Hummingbird Salamander

By: Jeff VanderMeer

Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan

From the author of Annihilation, a brilliant speculative thriller of dark conspiracy, endangered species, and the possible end of all things

Security consultant “Jane Smith” receives an envelope with a key to a storage unit that holds a taxidermied hummingbird and clues leading her to a taxidermied salamander. Silvina, the dead woman who left the note, is a reputed ecoterrorist and the daughter of an Argentine industrialist. By taking the hummingbird from the storage unit, Jane sets in motion a series of events that quickly spin beyond her control.

Soon, Jane and her family are in danger, with few allies to help her make sense of the true scope of the peril. Is the only way to safety to follow in Silvina’s footsteps? Is it too late to stop? As she desperately seeks answers about why Silvina contacted her, time is running out - for her and possibly for the world.

Hummingbird Salamander is Jeff VanderMeer at his brilliant, cinematic best, wrapping profound questions about climate change, identity, and the world we live in into a tightly plotted thriller full of unexpected twists and elaborate conspiracy.

©2021 VanderMeer Creative, Inc. (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing

only because it's Jeff vandermeer

I liked it less than the others but I still liked it. I am a huge huge fan of his so I refuse to give his work anything less than 4 stars. this lacked a darkness I require . it was thought provoking and had subtle tie ins to other books ,so for that reason alone it must be read. this is only my first run through. I usually read / listen to his books at least 10 times . so maybe I will enjoy it more the next go around.

Vandermeer's Best

Politically and somewhat philosophically, this is Vandermeer's best book The narration was excellent as well.

Delusional Obsession

Jill, who has many names she uses, becomes obsessed with Silvana, hummingbird, and salamander. The obsession gravely affects her personal life, family, and work. Is Jill delusional or smart or both? Is Silvana delusional smart, desperate or all three? Memories of childhood are not grownded in the reality Jill remembers. In part 4, I found it confusing as to what characters were alive and dead. Its great writing. I would have liked to go to the Kindle edition while listening to it over a week. Each night exhausted from work I found myself listening to it long into the night.

If this is how the world ends, bring a gameboy.

Felt like Vandermeer watched Under the Silver Lake and tried to put his own spin on the formula but ended up just writing a semi-bland mystery. None of the fun abstract stuff in his other works appears in Hummingbird Salamander. The protagonist is basically The Biologist from Annihilation but lacked any likable qualities for the reader/listener to latch onto, ultimately leading to her being difficult (and then impossible) to root for. The clues she was following were sort of vanilla and never really that satisfying to uncover.

While Vandermeer certainly has more creativity than I, this book was just a slog to get through after it's first act sadly. Southern Reach and Ambergris are vastly more interesting and purposeful works, they left me thinking about them well after putting them down - ironic that Hummingbird Salamander is his most straight forward novel in many aspects, yet the most forgettable.

The narrator did an excellent job, even with the different male voices. Maybe check it out if youre a JV fan and are curious what his work would be like with all the weirdness removed?

Eco Crime & Conspiracy Thriller

I've listened to about 500 audiobooks and this narrator's performance was masterful (Lisa Flanagan).

Jeff VanderMeer's work is often too strange (and too gross) for me, but his writing and storytelling is very good.

My husband, who likes VanderMeer's weirder novels, suggested that I read Hummingbird Salamander and I'm glad I did. I hope you do, too.