority and researchers behind area X. But no, what this book is instead is a steady stream of conciousness from the new Director of the Southern Reach (John Rodriguez/Control). We only get small, unsatisfying, tidbits about area X that neither inform or grow the mystery, only frustrate the reader (in a bad way). We get long winded descriptions of the Director's daily habits that do not build suspense, only boredom. He frequently over anaylses and describes things by what they are not, rather than what they are, which is infuriating. We get no substantial insight into the 'authority' of the Southern Reach. Where there is any possibility for an insteresting sub-plot, it is completely forgotten about e.g.,
At over double the length of 'Annihilation', I frankly don't see why this book is justifiable, or even necessary at all. I guessed the indicators of theings going awry e.g., and did not find any of the story's 'revelations' shocking e.g., Overall, this is mostly useless filler story, I will however read the final installment with high hopes of a better ending since the first book was so excellent.
Spoiler
Whitby's artwork or the plant, mouse, and mobile phone.At over double the length of 'Annihilation', I frankly don't see why this book is justifiable, or even necessary at all. I guessed the indicators of theings going awry e.g.,
Spoiler
the rotting honey smell, the doppelganger biologist, the voice using hypnotic controlSpoiler
Control's fieldwork fuck up, the old Director returning, or the area X border advancing/breaching.
Content Warnings
Minor: Confinement, Death, and Murder
bedtimesnack's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Confinement, and Mental illness
Minor: Death of parent, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gun violence, and Cancer
jiaojiao's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- 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
Jeff VanderMeer’s Authority is a much more character-driven story than its prequel, Annihilation, which also, unfortunately, made it feel a lot slower than Annihilation to me. Authority follows John “Control” Rodriguez, an agent sent to the Southern Reach to take on the role of its new (and perhaps only interim) director after the former director fails to return with the other members of the expedition team. John attempts to unravel the mystery of Area X from the outside in, beginning with interviewing the Biologist (who seems to have returned from Area X unscathed), and working through the haphazard notes left by the former director. Unfortunately, his presence is unwanted at the Southern Reach—and the reasons for that are hidden in an unexpected conspiracy set into motion long before John had been chosen to go to the Southern Reach.
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.
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.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Death of parent and Confinement
scifi_rat's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Gun violence
Minor: Gore, Racism, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Body horror, Cursing, Vomit, Animal cruelty, Racial slurs, and Violence
moonytoast's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
while i do still enjoy this series so far, i think this particular book suffers from immediately following up annihilation, which was significantly shorter and, in my opinion, much better paced. this unfolds very slowly in comparison and — even though the story was still engaging overall and the writing style retains its tone — makes it a less enjoyable experience as it begins to feel like the narrative is lagging.
all that being said: i think the dynamic between control and the biologist was really interesting as the story played out and i liked where authority picked up from its predecessor by revealing that "versions" of the expedition members (including the biologist) have returned to the outside world, throwing the reader off given the ending of annihilation. there's an understanding of the fact that this is not the same biologist we knew and experienced in the first book, but we as the reader don't fully understand how much they remember and understand what happened in area x. that element as well as the revelation of certain things about the psychologist on the previous expedition were intriguing.
***this rating may change once i have officially finished this series
all that being said: i think the dynamic between control and the biologist was really interesting as the story played out and i liked where authority picked up from its predecessor by revealing that "versions" of the expedition members (including the biologist) have returned to the outside world, throwing the reader off given the ending of annihilation. there's an understanding of the fact that this is not the same biologist we knew and experienced in the first book, but we as the reader don't fully understand how much they remember and understand what happened in area x. that element as well as the revelation of certain things about the psychologist on the previous expedition were intriguing.
***this rating may change once i have officially finished this series
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, and Forced institutionalization
corriejn's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
4.25
Still very good, but less my style than Annihilation was. The analogy that comes to mind is later seasons of the X-Files (more conspiracies & intrigue, vs. more weird paranormal stuff earlier on).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement