There's so much to admire about this book.

Pride of Eden offers a solid education on large-animal rescue (the economics, the politics, the zoology, the biology) without once becoming didactic.

It engages us fully with the horror of man's inhumanity to beasts, without approaching propaganda.

It features the violence and suspense of an action-adventure franchise, conveyed with breathtakingly lyrical prose.

Thanks to NetGalley and St, Martins Press for an advance readers copy.

I received a free ARC electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Taylor Brown, and St. Martin's Press. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. Taylor Brown should be on your 'must-read' list, too. He puts you there, in the story, as a participant with an investment in the outcome.

It is said by several sources that there are more tigers in private captivity in the state of Texas than are left in the wild in the rest of the world. Many species of big cats are going extinct right in front of our eyes. As are elephants, rhinos, chimps - thousands of bird species and many more critters - too many to count. Just because it's legal to own exotics, doesn't make it right. Hopefully, they will not have to tell that to the judge.

Wealthy ex-jockey and Vietnam veteran Anderson 'Anse' Caulfield owns an animal rescue called 'Little Eden' in coastal Georgia; Malaya is a former US Army vet with two Iraqi tours and a post-military stint in Africa hunting elephant and rhino traffickers; Recce Commando of South African Defence Force, Jaager de Vaal; an American fireman, Lope, who brings to the group falconry and drone maneuvers; and 'Little Eden' employee, Anse's love interest, and veterinarian Tyler are doing everything in their power to add those abused and endangered exotic 'pets' to the circus and zoo retirees, abandoned or lost critters, who are already a part of Anse's Little Eden.

This can only end badly... Right?

Rating: 4 stars

Trigger Warning: Some graphic scenes of violence (including killing) towards animals.

Even though this book include scenes of violence to animals, it does not glorify that violence. It faithfully shows how it is occurring. Was it hard to take in? Yes. Is it important to understand? In my opinion, yes. Taylor Brown has written a work of literary fiction that transcends the ugliness of those events and scenes of violence against animals. This book features a cast of misfits who band together, or act individually to save wild animals, or formerly wild animals.

The pathos of the human beings towards the animals they work to protect and defend is a thing of beauty even though the setting and circumstances of the situations are often raw and gritty. Anse, a former Viet Nam veteran and jockey, has set up an animal sanctuary in rural Georgia on the site of a former private zoo. He is compelled to reconnoiter and eventually clandestinely rescue all manner of animals including, caged exotic birds destined for resale, and a three legged alligator used for pit fighting. He fights his own demons in part by rescuing the helpless animals.

Malaya often joins Anse on the excursions to save the animals. Malaya is ex-army infantry. She lived through two Iraq deployments. South Africa then became her new home after getting an honorable discharge from the army. There she worked to protect ivory and rhinos. She too comes with her own legacy of painful experiences and family memories that compel her to join forces with Anse.

The scenes in the book turn from dreamy half-thoughts and memories, to graphic field actions. Some of the scenes are from the point of view of animals, real and imagined. The plight of the caged or hunted animals is told with clear language that settles in your brain. The writing evokes sympathy for the animals, and outrage for the humans that see nothing wrong in keeping them in deplorable conditions. While the animal rescuers act heroically, our society probably would not look on them as heroes. To me that is another great tragedy in the book. I loved the characters that were willing to grapple with situations that most of us would just ignore.

‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; the publisher, St Martin’s Press; and the author, Taylor Brown, for providing a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Taylor Brown is quickly becoming one of my favorite novelists. His 2018 book, Gods of Howl Mountain is one of my ten best loved books among the 1,300 I have reviewed since 2012, so I have been waiting for this book, and it does not disappoint. My undying thanks go to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the invitation to read and review. This book is for sale today.

Pride of Eden is a wildlife sanctuary in Georgia, owned and run by a Vietnam vet named Anse. Anse has PTSD related to his service, and his most searing memory is of the loss of a service dog that sacrificed its life to prevent a soldier from being killed by an explosive device. Anse is a complicated character with a possible death wish, but this aspect of his character is never overplayed, and after a haunting, visceral passage at the beginning, it becomes a subtle quality that runs beneath the surface, as it likely would in real life.

