The River Wild

by Denis O'Neill

By the screenwriter of the 1994 blockbuster movie starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon, a novelization that retells the story of a rafting adventure meant to heal a troubled family that is hijacked by two escaped convicts, desperate to evade both the police and Federal marshals and the lethal class 5 white-water rapids their stolen canoe is pointed toward.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Audiobook, Adventure, Mystery Thriller, Media Tie In

282 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 6, 2017

About the author

Denis O’Neill is an author, screenwriter, producer, and nature enthusiast who holds a master’s degree in journalism from Boston University. He worked on staff and as a freelance writer/producer for Boston’s public television station, WGBH-TV. He began publishing articles and short stories in Sports Illustrated, the Boston Globe Sunday Magazine, Fly Rod & Reel, Antiques, American Photographer, and others. His original screenplay, The River Wild, was produced in 1994, directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, and John C. Riley. A Shot at Glory, directed by Michael Corrente and starring Robert Duvall, was released in 2001. He lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Author Denis O'Neil was the screenwriter for the 1994 action-packed blockbuster movie THE RIVER WILD with Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon.

The book version is very similar.....family vacation in the Montana wilderness turns disastrous when Tom, Gail, 13 year old Roarke (younger in the movie) and golden retriever Maggie encounter dangerous fugitives on the run and are ultimately held hostage while they use Gail's expertise as a white water rafter (and her .22) to escape the law. (no spoiler here)

However.......there's more storyline here with police involvement, deadly background info. on the prison escapees, and even Maggie has a quick heroic part to keep things interesting.

Overall......great adventure story and a super fast read, but thought the novel could have been expanded even more.

Many thanks to NetGalley, author and Skyhorse Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

River Wild by Denis O’Neill is a 2017 Skyhorse publication.

Normally we have movies or television programs based on books. This book, though, is based on a movie. I was intrigued when it the book was first published, but for some reason, though it was a short book, it languished in my TBR pile.

So, now that it has reached my five-year cutoff date, I had to either read it or scratch it off the list. Because it is so short, (less than 300 pages), I figured I could knock this one out in one afternoon, especially since I was familiar with the story.

As it turns out, despite it having been years and years since I’ve seen the movie, details of the movie came back easily, and I found the book did not stray very far off course.

There were some nice descriptions and explanations that are more effective, and stimulates one’s own imagination away from the theatrical visuals. Therefore, if you haven’t seen the movie, you might consider reading the book before you do.

Otherwise, the book was so close to the movie, it was mainly a refresher course, for me.

Some minor differences here- Tom, for example, though not really an outdoorsy type, is a huge baseball fan, and a lot more palatable here than he was in the movie.

The author did a good job with the transition from movie to book, and still managed to create an intense, suspenseful adventure, even if you knew how it would all play out.

Overall, even though the movie has some mixed reviews, I liked it back in the day, and I enjoyed the book, as well.

3.5 stars

[Jane Shambler · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, I have now not only seen the movie but also read the book. It seems Mr O'Neill did things differently, by making the movie first then writing the book. I really enjoyed the movie especially the location. The main difference between the movie and the book is that the book go's into more character depth.

The basis of the story is for Gail and Tom to save their marriage and accompanied by their son Tom for his birthday. It is important to Gail that her son realises how modern living is taking away natural beauty by modernisation. The river they are on is soon to be over taken by a dam. Gail was once a guide on the river in her youth. They pick up some men wanting to get down the river. The men are robbers and murderers and threaten Gail and her family. Tom manages to get away and help free Gail and her son.

That is it. It is an excellent story and very well written. Yes I would recommend the book and the movie. Enjoy!


*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley*

[Veronica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gail is trying to rekindle her marriage and decides to take a nostalgic trip with her family down a river she used to travel down years ago. She does not count on escaped convicts who have murdered and are willing to murder again in their dash for freedom.
I really loved reading this book and found the writing to be seamless and flowed so well that the suspense continued throughout the book. I just wish I had read this before I had seen the movie. If you want an action/adventure/suspense novel then look no further.

[Carl · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a long time since I have read an adventure novel this good.

