REVIEW: Extinction

 Extinction
Author: Douglas Preston

I'm going to be open and honest from the start. Douglas Preston is one of my favorite authors. I've read his collaborations, fiction, non-fiction...and loved it all. If he wrote a trilogy on the joys of stereo ownership and installation, I would buy it and love it. Preston is one of the few authors that I eagerly await new books from and jump at the chance to read them early or I binge read on publication day. I can't help it. 

When I first read the blurb for this new book, I couldn't wait to get my hands on an ebook copy and the audio book. I'm fascinated by stories that involve the re-creation or discovery of species we thought were extinct. This time it's not dinosaurs or megalodon...but the woolly mammoth. I knew from the moment I read about the basic plot of this book that I had to read it. Mostly because scientists are actually working right now to re-create the woolly mammoth using DNA extracted from dead specimens found preserved in permafrost and modern day elephants. 

This story also mentions many other long-gone creatures -- giant beaver, the ground sloth, a woolly ancient ancestor of the rhinoceros, giant armadillos, and Irish Elk to name a few. Can you imagine? And I know without a doubt if this park existed I would go there, buy a season pass, and the t-shirt. Probably a travel mug and a stuffed mammoth at the gift shop as well. Yep....I'd be all in. So, of course, I had to read this book. :) It's as close to the real thing as I'm going to get!

The story is set in the Colorado Rockies at a resort. The Erebus Resort has 144 square miles of land surrounded by high mountains in the most beautiful and rugged area in Colorado. Huge extinct animals need a lot of space after all. I live in Denver Metro....so it was like reading about Woolly Mammoths coming to life and grazing in my backyard! But, I kept hearing that line from Jurassic Park in my head "Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether they could, they didn't stop to think if they should." 

The truth of it is (like a lot of tourist and travel destination places in the real Colorado) Erebus is a vacation for the wealthy. "Normal" people don't travel to Erebus. Only the privileged can afford it. And, it's worth the cost to have the chance to travel up into the mountains and see a wide range of animals who have been "de-extincted." 

A honeymooning couple books a guided hike up into the mountains to see the mammoths in their "natural" habitat instead of sticking around the more touristy parts of the resort, but they both disappear in the middle of the night. The only signs left of them is their torn tent and two bloodstained patches on the ground. This tale doesn't become some Missing 411 lore.....the case blows up immediately because the man who disappeared is the son of a tech industry billionaire. 

This is the first case Detective Frankie Cash works as a senior detective with the CBI Major Crimes Division. Not only did this happen at a major tourist destination like Erebus Resort, but one of the victims is a billionaire's son. Very high profile case. Cash is a wonderful main character. She is a skilled detective and a strong, independent woman. She isn't intimidated by a high profile case or a park filled with huge formerly extinct animals. And this case takes all of her skills. What a wild ride! Loved it!!!! 

This story would be so visual and awesome as a limited film series or movie. I would so binge watch this on Netflix or another streaming service!!! 

I read a review copy of the ebook (Tor Publishing) and also listened to a review copy of the audio book (Macmillan Audio). The audio is just over 12 hours long and narrated by David Aaron Baker. This is the first time I've listened to a novel narrated by Baker. Great performance! He reads at a nice steady pace. His voice is pleasant and easily understandable. I thoroughly enjoyed the audio. I read the ebook while listening....there's just something about having a thrilling story read out loud. Loved it when I was a kid and love it now! There were a few edits between the review ebook and audio versions, but just a word or phrase here or there. There were no big differences. 

Great story!!

NOTE: I only have one complaint about this book. Douglas refers to a mountain in Colorado by the wrong name. Mount Evans was renamed Mount Blue Sky in 2023 due to its being named after former territorial governor John Evans, who in 1864 signed a proclamation allowing Coloradans to shoot and kill "hostile Indians." This led to the infamous Sand Creek Massacre where 230 Native Americans from the Cheyenne and Arapahoe Tribes, mostly women, children and elderly, were murdered.After the killings, the regiments responsible for the murders also desecrated the dead bodies. It was horrific and barbaric. The mountain should only be referred to by its new name, and I hope this is corrected in later editions of the book as the events in the story are not openly dated before the name change. 

Another great book!! I was totally mesmerized by this story, and the investigation kept me guessing. Lots of twists and turns. Just a totally cool premise and a very intense case! Preston Douglas did it again! :) 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book and listened to a review copy of the audio book. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**