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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
dark
slow-paced
I was so excited to read this book, but it really didn't deliver on much. The third section was written with a character voice that I really didn't enjoy. Section One: meh. Section Two: meh. Section Three: made me want to put the book down because I wasn't invested and the character voice rendered things even slower than the previous sections. Do not recommend.
placeholder review: so imagine a really scary acid trip where you're on the verge of discovering the truth of the universe and you're being haunted by freaky mind rabbits hell-bent on devouring crustaceans.
actual review: i'll try and be concise, but my god, vandermeer has done it again! absolution is a perfect blend of ecological existentialism, spy-thriller genre conventions completely flipped on their heads, and lingering dread interspersed with wit and sheer horror. the false daughter admittedly took a while to grow on me, as being trapped in old jim's head can be quite claustrophobic, but there's a purpose to that. his grief insulates him, and central can't have him insulated so they strip away all the layers that he's built up following years of fucked missions and cass's disappearance, only to replace them with a mind-bending, purpose-built lens of hypnotism and endless code loops through which old mate jack can glean some knowledge into the shitfuckery that happens on the forgotten coast.
lowry... ok hot take but i genuinely loved his section of the book! yeah he's a scumbag and completely off his rocker, but there are semi-decent reasons for that, and in retrospect his character in Authority and Acceptance makes more sense. he's Like That because he's seen some freaky shit and it's changed him in ways he's extremely reluctant to dig into.
i would argue that the title doesn't refer to any of the "human" characters in the novel. rather, it refers to the inciting force behind area x instead. take that as you will.
actual review: i'll try and be concise, but my god, vandermeer has done it again! absolution is a perfect blend of ecological existentialism, spy-thriller genre conventions completely flipped on their heads, and lingering dread interspersed with wit and sheer horror. the false daughter admittedly took a while to grow on me, as being trapped in old jim's head can be quite claustrophobic, but there's a purpose to that. his grief insulates him, and central can't have him insulated so they strip away all the layers that he's built up following years of fucked missions and cass's disappearance, only to replace them with a mind-bending, purpose-built lens of hypnotism and endless code loops through which old mate jack can glean some knowledge into the shitfuckery that happens on the forgotten coast.
lowry... ok hot take but i genuinely loved his section of the book! yeah he's a scumbag and completely off his rocker, but there are semi-decent reasons for that, and in retrospect his character in Authority and Acceptance makes more sense. he's Like That because he's seen some freaky shit and it's changed him in ways he's extremely reluctant to dig into.
i would argue that the title doesn't refer to any of the "human" characters in the novel. rather, it refers to the inciting force behind area x instead. take that as you will.
Notably bad editing as usual. Part two is where the good stuffs at
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
As mind bending and strange as the rest of the Area X series, I liked this one as a take on three separate yet connected times within the southern reach. Seeing the effect of the phenomenon on those who go within the boundaries play out over a period of time was something I appreciated, and each part building on the last and informing it