Absolution is the surprise 4th book in the Southern Reach Trilogy ([[Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer]], Authority, and Acceptance) published 10 years after the first book came out. If you haven't read the first 3 books there's no value reading this one, but if you are familiar with the trilogy, then what an enticing book this was! The Southern Reach trilogy left me with lots of unanswered questions. Absolution answers some of them, and somewhat unhelpfully creates a few more. The story neatly splits the book into thirds: * The first third take us through before Area X appeared and the setting up of initial spooky goings on in-and-around the affected area. We learn more about the biologists encountering carnivorous rabbits with built in cameras, and their decent into madness - I think * The next third is a thriller novel, basically. Old Jim is back at Central after being left out in the cold by the organisation called Central. His daughter reappears after years of being lost, dead, or missing, but something isn't quite right; is this woman really his daughter? * The final third follows the only survivor of the first expedition into Area X, James Lowery. He swears almost every sentence and is in active addiction/drug taking. It's a tough read - not emotionally, it's just awful writing It was a nice surprise to stumbled across this at a local independent book store. The final third of this book made it almost unreadable, if I wasn't a completionist I would have DNF'd this book. I'd rate this book 2.5/5. ----- You can find out more about the book on [StoryGraph](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/7044d738-e39d-4cd8-8304-f06ee90b0d39). I’m trying to push myself as both a reader and a writer this year by writing a review for the books I've read. You can find all the books I've read this year on [[2025 reading]]. #books #bookreview