Africa Tusk

By: Eric H. Heisner

Narrated by: Chris Abell

Length: 6 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

Deep within the Dark Continent of Africa, the dwindling population of wild Elephants is protected by law yet systematically harvested by poachers. The armed forces of Park Rangers are not enough to protect the ivory prongs from these giants of nature. A hundred years ago, the Great White Hunters were the predators. Now the region calls on one man to protect the elephants from virtual extinction … Tusk.

©2017 Eric H. Heisner (P)2018 Eric H. Heisner

What an adventure!!!!

A perfect combination of character development, a plot that keeps you firmly attentive and a story set in the wilds of nature and modern times.

Poaching man or beast; which is worse?

Although a fictional tale, it certainly rings true of a very real problem throughout Africa and Asia where certain animal parts are sought. In this case it is the butchering of elephants for their ivory tusks that are at stake. The main character of the story is a storied and respectable big-game hunter that has turned to poaching poachers. The irony is, at least for me, the killing of the elephants in the story was more distressing than the assassination of the poachers. The overbearing truth to the story is that small amount of value put on life in parts of the world; be it human or animal.

Overall the story is pretty good. To be honest, it starts out real strong and sort of deteriorates a bit into one adventurous escape after another; almost to the point of being a bit far-fetched and certainly repetitive. The first half of the book deserved an "A" and the second half a "C" so it ends up with a solid "B" in my mind.

The biggest plus to the listen was the narrator. Chris Abell does a fantastic job with the various voices and dialects. Americans, Brits, Chinese, and Africans characters all had a realistic sounding voice given to them and allows the listener to easily differentiate between them. I'd recommend this listen to anyone that likes a wild-west/outdoorsy adventure. A review copy of this audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in return for this unbiased review. If you found this review helpful, please take a moment to click yes below.

Excellent Adventure Novel

Where does Africa Tusk rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I enjoyed this book--cool main character, loyal sidekicks, despicable bad guys, and feisty damsel in distress. This reminded me of a good Louis L'Amour western with John Wayne starring as the stranger where the good guys find a way to make the bad guys pay what they deserve in the end. I enjoyed the descriptive scenes of Africa too--the author did an excellent job of painting with words.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Africa Tusk?

The opening scene--carnage!

What does Chris Abell bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I liked the way he took on the casual competence and care free attitude of the main character--brought him to life.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, I finished it in just a couple days.

Any additional comments?

I enjoyed this author's work, and would recommend it to anyone who likes Western or adventure novels, where the characters are either good or evil, and have moral codes. Most books nowadays spend the hole story trying to blur those lines, so it's fun to read something where the good guy wins (and maybe) gets the girl. Feels a bit old-fashioned, but in a good way.

Suspense on the Savanah

Where does Africa Tusk rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Better then average

What other book might you compare Africa Tusk to and why?

Its a unique work with suspense and adventure can not compare it to any other book.

Which character – as performed by Chris Abell – was your favorite?

N/A

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

An African Western

I am going to start this review with an admission, I really prefer fantastical tales, Sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and gamelit to things that might really happen in the real world. I see enough mundane everyday stuff to make my mind crae for faraway places, people I might never meet, and adventures of which I could never possibly partake. Surprisingly, this book fit the bill, so to speak, and did all of those things.

In fact, Africa Tusk really put me in mind of old time radio shows such as Jungle Jim, and even Tarzan (a man out of place, but where he is meant to be). Given the fact that I am a complete sucker for a good western I was very pleasantly surprised to find myself thinking this very type of story could have been set in the old west with a few changes. The characters here could have walked the streets of Tombstone. However, here, they are in Africa, and poachers are killing off the noble elephant. And Tusk, a grizzled hunter is the man to stop them.

The book has some really great pacing, it doesn't feel slow, and has some great moments of tension. I do not list spoilers, or explain about what happens, I prefer to give my impression of a book, and here I can honestly say that I was moved by the story at every point. The plight, the danger, the battles. . .everything worked. It worked well, and made me, when I finished, hope there could be more of these books in the future. Tusk is an intriguing character, and the setting suits him. All I could think of was he would make a great character to battle some lions as portrayed in the Ghost and the Darkness.

Chris Abell does a great job narrating, and I loved to hear him as Tusk. He pays the other characters well enough that they are each distinct, as in you know who is speaking before the text says, and you really get to know them by his inflections.

Once more, this is NOT my style of book or preferred type of reading, but I took a chance on it, and was very pleasantly surprised. I think it actually opened me up to some more realistic tales.

Get this book and stalk the plains with Tusk!!!

Fun African adventure

Great story with wonderful narration. Tusk a white hunter living in Africa has his own method for dealing with elephant hunters and the ivory trade. When he meets a young scientist with her own technological anti-poacher agenda adventure ensues. A wonderful book for every wildlife enthusiast and animal lover also containing adventure and safari drama. I received a free review copy of this book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

A really good bookj

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. A really good story. Just when I thought it was going to be predictable it would take a twist. Great narration, made the story come alive.

Entertaining Story And Performance...

This Listen Was Awesome! The Narrator Was Absolutely Amazing! This Story Had Heart Pounding Action And A Good Plot...If You Want A Descriptive Story With Believable Characters... This Story Is For You...

An African poaching tale of epic proportions

Not my usual venue of listening. That being said I truly enjoyed this story. A tale of poaching in Africa and the people who try an stop it. The author and narrator spin a story of a lone white hunter who seeks out and meets vengeance out to evil poachers. Add in a scientist with a high tech drone and auto cannon and you get fictional chaos in the savannah. Enjoy it. I did. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

An Adventure story

Strong clear narration from Chris Abell which really makes you feel as if your there.
Great storyline with a few unexpected twists, Hero is a larger than life old time hero,supporting characters well developed. Villians are predictable.
If a second book is out there or planned I will be looking to read it.

I received a free copy of this auddiobook at my request and voluntarily left this review.

A good winters evening read or listen that leaves you wanting more from this author.