A biologist, a government agent, a lighthouse keeper, and a psychologist walk into Area X, an area cordoned off and monitored by The Southern Reach agency as it gradually succumbs to unexplained (un)natural phenomena.
I may have been one of the few that really enjoyed the movie Annihilation, an adaptation of the first book of Jeff VanderMeer’s 2014 Southern Reach trilogy. After singing its praises, I got the book set as a gift from my brother. Unfortunately, the books sat on my to-be-read bookshelf gathering dust for quite some time. Other books would spark my interest, and the trilogy fell further and further down my list of priorities.
Then my husband and I had to paint the exterior of our house, and my local library’s Libby catalog had the audiobook versions of all three. I listened to all of them in a day and a half while I worked, then went back and read the copies in my possession once the house painting was done. They officially hooked me!
Annihilation, the first book of the series, follows an unnamed biologist as she and a team of other professionals enter the mysterious Area X in order to study what is happening to the natural environment there. All previous teams have perished either in Area X or from cancer upon returning home, including the biologist’s husband, who was part of the previous mission. Upon entering Area X, the biologist sees fungus spelling out words on the walls of a strange tower-like structure, hears ominous moaning from the woods surrounding the base camp, and discovers what happened to the past expedition members, as well as what might be happening to her. Jeff VanderMeer’s writing was so well-balanced. It was dreamy, yet detailed. Analytical, yet imaginative. I liked how realistically the exploration of the unexplained phenomena was depicted- with more questions than answers, with undertones of excitement and awe as well as horror and anxiety. This book delved deeper into the biologist as a character than the movie did, and a few key plot points were changed, so I would recommend reading the first book even if you have seen the movie. I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
The second book, Authority, follows the new head of the Southern Reach in his first days on the job. He took over after the previous leader, the psychologist who accompanied the biologist on her expedition in the first book, failed to return. John Rodriguez, known by the moniker “Control,” is greeted by a hostile staff heartbroken and loyal to their previous boss, a mysterious handler known as “The Voice” who only ever calls or emails, a mountain of data and samples from previous expeditions, and an uncooperative biologist detained after her mission. After disturbing discoveries of activity being withheld from the public eye as well as new details about the psychologist’s personal connection to Area X, Control must figure out what the Southern Reach is really up to and how to get the biologist to help him figure it out. Control was a conflicted character, and his espionage background made for interesting insights as we followed him on his journey. Though I was initially hesitant to jump right into the next book upon discovering I would be following a different protagonist, I was very happy with the overlap of characters from the first book. While I did enjoy the first book’s biologist protagonist more as a character, I liked the worldbuilding of the second book better. The first book felt limited, though I understand why this was purposefully done. This second book filled in the history of the missions as well as gave new insight into the larger scope of the Southern Reach agency. It was a solid 3.5/5 read.
The final book follows three different timelines. Acceptance includes the POV of a new character, a lighthouse keeper named Saul Evans, as the first strange phenomena begins to take hold. We also follow the psychologist in her younger days as she climbs through the ranks of the Southern Reach agency, as well as the protagonists from the previous novels, Control and the biologist, equipped with the moniker Ghost Bird. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but suffice it to say, this was my favorite book of the series. This was a 4.5/5 for me.
This book series has it all- action and adventure, elements of nature and horror, thriller and political intrigue, as well as aliens, hypnosis, and time shifts, just to name a few. If you enjoy speculative sci-fi, this is a fantastic, completed, award-winning series to catch up on in 2024.
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