Why read Absolution?

Book cover of Absolution

Book description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Locus Awards Finalist

ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2024:
The New York Times, The Washington Post, New York magazine, Time, Kirkus, Literary Hub, Goodreads

The surprise fourth volume in Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach series―and the final word on one of the most provocative and…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Absolution as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

JL Civi

Author

A surprise 4th book in the decade old Southern Reach trilogy pulled me right back into the weird world of Area X as if I never left. It also pulls off the neat stunt of being a prequel that’s sneakily a sequel.

You’d think I couldn’t explain that last bit without being spoilery —though somehow I probably could with the book being so open ended it makes the neat stunt even neater. But I won’t aside from saying it’s very well executed in a non-retcon way that serves the expanded story timeline brilliantly.

I especially liked how this single volume…

From JL's 3 favorite reads in 2025.