I am convinced now that I and the rest of the expedition were given access to these records for the simple reason that, for certain kinds of classified information, it did not matter what we knew or didn't know. There was only one logical conclusion: Experience told our superiors that few if any of us would be coming back.



Area X is thought to be a myth. A conspiracy theory. Something whispered about in environmental circles.



But it's real. Appearing 30 years ago and baffling everyone with its exi

Area X is thought to be a myth. A conspiracy theory. Something whispered about in environmental circles.But it's real. Appearing 30 years ago and baffling everyone with its existence. The government has sent people - trained people, skilled people - to explore Area X and try to come up with some explanation for it. Those people have disappeared. Or died. Or killed themselves. Or murdered each other. Occasionally, they actually return from Area X, as pale pathetic shells of the people they once were, their personalities seemingly extracted by the unknown force which has claimed that part of the country and seems to be slowly advancing and widening.The main character is a biologist. She is part of Expedition 12, the government's 12th mission to Area X in a desperate attempt to find answers. She has no name - it was stripped from her in training. She and her three companions only call each other by their occupational titles: the biologist, the anthropologist, the surveyor, and the psychologist. All are women.Trained for months in a secret government facility (a sector known as The Southern Reach) in weapons, science, survival skills, and combat training, the four scientists really have no idea what lies in wait for them on the other side of the border. Nothing could prepare them for what happens next....This book is an intense mind-fuck full of slow, sweet build-up, and almost palpable tension which ends in an explosive and thoroughly satisfying climax. VanderMeer is a master at giving you small hints and victories as you piece together what is going on as each member of the team slowly succumbs to the horrors of whatever is causing the illness, insanity, and transformation that is spilling out of Area X's every living cell, from the bark of the trees to the gigantic unseen animals that you can hear moaning in the reeds but never actually get a good look at until they are hurtling toward you at full speed, jaws open.He is amazing at small touches that at first sound almost innocuous but in the end leave you reeling from their impact and hidden implications.This book is creepy and horrifying. So I'd classify it as a horror. It also is a strong science-fiction entry.Another thing that is wonderful and amazing about this book is that it really only deals with women. Women are the good guys, the bad guys, the smart ones, the stupid ones, the brave ones, the scared ones. Men definitely exist and are spoken of in the novel, but since the entire mission is composed of females, females serve every character function in this book. It's mindblowing and I really loved it. (I wish that this kind of story could exist when men are ALSO in the picture, but it seems that as soon as a man enters a book, all of women's responses, attitudes, dialogue, and thoughts are affected in some way as a result. Usually not for the better.)Two really kick-ass characters exist in the biologist (our main character) and the surveyor, who has a strong military background. Even though they are both kickass, they are kickass in very different ways, and it was fascinating to see how that played out. The villain of the piece (I won't tell you who) is also, of course, female - devious, manipulative, and sinister. There's a more cowed, peace-loving character as well, who plays the 'weak' role and is always trying to please others and help them. The book is a interesting collection of character studies that was always blowing my mind with new revelations.I really felt an affinity for the biologist. I could relate to her character. She's certainly complex and unlikable in a lot of ways. We are inside her head (this book is in first-person) and it is a delight to see such a strong, capable, cold-blooded woman take on this challenge, use her scientific brain to figure stuff out, and do whatever she has to do to survive. She was spectacular, I was on the edge of my seat rooting for her and cheering her intelligent, sometimes brutal decisions.I have read this book twice in one day. I couldn't put it down and I also felt like I should read it a second time in order to really absorb VanderMeer's beautiful writing and also his complex and mind-blowing concepts.If you enjoy books or are a person who likes to read, I highly recommend this excellent book to you. I hope the next two books in the trilogy ( Authority and Acceptance ) are as good. Even if I had to take this book by itself, though, it would still be a 5-star read and a stand-alone novel in its own right.P.S. It is fair to note that the paperback U.S.A. edition of this is absolutely gorgeous. A work of art. Not only is the cover beautiful, but the back side of the cover and the back side of the back cover are detailed with an intricate, green, beautiful drawing of a marshy swampland filled with dragonflies, flowers, herons, bullfrogs, and ibis. If you do not skip immediately to the first chapter, there is a rather large detailed drawing of a boar on the title page. It's gorgeous and I want to own it. It's really, really rare that I buy a book published in English, so... the fact that I feel a deep and urgent NEED to see this on my shelf is really saying something.