Anse accepts animals of all sorts; some come from illegal private zoos, or from private owners that are surprised that their adorable lion cub has grown up to be a wild animal. But secretly, he is also a vigilante. When he sees an animal in need of rescue whose owner plans to keep it—or sell its dead body for parts—he creeps in at night and liberates it.

Tyler is the preserve’s veterinarian, a buff no-nonsense woman who is also Anse’s girlfriend. My favorite passage involving Tyler is when a man comes to see Anse, and Anse is in a mood and wants Tyler to get rid of the guy. Tyler pushes back; it might be important, and the man has traveled a long way to see him. Anse grudgingly tells her to “Send him in,” and Tyler fires back that she is not his secretary. At the outset of the story, Tyler does not know that Anse does not acquire all of his animals legally.

The third main character is Malaya, who comes to the sanctuary looking for work:

“What do you want to do?” he asked.
“Anything.”
“What are your qualifications?”
“Third infantry, two tours in Iraq. Honorable discharge. Then I contracted in South Africa, tracking ivory and
rhino poachers.”
“You catch any of them?”
She uncrossed her arms, buried her hands in the pockets of her shorts. Anse could see her knuckles ridged hard against the denim. “Yes,” she said.

Malaya is complex as well. But I love Malaya not only for her meaty internal monologue, but for the things she isn’t. Most male authors (and some female ones too) wouldn’t be able to resist these tired elements, and once again I admire Brown’s respect for women, which shows vibrantly in the way he frames his characters. Malaya is not romantically interested in Anse, nor does she try to mother him. Malaya and Tyler are not jealous of one another, and they do not compete. Both characters are buff and intelligent, and at no time do they have to be rescued by men. As a result, I could appreciate this story as it unfolded without the distraction of stereotypes or overused, sexist plot devices. Neither female character is motivated by sexual assaults in her past.

The other two characters are Horn, another damaged vigilante that collects wild animals, and Lope, Anse’s driver, who helps him move large animals.

This is not an easy read. It will attract Brown’s fans, of course, and also animal lovers; yet those same animal lovers have to wade through an awful lot of sorrow, as the story is rife with tales of animal abuse. Brown’s purpose, apart from writing outstanding fiction, is likely to raise awareness of poachers that kill endangered animals for profit, and of private game reserves that send semi-tame animals to an enclosure so that wealthy businessmen can bag some big game, take that animal’s head home to hang in the den.

Yet there’s nothing at all here that is included to be prurient or sensationalistic; every word has a purpose, either to develop a character or drive the plot forward, or both.

My emotions run the full gamut as I am reading, and this is a sign of excellent literature. I laugh out loud a couple of times; at others, the prose is so painful that I have to walk away for awhile and then come back. But I am never sorry to be reading it. The ending is so deeply satisfying that I want to high-five someone, but alas, I am reading it alone.

Once again, Brown’s novel is destined to be one of the year’s best reads. I highly recommend it.

This book has a wonderfully rich premise and prose. I had trouble with the story itself to some degree. It did bring up interesting issues, although difficult to read. This was a mixed bag for my taste. I did enjoy the author's writing though and will look for future work.
Thank you #Netgalley and #StMartinsPress for the early release for review.

He's a master story teller and the way he weaves a story is just magical. You're missing out if you haven't discovered his books. I discovered him with God's Of Howl Mountain and I went and read everything else by him even though God's Of Howl Mountain will always be my favorite. Wish I could give him more than five stars. Happy reading!

Books, I’ve long believed, operate as tangible blessings in the world. The blessings contained in Taylor Brown’s “Pride of Eden” are incredibly timely. In a time of worldwide chaos, Brown offers the comfort of prose so poetic that it drowns out your worries like waves. He writes of a tigress, for instance, that she is “a creature of pure instinct, mindless and true.” Later in the text, a lion wears his dark mane like “a wreath of wolves.”

