She's searching for jaguars...

...but will find far more dangerous predators as well (of the two legged variety).

Alex Carter is a wildlife biologist who has spent the last several months in LA spending time with her friend and A-List actress Zoe, a refreshing change to the many solitary months she had passed previously in remote wilderness. She's ready to head back into the field though and is thrilled to get a call from Ben Hathaway who is the regional director of the Land Trust for Wildlife Conservation, a group she has done work for in the past, who is offering her a new project. This time Alex would be in New Mexico doing a series presence survey, hopefully finding evidence that jaguars are present on sanctuary land there. If they are, the LTWC could petition the government to expand designated lands as a critical habitat for the highly endangered species. When she arrives she sets to work, but also comes across some disturbing events nearby. There is a white supremacist/anti-immigrant group causing problems both for Latinos in the neighboring town of Azulejo and a group participating in an archaeological dig on adjacent lands searching for the grave of a 16th century conquistador. Throw in the eccentric "gazillionaire" who owns a huge tract of land nearby and also seemingly wants to buy up the LTWC land for unknown reasons, and there's a lot going on in this secluded area. Turns out it isn't the wild cats of which she should be afraid, it's the two legged creatures who are posing the biggest threat to Alex's continued well=being.
This is the fourth entry in author Alice Henderson's series featuring Alex Carter. I haven't read the earlier books but enough details about earlier exploits are included that this one can easily be read as a standalone. The concept of the book intrigued me...passionate lover of animals and staunch conservationist comes up against human trouble as she works to protect the wilderness and its creatures...but I felt let down by the actual story. It began with a random prologue that didn't connect with the overall plot until nearly the end of the book, which left the narrative feeling disjointed. The characters never moved much beyond two dimensional for me....Alex is a likable enough character, but in a fairly generic sort of way, and the same can be said for the rest of the people with which she interacts. There was a great deal of detailed description of the gear Alex uses and a lot of information about jaguars and the methods Alex would use to harvest data to discover if there were jaguars about (and if so how many), and while much of it was informative and occasionally quite funny (like the fragrance used to attract wild cats being Obsession by Calvin Klein) it often bogged down the narrative. If you are a reader who wants a lot of facts with a hint of a story wrapped around it you might enjoy this more than I did, but if you're in the market for an engrossing mystery this might not be for you. I would rate it 2.5 ⭐️ rounded up to a 3 for the quality of information included. Readers of Nevada Barr, C J Box and William Kent Kruger might like this given its setting. My thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me access to a copy of The Vanishing Kind in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 wild cat stars

This is the fourth book in the Alex Carter series. She’s a wildlife biologist and manages to find danger on every project. This time, she’s in New Mexico trying to determine if there are still jaguars roaming a wildlife preserve.

I always enjoy the descriptions of wildlife work, for example, how they set up cameras and hair snares and then hopefully tranquilize and tag the animals they are studying.

This time, the danger comes from unscrupulous hunters, a band of border fanatics, and a conquistador who bobby-trapped his antiquities. This one has quite a few villains, and I wondered if Alex might have met her match.

This one was an interesting escape, but I found the ending over the top. As long as I suspended reality, I could root for Alex.

I enjoyed reading more about the endangered jaguars, and I hope they one day thrive again.

I have become a big fan of Alice Henderson's Alex Carter thrillers. I love their settings, all the information I learn about wildlife, and the strong, intelligent character of Alex herself. Unfortunately, I found The Vanishing Kind to be a bit disappointing. The book was trying to be too many things to too many people. Wildlife lovers. Remote settings lovers. Archaeology lovers. Spanish treasure lovers. Wilderness survival lovers. Then there are the white supremacists, and the resident billionaire who thinks his word is law.

I'm also a bit tired of one character repeatedly showing up just in the nick of time to save Alex's bacon. If Alex is going to get in that type of mess, I'd love to see her get herself out of it instead of relying on a deus ex machina.

I still love Alex's character, and I liked learning more about the jaguars, especially since I keep my eyes peeled for news of El Jefe, a jaguar roaming southeastern Arizona. Henderson includes how readers can learn more about these marvelous big cats at the end of the book. There is even timely information about the work (or lack thereof) of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. I'm just hoping that Alex's next adventure is a bit more... streamlined.

