Absolution: A Southern Reach Novel

Description

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.

Binding Type: Paperback
Contributors: Jeff VanderMeer,Julia Armfield (Introduction by)
Published: 10/21/2025
Publisher: Picador USA
ISBN: 9781250397805
Pages: 480
Weight: 0.55lbs
Size: 1.10″ H x 7.50″ L x 4.90″ W

Award: 2025 Hugo Award Finalist – Series

About the Author
Jeff VanderMeer is the New York Times bestselling author of Hummingbird Salamander, the Borne novels, the Southern Reach series, the Ambergris trilogy, and Veniss Underground. He writes widely about issues relating to climate change and the environment.