I am getting a little bit tired of murder mysteries, so when this one was recommended, I was eager for something new. This scary story that takes place in the most beautiful place is populated with both beautiful and very ugly people. I felt like I was going on the trip with them as the description of the river and rapids really cranked my adrenaline glands. I as did the bad guys. I though in a very different way. Highly recommended for adventure and mystery fans.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rip roaring action adventure that had me spinning, the pages were flying by so fast. The book actually had me sweating while reading about the white water part of the trip and when the husband was trying to climb that cliff. That really had me holding my breath!

An excellent read that I could not put down. And, these bad guys are REALLY bad! I kept hoping for something bad to happen to them.

Thanks to Skyhorse Publishing and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

[Court · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, this is so bad it has made me angry.

Content warning- sexual assault, including of an underage girl, multiple further rape attempts, murder, misogyny, violence.

I have fond memories of this film, kind of a mid-level 90s action movie, but with a cast full of Oscar winners and nominees and gorgeous cinematography. Meryl Streep kicks ass in it - she's practically a superhero.

All I can imagine is that the screenwriter/author HATED both the film and his own characters, because otherwise, he's just a creep. I have no earthly idea why he'd take out a Deaf character and a loving family who use ASL to save the day and replace them with a bunch of inept, undeveloped cops who deus ex machina the ending + a totally random bear attack. Nor do I understand why he thought it would be a good idea to make the bad guys even more evil by making them rapists (describing both their previous crimes, including one against a minor, and their constant states of arousal) and by having the main character threatened by sexual assault over and over. Why was that necessary at all?

Tom and Gail are actually both unlikeable and totally incompetent, as well. There is no reason to root for their marriage, as they seem to actively hate each other, and their poor decisions lead over and over to exasperating plot points. In the film they were both resourceful, intelligent people who you really root for to both live and make it as a couple.

A minor nitpick is also some god awful, random vey boomer humor and the inclusion of cell phones, which add exactly nothing to the plot whatsoever. I also googled the movie after to find that a bunch of the names were changed, which seems a bit random (though Terry seems to be named after his actor).

Baffling and gross. Avoid and just watch the film.

[Elite Group · Rating 5 out of 5]

An adventure. River-rafting, murder and a need for a family to survive.

To help heal their marriage river-rafting expert Gail and her husband Tom and their son, embark on a white-water adventure in Montana. Along the way, they encounter two inexperienced rafters who are apparently looking for their friend but are really escaped convicts and soon the young family become hostages to the killers. They are forced towards a deadly class 5 white water rapid and Gail and Tom must pull together and save themselves and their son.

This is the book version of the 1994 blockbuster The River Wild starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon. Denis O’Neil was the screenwriter for the movie and has now turned it into an action-packed book.

I have not seen the movie I am glad to say as I usually have trouble separating the book and movie and get cross when they don’t match!

I liked this book very much. It was fast-paced and exciting and I loved every minute of it.

The characters were superb and the baddies were nasty. The descriptions of the rapids and how they should be tackled was so easy to understand I feel I could go out and try it tomorrow.

I going to keep my eyes open for any more of his books and may even try and watch the film although I don’t think it will hold a candle to the book.

Helen

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

[Melinda]

I wonder if I hadn’t read that it was a book based on a movie rather than the other way around if I would have given it longer. It felt like someone was telling me about a movie. Yuck.

[Jean Gidich-holbrook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure what rock I was living under back in the 1990’s when this book and Meryl Streep movie came out but yay for having it be brand new for me in 2024! Reminded me a little of the Peter Heller thriller I read last summer ( but better😬) that I’m sure this book influenced

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Emma Ounsworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good effort.

After enjoying the film starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon, I was looking forward to this book.
It wasn't quite as good as I had hoped but it was well written and stuck close to the screenplay storyline, giving insight into the characters that you just didn't get on screen.
The characters were strong, descriptions not bad but it didn't quite keep me enthralled which was a shame as it had all the potential of being an exciting adventure.
In parts it was tense, in others a bit tedious but overall a good, solid novel that is worth a read if you like the film or the storyline interests you.

