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3.27 AVERAGE
3.27 AVERAGE
In Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff Vandermeer, the world is at stake. In the noir mystery novel, the world is becoming more ecologically unstable as time goes on. “Jane Smith”, a security consultant is mysteriously sent a note and key from a known eco-terrorist, Silvina. This leads to a storage locker that contains a taxidermied hummingbird and clues that lead to a taxidermied salamander. As it becomes apparent that she is in danger, events spin out of control and lead her into the dark corners of Silvina’s world. By the author that brought us the Southern Reach Series, and Borne, this new novel centers around what our world could look like as things begin to unravel.
Favorite Quote
“Hold on to that. Discard the rest. Even though it didn’t really work that way” Jeff Vandermeer, Hummingbird Salamander
Review
Jeff Vandermeer has a unique eco-horror take on things that runs through all of his novels and Hummingbird Salamander is no different. This noir take on the world leading up to eco-disaster was unique from his other novels in that it wasn’t so fantastical. Up until the very end, you could see how the world that these characters were in was still our world, just darker. I can’t say I enjoyed any of the characters or even the story, but it kept me reading steadily. Just out this month, Hummingbird Salamander will be one of the most unique novels of 2021.
This book wasn’t as horrifying to me as some of Vandermeer’s other works. Some of the worst images were of family trauma and the horrifying nature of taxidermy. It was interesting and incredibly sad at moments but not as blatantly horrific as some of the psychological scares in Annihilation or some of the body horror of the Borne world. I have to agree with someone I saw on Twitter who described Hummingbird Salamander as the pre-prequel to Borne. I think they could definitely be the same world, and possibly the same one as the Southern Reach. All of it could cohesively enough go together.
I recommend these books if you’re looking for a surrealist noir novel that highlights ecology and nature.
I received an e-book arc of Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff Vandermeer from the publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux & MCD.
Favorite Quote
“Hold on to that. Discard the rest. Even though it didn’t really work that way” Jeff Vandermeer, Hummingbird Salamander
Review
Jeff Vandermeer has a unique eco-horror take on things that runs through all of his novels and Hummingbird Salamander is no different. This noir take on the world leading up to eco-disaster was unique from his other novels in that it wasn’t so fantastical. Up until the very end, you could see how the world that these characters were in was still our world, just darker. I can’t say I enjoyed any of the characters or even the story, but it kept me reading steadily. Just out this month, Hummingbird Salamander will be one of the most unique novels of 2021.
This book wasn’t as horrifying to me as some of Vandermeer’s other works. Some of the worst images were of family trauma and the horrifying nature of taxidermy. It was interesting and incredibly sad at moments but not as blatantly horrific as some of the psychological scares in Annihilation or some of the body horror of the Borne world. I have to agree with someone I saw on Twitter who described Hummingbird Salamander as the pre-prequel to Borne. I think they could definitely be the same world, and possibly the same one as the Southern Reach. All of it could cohesively enough go together.
I recommend these books if you’re looking for a surrealist noir novel that highlights ecology and nature.
I received an e-book arc of Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff Vandermeer from the publisher Farrar, Straus and Giroux & MCD.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
I’m not really enjoying this, I think I will pick it up again later as an audiobook.
I wasn’t sure if I’d like this one as much as some of JV’s other books based on the synopsis, but I LOVED it. JV writes characters in such a truthful and unparalleled way. He doesn’t try to win you over by simply writing a really lovable narrator. In this case, I could not stand Jane from our first encounter, but I’ve read enough JV to know that this wasn’t an accident. He hadn’t failed to write a likable character that readers would sympathize with. He adeptly wrote a character that the reader probably wouldn’t like, and might even hate, and he did so in a compelling way that made you want to keep reading because you wanted to see that character humbled… knocked down a peg or two… maybe… humiliated? Jane is an unstable narcissist. As I read, I constantly asked “WHY?! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT” or saying “DUH! THAT’S WHAT YOU GET, YOU NINCOMPOOP!” but late in the book it becomes clear that what JV gave us in this erratic, delusional narcissist wasn’t simply someone who had turned cold and avoidant and impulsive due to trauma, but was in reality an unreliable narrator and poor historian, as we’d say in my field (therapist here!). Initially I didn’t love the very ending, but after less than a couple hours of reflecting, I changed my mind. We are, most of us, probably used to wanting an ending that’s satisfying in the perspective of the narrator because that’s whose story we’ve been riding along with. In this case, I’m GLAD the ending wasn’t what Jane hoped and needed. JV’s commentary on how easily an awful narcissist like Jane can unravel is perfectly concluded in the ending that he gave us and further reinforces that Jane was no hero and there was no underlying logic to her decisions that would later be revealed because her decisions were never based on a well-adjusted orientation to reality.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
1.5 stars. Let me preface this review with stating that I adore VanderMeer's previous works, some of which are truly favorites of mine such as the Borne books or Annihilation, so perhaps this latest book was not meant for me and I had too high of expectations.
Though a perfectly acceptable mystery, I felt Hummingbird Salamander was missing so much of the weird, speculative strangeness and emotional heft that I love about VanderMeer's writing. I found the plot, crafted around a a security analyst known only as "Jane", researching a clandestine environmental activist/ terrorist/ cult leader (?) incomplete and did not find many of Jane's actions believable. Nor was I really invested in the decisions she was making throughout this story, or the outcome of her investigations. *shrug*
I could see this being a popular choice with other readers who are unfamiliar with his other work, or have found his previous books too literary sci-fi, cerebral, strange, etc. Those who are looking for a more conventional thriller with a slight speculative twist involving climate change and impending ecological disaster (is that even speculative at this point?) may enjoy this. Hummingbird Salamander is the most accessible of his works but I was frankly bored through and through, waiting the entire time for some shocking or weird or heartbreaking moment that never came. Again, not the target audience perhaps?
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a copy to review!
Though a perfectly acceptable mystery, I felt Hummingbird Salamander was missing so much of the weird, speculative strangeness and emotional heft that I love about VanderMeer's writing. I found the plot, crafted around a a security analyst known only as "Jane", researching a clandestine environmental activist/ terrorist/ cult leader (?) incomplete and did not find many of Jane's actions believable. Nor was I really invested in the decisions she was making throughout this story, or the outcome of her investigations. *shrug*
I could see this being a popular choice with other readers who are unfamiliar with his other work, or have found his previous books too literary sci-fi, cerebral, strange, etc. Those who are looking for a more conventional thriller with a slight speculative twist involving climate change and impending ecological disaster (is that even speculative at this point?) may enjoy this. Hummingbird Salamander is the most accessible of his works but I was frankly bored through and through, waiting the entire time for some shocking or weird or heartbreaking moment that never came. Again, not the target audience perhaps?
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with a copy to review!
There were times when I loved this book so much and also times when it made me feel very weary. I was worried and wary at first that the main character was just a knockoff of the Biologist, and I think ultimately that wasn't true but I also didn't find her as compelling. I enjoyed the strange way that the mystery developed and resolved. For how odd and complex this book is, to me the overall environmental message felt trite.
slow-paced