I'm so blown away by this and would never believe that it's Mariah's debut work. Every story is united by an incredibly strong sense of place in Hawaii. Even if the story doesn’t directly take place in Hawaii, each protagonist is impacted by a childhood or a connection to this sacred, exploited, complex place. And Mariah embraces that complexity, not shying away from the fraught conflict around land rights, national identity, colonization, the isolation of the islands, and the endangered natural beauty.

Each story is individual, but they're also all fundamentally about relationships: an aspiring museum curator and her art-loving art museum custodian grandmother; two best friends with a fraught relationship worn by time; a mom threatened by her overbearing aunt’s relationship with her daughter; a burgeoning, innocent childhood romance on Midway; a man who wants to do his small part to erase the legacy of war on Hawaii for his granddaughter.

None of Mariah's stories fall into the two usual traps I see in short story collections: (1) a lack of a full plot arc or (2) placing an abrupt ending on a story that doesn’t really have an ending because you can get away with it in this form. Mariah doesn't use the short story as an excuse to avoid developing her characters fully and giving them real, rounded personalities and lives. There are no clickbait-y premises to reel you in. Every story is beautifully thought through, with strong narrative arcs, all told by main characters that feel real, flawed, and complex. Her writing is lyrical and memorable.

I can't wait to see what else she puts out! Thank you to Ecco for the early copy.

The Extinction Capital of the World was a read I ate up quickly that left me wanting more. The author has a handle on creating simple but striking comparisons that had me re-reading portions of text and taking notes. Rigg is able to give us a unique sampling of the complexities of Hawaiin lives and their relationship to the land and colonization. The relationships and timelines Rigg has fabricated in each short story feel complex and real, both grounded and made spiritual through the descriptions of native plants, animals, and terrain. I would be interested to read more books like this from Riggs in the future, perhaps with a single narrative.

This was a beautifully done novel about Hawai'i, it had that element that I was looking for and was invested in what was happening. Mariah Rigg has a strong writing style and was able to create realistic characters and enjoyed the way this was going on in this collection of short stories.

This is a beautiful collection of short stories. I initially was not going to leave feedback because I wasn't sure what my thoughts were.

It takes some time to process this one.

It's just so beautifully written, so well-done, and so heartbreaking all at once.

I had difficulty keeping up with everything but Mariah Rigg did an excellent job of guiding the reader and providing context when possible.

Will definitely look for this one once its released so I can cherish this artwork. Thank you to Mariah Rigg, the author, for making this art.

I am leaving this feedback voluntarily. I received an ARC copy. Thank you!!

Thank you Ecco and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!

Available August 2025.

Whew - it's been a while since I read a collection of short stories as captivating as Mariah Rigg's Extinction Capital of the World. Told through a variety of narrators who are all interconnected, this collection attempts to capture the beauty and tragedy of modern life on the islands of Hawaii. What seems like one isolated tale slowly unfurls itself into a beautiful, colorful tapestry of domestic life and its political weight. Looming in the background is this ever present sense of loss - loss of parents, of children, of lovers, of land and history, of life itself. Yet Riggs balances it by showing us the new ways life carries on and on and on. Excellent work!