[Sheena Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm guessing the movie is better. Should have been an exciting story, but I couldn't get into and found it all a bit dull and unrealistic

[Major Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I watched the movie a million times when I was a kid so I can't help but compare the book to the movie. The book is good but the movie does everything better in my opinion.

My ebook reader has a name replacement feature that I used for the first time ever with this book, to change Deke to Wade. I don't understand why everybody else's name stayed the same and Wade's changed but I will henceforth refer to Deke as Wade. I always liked that the bad guy in a river thriller was named Wade, maybe the author thought it was too ironic or something.

In the movie I think Terry and Wade are are trying to escape a robbery, in this they are escaped convicts on the run.

Terry was just Wade's bumblefuck stooge in the movie, in this he's the same but the author decided to make him a creepy turbo-rapist too which sucks.

The book adds a police perspective that is pretty much pointless until the last chapter.

The sign language aspect of the story is completely gone. In the movie, Gail and Rourke use sign language as a stealthy way of communicating with each other. I always thought it was clever and I wonder why the author cut that stuff?

The movie had a thing with Maggie learning to respect Tom's authority and them bonding that isn't here but Maggie does save Tom from a bear in this so it evens out.

Are there kids out there that actually refer to their father as "pops" unsarcastically? I've never heard it in my life.

[Twistedtexas · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5/10 - I normally avoid books based on movies, but this one slipped past my defenses. On the plus side, the novel is adapted by the author of the original screenplay from the 1994 movie of the same name. However, this one proved to be no exception to my rule- books based on movies *almost* always suck.

I don't remember much from the movie, other than it starred Kevin Bacon and Meryl Streep, and was okay (perfectly suited to spending a hungover afternoon on the couch drinking more beer to alleviate the hangover). Also the son in the movie was deaf, which played an integral role in how the plot and action developed. Alas, no Kevin, Meryl, or deaf child to salvage this one. And the author repeatedly used 'acoustic' as a drop-in replacement for the word 'sound'. Maybe I am being picky, but that's just wrong.

I was stone-cold sober when reading this, and not hungover at all. Maybe a few drinks would have helped. Next time, me, when you know there's a movie version, check to see if the book came first.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Damn enjoyable read. I was worried when I read that this novel was inspired by the 90s film - I don’t real novelisations because I’m not twelve. However, the positive reviews and the fact I haven’t seen the film persuaded me. I’m glad it did because this plainly-written, linear thriller didn’t try to be anything but entertaining and for that reason, I loved it.

Once I saw that the author was the same person who wrote the film back in 1994, I got it. Clearly he felt there was some expanding to be done on the storyline to reintroduce a new audience to the story. Honestly, there wasn’t too much cerebral stuff going on in the book and it worked to its advantage - it was laid out straight for you to power though.

This is the second book by a screenwriter I have read and damn if they don’t know how to handle a well-paced plot. Some of the dialogue didn’t feel 100% natural but it didn’t slow me down. I really enjoyed it. I’m hunting down the film ASAP.

[Don · Rating 2 out of 5]

A family and friends take a trip to Montana to do some rafting and fly fishing on the River Wild. The friends begin the trip a day ahead and meet some strangers who are acting bizarrely but welcome them to hang around anyway. When the family arrives the next day, the friends are nowhere in sight but the strangers are there with a tale of a bad cut that needed a hospital and the friends taking the only option to get there - rafting the river for 60 miles. Somehow this absurd story is believed, and the strangers are again welcomed for the ride. From the beginning straight through to the ending, this novel has a problem staying believable. It's not a bad story, but I couldn't believe hardly any part of it would truly happen. Ruined any enjoyment I might have had from it.

[Eddi · Rating 4 out of 5]

My husband and I are always reading a book aloud together. We got halfway through The River Wild, both feeling very tense about the situation with Zeke and Terry keeping Gail, Tom and Roarke hostage to help them escape. Never before have we stopped reading a book, deciding to watch the movie instead, which we did tonight. Interestingly, the movie, while being exciting and very well-done, didn’t evoke the same degree of intensity that reading the book aloud did for us. Reading a chapter or so a night together, the book would have taken a long time to get through it. Watching the entire movie tonight, we got to the resolution. The story was a good one, the characters well-developed, with Zeke/Wade being incredibly evil. I’m glad we started the book, and finished with the movie.

