Two of the other characters met by Sanders in his voyage spontaneously make the same decision: Balthus, an apostate priest, and Suzanne. After a final confrontation, Thorensen decides to remain in his house within the jungle, in spite of the encroaching crystallization process. In one of the most striking episodes of the novel, Sanders discovers the reason of the deadly rivalry to be Ventress' former wife, Serena, who is terminally ill with tuberculosis. In his route towards the deep of the forest, Sanders gets involved in a personal feud between Ventress, a Belgian architect, and Thorensen, the director of a diamond mine.

Many passages deal with this characteristic, pointing out its capability to stop time and life. The crystals also have the property to keep objects and beings in a suspended state of existence. Several facts, furthermore, remain unexplained: for example, the ability of jewels to liquefy the crystals. Scientific explanations of the phenomenon are provided within the book: however, Ballard offers mostly an interior and psychological perspective about it, directly through Sanders' experiences. The same phenomenon is reported to be present in the Florida everglades and in the Pripyat Marshes ( Soviet Union) as well.

Soon, however, he starts to recognize that a mysterious phenomenon is crystallizing the jungle along with its living creatures. From here he tries to reach a leprosy treatment facility where his friends, Max and Suzanne Clair, live.

The protagonist is Edward Sanders, an English medical doctor, who arrives at the river port of Port Matarre, in Cameroon. Cover of 1967 Berkley Books paperback edition.

The crystal world