Beasts of the Sea: A Novel
Nov 2025 · Sold by Little, Brown
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About this ebook
“Turpeinen matches the heights of Andrea Barrett” in this sweeping and intimate tale about a fateful encounter between man and nature spanning three centuries and linked by a long-extinct denizen of the northern oceans (Publishers Weekly starred review).
In 1741, thirty-two-year-old naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller joins Captain Bering’s Great Northern Expedition to scout out a sea route from Asia to America. Plagued with hardships, captain and crew never reach their goal, but they do make a unique discovery, a gentle giant that will be named for the young explorer who described it: Steller’s sea cow.
In 1859, the governor of the Russian territory of Alaska sends his men to recover the skeleton of the massive marine mammal rumored to have vanished a hundred years before. Two years later, a revered Helsinki professor hires a talented illustrator—a woman!—to make precise drawings of a set of bones sent from afar. The ill-fated beast will help introduce to a skeptical public the concept of human-caused extinction.
Finally, in 1952, the Museum of Zoology assigns its most talented restorer the task of refurbishing the antique skeleton, a testimony to the sea cow’s fate that will fire the imaginations of future generations.
A breathtaking literary achievement and an adventure that crosses continents and centuries, Beasts of the Sea is a tale of grand ambition, the quest for knowledge, and the urge to resurrect what humankind has, in its ignorance, destroyed.
In 1741, thirty-two-year-old naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller joins Captain Bering’s Great Northern Expedition to scout out a sea route from Asia to America. Plagued with hardships, captain and crew never reach their goal, but they do make a unique discovery, a gentle giant that will be named for the young explorer who described it: Steller’s sea cow.
In 1859, the governor of the Russian territory of Alaska sends his men to recover the skeleton of the massive marine mammal rumored to have vanished a hundred years before. Two years later, a revered Helsinki professor hires a talented illustrator—a woman!—to make precise drawings of a set of bones sent from afar. The ill-fated beast will help introduce to a skeptical public the concept of human-caused extinction.
Finally, in 1952, the Museum of Zoology assigns its most talented restorer the task of refurbishing the antique skeleton, a testimony to the sea cow’s fate that will fire the imaginations of future generations.
A breathtaking literary achievement and an adventure that crosses continents and centuries, Beasts of the Sea is a tale of grand ambition, the quest for knowledge, and the urge to resurrect what humankind has, in its ignorance, destroyed.
“Turpeinen matches the heights of Andrea Barrett” in this sweeping and intimate tale about a fateful encounter between man and nature spanning three centuries and linked by a long-extinct denizen of the northern oceans (Publishers Weekly starred review).
In 1741, thirty-two-year-old naturalist ...
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Ratings and reviews
1 review
Nina Phillips
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February 21, 2026
I recieved a digital and audio copy of this ARC thanks to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, and Little, Brown and Company. I think this was an interesting take, balancing a story and a non-fiction focus on sea-cows and their place in human history. The different characters felt a little disjointed. I wish the characters flowed together and connected a little more, and I wish it was a little more clear what was fiction and what wasn't. I kind of wish it had picked one or the other, instead of trying for a mix of both.
About the author
Iida Turpeinen is a literary scholar writing a dissertation on the intersection of the natural sciences and literature. Beasts of the Sea was published in Finland to wide acclaim, won the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize for best debut novel, and has been translated into twenty-eight languages. Turpeinen lives in Helsinki, Finland.
Iida Turpeinen is a literary scholar writing a dissertation on the intersection of the natural sciences and literature. Beasts of the Sea was published in Finland to wide acclaim, won the Helsingin Sanomat Literature Prize for best debut novel, and has been translated into twenty-eight languages....
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