I adore this series. Yes the story lines are pretty far-fetched (I hope!) but reading about the adventures of Alex Carter while she works on the continent's most beautiful spots is so fun. In this installment Alex is in New Mexico tracking jaguars that come across the Mexican border. She meets all sorts of neighbors both good and bad along the way of course. I read this mostly in one sitting because I couldn't wait to see what would happen next!

Jaguars! This fourth in the series (which is readable as a standalone) sees Alex, a wildlife biologist, in New Mexico tracking jaguars. Unfortunately, she's in the middle of an area of conflict over immigration and land use. And there's a predatory wealthy man. You'll learn a lot about jaguars (who knew about Obsessi0n?) and the way they have been worshipped. This is heavy on info and it's also very atmospheric as Alex lives in her small off the grid cabin and as she both treks and flees through the desert. The bad guys are appalling and know that this does go a bit over the top. And know also that the resolution is a tad implausible but that didn't keep me from turning the pages. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. I'm a fan who is looking forward to Alex's next job.

I read this book in like 2 sittings, it moves pretty quickly, but I found the first half of this book to be a little repetitive and almost like a data dump for lack of a better word. Call me uneducated but I didn’t know there are jaguars in the US? That was pretty cool to learn about! The story telling is well done about the wild life and I’ve never really read a book with this subject matter. But, the white supremest rampages could definitely be a triggering subject matter, especially with the existing political climate.

This anti immigrant group wants to stop illegal immigrants from crossing the border, but also jaguars? Idk I was just a little confused. I feel like Henderson tried to combine 2 massive political issues and it wasn’t working for me.

Also I was expecting Alex to be a little more of a bad ass. She’s this brilliantly educated wildlife biologist who apparently spends much time on her own, I was hoping to get “international superspy” vibes from her, and I felt she was sort of consistently in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Apparently this is the 4th book in the series and they’re all stand alone stories, but I’m not running to pick up the other stories.

While The Vanishing Kind, by Alice Henderson, had its moments, for me at least they were outweighed by the book’s several flaws, making it a book I can’t recommend. As usual in these cases, I’ll keep the review brief as I don’t like belaboring the point I didn’t care for a book.

This is the fourth in this series by Henderson, but the first I’ve read, and I can confidently say that not having read the other is no barrier. The book does fine as a standalone, and while the main character, wildlife biologist Alex Carter, reacts to events based on prior experiences and some characters from those earlier books make appearances, Henderson gives the reader enough “recap” material so that one isn’t at sea ever about who Carter is talking about or why she responds the way she does. So that’s a plus. Another is Henderson description of the natural world, which is always vividly sharp, precise, and makes one feel like she is describing a specific place rather than generic “nature.” Carter herself is an engaging enough character, the book offers up some detailed information about jaguars (Carter’s focus in this novel), and several scenes do a nice job of creating suspense and a sense of propulsive tension.

As noted, the above positives were outweighed for me by the several negative elements. One was a heavy reliance on contrivance and coincidence. Like, a really heavy reliance. So much so that Henderson even has the narrator note at one point that “Alex was staggered by the coincidence.” But noting it doesn’t make it any more plausible or any better of a craft technique. Another issue for me was the pacing and exposition, with the book’s plot often coming to a screeching halt for several paragraphs while we were informed about various facts on habitats or jaguar biology or the wildlife service’s killing of animals. The exposition was often clunky in its execution and had an adverse effect on plot. That said, outside of those expository segments, the book moves along quickly, taking only an afternoon to read.

If you’ve read the other Carter books, I’m assuming this isn’t much different in quality, so chances are if you’re a fan you’ll enjoy this one as well. As a new arrival though, this book didn’t entice me to read any more in the series unfortunately.
2.5

This book didn't hit the 5 star mark for me, but it was still a very hard hitting emotionally. For anyone who can be triggered by it, definitely pay the biggest attention to the "group of anti-immigrant vigilantes" mentioned in the synopsis. It is such a huge part of this book and it honestly made me feel a bit ill at times, especially with how the political climate in the US currently is. Don't get me wrong, I loved this book. I think it does a great job showing how awful these things are that are happening to people, I just want anyone going into it to be prepared that it's a hard book to read because of it.

