The Wildfire Season

by Andrew Pyper

Haunted. Scarred. Alone. And the nightmare's just beginning. 

Of all the end-of-the-world places he could have run to after he was burned, Miles McEwan chose Ross River.
            Buried deep in the vast wilderness of the Yukon, it seemed the perfect place to escape the past. Best of all, he could carry on doing what he did best--fighting fire. But five years on, Miles is still troubled by two phantoms of his previous life: the young man whose agonizing death preys on his conscience, and the woman he abandoned as a consequence.
            And in the dark forest around Ross River, fire and violence are brewing. As a small blaze becomes an inferno, a group of bear trackers is about to encounter nature in its wildest form. Elsewhere a killer is going about his work, quietly and ruthlessly. As the survivors of the hunting party are picked off one by one and fire rages through the mountains, Miles embarks on a desperate rescue mission, driven by love for a daughter who, until this dangerous summer, had been a perfect stranger.
            A remarkable work, The Wildfire Season is an edgy psychological thriller, a supernatural chiller, a terrifying tale of untamed nature, and an unusual--and unusually moving--story of what one can choose to endure in the name of love.

Genres: Thriller, Horror, Mystery, Fiction, Ebooks, Crime, Canada

324 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Andrew Pyper was a Canadian author. He published over ten fictional books, including The Demonologist, which won the International Thriller Writers Award, and Lost Girls, which was a New York Times bestseller and Notable Book of the Year.

Pyper also published under the name of Mason Coile.

Reviews

[Erin Clemence · Rating 2 out of 5]

I LOVE Andrew Pyper, and I generally love this Stephen King-esque thriller novels (also, hometown props to Canada!) but in comparison to his other novels, “The Wildfire Season” utterly disappointed.

Miles McEwan is a fire chief, living in the remote town of Ross River, in the Yukon. After being badly burned in a fire himself, and losing one of this own, Miles has driven away everyone in his life, his only passion now is his firefighting family. But when a massive forest fire starts, and a hunting party goes missing, Miles must take his team deep into the woods in order to rescue the missing hunters and try and quell the flames. But Miles has also just been introduced to his daughter, Rachel, and he now has more to lose than ever before.

Pyper’s writing is overly poetic and descriptive (I am sure he used every literary device in the book. He describes every drop of water, every tree branch, every flame of fire) , and in this case it is likely because he is covering up the fact that there is ZERO action happening in the plot. Miles is a likable character, and Pyper does a decent enough job with character development, so the reader can empathize with the damaged fire chief. But the plot bounces between past and present day, and between narrators (Pyper tells the story from Miles’ point of view, as well as from Alex—his ex-partner, the hunting leader Margot, and heck—even the bear that is being hunted takes a turn or two at narrating) without any notice, so it’s difficult to keep up with the flow.

There is very little paranormal or creepy, or psychologically twisted plot lines that I am so used to in Pyper’s book. There are hints of the paranormal, but nothing sinister or haunting, and I was terribly disappointed.

This novel read more like an adventure story of the Yukon, and although I have nothing against that genre in particular, I was not expecting this from gruesome, creepy Andrew Pyper.

[Natalie Mackay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve rounded up from a deserved 3.5

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had mixed feelings about this. Some of the writing was rather beautiful and it made me want to visit the places featured in the story however I found the main character Miles to be rather self obsessed and the love story which ran through the book began to irritate me before the end.

That said parts were quite exciting and I learned a lot about fires and even more about bears.......

I would try another book by this author.

[Brooke]

After letting this sit for a week without returning to it, I'm taking it back to the library. I can't quite put my finger on why - it might just be a little too serious and meditative for my mood right now. I'm currently enjoying the author's The Killing Circle, so it's not a question of quality.

[Toni Osborne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel takes you on an unusual adventure right into the heart of God’s country, the ultimate wilderness… Some would consider the secluded village “Ross River” to be at the end of the loneliest road in the Yukon. It is the story of Miles Mc Ewan, a man scarred and troubled by his past who has found refuge in this remote region as a fire fighter.

