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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Immersive, as all of the Southern Reach books have been, and confusing, but perhaps less so than the third book, this fourth book of the trilogy doesn't really do it for me. Maybe I should have re-read the first three before reading this one. Or maybe a trilogy by definition doesn't need a fourth book. That said, Bronson Pinchot does a fantastic job on the narration, especially with the f-bomb-laden last section.
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
This felt more like a spy novel in the first 3/4 of the book, the last 1/4 I really had to power through to finish.
The first 3/4 took a lot of time to set up everything that got tied up near the end of the section. It wasn't bad, just kind of meh until the weird Area X type things started happening.
The last 1/4 was just obnoxious to read Lowry's perspective. I like the information we got about the first expedition and Whitby but the way it was delivered was almost unreadable for me.
I loved the series as a whole and may read the original trilogy again but I don't know if I'll come back to Absolution.
Had there been a comprehensive summary of Lowry's section that I could find online, I wouldn't have finished this book. I wanted to know what happened but not through Lowry's stream of consciousness.
The first 3/4 took a lot of time to set up everything that got tied up near the end of the section. It wasn't bad, just kind of meh until the weird Area X type things started happening.
The last 1/4 was just obnoxious to read Lowry's perspective. I like the information we got about the first expedition and Whitby but the way it was delivered was almost unreadable for me.
I loved the series as a whole and may read the original trilogy again but I don't know if I'll come back to Absolution.
Had there been a comprehensive summary of Lowry's section that I could find online, I wouldn't have finished this book. I wanted to know what happened but not through Lowry's stream of consciousness.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Southern Reach is my favourite (weird) science-fiction series of all time, and I was veeeeery apprehensive to read Absolution, because I didn't want it to sour the 'perfect little gem-ness' of the original trilogy (Vandermeer is one of my favourite authors, but I've had misses with him, and been burned too many times already by surprise series entries that are published years after the fact).
And, well, I really enjoyed Absolution! It was very good, yes, but... I'm also not entirely sure why it exists. 😆 It adds very little in terms of world-building or extraneous narrative resolution (though from watching other reviews, it seems I missed a couple of interesting details, welp), and it essentially adds nothing at all in terms of theming (unlike, say, something like The Testaments with The Handmaid's Tale, or The Book of Dust with His Dark Materials).
I think this mostly stems from the fact Absolution isn't a sequel, it's a prequel, or rather a collection of three prequel novellas, that essentially tread the same ground – in terms of 'vibes', tone and narrative flavour – Annihilation, Authority and Acceptance do. Which was fun – again, I enjoyed this! And in a way, I'm really glad this book is a prequel that doesn't really add anything to the series deeper substance-wise, because that means it can exist in its own somewhat distinct narrative space, and not really impact my relationship to The Southern Reach trilogy. Not that I'd ever recommend this to readers who haven't read The Southern Reach either. It's just that, for me, this stands more as fun bonus material rather than an essential chapter in the story of The Southern Reach – and honestly I'm fine with that!
And, well, I really enjoyed Absolution! It was very good, yes, but... I'm also not entirely sure why it exists. 😆 It adds very little in terms of world-building or extraneous narrative resolution (though from watching other reviews, it seems I missed a couple of interesting details, welp), and it essentially adds nothing at all in terms of theming (unlike, say, something like The Testaments with The Handmaid's Tale, or The Book of Dust with His Dark Materials).
I think this mostly stems from the fact Absolution isn't a sequel, it's a prequel, or rather a collection of three prequel novellas, that essentially tread the same ground – in terms of 'vibes', tone and narrative flavour – Annihilation, Authority and Acceptance do. Which was fun – again, I enjoyed this! And in a way, I'm really glad this book is a prequel that doesn't really add anything to the series deeper substance-wise, because that means it can exist in its own somewhat distinct narrative space, and not really impact my relationship to The Southern Reach trilogy. Not that I'd ever recommend this to readers who haven't read The Southern Reach either. It's just that, for me, this stands more as fun bonus material rather than an essential chapter in the story of The Southern Reach – and honestly I'm fine with that!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
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:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No