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A review by bubblesuns
Authority by Jeff VanderMeer
2.0
Annihilation was the book that got me back into reading a couple years ago and man, this was a let down. I adore New Weird / Lovecraftian stuff but this was just dull.
Everything is so scatterbrained - plot threads are abandoned and unique characters pushed to the side as the focus returns to Control’s childhood traumas that never feels as interesting as it’s clearly supposed to.
I understand that’s partly due to how the story progresses (and certain revelations) but it really didn’t work for me.
What I did enjoy was the atmosphere, for better or worse: sometimes I felt like I was falling asleep at my desk and other times I felt a genuine chill at the creepiness of the Southern Reach.
I have a copy of the third book in the series sitting on the shelf and I think it’ll be another couple of years before I get to it.
Lastly, I just couldn’t help but compare it to Remedy’s Control which, although a different medium, achieved what Authority is trying to do so much better.
Everything is so scatterbrained - plot threads are abandoned and unique characters pushed to the side as the focus returns to Control’s childhood traumas that never feels as interesting as it’s clearly supposed to.
I understand that’s partly due to how the story progresses (and certain revelations) but it really didn’t work for me.
What I did enjoy was the atmosphere, for better or worse: sometimes I felt like I was falling asleep at my desk and other times I felt a genuine chill at the creepiness of the Southern Reach.
I have a copy of the third book in the series sitting on the shelf and I think it’ll be another couple of years before I get to it.
Lastly, I just couldn’t help but compare it to Remedy’s Control which, although a different medium, achieved what Authority is trying to do so much better.