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Acceptance

Written by: Jeff VanderMeer
Narrated by: Carolyn McCormick, Bronson Pinchot, Xe Sands
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Publisher's Summary

It is winter in Area X, the mysterious wilderness that has defied explanation for 30 years, rebuffing expedition after expedition, refusing to reveal its secrets. As Area X expands, the agency tasked with investigating and overseeing it - the Southern Reach - has collapsed on itself in confusion. Now one last, desperate team crosses the border, determined to reach a remote island that may hold the answers they've been seeking. If they fail, the outer world is in peril. Meanwhile, Acceptance tunnels ever deeper into the circumstances surrounding the creation of Area X - what initiated this unnatural upheaval? Among the many who have tried, who has gotten close to understanding Area X - and who may have been corrupted by it?

©2014 Jeff VanderMeer (P)2014 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
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What listeners say about Acceptance

Average Customer Ratings
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    4 out of 5 stars

The ending was somewhat unsatisfying.

The ending was somewhat unsatisfying.
There's one loose end I was not happy with being left unexplained, but maybe that's the author's point. I guess it's supposed to be about stuff beyond human comprehension, but it still doesn't tie up to point at anything that leaves room for further thinking.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

so good!

Only when you read all three books for the second time will it make real sence. absolutly loved this series. Well written, well read, well done!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Bad to worse

I have been plodding through this series, only keeping going because the story is rather interesting and I want to see how it turns out. That said, from books 1 to 3, the audio performances have gone from bad to worse. This third book is almost unlisten-able.

Between books 2 and 3, the reading by Bronson Pinchot is maddeningly awful. His attempts at dramatic emphasis feel completely misplaced and ruins the rhythm of the text. I swore at the end of book 2 that I would not complete the series, it was that bad. But I pulled the trigger, only to find that he is BACK in book 3, with two others to "help".

Carolyn McCormick is not too bad a reader, but I felt that her performance let down book 1. Now, she is the best of the three in 3! But in her case the editing is sometimes ridiculously bad, mid-sentence going from clear to sounding like she is underwater. Or within a span of a couple of minutes, sounding like a paragraph was recorded in 4 separate takes, each 3 weeks apart.

And then there is Xe Sands, who's affected drawl is, simply, brutal.

Sorry for being so harsh, but I have listened to a lot of audio books and this was the first time I felt really strongly that the performance absolutely RUINED the story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I accept.

An incredible close to a fascinating trilogy and the performances here bring the whole book a beautiful and terrifying life.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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Readers uneven

Excellent book. McCormick's reading, however, was unnatural, overinflected, and hammy. She's a skilled performer, but was doing way way too much and made it hard to focus on the story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

weird and wonderful

vandermeer reminds me of lovecraft in so many ways, all of them good. a crazy conclusion to a crazy trilogy. wonderful performances all around.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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A great conclusion.

Vivid and mind consuming. An exceptional way to end a series of emotion and mystery.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Give it 5 years before I read it again

There’s something about this one that is better than the second but so much is happening within acceptance. I still have no idea what happened to control. I need to give this book another read in the future to better understand it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I love the Southern Reach

This is my favourite series. Very well written. I love the changes in perspective.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

3 books and an unfinished story

the first book showed promise and i persevered through the second very boring book but by the time i finished the 3rd, no answers were provided. the story stops unfinished and provides 0 closure. you have no idea about the fates of the characters or the world which amounted to the time i invested into the trilogy being an absolute waste. 0 out of 5, don't waste your time.

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