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A review by dreamgalaxies
Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy: Annihilation; Authority; Acceptance by Jeff VanderMeer
3.0
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Excellent language skills on display here, cool ideas about identity and what it means to be human, and our relationship with the natural world...but that's pretty much it. Oh, that and the central message that there is no One Great Truth (sorry, Fox Mulder). Feels like 'Lost' in the sense that the reader is left without any meaningful answers in a way that is frustrating, rather than mysterious. I like a certain amount of ambiguity in my endings, but this was too much for me. Also felt like one book rather than a true trilogy, but perhaps that's partially because I read it as a single volume. One character's perspective was randomly in second person, in comparison with the rest of the book, which I found really distracting and just...bad. I don't know, I just don't like second person narratives unless it's really well done. Be prepared to have to pay close attention to get through this one with some understanding of what happened. The action scenes, especially, are written as if to intentionally confuse. It makes sense with the narrative but it's...well, confusing nonetheless. Amazing setting, though--well-constructed and spooky.
Annihilation, the first book in the trilogy, is magnificent standing alone. If I could do it all again, I'd probably just stick to that book alone.
Excellent language skills on display here, cool ideas about identity and what it means to be human, and our relationship with the natural world...but that's pretty much it. Oh, that and the central message that there is no One Great Truth (sorry, Fox Mulder). Feels like 'Lost' in the sense that the reader is left without any meaningful answers in a way that is frustrating, rather than mysterious. I like a certain amount of ambiguity in my endings, but this was too much for me. Also felt like one book rather than a true trilogy, but perhaps that's partially because I read it as a single volume. One character's perspective was randomly in second person, in comparison with the rest of the book, which I found really distracting and just...bad. I don't know, I just don't like second person narratives unless it's really well done. Be prepared to have to pay close attention to get through this one with some understanding of what happened. The action scenes, especially, are written as if to intentionally confuse. It makes sense with the narrative but it's...well, confusing nonetheless. Amazing setting, though--well-constructed and spooky.
Annihilation, the first book in the trilogy, is magnificent standing alone. If I could do it all again, I'd probably just stick to that book alone.