VERDICT: Bio-semiotics and eco science-fiction successfully strung together for the sake of our planet.

Imagine that after your death, your brain is getting uploaded into the brain of a mammoth? Does this sound totally insane?
For some reason, this very wacky idea grabbed me when I read a review by another book blogger.
When I saw the book was available as audio on Netgalley, I seized the opportunity, and I am so glad I did.

My only regret is that I knew ahead what was going to happen. I feel the book would be even more enjoyable if the official synopsis did not reveal that much (alas, this is not an uncommon problem), and it would truly be an eco-thriller.
Knowing what is going to happen to Damira’s brain takes off much of the suspense.

Anyway, let’s focus now on all the positive elements.

First, it’s a great way of alerting more people about an “ugly reality: the bloody facts of elephant poaching and the ivory trade” (the author, in the Acknowledgments).
I always enjoy authors who use popular genres such as thrillers or scifi to address a major issue.

It is also a book highlighting the importance of science to help our planet heal: if you do know a topic well, you may be able to take the necessary measures to fix things.
And related to that, it’s all about an unusual way of doing de-extinction (also known as resurrection biology), that is, the process of bringing back species that have gone extinct.
Incidentally, at the same time as I was listening to this book, there were articles in the news about the first steps to resurrect the near-extinct white rhinoceros.

I loved the characters, with the good and the bad guys, and some caught in between.

I also learned obviously a lot about elephants and mammoths, about their society structure and personalities, “their sensory and emotional lives”, as well as about evolutionary concepts.

But this rather short novel has more layers, especially around the theme of human memory and identity. The author actually considers his novel to be “a work of bio-semiotics”. I won’t give more details here, to avoid revealing even more spoilers, but I really liked how the author treated that topic.

The author had personal knowledge of the issue at stake, but he also read many books and articles to get his details right. He mentions several excellent resources in the Acknowledgments.
In that part of the book, he also highlights his “deepest respect for park rangers and scientists trying to protect the elephants and rhinos, fighting a war against pointless death. Their courage is a demonstration of who we humans can be at our best: empathetic, brave guardians of our Earth and of the animals that have as much right to it as we do.”

NB: this is about the slaughter of elephants, so there are a few gory scenes.

My brief foray into science fiction was not really a big success.

Yes, there is an interesting thought experiment at the basis of this novel: if we bring back extinct animals by patching together DNA, is instinct also passed on? Will these creatures know how to behave and survive in the wild?

The plot built around this premise was somewhat farfetched though: a human scientist's mind is uploaded in the brain of one of the mammoths to teach. But then 22nd century ivory hunters show up...

I found the characters really flat. If you are more a literary fiction reader and care about plot or character building then you better skip this, but if you enjoy the type of SF that asks and elaborates interesting questions, then give it a go.

This book is heavy, but beautiful. It is definitely taking a look at the tragedy that it the ivory war and poaching of elephants. It's clear how much research Ray Nayler has done! I felt like i was learning about the travesty of what is going on currently while we are actually in a realistic, but futuristic setting. I can see this as.a realistic future, which is devastating. The characterization is perfect and I can see this actually happening.

This story was a very interesting premise and one that I have not seen before. Completely unique and captivating, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for the center of the ven diagram between sci-fi, mammoths, and environmentalism.

The audiobook was well done, the narrators were excellent. There was a slight speed difference between the narrators so if you are one to listen to your audiobooks at a higher speed, you may notice it more than at speeds closer to 1x.

Thank you to NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for an advanced listener copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was an interesting thought experiment and I loved the central Mammoth POV! It had a lot of interesting things to say about evolution and technological concerns with pushing boundaries. I think it could have been a little longer, and one of the POVs (the one narrated by the man on audio) was so hard to listen to that it took away from the experience. Also, most of the human characters were very one note.

Received as an ARC from Netgalley:

This was such a pleasant surprise of a book that had me hooked from start to finish. Really unique sci-fi story told beautifully.

Life, Revenge, and everything in between are covered in rich detail here.

Will be on the hunt for more Ray Nayler stories in the future.

This philosophically engaging novella made me think about how far I would go to protect those I love. Although it is violent, even gory at times, it ends on a hopeful note that has a nice symmetry with the opening scene.

I loved the premise of a dead scientist’s consciousness being transferred to the body of a genetically recreated mammoth so that she could teach the herd how to live as wild mammoths. My favorite parts of the story were her experiences living as a mammoth and interacting with the other mammoths.