I read this book in one sitting, just a few hours, and couldn't put it down because I just wanted to know what happened next and to see the bad guys get what they deserved. I can see where other people weren't the biggest fans of the info dumping, but going into this fully because I am interested in the wildlife biologist aspect, I was here for it. I love learning these things when it comes to these books. I would LOVE to see one with wolves one day, maybe??

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access to the ebook.

Wildlife biologist Alex Carter is back and this time she's looking for jaguars in a wildlife preserve in New Mexico. Along the way she'll encounter both friend and foe, along with danger and a touch of romance. Alice Henderson has a formula and it works; this book was delightful. A few times I found myself drifting during the plight of the species and terrible government decisions exposition but the story moves quickly. Side note, a tiny bit disappointed that she didn't stick with the title tradition and give us A Prowl of Jaguars or something fun.

Alex Carter #4. In this mystery/thriller, Alex is called to New Mexico to possibly locate jaguars in a sanctuary, and see what can be done to encourage their return to the region. Once again, the wilderness becomes a very busy place, full of very nasty people.
I really enjoyed the first three in the series, but was disappointed in this one. This one seemed to follow formula alone. Alex almost immediately finds evidence of a jaguar. On her first trip to town, white supremacists go on a rampage, and when she visits a nearby archaeological dig, they arrive again. As soon as she is in the wilderness, she is immediately approached by a corrupt wildlife agent, and later by a bizarre local billionaire. Boom, boom, boom. My favorite part of this series is the integration of the wildlife work with the story, but even that and the conservation information come through as a data dump, and don't flow with the story. It's very exciting, and the action is spectacular as always. But the way her mysterious friend always rides to the rescue has become a bit annoying. Handy, but annoying. As if the only solution to these dreadful problems is to have some shining knight in armor willing to cross all the lines come in and obliterate the bad guys. Interesting and dramatic, but disappointing.

Overall I have really been enjoying this series featuring a wildlife biologist who spends her time in remote places studying some of the most endangered animals on this planet. That may sound boring, but there is a lot of action especially when Alex has a knack for getting in trouble with the wrong people. Many times she finds herself in very difficult and dangerous situations, often fighting for her life. But she is a fighter and always proves to be stronger than her enemies.

This adventure has Alex in a remote corner of New Mexico, close to the contentious border. She encounters many different groups and people on both sides of the immigrant issue, but she only wants to do her job and help the animals. I really like Alex and appreciate how dedicated she is to her job, and how she won’t let racists threaten her or her work. She is strong and resourceful which is very important when she gets in trouble with the white supremacists that are terrorizing the area.

I learned a lot about jaguars in this story, just like I learned alot about the other animals that Alex studied in the previous books. It did seem like a lot of the information was a bit on the repetitive side this time though and maybe a little bit preachy as well. Overall the first half of the book felt really repetitive, with a lot of it just being Alex wandering the preserve looking for evidence of the jaguar and being inside of her head with her thoughts. While she spent time with other people in the area, she didn’t really seem to connect with anyone this time which made her life feel awfully lonely.

Once the action picks up though the book got quite exciting. I won’t get into specifics, but just know it involves Alex being lost without supplies in the dessert. A nightmare to be sure. The action scenes are quite well written and will keep you engaged. We also learn through the archeology team a little bit of the native culture in the area, which was also very interesting to learn about. There is a slight mystery as to the billionaire whose property is adjacent to the preserve, and it was a bit fun trying to figure out his role in everything that was going one.

Except for the slow, rather repetitive start to this one, this was another solid adventure in this series. I always appreciate that the author includes information in the back about the animals that Alex studies and ways that people can help. These books don’t necessarily need to be read in order, but I do recommend that you do so. Alex is a great character and you should join her adventures at the start.

