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.

“Annihilation” was a journey into the mysteries of Area X, where a team of researchers faced mysterious events with a series of consequences. In “Authority” the scenario changes radically because Jeff VanderMeer tells what happens after that expedition but in the Southern Reach agency, the government agency that aims to try to solve those mysteries. The first novel worked independently but you need to read it as a basis to understand the meaning of at least part of what happens in the second novel.

One of the characteristics of “Annihilation” was the total absence of the names of the characters, which emphasized how in Area X they were isolated from the outside world and their identity was linked to their task within the expedition. In “Authority” the names of some characters are mentioned but the question is more complex because the code name Control of the new director John Rodriguez has deep roots that are explored in the course of the novel and the willingness of the biologist to be called Ghost Bird also has it meanings related to his identity.

The exploration of Area X brought surprises and twists, what can be called the exploration of the Southern Reach agency’s activities is no less. Actually in some ways it seems a typical government agency in which there are internal rivalries with clashes over its management but even for a secret agency it has its peculiarities, linked to the expeditions into Area X and their consequences. In some moments the fears concerning this mysterious area are perceived, also deriving from the fact that it seems that in many years the Southern Reach made little or no progress in understanding its nature or the possible consequences of its existence.

My main problem with “Authority” is that Rodriguez/Control is the absolute protagonist but his backstory seemed really heavy. His thoughts about his family have important meanings in the novel but a lot is about him. Some digressions seemed to me fillers that frankly bored me because they distracted from the main plot and in some cases really seemed useless.

Luckily, in the novel a contrast between Control and the biologist/Ghost Bird soon begins, which repeatedly brings the attention back to Area X becoming important in the plot. Among other things it leads to the impression that Control is a bureaucrat who got the job for political reasons and the codename Control sounds more and more ironic with the story’s progress.

Like “Annihilation”, “Authority” isn’t very long, yet in my opinion some cuts here and there in Control’s mental flashbacks would have helped. The good thing is that the bits that are less interesting for me don’t last long so you reach the final part rather quickly and at least the story ends with a bang.

“Authority” isn’t the type of sequel that explains the mysteries introduced in the first novel, on the contrary it adds more of them connected to the Southern Reach and Control. The remarkable differences compared to “Annihilation” make it difficult to recommend it even to the readers who appreciated the first novel. If you appreciate stories with important psychological elements combined with mysteries you might like it.