It’s been four months since glaciologist Rachael Beckett left her husband and daughter to join an urgent research trip to a remote field station deep in the Antarctic. But after losing all communication with her crew at base camp, she’s trapped and alone – and running out of supplies. The only information she has about what’s gone so catastrophically wrong is an emergency radio broadcast playing on a a nuclear war has broken out, and Rachael might be the last survivor on Earth.
Abandoned and starving, all she has left is a fierce determination to stay alive in the extreme cold and perpetual darkness of the polar winter. The research she’s gathered about catastrophic climate damage means she holds the fate of the continent and the world in her grasp…if there’s even a world left to save.
Struggling with loneliness and grief over the unknown fate of her family back home, Rachael knows both her life and her sanity balance on a knife edge. As she battles to stay alive in unimaginable conditions, she soon discovers she’s not completely alone in the dark and cold – but she might wish she was…
What a tense, terrifying read! Using the real text from an actual nuclear war tape and a lot of information about Antarctica, Burnett has crafted a completely - forgive the pun, I can't help it - chilling read.
Rachael is on a mission to prove ice melt is happening in a certain part of Antarctica before a drilling operation can be approved. However, as revealed through flashbacks, bad luck plagues her team and she feels she has no choice but to take a dangerous mission alone. While there she loses contact with base camp and the only broadcast she can get is an announcement that nuclear war has broken out. Alone with limited supplies, the broadcast becomes her lifeline as she grapples with the thought that she might be the last person left alive - and the slow realisation that there are worse fates.
This is a tense, claustrophobic read - make sure to have blankets, tea and biscuits on hand as you read! Information about the Antarctic, survival in low temperatures, and even a missing flight from decades ago are scattered in at just the right pace, enough for the reader to follow along, not so much that we feel lectured to. Rachael's desperate struggles keep your attention - I didn't want to put this one down!
A fantastic read, really atmospheric and honestly interesting.
Book recommendation: The Deep by Alma Katsu. Although it’s set on the Titanic and later the Britannic, the confined setting, slow-building dread, and themes of survival and mystery make it a great match for Whiteout. The tension is palpable, and the historical details add depth to the chilling story.
Movie recommendation: Arctic (2018). This gripping survival tale follows a man stranded in the Arctic wilderness, battling the elements and his own limits to survive. Much like Rachael’s journey, it’s a testament to human endurance and determination in the face of the harshest conditions.
Whiteout publishes on the 13th of February, 2025. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment