Acceptance: A Novel

Jeff VanderMeer

Sep 2014 · The Southern Reach Trilogy Book 3 · Sold by FSG Originals

About this ebook

The New York Times bestselling final installment of Jeff VanderMeer’s wildy popular Southern Reach Trilogy

It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for thirty years, rebuffing expedition after expedition, refusing to reveal its secrets. As Area X expands, the agency tasked with investigating and overseeing it--the Southern Reach--has collapsed on itself in confusion. Now one last, desperate team crosses the border, determined to reach a remote island that may hold the answers they've been seeking. If they fail, the outer world is in peril.

Meanwhile, Acceptance tunnels ever deeper into the circumstances surrounding the creation of Area X--what initiated this unnatural upheaval? Among the many who have tried, who has gotten close to understanding Area X--and who may have been corrupted by it?

In this last installment of Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy, the mysteries of Area X may be solved, but their consequences and implications are no less profound--or terrifying.

Ratings and reviews

It reads like someone wants to tell a story, but they don't know about what. It's almost like VanderMeer picked up a thesaurus and thought, "how can I arrange words to sell books?" He should have stopped at the first book, because at least that one had intrigue and was original. But then you learn there is no story; the rest of the series was a long garble of nothing, trying to be something, that climaxed to nothing.

I bought the series to prep for the movie coming out soon. I found myself turning pages like crazy and loved reading each character chapter as they investigate the mysterious phenomenon that is Area X. At the end, I wanted more! Can't wait to see the movie and compare and hopefully have more answers to the mystery. Area X may be just what the world needs to wake us up and focus our attention to the impact of Gaia's wildlife and ecological importance.

The conclusion to the Southern Reach trilogy is told from the perspective of four characters: the lighthouse keeper, Control, Ghost Bird and . While simultaneously continuing the timeline, it also goes backwards to give the reader a glimpse of past events that have impacted the present moment. After the second book in the series, it becomes clear that the author's intent is to focus on how Area X has impacted theives of the characters, more so than giving clear answers to question's about Area X. The four characters are all tormented by their connection to the anomaly, and that is what the story is all about. The reader is left to form their own theories about Area X's origins and what is to come next. The author write beautifully and one can revel in his descriptive language, but also get frustrated by not getting a true payoff at the end.

About the author

Jeff VanderMeer is the author of Dead Astronauts, Borne, and The Southern Reach Trilogy, the first volume of which, Annihilation, won the Nebula Award and the Shirley Jackson Award and was adapted into a movie by Alex Garland starring Natalie Portman. VanderMeer speaks and writes frequently about issues relating to climate change. He grew up in the Fiji Islands and now lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with his wife, Ann VanderMeer, and their cats, plants, and bird feeders.