Acceptance (novel)
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| Author | Jeff VanderMeer |
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| Language | English |
| Series | The Southern Reach Trilogy |
| Genre | Fantasy, Horror, Science fiction |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
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Publication date
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September 2, 2014 |
| Pages | 341 |
| ISBN | |
| Preceded by | Authority |
Acceptance is a 2014 novel by Jeff VanderMeer. It is the last in a series of three books called the Southern Reach Trilogy. It was released in the US on September 2, 2014. On March 15, 2014, Buzzfeed gave an exclusive first look at the cover to Acceptance along with an interview with Jeff VanderMeer.
Acceptance jumps around in time and between the perspectives of several characters from the first two novels in the Southern Reach Trilogy.
The Lighthouse Keeper
In the years before Area X, Saul Evans - the Lighthouse Keeper introduced in Annihilation - builds a friendship with nine year-old Gloria: the psychologist from the 12th expedition and the former Director of the Southern Reach. While maintaining the lighthouse (the same one found in Area X), Saul is frustrated by the constant visits of Henry and Suzanne, two members of the Séance & Science Brigade (S&SB) who perform unknown experiments involving the lighthouse's lens. One day while cleaning the grounds, Saul sees a mysterious flower of light on the ground, which stabs his finger as he attempts to pluck it. Saul begins to have vivid nightmares: he imagines walking into his lighthouse only to discover it has transformed into the Tower. When he wakes up, Saul begins reciting the sermon written by the Crawler on the walls of the Tower.
Gloria leaves to be with her father, and soon after fire breaks out on Failure Island, destroying the S&SB's headquarters. Saul becomes increasingly obsessed with the sermon. Finally, Saul returns to the lighthouse at night and sees a glowing light emanating from the trapdoor beside the lens. Saul enters the light. When he awakens, he finds Henry and Suzanne's bodies beside him. Henry's doppelgänger, however, arrives and confronts Saul. The two eventually fall off the side of the lighthouse. Saul survives, but as he attempts to run away, visions of Area X flood his mind. Saul eventually stops running, having accepted defeat. Saul's clone - one of the first generated by Area X - continues to work as the Lighthouse Keeper.
The Psychologist/Director
The second timeline describes Gloria's initial acceptance into the Southern Reach as well as her promotion to Director. She has a strained relationship with Lowry, the only survivor of the first expedition and the man responsible for organizing each subsequent journey into Area X. Without alerting anyone at the Southern Reach, Gloria - along with Whitby - secretly crosses the border into Area X. She visits her childhood home, encounters the Crawler in the Tower, and visits the Lighthouse. Here, the Director finds a backpack containing the cell phone and plant first mentioned in Authority.
Upon her return, the Director refuses to relate her experiences to Lowry. She begins planning the 12th expedition and interviews the biologist for the mission. It is then revealed that the Director has terminal cancer. She therefore decides to join the 12th expedition in the hopes of visiting Area X one last time. The Director also learns that the S&SB may have been involved in the creation of Area X. When she confronts Lowry about this, he refuses to admit it. Finally, the Director pulls out the cell phone she found in Area X, arguing that it belonged to Lowry and that it was used to communicate with Area X itself. Lowry looks at the Director in horror.
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