A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Locus Awards Finalist ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, The Washington Post, New York magazine, Time, Kirkus, Literary Hub, Goodreads Featuring a new introduction by award-winning author Julia Armfield. Absolution opens decades before Area X forms, with a science expedition whose mysterious end suggests terrifying consequences for the future--and marks the Forgotten Coast as a high priority for Central, the shadowy federal agency that monitors extraordinary threats. Many years later, the Forgotten Coast files wind up in the hands of a washed-up Central operative, Old Jim. He starts pulling a thread that reveals a long, troubling record of government agents meddling with forces they clearly cannot comprehend. Old Jim's investigation culminates in the first Central expedition into what has now been labeled Area X. A border has come down, and a full team has been assembled to find Area X's 'off switch' somewhere in the