By Alice Henderson
1. The River of Souls by Robert McCammon
In 1703, detective Matthew Corbett journeys up the Solstice River in the Carolinas in search of an accused murderer. There he encounters strange settlements steeped in mysticism and eerie stories of a mythical beast hunting humans in the fetid landscape. But nothing will stop Corbett, an intelligent, resourceful, and honor-bound character, from seeing justice done.
Robert McCammon is one of our finest contemporary writers. He has the gift of transporting readers to the settings of his books, in this case to the swamps of the Carolinas in colonial America, where alligators and snakes prowl the dark waters.
2. Firestorm by Nevada Barr
Firestorm is the fourth book about National Park Service ranger Anna Pigeon. Pigeon must battle a blaze in Lassen National Park, but discovers in the aftermath that a murderer has struck, killing one of her fellow firefighters. As a winter storm closes in, cutting off Anna and her team from civilization, Anna must investigate the murder and struggle to survive in elements.
This book is riveting, well written, and full of vivid description, making the reader feel like they are on the fire line with the characters in the midst of the blaze and ensuing storm.
3. And I Alone Survived by Lauren Elder
In this gripping non-fiction account, Lauren Elder decided to go on a last minute flight with two friends from Oakland, California to Death Valley in 1976. Not expecting any rough weather, she wore only lightweight, casual clothes, including a skirt and high-heeled boots.
But the plane crashed near the summit of Mount Bradley, a towering 13,270-foot peak in the Sierra Nevada mountains, stranding the pilot, his girlfriend, and Lauren, all of whom were gravely injured. When the two others died, Elder, struggling with bitter cold, pain, and no rescue in sight, decided she must hike down the mountain alone in order to find help. Her story is a moving one of survival and determination.
4. Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer
The May 1996 expedition to Mount Everest was notoriously fraught with failure, danger, and catastrophe. Writer Jon Krakauer was climbing the mountain at the time, and writes vividly about the storm-ridden, terrifying, and desperate sequence of events that led to the death of five climbers. From addressing the importance of supplemental oxygen and the effects of an oxygen-starved brain, to detailed descriptions of the treacherous sections one must traverse to reach the summit, Krakauer vividly relates the terror of the climb, including ladders draped across the deep crevasses of the Khumbu Icefall and the deadly traffic jams that piled up as too many people try to summit in one day. With dangerous storms closing in, things only got worse. Into Thin Air depicts the dangerous and often obsessive goal of summiting Everest as well as the guilt that haunts survivors when fellow climbers die in the summit attempt.
5. Fast Ice by Clive Cussler and Graham Brown
In this fast-paced novel, early on in WWII, the Nazis make a startling discovery in Antarctica. Now, in current day, National Underwater and Marine Agency adventurer Kurt Austin and his colleague Joe Zavala embark on a search in Antarctica to find a missing colleague. It leads them into dangerous territory, from uncovering the Nazi expedition to perilous weather. Austin and his team must battle a monster storm in order to stop a deadly weapon that could wreak global havoc.
6. The Dark Place by Aaron Elkins
When a man is bizarrely murdered with an ancient weapon not used for the last ten thousand years, forensic anthropologist Gideon Oliver, as well as a forest ranger and FBI agent, are called in to investigate in the rainforest of Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula. Amidst tales of mysterious Sasquatch sightings, the trio must venture into the wilderness of the rainforest to uncover the truth. Vivid descriptions of the backcountry bring this setting to life, and after you read this book, camping in this area will never feel the same again.
7. Shattered Air: A True Account of Catastrophe and Courage on Yosemite’s Half Dome by Bob Madgic
In the summer of 1985, five hikers decided to climb Half Dome in Yosemite National Park despite a forecast of dangerous weather. Half Dome is a difficult climb even on days of good weather, so making the hike in the midst of a thunderstorm was especially perilous. Unfortunately, the worst happened and lightning hit Half Dome repeatedly, striking members of the hiking party. What follows is a gripping story of survival and the ordeal of rescue personnel in the California wilderness, including a daring helicopter rescue.
8. Thunderhead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Archaeologist Nora Kelly is shocked when she receives a sixteen-year-old letter written by her father, long since believed dead. The letter reveals clues about a long lost Ancestral Puebloan city hidden in the canyon country of Utah. Intrigued, Nora journeys into the rugged backcountry on a fast-paced adventure to seek out the lost city. But her expedition is plagued with adversity and mysterious enemies. With a lot of action and fascinating detail, this is a fabulous read.
9. Miracle in the Andes: 72 Days on the Mountain and My Long Trek Home by Nando Parrado and Vince Rause
In 1972, a plane carrying a Uruguayan rugby team crashed in the Andes. Parrado was rendered unconscious in the impact, and awoke three days later to find he and his teammates in truly dire circumstances. Struggling in high mountainous terrain devoid of resources, the survivors were hit with numerous obstacles, including avalanches and starvation, with no outside rescue in sight. Parrado realized that hiking out through the Andes was going to be the only way to find help. And so he embarked on the perilous journey with two other teammates in a desperate attempt to find rescue.
Miracle in the Andes is a moving firsthand account of the survivors’ struggles on the mountain, their incredible camaraderie that kept their spirits alive, and their remarkable ingenuity that made life on the mountain possible.
10. The Legacy of Luna: The Story of a Tree, a Woman and the Struggle to Save the Redwoods by Julia Hill
On December 10, 1997, Hill climbed up into the towering branches of an ancient redwood tree named Luna, intending to stay for two or three weeks. Pacific Lumber had plans to clearcut the area, destroying Luna and the ancient trees around it.
But Hill ended up staying for far longer than the two to three week time she’d anticipated — she did not climb down for another two years. During her time in Luna, she withstood attacks by security guards and an astonishingly brutal El Nino winter which found her repeatedly clinging to the tree in high winds and freezing weather. During this years-long stay on a platform 180 feet above the forest floor, Hill wrote Legacy of Luna, a moving account of the fight to preserve our ancient forests and the courage it takes to do so.
In addition to being a writer, Alice Henderson is a dedicated wildlife researcher, geographic information systems specialist, and bioacoustician. She documents wildlife on specialized recording equipment, checks remote cameras, creates maps, and undertakes wildlife surveys to determine what species are present on preserves, while ensuring there are no signs of poaching. She’s surveyed for the presence of grizzlies, wolves, wolverines, jaguars, endangered bats, and more. These experiences in remote corners of wilderness inspired her to create the Alex Carter mystery series, as well as her cli-fi trilogy The Skyfire Saga, which begins with the novel Shattered Roads. Please visit her at www.alicehenderson.com.
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