[Hessah · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been a while since I came across a fast paced thriller illustrates a competition with Mother Nature and a police chase. When 2 escapees encounter a family enjoying a supposed idyllic vacation rafting and inner serenity, it wasn’t expected that the family of 3 will be a hostage.
There were no moments of boredom as the fugitives took their time befriending the family until the scene in which the Tom tries to sneak out with his wife and son, which was a failure but started a new chapter of worrisome, uncertainty, and fear. Dennis ensured that all characters took its time to develop even Maggie the dog had her fair moments.
The ending was satisfying as with all experiences, we grow through them , and expectedly, we learn from them. Sometimes, it is possible to overcome fear and hurdles, but in other times, some, might not overcome traumatizing challenges.

[Lexi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great "bringing together" of the various characters into the river, building a sense of impending disaster.

Just the right amount of river rafting descriptions to make the physical side of the story realistic and interesting, and vivid descriptions of the canyon.

Overall a highly enjoyable easy read.

I haven't see the Meryl Streep movie, which gets excellent reviews, yet. I always try to read the book before seeing the movie but wasn't sure which way round to do this since the movie came first!

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a big fan of this movie, finding and reading this book was a special treat. Written by the movie's screenwriter, the variations found in the book carried credibility since they came from the story's creator. And because there were variations, it kept me swiftly turning the pages eager to find out how the story was going to unfold. Normally I like reading the book before watching the movie, but this challenges my thinking. It certainly didn't hurt that the audio narration running through my mind was the calm, strong, beautiful voice of Meryl Streep as Gail. :)

[Shantel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do that Google shit🤣🤣 I legit laughed out loud at this. This book was a wild ride and now I need to watch the movie! Gail, Tom, and Rourke (sp? because I listened to it) were held hostage on a family camping trip, at the hands of Deacon and Terry; two criminals who escaped from jail. Deacon had a hellish handful of criminal activity and Terry had infractions as well. Now the race is on to find the escapees before they wreak more havoc and continue their killing spree. Will they catch them in time, or will more bodies be discovered?

[d.mcnicholas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The river wild certainly keeps your attention. I was really invested in the characters and if they would survive their ordeal on that wild river ride. It was amazing to watch the characters grow when out of their comfort zone. What would you do to save those you loved? I'm glad Maggie the dog was there right to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed this ' can't put it down' story, just as much as I enjoyed the film starring Merle Streep and Kevin Bacon.

[Frederic S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hooray for the knowledge and experience of youth

The heroine a mother and former white water rafting guide followed her instincts strengths and experience to fight pure evil and protect her family. Her husband a city boy was no less heroic. And their son learned a valuable life lesson. The river was alive and helped mold them all. A great read.

[judith baumbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thrill ride read!

I read this amazing book in one sitting, absolutely couldn’t put it down. The characters were so flawlessly delivered and the plot was switching and turning like the ride down the River Wild. I truly enjoyed this tale, actually found myself trying to read faster and faster just to keep up with the story. Very memorable read!

[Diane Withrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book with the intention of watching the original movie and the new version. It’s a good beach/airport/diversion adventure read. I’m actually watching the original movie now which already diverts from the book but has well cast characters and exceptional scenery- given the story? A must have!

[Polly Krize · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Spellbinding and so very well written! The drama engendered with 2 escaped convicts taking over the lives of a family while rafting on the river is a super read. If you have seen the movie, read the book too!

[P.S. Winn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a thriller and an adventure you hope never happens to you. White water rafting in Montana sets the backdrop for the story. When those running the rafting trips find themselves in the hands of the wrong people.

[Jillian Higham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic edge of the seat read by Denis O'Neil who did the original screenplay of the movie. Loved the movie and really loved the book which went into much more character depth. Thoroughly enjoyable read.

[Benefitsinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good adventure story and this one does not disappoint. I would like to watch the movie but I am not a fan of the actress who plays Gail. I was also glad nothing bad happened to the dog, I have a real problem with harm coming to animals in books. The book was also very well narrated.