Review of "Whiteout: An Antarctic Thriller" by R.S. Burnett

Rachael Beckett is an experienced Antarctic researcher who's skilled at measuring the thickness of the ice shelves, to predict possible calving.



Currently, Rachael is taking a break from field work to stay in England with her husband Adam and baby daughter Izzy, who's the light of Rachael's life.



Rachael didn't plan to return to the Antarctic for a while, but feels compelled to go after a visit from her mentor, Guy Barnard.



Guy brings research showing the Ross Ice Shelf is melting, and a piece weighing 4 trillion tons and measuring 23,000 square kilometers (the size of Wales) is in danger of calving off because of climate change combined with drilling. This could result in sea levels rising by six meters (about 20 feet), which would be disastrous.



A possible solution would be to stop drilling, which the U.S. Congress has to authorize. To convince senators to vote the right way, scientists need compelling undeniable research. Thus Guy is planning an Antarctic expedition, and he convinces Rachael to join his team.





Guy, Rachael, and the rest of the research group is flown into Antarctica and start their work.





Jump ahead four months and Rachael is alone in her pod in the pitch black Antarctic winter. For various reasons, Rachael has become separated from the rest of the team, and a radio broadcast repeating every two hours states the following: "This is the Wartime Broadcasting Service from the BBC in London. This country has been attacked with nuclear weapons....the number of casualties are unknown....stay in your homes, etc.



Rachael doesn't know if Adam and Izzy are dead or alive, but fears the worst, and actually thinks she might be the last person alive on earth.



Nevertheless, Rachael is carrying on with her research, recording everything in her journal: Temperature -69 C; Windspeed 63 mph; Ice Thickness....whatever; etc.






In the course of the story, Rachael's situation goes from bad to worse to horrendous, but she's absolutely intrepid and fights to carry on.



To say more would be a spoiler, but rest assured there's plenty of danger and drama.

This thriller is an edge-of-your-seat page turner, and you might even want to don your parka in empathy with Rachael, who has to 'Brave cold that's like a punch in the face. Cold that snaked its way inside you in seconds and seemed to freeze your very bones. Cold that overwhelmed you, stopped your hands from working properly and even slowed down the functions of your brain.'



Very good book. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley, R.S. Burnett, and Crooked Lane Books for a copy of the manuscript.

 Rating: 4 stars