The novel “Authority” by Jeff VanderMeer was published for the first time in 2014. It’s the second book of the Southern Reach trilogy and follows “Annihilation”.

John Rodriguez was appointed director of the Southern Reach agency with the task of bringing some clarity in its activities and what’s happening in Area X. Being called Control is the simplest thing for him because the staff seems unwilling to cooperate with him and his deputy is openly hostile.

For Control the difficulty in conducting his work comes not only from the staff but also from the state of the archives of the expedition into Area X and in the situation left by the previous director. The survivors of the last expedition must be questioned and Control focuses on the biologist, who now wants to be called Ghost Bird.