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sketchjester's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Gore
Minor: Vomit
metanav's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
would've loved a full length story of this but it was effective the way it was
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Gun violence, and Murder
Minor: Trafficking
jrow's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Fun read! Gruesome at times but that is the reality of elephant poaching. Recommend as a quick eco-thriller read and might check out some of the authors other books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Trafficking
lillelow's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
After being very confused with the first few chapters - the order of events, locations, characters and the general timeline of things - I was pleasantly surprised.
Having read the blurb, I did however expect the plot to mainly follow Damira and her experience being among the mammoths, and maybe that’s what added to my initial confusion. I was just waiting for things to go in another direction.
On the other hand, if I hadn’t read the blurb I don’t think I would’ve understood at all what was going on, since the blurb is basically telling you the backstory and not the plot: The book follows not one, but three perspectives, and much of Damira’s POV consists of memories from her human life as she’s already lived with the mammoths for several years. So that took some time to understand and was a bit of a bummer. But once I got into the story, I found myself enjoying what I was reading - having already accepted I was never going to be able to keep the names straight and decided to just roll with it…
It’s a short, quick read that packs a lot into its pages; ethical dilemmas about poaching and extinction, the future of humanity and questions about consciousness, all while blending in elements of thriller and science fiction in the Siberian tundra. The book balances being thought-provoking and engaging, though I have to admit I found some of the memories and moral debates a little slow and would have liked more time exploring the lives of the mammoths.
But overall its well-written story that’s easy to read once you start getting the timeline straight, and it gives you a lot to think about. It didn’t blow me away, but I found myself enjoying it and appreciate it not being dragged out just to up the number of pages. 4-
Having read the blurb, I did however expect the plot to mainly follow Damira and her experience being among the mammoths, and maybe that’s what added to my initial confusion. I was just waiting for things to go in another direction.
On the other hand, if I hadn’t read the blurb I don’t think I would’ve understood at all what was going on, since the blurb is basically telling you the backstory and not the plot: The book follows not one, but three perspectives, and much of Damira’s POV consists of memories from her human life as she’s already lived with the mammoths for several years. So that took some time to understand and was a bit of a bummer. But once I got into the story, I found myself enjoying what I was reading - having already accepted I was never going to be able to keep the names straight and decided to just roll with it…
It’s a short, quick read that packs a lot into its pages; ethical dilemmas about poaching and extinction, the future of humanity and questions about consciousness, all while blending in elements of thriller and science fiction in the Siberian tundra. The book balances being thought-provoking and engaging, though I have to admit I found some of the memories and moral debates a little slow and would have liked more time exploring the lives of the mammoths.
But overall its well-written story that’s easy to read once you start getting the timeline straight, and it gives you a lot to think about. It didn’t blow me away, but I found myself enjoying it and appreciate it not being dragged out just to up the number of pages. 4-
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
amachonis's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
geekmom's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
5.0
I don’t even know what to say about this book except that I feel privileged to have read it. Can this guy ever write!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Violence, and Death of parent
twentypastfour's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Murder
Minor: War
mylordbagofrice's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I love how the sci-fi is so cool, but takes a back seat to the story that Nayler wants to tell, and the themes that he wants us to think about.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death
Moderate: Death and Gore
inyx's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, and Murder
hagwife's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Focused on memory, justice, and community, The Tusks of Extinction does a lot in a very small space! Nayler weaves together some very familiar ideas for an unfamiliar story that is incredibly moving.
Perhaps my favourite thing about the novella is how quickly Naylor drops you into a very complex setting, with seemingly so little effort that obscures how difficult such an effective immersion is. Naylor also does an incredible job weaving together familiar ideas into an unfamiliar story in very moving ways.
A warning that it can be violent, though not needlessly. Acts of violence and the place of anger in protection and retaliation is a central theme.
Perhaps my favourite thing about the novella is how quickly Naylor drops you into a very complex setting, with seemingly so little effort that obscures how difficult such an effective immersion is. Naylor also does an incredible job weaving together familiar ideas into an unfamiliar story in very moving ways.
A warning that it can be violent, though not needlessly. Acts of violence and the place of anger in protection and retaliation is a central theme.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, and Grief