Thank you Hachette Audio for the ALC and @NovelSuspects & Hachette Books, #partner, for the advanced copy of Trail of the Lost in exchange for my honest review.
Publisher: Hachette Books / Hachette Audio
Published: August 22, 2023
Summary:
From an award-winning former law enforcement park ranger and investigator, this female-driven true crime adventure follows the author’s quest to find missing hikers along the Pacific Crest Trail by pairing up with an eclectic group of unlikely allies.
As a park ranger with the National Park Service’s law enforcement team, Andrea Lankford led search and rescue missions in some of the most beautiful (and dangerous) landscapes across America, from Yosemite to the Grand Canyon. But though she had the support of the agency, Andrea grew frustrated with the service’s bureaucratic idiosyncrasies, and left the force after twelve years. Two decades later, however, she stumbles across a mystery that pulls her right back where she left three young men have vanished from the Pacific Crest Trail, the 2,650-mile trek made famous by Cheryl Strayed’s Wild , and no one has been able to find them. It’s bugging the hell out of her.
Andrea’s concern soon leads her to a wild environment unlike any she’s ever missing person Facebook groups. Andrea launches an investigation, joining forces with an eclectic team of amateurs who are determined to solve the cases by land and by a mother of the missing, a retired pharmacy manager, and a mapmaker who monitors terrorist activity for the government. Together, they track the activities of kidnappers and murderers, investigate a cult, rescue a psychic in peril, cross paths with an unconventional scientist, and reunite an international fugitive with his family. Searching for the missing is a brutal psychological and physical test with the highest stakes, but eventually their hardships begin to bear strange fruits—ones that lead them to places and people they never saw coming.
Beautifully written, heartfelt, and at times harrowing, TRAIL OF THE LOST paints a vivid picture of hiker culture and its complicated relationship with the ever-expanding online realm, all while exploring the power and limits of determination, generosity, and hope. It also offers a deep awe of the natural world, even as it unearths just how vast and treacherous it can be.
On the TRAIL OF THE LOST , you may not find what you are looking for, but you will certainly find more than you seek.
My thoughts:
I love true crime – that is no secret, but this is the first nature-based true crime I’ve read and it was quite fascinating. While I am not a hiker, nor am I familiar with the Pacific Crest Trail, the writing kept me engaged and wanting more.
Andrea Larkin is a former park ranger who finds herself drawn to the case of three missing persons cases from the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail), who all happen to go missing around the same time. There are a lot of people that end up joining in the search, besides the families and we see just how extensive these searches can be. We also learn a fair bit about the missing themselves. There’s also insight into the hiker culture, from groups on Facebook to the history of the trail itself. I had no idea all this even existed, but then again, not being a hiker why would I?
Between all this, it was easy to become invested in what was going on. I appreciated how this was also in one sense a cautionary tale to all hikers that while nature can be beautiful, it is also unforgiving, even to the most experienced. I’m glad I picked this one up and I recommend this one to anyone with a passing interest in true crime, nature or outdoor activities.
Audio thoughts:
I paired the print book with the audio and I’m so glad I did. There are quite a few maps, screenshots of Facebook posts and photos in the book that are helpful to look at while reading. The narrator, Kristi Burns, does a great job bringing the story to life. Her pacing is spot on.