This is a tough review for me to write. I love Alex Carter as a character and love the overall arch of this series - following a biologist as she works on jobs related to different endangered animals in the US is super interesting to me. I love the variety of locations and animals the series has explored. The first two books were favorites for me.

Unfortunately the two most recent books were both misses. In this latest one - Alex is working to locate jaguars in New Mexico. If you’re interested in a lot of over the top action - a Mission Impossible: Biologist if you will - perhaps this is for you. It was a big miss for me and it took me forever to get through the last bit of the book because I kept getting distracted and not wanting to read it. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the free ebook and audiobook to review.

Thank you to William Morrow for this gifted copy! And thank you to Harper Audio for the ALC.

The Vanishing Kind left me so damn empty and desolate, while simultaneously being charged with hope and a sense of action. This book is described as a novel of suspense, and yes, but it is also a harsh look in the mirror for America. There are so many aspects in which we need to improve as a country. Caring for and respecting our land, empathizing and being considerate of our people, and the people seeking refuge.

I went into this richly written book blind. I did not expect to learn so much, and to nearly be brought to my knees with emotion. It hurt, frankly. It reminded me of Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy in the sense that it taught me about environmental conservation, about a species dangerously close to extinction, and how they are essential to our eco system. I knew next to nothing about Jaguars in America before this book, and now it is my hyper fixation.

I’ve felt so helpless these last few weeks. Watching the constant ticker of breaking news. The dismantling of every environmental safety net. The barreling steam engine of climate change coming at us. But this book made me feel like I could make a change in my immediate world, the same way Once There Were Wolves made me feel I was making a difference in rewilding my yard.

I cannot recommend this book enough. 🐆

This is the 4th adventure of Dr. Alex Carter. Alice Hendersons wildlife biologist. The first 3 adventure dealt with wolverines, caribou and polar bears. all of the first 3 books take us to far away and remote places. Along for this story are some of Dr. Carters' familiar friends and family. (Zoe and Ben and of course her dad). This time we are off to a desert preserve in New Mexico to study and help save the endangered jaguar. As she gets into her study she meets some new faces, An archeological dig team an eccentric billionaire and a sympathetic farm husband and wife, and some snall town artisans As she goes about running her survey she comes across a particularly nasty group of anti-immigrant vigilantes. Her troubles really start then, They want her to go and she is determined to go ahead with her new assignment. This is a fast paced story giving us a lot of info on the plight of the jaguar. its also on the violent and nasty side, showing just what some people are capable of. As in the 1st 3 books Dr. Carters mysterious savoir shows up for a little deus ex machina. hopefully his full story is forth coming. all in all this is a solid 4.5. looking forward to Dr. Carters next adventure

The Vanishing Kind is the 4th installment of Alice Henderson's Alex Carter Series. I have read and really enjoyed all of the books in this series. I find Alex's adventures as a wildlife biologist fascinating. I look forward to learning new information about the species she is working with in each book, as well as the uncovering the mystery Alex gets involved in.
In The Vanishing Kind, Alex is hired by a wildlife conservation group to search out any traces of endangered jaguars in New Mexico. Adventure and danger commence as she runs into a group doing an archeologist dig, a crazy trophy hunter, and a dangerous anti-immigrant/pro-border wall group.
If you like the great outdoors, exotic animals, wildlife conservation, and action thrillers- this is your series.
Thank you, NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

352 pages

3 stars

To begin with, I didn’t realize that there were jaguars in the US.

Putting that aside, this is Alex’s fourth adventure in the series. This time, she is off to New Mexico to investigate the population of the endangered jaguar. (What beautiful cats!) However, she runs into some thorny dilemmas.

She finds an archaeological dig nearby. The team is uncovering the gravesite of a 16th Century Conquistador. Finding the work fascinating, Alex learns about their work.

At the same time, she runs across some anti-immigrant vigilantes. These people are putting pressure on the archeologists, threatening them. They also want to stop Alex.

The vigilantes want to stop jaguars from crossing the border, as well as illegal immigrants. (What ?? That doesn’t make sense. ) This part of the book lost it for me. I enjoy Alex’s adventures, and she is always in danger on her missions. It is part of the fun and tension in Ms. Henderson’s novels. But, I couldn’t buy the idea that preventing jaguars from crossing the border had anything to do with illegal immigrants.

