Scott Graham
This short novel lives up to its reputation as a mind f*** read. It almost induces a sense of vertigo in the reader in its refusal to describe what is actually happening while decribing what appears to be happening. As all of the previous expeditions into an area cut off from the real world end spectacularly badly, the expedition in the book starts off poorly. Deceit and paranoia set in amongst the four members of the team, each known only by the name of their profession (the biologist, the anthropologist, the surveyor, and the psychologist). The otherworldliness of the environs and wildlife, presented very much like The World Without Us, Lost, District 9, and Cloverfield rolled into one, closes in on the main character and narrator. The organization, Southern Reach, that sponsors these expeditions is only mentioned in the abstract, except perhaps in the person of the psychologist who is the tacit leader of the group, exerts some level of control over the other members, and acts as the putative villain. It is obvious that Southern Reach and she know more than the other members of the team, ostensibly to keep from affecting the results of the exploration, but ulterior, perhaps nefarious, motives begin to suggest themselves. In the open ended conclusion, the reader is left off balance with what will happen, but the obvious suggestion is “nothing good”.
This short novel lives up to its reputation as a mind f*** read. It almost induces a sense of vertigo in the reader in its refusal to describe what is actually happening while decribing what appears to be happening. As all of the previous expeditions into an area cut off from the real world end spectacularly badly, the expedition in the book starts off poorly. Deceit and paranoia set in amongst the four members of the team, each known only by the name of their profession (the biologist, the anthropologist, the surveyor, and the psychologist). The otherworldliness of the environs and wildlife, presented very much like The World Without Us, Lost, District 9, and Cloverfield rolled into one, closes in on the main character and narrator. The organization, Southern Reach, that sponsors these expeditions is only mentioned in the abstract, except perhaps in the person of the psychologist who is the tacit leader of the group, exerts some level of control over the other members, and acts as the putative villain. It is obvious that Southern Reach and she know more than the other members of the team, ostensibly to keep from affecting the results of the exploration, but ulterior, perhaps nefarious, motives begin to suggest themselves. In the open ended conclusion, the reader is left off balance with what will happen, but the obvious suggestion is “nothing good”.