A review by waldkauzz
Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy: Annihilation; Authority; Acceptance, by Jeff VanderMeer
4.0
Annihilation: 4 stars
I quite enjoyed the movie adaption of Annihilation and wanted to discover the book as well. Having read the book, I was surprised that the best scenes in the book are missing from the movie and the best scenes in the movie are missing from the book. Contradictory, I also found that the film both expanded and simplified the world and themes presented in the book.
I loved the ensemble of all these different women with a scientific background who experienced and interacted in different ways with Area X (or the Shimmer, as called in the movie). Meanwhile, the book focused just on the protagonist - the biologist - which is a rather different character and, sadly, a less intriguing and watered-down version than in the movie. The book allows the biologist to be neuro-divergent, allows her to be antisocial, and allows the character to find such beautiful joy in her chosen area of interest. While obviously an unreliable narrator, the biologist was a protagonist unlike any other I've come across, and I enjoyed discovering Area X alongside her.
I must say I sometimes found the writing style exhausting, but I think ultimately the book is a terrific good read and is successful in creating a strange but beautiful and alien world in the form of Area X.
Authority: 3 stars
Depending on whether I view Authority as the second book or just as an entry in the Southern Reach trilogy, I'd rate the book differently.
Looking at this work as a continuation of Annihilation, I feel Authority doesn't quite capture what made the first book endearing and intruging to me. It is apparent already how much Authority differs from Annihilation from the first page; it shifts the genre as well as adapts a 3rd person pov, which is a surprising turn from the first novel. Except for two, all the characters in the 2nd novel are new ones, and just a few questions I had from Annihilation were answered.
Because of that, the book felt almost like a second first book in the trilogy and not a continuation, and coupled with the sometimes exhausting writing style, I felt frustrated.
I feel more forgiving towards the book when viewing it as another entry in the trilogy than as a direct sequel. In that aspect, I liked that while the first book was just set in Area X, the second book, on the other hand, was not and explored the secret organization studying and containing it.
Still, I liked the non-linear writing approach and the book has some great scenes that will stick in my mind for some time. With lowered expectations, it was still an okay read, and I did enjoy discovering more about Area X's world, even if I don't have that many new insights, just new questions.
Acceptance: 3 stars
I enjoyed the book but I am also quite frustrated.
World building, characters, writing style, all are almost quite lovely and great with just a few misses. But at some point in the story, I started to feel like the scale of Area X was so cosmic that the choices of the characters didn't really matter anymore. In other words, I stopped caring what a set of characters would do because it would be pointless either way ... which is probably not what the author wanted.
Additionally, many of the story lines and mysteries I was interested in didn't get resolved or didn't have a satisfying answer. I know, I know, this is that kind of book that will never give you easy and straightforward answers, but after having read the last page of Acceptance I feel like I have only a surface-level understanding of the grand story, which frustrates me after having read the total trilogy. (The planned 4th novel may change this, or may not. Probably not.)
Even if this review sounds quite negative, I did enjoy reading about the Southern Reach and would actually recommend the series, especially the first novel. A reread of the books will likely recontextualize many aspects of the books and give a greater insight into the hidden mysteries. I look forward to that and think that this may increase my opinion of the books.
I quite enjoyed the movie adaption of Annihilation and wanted to discover the book as well. Having read the book, I was surprised that the best scenes in the book are missing from the movie and the best scenes in the movie are missing from the book. Contradictory, I also found that the film both expanded and simplified the world and themes presented in the book.
I loved the ensemble of all these different women with a scientific background who experienced and interacted in different ways with Area X (or the Shimmer, as called in the movie). Meanwhile, the book focused just on the protagonist - the biologist - which is a rather different character and, sadly, a less intriguing and watered-down version than in the movie. The book allows the biologist to be neuro-divergent, allows her to be antisocial, and allows the character to find such beautiful joy in her chosen area of interest. While obviously an unreliable narrator, the biologist was a protagonist unlike any other I've come across, and I enjoyed discovering Area X alongside her.
I must say I sometimes found the writing style exhausting, but I think ultimately the book is a terrific good read and is successful in creating a strange but beautiful and alien world in the form of Area X.
Authority: 3 stars
Depending on whether I view Authority as the second book or just as an entry in the Southern Reach trilogy, I'd rate the book differently.
Looking at this work as a continuation of Annihilation, I feel Authority doesn't quite capture what made the first book endearing and intruging to me. It is apparent already how much Authority differs from Annihilation from the first page; it shifts the genre as well as adapts a 3rd person pov, which is a surprising turn from the first novel. Except for two, all the characters in the 2nd novel are new ones, and just a few questions I had from Annihilation were answered.
Because of that, the book felt almost like a second first book in the trilogy and not a continuation, and coupled with the sometimes exhausting writing style, I felt frustrated.
I feel more forgiving towards the book when viewing it as another entry in the trilogy than as a direct sequel. In that aspect, I liked that while the first book was just set in Area X, the second book, on the other hand, was not and explored the secret organization studying and containing it.
Still, I liked the non-linear writing approach and the book has some great scenes that will stick in my mind for some time. With lowered expectations, it was still an okay read, and I did enjoy discovering more about Area X's world, even if I don't have that many new insights, just new questions.
Acceptance: 3 stars
I enjoyed the book but I am also quite frustrated.
World building, characters, writing style, all are almost quite lovely and great with just a few misses. But at some point in the story, I started to feel like the scale of Area X was so cosmic that the choices of the characters didn't really matter anymore. In other words, I stopped caring what a set of characters would do because it would be pointless either way ... which is probably not what the author wanted.
Additionally, many of the story lines and mysteries I was interested in didn't get resolved or didn't have a satisfying answer. I know, I know, this is that kind of book that will never give you easy and straightforward answers, but after having read the last page of Acceptance I feel like I have only a surface-level understanding of the grand story, which frustrates me after having read the total trilogy. (The planned 4th novel may change this, or may not. Probably not.)
Even if this review sounds quite negative, I did enjoy reading about the Southern Reach and would actually recommend the series, especially the first novel. A reread of the books will likely recontextualize many aspects of the books and give a greater insight into the hidden mysteries. I look forward to that and think that this may increase my opinion of the books.