I want to thank NetGalley and William Morrow for forwarding this book to me so that I could read and review it. The opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.

Good read as her other books in this series. Alex Carter is on a new assignment looking for jaguars in Mexico. As she stumbles into intrigue that she finds in the local town, with her friend the archaeologist and his students, and finally with herself under attack by the masked men aiming to get all of them to leave. It was hard to put down and definitely a page turner with enough twists and turns to keep one's interest. Also enjoyed learning about Jaguars very interesting. (Posted on Goodreads)

I found A Blizzard of Polar Bears at our local friends of the library book sale. I looked it up and found that it was #2 in a series so of course I found A Solitude of Wolverines and read it first. I was hooked and I will say I was not a suspense fan! I just finished A Ghost of Caribou and realized that The Vanishing Kind was hitting the shelf in March. Thank you for the chance to pre-read I am truly a fan.

Alice Henderson’s fourth Alex Carter thriller finds our heroine in the wilds of New Mexico, hunting the rare jaguar, to prove of its existence in that area. The assignment wouldn’t be so hard, except for a roving band of white supremacists, a mysterious billionaire funding a dig nearby and the threat of harm ‘round every corner.
On the Good Guys side, an aging professor and his students are threatened by the supremacists on their dig. A middle aged couple, an Hispanic artisan and her grandson and a widowed eccentric are also targets of the hate group. When Alex becomes entangled in their evil web, she’s put to the test, both physically and emotionally.
A rare chance to tag and observe an endangered species becomes Alex’s worst nightmare. Alone, shoeless, without a drop to drink, Alex must cross miles of dessert as the hunted. Only a miracle…or an old friend…can save her now.
Fans of Nevada Barr’s Anna Pigeon and video game’s Lara Croft will love Henderson’s new adventure. The author brings authenticity to the plight of endangered animals as well as resources to learn more.
Grab a backpack and travel with the great outdoors’ most exciting heroine to arrive in a long while. Alex Carter rocks!

I enjoy Alice Henderson's Alex Carter series premise: a wildlife biologist working to save endangered species always finds trouble—usually murder. I learn something and am entertained.

Alex is in New Mexico tracking jaguars at a wildlife preserve. She goes into a small town for supplies, where she encounters a white supremacist group wreaking havoc and harassing the locals. The members wear masks, so law enforcement officers have no idea who they are. In addition to threatening locals, the group targets an archaeological team excavating the gravesite of a sixteenth-century conquistador, whose members include minorities; when the group learns that Alex's research may endanger a wall on the United States/Mexico border, she becomes a target as well. As the violence escalates, Alex's life is in danger, her work threatened, and the jaguar she is tracking is in peril.

What I love most about this series is the facts about endangered species. Henderson's previous books focused on wolverines, polar bears, and mountain caribou, all of which are losing their habitats. Alex is a great character, and I enjoy the situations in which she finds herself. Henderson does a good job of depicting nature and animals. I was caught up in the dangers that Alex faces in this book. The book is suspenseful, and the action scenes are dramatic. I had a problem with how Alex got out of the deadly situation; however,--it was highly improbable. The writing is good, but the dialogue is clunky at times, and the use of exclamation points is distracting. That said, The Vanishing Kind is a good addition to the series. 3/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is March 4, 2025.

This is book 4 of the Alex Carter series from a very talented and knowledgeable author. This time Alex is tracking jaguars in New Mexico, hoping to find proof that the large cats are still living in the U.S. As usual, she encounters good and bad people who both help and hinder, including a mysterious man from previous books. The author always provides lots of background information on the animal, but this time she has included so much that at one point I felt like I was in the lecture hall. That type of information should be moved to the Afterword. I was also disappointed that the book title doesn't follow the pattern of the previous 3 books, using the name for a group of jaguars - prowl, leap, or shadow. Still, this is a terrific story, well-written, filled with action, offering complete characters, another winner. Thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins, and William Morrow for providing an ARC.