The plot is interesting and occasionally exciting, but slowed down by the nonlinear narrative, which jumps between multiple points of view and back and forth through space and time. If you’re not paying very close attention, it’s easy to get confused, at least in a first listen of the audiobook.

The audiobook production was excellent, and the duel narration by Gabrielle de Cuir and Stefan Rudnicki enhanced my enjoyment of the story. Both narrators have pleasant voices, good pacing and pronunciation, distinctive accents and speech patterns to suit each character, and the ability to convey mood and emotion effectively. The story works well as an audiobook, as long as you are paying attention.

I received a free advanced listening copy of the audiobook through NetGalley. I volunteered to provide an honest review.

This sci-fi novella had me on the edge of my seat… until it didn’t.

Before you scroll past this review, stop! 🛑 Unless you absolutely despise sci-fi because this book is most definitely not for you.

Elephants are extinct. Scientists in Moscow have made it possible to bring them back, but with the only environment big and safe enough to allow the creatures to live in the wild while being monitored from afar being in northern Russia, they decide to bring back the mammoth as a stepping stone in their experiment.

As the mammoths start dying off, the scientists take a drastic step to ensure their survival: “download” the digitized mind of Dr. Damira Khismatullina (the world’s leading scientist in elephant behaviour who was murdered a year prior) into the brain of a mammoth. Her goal is now to teach the mammoths how to survive off the land and defend themselves from poachers.

To help raise funds, a small amount of licenses are bought each year for an exorbitant amount of money to allow buyers to poach a mammoth.

This story is told in three POVs: Dr. Damira and two people who are brought in separate poaching expeditions.

The concept is so intriguing and the book had so much jammed packed in it that I’m shocked it was as short as it was. It was a lot to take as an audiobook so I know that it significantly impacted my reading experience. I also wasn’t keeping an eye on how much was left in the book so when it ended, I was stunned. To me, it felt like I was on this wild ride of survival and then suddenly it just stopped. I understand why it ended where it did, but it left me disappointed.

If the plot has caught your interest, give this one a shot. Go into it with an open mind and knowing it’s short may allow for a better reading experience than I had.

This is an interesting novella, I found it very philosophical and meditative. I enjoyed the eco aspect of the story. I was confused at times by the dual narrative. The publication description describes the book as an Eco-Thriller. While I agree with the eco, the book is hardly a thriller. While this is novella length, the action moves slowly, with some big reveals at the end. The narrators were fine, but I think I would have understood the book more by reading instead of listening.

This was a super quick and engaging read that provokes the reader to examine humanity's impact on our world. I don't think the plot summary provided gives a totally accurate overview of what to expect from this novella. While it's described as an eco-thriller, I'd agree with other reviwers that it's more speculative sci fi. The Tusks of Extinction follows scientist and anti-poaching activist Damira on her mission to save elephants and then, many years after her murder, her consciousness is downloaded into the body of a mammoth to teach the re-introduced mammoths how to survive and fight for their lives.

Conceptually, this novella drew me in right away. However, fitting 3 POVs in such a short story quickly became a bit claustrophobic. The characters didn't get very fleshed out, and with the repeated time and POV jumping, the story got sort of muddy and confusing at times.

I had some trouble believing that the downloading of a human mind into an animal brain would have even been considered for a whole lot of reasons, primarily ethical and logistical. If feels exactly like a sci fi plot and very unlike something that would actually be allowed to happen even if the tech theoretically existed. However, I read a lot of sci fi and have gotten pretty good at suspending disbelief-- I just wish a little more work had been done in the book itself to convince me this was a reasonable concept. However, I really enjoyed the descriptions of the animal behaviors and bonds and how Damira's consciousness changed as her physical being and life changed, but I was left wanting more.

I guess that's sort of the major feeling this left me with. I wanted more. I read a lot of novellas, and I typically feel satisfied with the length, but I felt this story needed more space. I really found myself hoping for any exploration of white saviorism, the impacts of globalization and colonialism/imperialism on native animal populations, resources, and economies, more discussion of the ethics around Damira's transformation. Just more.

That said, I did enjoy this novella overall and would definitely recommend it to anyone who finds the premise interesting.

The Tusks of Extinction wasn't what I expected at all and I don't think I should give it a rating. It's an important work of Speculative Fiction, that really takes its time exploring a heartbreaking topic, and my enjoyment level is fairly irrelevant.

I was moved by it and it's written well, but I wouldn't say I enjoyed it in the way I expected or wanted. I definitely respect the heck out of this author for tackling this subject though. It couldn't have been easy to do the research necessary to write this story. To bring you up to speed, this explores, and I will caution, in detail, the poaching of elephants and the decimation of species in general.

