The River at Night

I absolutely loved this book! I have always enjoyed books that deal with out in the wild camping and the fight to survive against Mother Nature and sometimes other people. This book has that but also has wonderful character development and is so descriptive that you can imagine that it is you fighting to survive. Oh, did I mention that I loved this book? I am still trying to figure out how to describe Winifred who is basically the main narrator of the story. Her character is so complex that it is hard to describe her in one sentence. She seems to be at that point where she is just overwhelmed by everything happening all at once. Her long marriage has just ended, her beloved brother has died, and she is wondering where her career is going and why she chose it to begin with. Enter her three best friends who have decided to go extreme hiking and river rafting in the remote wilderness. Winfred is the cautious one but is talked into going on the trip despite her concerns. Of course things cannot go as planned and the friends have to spend their vacation fighting for their lives. It does have elements of "Deliverance" but only in the sense of friends stranded in the wilderness trying to survive against all odds. The story is unique because of the complex relationships between the friends and Wini herself. Highly recommended!