All of the author’s characters recount in their own words this tragic, endearing and heartbreaking tale. Even the grizzle bear is given human characteristics. I found the first part to be a bit slow and obscure, the multi- faceted narration distracted me, but as the story progressed, the writing flowed beautifully. The suspense and intrigue intensified when Mr Pyper’s characters described the chaos of fighting forest fires and how they affect the people and the surrounding environment. Through his words, the author successfully painted an outstanding vision of the landscape, giving us an insight into the dangers and perils, as well as the benefits of living in the wilderness. He has softened the tone by injecting some tender moments.

The Wildfire Season is a very complex psychological thriller, one with a touch of mystic and one with a lasting impression.

[Jim Coughenour · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not what I expected – the blurbs on the back describe it as "a deft thriller" and its author, Andrew Pyper, as "the Great White North's answer to Michael Connelly" - etc. But it's not a crime novel at all, it's more a dramatic, sorrowful mediation on myriad forms of loneliness: solitude, broken families, isolated communities, and unforgiving nature – which makes it sound grim. Actually it's grippingly good. The tale took its sour time to develop but it never dragged, and the small hard-bitten cast of characters got to me. The raw-edged family romance at the heart of it turns out like Miles McEwan, the main character - burned, scarred, half-monstrous, slightly crazy with a bit of Native American mysticism thrown in – and, yeah, touching. It worked.

This is a fine book for readers looking for something different from Connelly and his innumerable progeny. Pyper is something else.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good story, nice info about forest firefighting however I am not running out to get another one of his books.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of Pyper's earlier novels, this one was a departure from his usual horror/thrillers. It was very much a man vs. nature, man vs. man and man vs. himself story. It was also an incredibly bleak tale, involving severely broken characters and catastrophic events all on a collision course. The novel was confusing in the first chapters until the glimpses that were given were fleshed out little by little as the novel went on, and eventually made more sense. Once the fire began to rage and three major plots were sent careening towards each other, it was undoubtedly tense and full of action. I wasn't as thrilled with pieces of the story as I have been with others of Pyper's books, but his solid writing still made for a compelling read. 3.5/5*

[Tracey · Rating 1 out of 5]

A really boring read with characters that had no definition to them . The plot was sluggish when it should of had some suspense to it!
Truly disappointing considering the bio on the back of the book!

[Hugo · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very dull thriller, seemingly burdened throughout by aspirations to something more literary, so we get diversions aplenty, even chapters following the bloody bears.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miles is a forest firefighter. After a particularly bad fire in which one of his crew dies, and he is badly burned, he takes off on his (pregnant) girlfriend and essentially goes into exile in the most remote place he can find in the Yukon.
Moving forward a few years, his crew is waiting out fire season hoping for some work. Meanwhile Mile's x shows up with her daughter. Miles has an unexpected reaction to seeing them. Alex is hard as nails though, and has no intention of sticking around, she just wants to punish Miles with meeting Rachael because she knows it will haunt him. He's not a bad guy afterall, he just had a hard freak out.
While they are on their brief visit, a fire is spotted. Miles and his crew head out, but it's a brutal unpredictable fire. They have to access a plan, which ends up being an evacuation.
Meanwhile, a local tracker is out with a small hunting party, they are unaware of the fire's danger. Miles sets out to save them. Meanwhile, everyone is evacuated from the town, except for Alex and Rachel who refuses to leave without Mile's dog.
The last third of the book is a brutal description of what it's like to be caught in a forest fire. It's told from multiple perspectives - including the bear the party is hunting. It is eerie, beautiful and haunting.
Not something I will soon forget.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was okay. The writing wasn't really my style, and the book is comprised mostly of short sentences. The plot was somewhat predictable, and only a few of the characters were really truly fleshed out. I did not like the point of view of the bear at all and feel it could have been written differently and without personifying her. I didn't understand the daughter's connection with animals and the like.

What I did like was that I wanted to know what happened at the end, even if the ending dragged out for quite some time. The book wasn't terrible by any means. I liked the fact that it was set in the Yukon, as usually Canadian books are set somewhere like Toronto. I found the use of the term "the kid" was overwhelming and unnecessary, same with "the girl." The characters who were fleshed out were all likeable in their own ways, and I felt an attachment to them and cared about what happened. However, the characters who weren't fleshed out were confusing to keep track of.

Overall it was an okay book. It took me a while to get through it, and I could see how others would like it, but it just wasn't for me.