I would equate my experience of reading this to my experience with The Vanished Birds. Also a fantastic book, just not necessarily a book for me. With this being said, I would strongly encourage anyone who thinks this sounds interesting to check it out. The synopsis however, IMO, is a little misleading, as calling this a 'tense eco-thriller' is off the mark.

I would classify this more as a slow-moving Speculative Science Fiction, with a philosophical bent. I know a ton of Readers are going to really be wowed by this one, so please don't let my 'no rating' sway you. There's a book for every Reader and a Reader for every book. This is an important story, just not necessarily one I care to explore in my free time when I am looking to relax.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Spotify Audiobooks, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate this author's writing and the importance of the topic.

I listened to this via audio and did not enjoy it. I listen to my books at an increased speed and the narrator made it difficult to keep up. The accents do fit the characters, but negatively impacted my experience. It was difficult to keep up with the timeline and what was going on between the two narrators, as well as the past/present storylines. All in all, it was a good story and I imagine I would have enjoyed it more had I read it rather than listened to it.

This is an interesting climate dystopia/spec fiction #BiteSizedBook examining the fine lines between conservation and exploitation. I loved the idea of the consciousness of an eco-warrior who lost her life defending elephants has her consciousness downloaded into a resurrected Mammoth to help the new/old species exist. Unfolding into a story that questions the funding and choices made in conservation and extinction of species. What is the difference between poachers attempting to survive and wealthy trophy hunters paying for the right to kill? These questions have sat on my mind in the days after I finished this novella. Good questions, especially for someone like me that hunts. Does it matter that I eat what I kill? Does it matter that I hunt species that are not endangered? Or am I part of the problem…

While Nayler does a lot with this novella, there is enough content to dig deeper and create a functional and engaging full length novel. Maybe we will see one from Nayler on similar lines in the future.

“When you bring back a long-extinct species, there’s more to success than the DNA.“

Is “Eco-Thriller” my new favourite genre?

‘Cause I think “Eco-Thriller” is my new favourite genre.

This is my second book by this author, and, while the novella didn’t give you quite the depth of The Mountain in the Sea, I enjoyed it just as much.

Elephants and poachers and mammoths, oh my!

I enjoyed the setting. I’ve read about the Russian Steppes, of course, but this bitty work, really showed it off.

My favourite part, (besides the vigilante justice, which, turns out I’m a little too okay with) was learning a little about elephants/mammoths, and how their trunks function in regards to memory. So interesting.

Thanks to NetGalley, Tor Publishing, and Spotify Audiobooks for this snack of an ARC.

This sci Fi novella really took a big swing to pack a lot into a shorter format. I began on audiobook, but it had a tinny quality and I didn’t care for the narrator and switched to print which I preferred.

The Tusks of Extinction is a very unique novella centered around moral and ethical concerns of poaching, climate concerns, and the possibility of technology.

The story is split into dual POVs, one featuring a past timeline with Dr. Damira Khismatullina and her colleague as they fight to protect the few remaining elephants on the earth. Damira is an expert on all things elephant and has been working hard to help stop poaching and save elephants. Sadly, Damira is murdered by poachers while working and is unable to continue her work–at least, not in any traditional sense.

A hundred years later, we enter our second POV. In this future timeline, wooly mammoths have been brought back from extinction and scientists need Damira's expert knowledge to help give them a chance to survive and thrive. Fortunately, before Damira was murdered she agreed to have what is essentially her memories and consciousness uploaded to a database in order to save all of her knowledge of the elephants. Scientists decide to take her uploaded memories and place into the brain of a woolly mammoth int he hope of being able to teach them how to survive. It's a lot to take in, but I think the author handled this rather momentous task with deftness and cleverness.

I've always thought the idea of bringing back extinct animals sounds... potentially problematic, bordering on very unwise, but I've also found the idea moderately intriguing (who doesn't, really?) so I was excited to explore this premise. Nayler's take on this is a little different from what I expected, but I thought it was a really logical investigation into what it would take to have a new population succeed. There are always natural instincts in place that I think would guide animals, but the idea of having Damira's consciousness implanted into a mammoth's brain was something that brought an entirely new and fascinating angle to this entire idea. I was surprised at how well Nayler actually worked this concept into a story in a way that felt both intelligent and entertaining, while also providing sharp commentary on poaching and the many ways humans treat the world around them.