Brown also demands that we think about the way our lives and sense of the world interacts/intersects with the other creatures that share our world. He tackles complex, current issues such as poaching, farming of exotic animals, the desire to touch the wild, canned hunting, and climate change. His characters wonder, repeatedly, if we deserve the dominion over the world that we’ve assumed. Such a world, one character imagines, would be “a world before sin,” a world allowed to “begin anew.”

As an animal lover, Brown’s depiction of animals kept me quickly turning pages, then slamming to a halt as my eyes crossed over words so beautiful and perfect that I could not read them quickly. His human characters are no less winning. Broken by experiences in war, in pain, struggling with loss, the people who live in his pages have a dignity and authenticity that makes you want to stay with them past the concluding pages. Read this one.

A big thank you to the publisher, the author Taylor Brown, and NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for my candid review.

I really liked this book. It is hard to categorize this story because it is a unique one. Ultimately, it is a good vs. evil, rebels against the man kind of book. It is about a rag-tag set of quirky marginal characters that all work at a defunct roadside animal exhibit that has been turned into an animal rescue focusing on large wild cats who have been kept by collectors.

The characters are unique and quirky and I really loved the band. While I don't think that this was written with thoughts of writing a sequel, but I would love to see these characters again.

If you want a good book---this is it.

There is some outstanding writing sprinkled throughout this tale that helps define wildness, freedom, and cruelty. There were parts that were difficult to get through but it never felt gratuitous.
Overall, I think I rounded up a bit and may forget this one soon, but I would still recommend it.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with this drc available through netgalley.

An engaging, meandering and beautifully descriptive story involving powerful human/animal connection balanced with uncomfortable reading related to animal cruelty and clashes between hunter/prey.

*will post in online venues upon publication and add link below.

A gripping, atmospheric read with four broken people seeking redemption through animal rescue. Chapter 1 begins with a thunderclap: "The first squeal split the air like a fault line, a fracture in the world." Boom! This book is not for the faint of heart. Within its pages there are people plundering animals for artifacts, abusing them for sport, pitting them against one another, stockpiling them on an "ark" in preparation for the next flood--they are all in opposition to the mission of our flawed team of rescuers. Two strong women play prominent roles--an vetrinarian (Tyler) and Malaya who served in Iraq before hunting poachers in Africa. Alongside are Anse (owner of Little Eden, a former jockey, and Vietnam vet and Lope (fireman, falconer, and drone operator). This gritty read will transport you to the surreal world of the crumbling South and inside the mind of the King of the Savannah. You will never look at animals in the same way after finishing this book.

In honor of the recently celebrated International Women's Day (March 8):
"I've got enough sad stories crusted under my nails. I want claws." (Tyler)
"She felt the leopard spots throbbing on her calf, the talons on her foot. She thought of her father and her grandfather. These men who lived inside her, roaming the tangled jungle of memory. She closed her eyes, imagining them swinging peacefully overhead, watching her." (Malaya)

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a powerful book. It’s been a long time since I’ve read a book that has had me in tears throughout. Tears for the broken people fighting for the life of animals, especially big cats. Tears for the animals. Tears for the destruction by mankind of so many animals on this planet through simple greed and neglect. This book touched the part of me that loves the animal world. I have been on safari and have seen a dead rhino minus it’s gorgeous tusk. It sickened me. The characters are well developed, not always loved but certainly admired. The words and descriptions are gorgeous and well researched. It’s a book full of pain but one that should make everyone think about what we are doing to this amazing planet

It's one of those case that can be labeled "It's me, not the book".
I found it well written, I like the style of writing and I think that the author is a talented storyteller.
Unfortunately the descriptions of the animal abuse were too strong for me and I DNFed.
It's not my cup of tea but it made me discover an excellent author.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Wow. Truly, this has to be one of the best books I've ever read in years. Right from the get-go it's visceral, emotional, evocative. You can feel the prose in your bones. Every line written is stunning and there were several points when I would reread sections just for the feel of it. The plot is perfectly paced and continues throughout the story with this air of mystery and magic about the characters and their lots in life.

These aren't just broken characters, they are truly shattered but somehow the others around them manage to help them pick up the pieces without pushing them away. The characters come together in a way as if they're building their own pride as they build out the sanctuary: Anse the king, Tyler the nurturer, Malaya the huntress, Lope the supporter. The ending is absolutely wonderful. I can feel that these characters and their story will be with me for years to come.