[Andres Ramirez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this book, the least supernatural of what I have read of Andrew Pyper. However, this loses none of the excitement or urgency I have come to expect from his writing. It was hard putting this book down and I was always ready to pick it back up. I am not the biggest fan of the multiple point of view style of narrative due to it's predisposition to uneven interest in the narrator on behalf of the reader, but I think it was done very well (even when the narrator was unconventional). Most importantly I quickly became attached to the principal characters and couldn't wait to see how their stories turned out. Although a different kind of thriller, I was excited as I made my way through this novel.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A keep-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller, not only about forest fires in Northern Canada (Yukon), but bear hunting, arson, murder, etc. thrown in for good measure. The story was not told chronologically, so it took some getting used to determining flashbacks from real time, but that was part of the suspense and how it unfolded. The major drawbacks to the story were there seemed to be more focus on environment development vs. character development, and I had to ask my husband (who did a summer of forest fire training in MT) about some of the fire lingo.

[Brandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

So far, although the story is interesting, it's a tangle of characters & back stories, with shifting points of view and a plot that is not well served by the writing style. I think that the language could have been simplified, to better effect. And I'm finding it hard to sympathize with any of the characters - except the bears.

Edit: the story picks up with the pace of the fire, and the plot becomes more interesting somewhere along the line. I still had a hard time with character development - many of them were just completely without redeeming qualities or purpose.

[Lex]

Nope couldn't get into this type of writing. There were so many characters thrown at you all at once that was too overwhelming. I thought I'd really enjoy it because of the description on the jacket and my love for grizzled bears and wild environments, but if you can't even get into the book, then I don't see much of a point to keep going. There are other books about grizzly bears.

[Heba · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was less of a thriller and more of a study of the different ways we feel and face loneliness. The author's writing style was a bit eccentric, and personally, I didn't really enjoy it much, but it's readable nonetheless. Story picked up a little after the second half, which saved this book from getting only one star.

[Kenisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book sounded good on the back, but one I started it, it was kinda confusing. The beginning was good, but then it just became rushed. The writing style wasn't for me, I guess. There was a lot of narration, not much dialogue.
This book wasn't even a thriller really, more like a small crime that was predicted.
Really 1.5/5 because I liked the concept.

[Devyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Wildfire Season starts out slow and boring. I almost gave up on it a few times. But closer to the end of the book is unreal! So intense and fast I sat in my chair with my muscles tensed while my eyes jumped from word to word with alarming speed!
But, I did not like it when Stump died. They could have carried him, damn it.

[Louisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like settings that are remote from my personal experience. This story has that and the additional tension of a flawed protagonist hunted down through a forest fire ... well, just read it.

Of the three Andrew Pyper novels I read, this is my favorite.

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasnt expecting such an engrossing book.. this guy has fire fighting down.. the emotion and thought behind the fire and what it says to you.. amazing.. I need to read this guys other books.. he's great!

[Abby Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

fascinating look at how fighting wildfires actually works, although most of the book was crime drama with incredibly dramatic climax with combined attack from threat of angry mama grizzly bear, raging uncontrollable wildfire, and psychotic man with hunting rifle.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the depth of characterization in this novel. I genuinely felt empathy for the main character and could relate to his struggles with self-condemnation and judgment. I felt a bit cheated by the ending though, but will refrain from explanation to avoid any spoiler.

[Ken Vaughan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A story of fires, grizzlies, and men behaving badly. Then, of course, there's redemption. An OK book, but Pyper tries too hard to be literary and poetic, with limited success. If you want a testosterone rush, you'll get it. If you want something a bit more subtle, move on.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is multi faceted, pulls you in, keeps you interested in all the stories going on. Incredible book!

[Elaine Chew · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe I didn't give it enough time. In my notes I just wrote "Yuck, I can't even finish it." But I see other gave it a 4. Maybe I need to retry it some day.

[Lindasp · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very tense, exciting read with well-developed characters. A great insight into fire-fighting and done with beautiful writing.

[Delores Alger · Rating 2 out of 5]

not a mystery

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

OMG so relieved to be finished with this depressing book! It was so lonesome! I may have enjoyed it more in the winter but ughhhh...I owe myself a really good one after these two crappy ones.

[Britta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Original concept and nice storyline, good characters. Just not my kind of book.