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applesodaperson's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I would say that this was a decently satisfying conclusion to the Southern Reach series. It definitely wasn't perfect, and felt a little messy. It also answered a lot less questions than I expected it to. It pretty much didn't answer anything, except giving some more insight into the lighthouse keeper.
This book switched between 3 different perspectives. One was a flashback to the lighthouse keeper before Area X was created. It was interesting to see howhe absorbed that weird light sliver, which eventually turns him into the tower creature from the first book. But other than that insight, I don't think his perspective was totally necessary. The second perspective was Ghost Bird and Control in Area X in the present. This was cool, but the time dilation was confusing. But seeing what actually happened to the biologist was absolutely insane and scary. But I also expected the present perspective to answer more questions. Although I did like that it was left unclear whether Area X has expanded to encompass the whole world. It is a very scary concept. The third perspective was the psychologist when she was the director of the Southern Reach. Honestly these chapters were forgettable and I'm still not quite sure what the reader was supposed to get out of it.
Overall, the constant switching between perspectives and time lines left me a bit confused. So I did like this book, but like Authority, it failed to love up to the sheer terror and brilliance that is Annihilation. That book was just pure art and the other two just failed to reach that high.
Read borrowed copy from a friend.
This book switched between 3 different perspectives. One was a flashback to the lighthouse keeper before Area X was created. It was interesting to see how
Overall, the constant switching between perspectives and time lines left me a bit confused. So I did like this book, but like Authority, it failed to love up to the sheer terror and brilliance that is Annihilation. That book was just pure art and the other two just failed to reach that high.
Read borrowed copy from a friend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Violence
emilywemily6's review
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
3.5
I was really hoping for more answers in this book, but I understand that the author’s whole premise is that the source of Area X is unknowable by our finite human minds. I liked getting multiple viewpoints to add a little bit more clarity, but I wish a few more things wrapped up by the end with the storylines converging. It felt unsatisfying. I think I would get more out of reading this series again and again, but I didn’t enjoy it enough to want to reread it to get a few more crumbs of insight. Saul’s scene at the bar was so fascinating and intriguing and I really thought his storyline in particular would have more of a climax. Overall, it was a weird and interesting time, with so much nuance that who even knows what the truth is? Not my kind of reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Death, Mental illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Animal death, Grief, Murder, and Gun violence
Minor: Alcohol and Cancer
samdalefox's review
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.75
Thank god the series is over. I was so god-damned bored. I should have DNF'd this book, but I held out just to say that I had completed the trilogy. I can whole-heartedly say that I do not recommend the sequels. Read Annihilation as a stand alone book and enjoy it for what it is.
Acceptance is written in second person ( Idon't understand or feel the reason why), from five people's point of view; Control, Ghost Bird, The Director, Saul (the lighthouse keeper), and the Biologist. We get some answers, none are satisfying. The tone and pace of the book are boring, no mystery, tension, or dread that I've been seeking since Annihilation.
Final gripe - the audiobook quality was spotty. The voices sometimes sounded far away, as if there were two recordings spliced together. This was offputting since the change happened every few sentences, not at expected intervals such as for an entire chapter.
"But what if you discover that the process of purpose is to render invisible so many other things?"
Others' reviews that I strongly resonate with
Acceptance is written in second person ( Idon't understand or feel the reason why), from five people's point of view; Control, Ghost Bird, The Director, Saul (the lighthouse keeper), and the Biologist. We get some answers, none are satisfying. The tone and pace of the book are boring, no mystery, tension, or dread that I've been seeking since Annihilation.
Final gripe - the audiobook quality was spotty. The voices sometimes sounded far away, as if there were two recordings spliced together. This was offputting since the change happened every few sentences, not at expected intervals such as for an entire chapter.
"But what if you discover that the process of purpose is to render invisible so many other things?"
Others' reviews that I strongly resonate with
txw9394's review:
I enjoy how this series explores insanity in the face of something truly unknowable, but the unknowable here is also apparently unwritable for the author. The descriptions of the central mysteries that surround Area X are so deliberately vague they almost always failed to make me feel anything. Just kind of bummed, because again the premise is fascinating.
ahna's review:
As the conclusion to a trilogy, I expected it to answer the questions around Area X set up by the first two books. While it does answer some, it leaves much wanting, and not in a thought-provoking way. Simply in a disappointing way.
ryanmcweeny's review:
never come close to capturing the brilliance of annihilation. There are some answers but nothing truly satisfying and no new mysteries to excite the imagination.
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, and Death
jazhandz's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death
lynxpardinus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Terminal illness, Body horror, Violence, Animal death, Gore, and Gun violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Minor: Homophobia and Suicide
madarauchiha's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Gore, and Self harm
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Death of parent, Vomit, and Drug use
tinnuben's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Terminal illness
Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, and Vomit
mayr3adsab00k's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Grief, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, and Chronic illness
maartjeida's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Death
cheye13's review
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
My primary fear about a third book was that it would provide too many answers. I thought Annihilation was perfect in its absurdity, and that Authority was more boring than watching paint dry. I was concerned that Acceptance would simply pick up where Authority had stopped. But then, when I saw the director's point of view, I was more concerned about learning information she had previously withheld. And then, when I saw that we also got the Lighthouse Keeper's point of view, I was certain Acceptance would ruin the repore that I felt Annihilation had built.
My fears were baseless.
Acceptance offers yet more questions, and I loved it. I love the characters introduced and developed, I loved the nonlinear narrative, I even loved the writing conventions like narrative perspective and diction. I found focusing difficult (due to my environment) but I am looking forward to rereading this series and going to town with annotations.
Above all else, I love how this book (and the larger series) addresses language/linguistics/communication as a concept rather than a system. It's rare to find a written media that addresses the imperfection of language outside of straightforward theory or philosophy texts. All that simply to say that this series is the closest I've felt to being... understood? with regards to my personal philosophy regarding alien life. And! With just a bit of extrapolation, the story could very easily be simply about the human condition without turning outward at all.
My fears were baseless.
Acceptance offers yet more questions, and I loved it. I love the characters introduced and developed, I loved the nonlinear narrative, I even loved the writing conventions like narrative perspective and diction. I found focusing difficult (due to my environment) but I am looking forward to rereading this series and going to town with annotations.
Above all else, I love how this book (and the larger series) addresses language/linguistics/communication as a concept rather than a system. It's rare to find a written media that addresses the imperfection of language outside of straightforward theory or philosophy texts. All that simply to say that this series is the closest I've felt to being... understood? with regards to my personal philosophy regarding alien life. And! With just a bit of extrapolation, the story could very easily be simply about the human condition without turning outward at all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Blood, Terminal illness, Violence, and Gore
Minor: Animal death, Cancer, and Death
Warnings are mostly on par with the previous two books. All visual horror, such as body horror or gore, though varying in detail, is described with a sence of distance or dissociation due to the nature of the characters' perspectives. Animal corpses, usually sea life, are mentioned in passing. A character is diagnosed with terminal cancer.