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Absolution: A Southern Reach Novel

by Jeff VanderMeer

A record of the road to Area X

Regular price $18.13 USD
Regular price $30.22 USD Sale price $18.13 USD
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Paperback New English

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Awards & Recognition

  • Award recognition

    Locus Awards finalist

    The source identifies the book as a Locus Awards finalist.

  • Bestseller

    New York Times bestseller

    The source identifies the book as a New York Times bestseller.

AlbakiReads Editorial

A record of the road to Area X

Set decades before and during the emergence of Area X, Absolution links a failed science expedition on the Forgotten Coast with the later work of Old Jim, a former Central operative. As he examines the agency’s files, its history of interference with forces beyond its understanding comes into view. The account then reaches Central’s first expedition into Area X, where a team is tasked with finding a way to shut it down. By bringing past, present, and future into the same unfolding record, the novel places the origins of Area X alongside the institutions trying to monitor and control it.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in speculative fiction built around mysterious phenomena and government investigations.
  • Readers familiar with the Southern Reach series who want a story about the history of Area X.
  • Readers drawn to narratives connecting events across multiple periods.

Themes

Institutional control and the limits of understandingThe origins and history of Area XScientific exploration and mysterious forces

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Locus Awards Finalist

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

Featuring a new introduction by award-winning author Julia Armfield.

Absolution opens decades before Area X forms, with a science expedition whose mysterious end suggests terrifying consequences for the future--and marks the Forgotten Coast as a high priority for Central, the shadowy federal agency that monitors extraordinary threats.

Many years later, the Forgotten Coast files wind up in the hands of a washed-up Central operative, Old Jim. He starts pulling a thread that reveals a long, troubling record of government agents meddling with forces they clearly cannot comprehend.

Old Jim's investigation culminates in the first Central expedition into what has now been labeled Area X. A border has come down, and a full team has been assembled to find Area X's "off switch" somewhere in the volatile, dangerous terrain that has defied all attempts to be explored, mapped, or controlled.

Absolution converges the past, present, and future in unnerving, ecstatic, and mind-bending ways. It is the final word on one of the most provocative and popular speculative fiction series of our time.

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Customer reviews

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Malaika Taylor

I highly recommend to for anyone looking for inner clarity

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Great service and fast service

Great shopping experience! The book arrived quickly, was well packaged, and matched the description perfectly. I would definitely shop with you again

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Smooth.