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A review by matthewcpeck
Authority by Jeff VanderMeer
3.0
In an era that's saturated with apocalyptic sci-fi trilogies, it's nice to see something as idiosyncratic as the Southern Reach. VanderMeer's second installation 'Authority' has a completely different viewpoint, style, and tone from 'Annihilation'. I feel that all trilogies should follow this template - that is, 3 distinct works, instead of one book basically split in three for marketing purposes.
On the downside, 'Authority' is not as perfect and arresting as its predecessor. This considerably longer novel tells the story of the government agency in charge of the expeditions, immediately after the one detailed in 'Annihilation'. The protagonist is a youngish operative dubbed 'Control' that's been appointed as director, and most of the book's first half is about Control's maneuvering through layers of bureaucracy and paranoia. I found it a little tedious, threatening to become boring, if well-written. The second half is an improvement, filled with twists and scares that burrow into your subconscious.
Looking forward to the final part. 'The Southern Reach Trilogy' fulfills the promise seen in the eclecticism of VanderMeer's short fiction, but the prose is vastly more assured and sophisticated.
On the downside, 'Authority' is not as perfect and arresting as its predecessor. This considerably longer novel tells the story of the government agency in charge of the expeditions, immediately after the one detailed in 'Annihilation'. The protagonist is a youngish operative dubbed 'Control' that's been appointed as director, and most of the book's first half is about Control's maneuvering through layers of bureaucracy and paranoia. I found it a little tedious, threatening to become boring, if well-written. The second half is an improvement, filled with twists and scares that burrow into your subconscious.
Looking forward to the final part. 'The Southern Reach Trilogy' fulfills the promise seen in the eclecticism of VanderMeer's short fiction, but the prose is vastly more assured and sophisticated.