I have previously written about Jeff Vandermeer‘s Southern Reach Trilogy, as well as his short-story collection, The Third Bear.
Like many of his fans, I figured we were done with the Southern Reach, but no: 2024 saw the publication of Absolution, which is mostly a prequel but also a bit of a sequel (that will make more sense to Vandermeer fans) to the trilogy.
It’s all here: the creepy, fungal dread that permeates the landscape; the paranoia that fuels the internal lives of the main characters; the pseudo-mystic revelations that may or may not have their basis in biological sciences.
There’s really not a lot else to say: if you know Vandermeer’s work and like it, this is required reading, and won’t disappoint; if you’re new to Vandermeer, start with the trilogy and you will very quickly–like within 50 pages very quickly–know if he is for you or not.