EXTINCTION

5 stars out of 5

Well, it's hard to get more timely than genetic manipulation - and when it's rooted in fact and jazzed up with murder and mayhem, it makes for a hard-to-put-down story (even if parts are a little implausible). Chalk up another one I stayed up past my bedtime to finish.

The story begins at the Erebus Resort, an exclusive and uber-expensive safari-like place at which guests can see animals that became extinct eons ago (think: woolly mammoths). That came about as a result of the aforementioned genetic manipulation, done at an onsite laboratory, coupled with backing from the billionaire owner. But all things that must pass aren't good; the son of another billionaire and his bride who are honeymooning at the lodge suddenly disappear with no trace except an overabundance of blood left outside their tent.

Enter Colorado Bureau of Investigation Agent Frankie Cash, who is called in amid what experts called a kidnapping until hard evidence - meaning bones - proves the honeymooners were murdered. Cash pretty much runs the investigative show from that point on, together with personable and very capable Colorado Sheriff James Colcord. Their job is far from easy, though; not only are there other lodge guests to consider, but there's a motion picture being shot on other parts of the Erebus-owned land (if I'm honest, that part of the story seemed a little more like filler-upper than relevant, but it did make for some tense moments). 

Amid the investigation come sightings of unidentified beings that seem to appear from nowhere and disappear to the same place - but whoever or whatever they are, it's clear they're not there to make friends. Finally, it's determined that they may hang out in one of the abandoned gold mines located in the hills of the property. But who are they, and maybe more to the immediate point, who are they really out to destroy and why? Readers learn the grisly details, sometimes in grisly fashion, as the investigation plays out - and they may be more sinister with more far-reaching implications that anyone possibly could have imagined.

After you read the book - and if you enjoy a good thriller, I recommend that you do - be sure to read the author's notes at the end for some interesting and factual background. In some ways, it's even scarier than the book. And in the end, I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for giving me the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy. Well done!

Extinction by Douglas Preston (Forge Books, April 2024); 384 pp.