I think my only struggles with this novella would fall into similar veins as my problems with Nayler's previous book, The Mountain in the Sea. There's an aspect to the author's prose that doesn't resonate with me quite as much as I'd love it to, and I found there to be an overwhelming technical quality to it that keeps me at arm's length. I also do feel that this was an exceptionally ambitious story to explore in about a hundred pages. I'm not sure if this story would need a longer format since it does work overall, but there were parts of this I actually would've liked to have expanded a bit or just explored in some deeper ways than it was able to be in such a short amount of pages. That being said, I do still think this novella was overwhelmingly successful in doing what it wanted to and conveying the messages it set out to convey.

I also would not necessarily describe this as a 'thriller,' and would not recommend you go into this expecting something that will keep you on the edge of your seat in a traditional thriller way. It is more 'thriller' in the sense that it's a very intense overall topic and quite shocking sometimes to realize the many ways in which humans can wreak havoc and have such callous attitudes towards living creatures.

I listened to the audiobook edition of The Tusks of Extinction and thought the narrators did an excellent job with it. I would think it could get tricky to narrate the voice of someone who has essentially become a mammoth, but Gabrielle de Cuir handled it with finesse and has a lovely voice to boot. Stefan Rudnicki also kept my interested while narrating the alternate POV chapters. I also highly recommend reading the author's note at the end, in which Nayler shares some of his inspiration, research, and other tidbits that I found really fascinating.

Overall, I've given The Tusks of Extinction 3.5 stars. This is absolutely a recommended read for anyone interested in technological and speculative fiction, and especially if you enjoyed Ray Nayler's previous book, The Mountain in the Sea.

The Mammoth had been resurrected but they must be taught how to be mammoths or they’ll die out. The late Dr. Damira Khismatullina is called in to help. She was murdered a year ago but her digitized consciousness is uploaded into the brain of a mammoth.

I received this book as an ALC and unfortunately it was not for me. I had a hard time with the narrators, I felt like they were monotone and really didn’t do this book justice, or bring the story to life for me. I had to restart the book a few times when I probably should have DNFd it. I really wanted to love this but it just didn’t work for me. It might be more enjoyable as a physical book versus the audiobook. I see there are a ton of great reviews, so I might be the outlier here. As always please take my review with a grain of salt as we all read a different book. Just because it didn’t work for me, doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.

Thank you NetGalley and Spotify Audiobooks for my advanced copy and the chance to review it honestly.

Happy reading!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a free ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

This book's unique concept drew me in right away. A woman was murdered protecting the last of the elephants from the Ivory trade, and then was brought back to life through her digitized consciousness being downloaded to a mammoth's brain after Russian scientists brought mammoths back from extinction. Her mission? Teach the mammoths how to be wild again.

This book had great, profound things to say about humanity and our relationship to animals and the destruction of the environment. Loved the POV chatpers from the mammoths' points of view. Both ambitious and tightly told, this story is not one I will forget anytime soon.

The narrators were great for the audiobook as well. Highly recommend!

The Tusks of Extinction
by Ray Nayler

A cross over book of modern problems and future catastrophe. The book looks at human invention in a new light, how we can create through DNA extraction the re establishments of extinct species. How the modern worlds problems like poaching and over use of resources seen as commodities, with out looking at the ramifications? If we brought back a species from extinction how could we, how would we protect them from the same poaching, and resource commodities that took them out? This is a book that introduces the problem in a new and alluring way. Using scientific advancement to personalize the problem of commodities, illegal trade, and animal resources. The short nature of the story could make it useful in school settings providing discussion about these economic and political topics.

In a world where humans have brought back extinct species; where humans have the ability to store their consciousness (or that of those recently deceased) and implant that conscience into another body; one scientist makes a leap and implants a human conscience into the body of a mammoth.

Scientists have brought back the woolly mammoth, and other ancient creatures, but they are discovering that without the generational knowledge of the tribe, the mammoth's don't know how to be mammoths. When Damira, renowned elephant expert, dies, the decision is made to transplant her consciousness to a mammoth so she can lead the tribe to survival.

At the same time, there are poachers in the wild trying to make their fortune on mammoth tusks, and there are wealthy poachers who pay big money to hunt a wild mammoth, money that is used to support and run the preservation project.

This is an ambitious project for a novella, but I think Nayler did a nice job exploring the questions and complexities that come with species preservation.

My one struggle with this book, and perhaps it's because I listed to the audio book and wasn't able to easily refer back, but there were a lot of characters with similar sounding names, so it took me awhile to figure out who was who in the different groups. By the end I had it all sorted out though, and enjoyed the thought-provoking story.

Big thanks to Tordotcom and NetGalley for the egalley copy. All opinions are my own.