Brown is an incredible writer. His last novel Gods of Howl Mountain was one of my favorites of its publication year and I'm confident that Pride of Eden will be too.

Note: I received a free Kindle edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher St. Martin's Press, and the author Taylor Brown for the opportunity to do so.

Wow. Brown is a prolific writer, that much I can say. As much as I enjoyed the settings and getting to know the exotic animals, of which some I've never heard of before (leading me to googling it and adding it to my knowledge), I found it a little hard connecting to the characters. It felt more like snapshots of them here and there, jumping from one chapter to another.

One thing though, if you're an animal lover, you'd find some parts really hard to stomach. There were parts which were very descriptive and gruesome. Many wincing moments for me. But that was what made this such a great book to read too, due to its brilliant writing. What I enjoyed most was definitely the setting of the book and its landscape that the author brought to life.

Like in all books that I read, I love one that has strong characters, and I found this part lacking in Pride of Eden. However, I can see how this book might be great for other readers who want to be taken far away into a different land of flora and fauna.

Thank you #Netgalley and St Martin's Press for a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

Taylor Brown has returned with another thought-provoking novel of man’s injustice to man, animals, and the environmental issues of all of the above. He seamlessly goes from relationships between human to human in wartime, to peacetime, to inhumane treatment of both humans and animals by each other,intentionally, or just the nature of the beast. He takes us from each perspective in such an unassuming way that you arrive before you realize it. Brown’s love of pristine settings and the unsung hero comes through in all of his works, with a fearful cry that we are losing what we cannot replace, taking what was not ours to begin with. His play on words with the title is brilliant, as Eden was the idyllic place of abundance with no end, until man fell from grace and took everything else with him. In Brown’s book, we roam with the pride and we feel the pride of the jungle beasts who only want their freedom, uncaged and natural as is their due. Man is encumbered by many self-imposed trappings, literally and figuratively. Brown reminds us that what we do affects others, often negatively, often irreversibly. His writing is a well-remembered cautionary tale that is not soon forgotten, nor should we.

Taylor Brown is a truly gifted author. His prose is evocative and lyrical. He paints vivid pictures that draw you into the world of the novel. The characters he creates are unique, well-developed, believable entities. I thought Gods of Howl Mountain was unbeatable, and while Granny May will always be one of my favorite characters, Pride of Eden is every bit as gorgeous and compelling. My only quibble is that there is a scene where a dog dies. I understand why it's in there, as it deeply affects one of the characters. However, it is usually my deal breaker, where I quit reading a book. It is a testament to Brown’s skill that, while I skimmed that part of the chapter to get past that moment, I could not toss the book aside.

Three unlikely characters are saving poached and abused animals. How they do it and all that is involved is harrowing. They all have their own reasons and how they think it should be done. It will make you think and wonder if you could do more..

The Pride of Eden is described as a “fever dream of a novel” in the book’s synopsis and it’s an apt description. The story of Anse, a retired jockey who runs an exotic animal sanctuary in Georgia, the book encompasses a wild assortment of characters. Brown does a great job describing the place, the animals and the people. But I consistently felt off kilter while reading this, as if it truly was a dream.

The book can be gruesome in parts, starting with the killing of a rhino for its horn. But it’s those engrossing scenes that also drew me in and captured my attention.

We hear from a variety of characters here. Not just Anse and Malaya, an Iraqi veteran who also hunted poachers in Africa, but the bad guys and even Mosi, a lion.

This book will grab you. It’s not an easy read. The animal cruelty in the book will piss you off. Anse’s backstory brought tears to my eyes.

The writing is lush and poetic. The man truly is a wordsmith. It’s not a fast paced book and at times, it did drag somewhat.

My thanks to netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advance copy of this book.

This is a well written book. I just couldn't hardly read it. The animal abuse from poachers was too gory for me. Don't let my review stop you from giving this book a chance. I just can't handle reading about any kind of animal being abused. I use to work with animals and saw it first hand. Thank you St. Martin's Press via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.