Wet Desert, a Novel

by Gary Hansen

Grant Stevens, a mid-level manager for the Bureau of Reclamation, only wanted to build dams. He never imagined he would be swept into a desperate race against an environmental terrorist bent on restoring the Colorado River by blowing up the dams. Left temporarily in charge of the Bureau, Grant must react when the first dam is attacked. He faces the unthinkable task of mitigating the massive flood roaring down the Colorado. The flood will eventually threaten the mighty Hoover Dam, and if Hoover fails, the other dams downstream will fall like dominos. Working with the FBI, Grant uses his engineering skills, river knowledge, and plenty of gut instinct in an attempt to outmaneuver the terrorist. The chase will lead all the way downstream to the Gulf of California in a cat and mouse game where the stakes are high and the potential for destruction is enormous. Whitney Award Finalist. Compared to Tom Clancey by Meridian Magazine.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Adventure, Ebooks

372 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 7, 2007

Reviews

[LA · Rating 4 out of 5]

This disaster-thriller is a fun, clean MUST READ for anyone headed out to the Grand Canyon for vacation, particularly if you are going to stop at Hoover Dam, are hiking or rafting the Grand Canyon, boating on Lake Powell, or climbing into the slot canyons near the Glen Canyon Dam.

The story's hero is an engineer who works for the Bureau of Reclamation - the agency responsible for all the dams across the US. When one of the dams is targeted by an unknown terrorist or group, it is not the FBI or the police who are the ones capable of understanding the implications or how to best find the perpetrator. Instead, it is your average dad - a middle-aged civil engineer in a polo shirt, armed with a calculator.

I'm not saying that the book is fine literature, but the author did win awards for a first-time novelist. When one thinks of a disaster book or movie, say, Poseidon Adventure or The Towering Inferno (geez, I'm old..) we generally get a bunch of heroics with people trying to escape. What was well done here is that there were sub-groups of characters in various danger zones so that we palpably felt the physical threat, but the protagonist himself was busy pursuing a more cerebral task. The chapters are headed by time stamps and locations: 9:47am, Las Vegas.

There are bits of dialogue about cubic feet of water flow screaming over spillways that might make the average reader consider a small yawn here or there, but as a science person, I LOVED that mathematical voodoo! The author is an engineer and took great pains with his research - it made the entire thing very believable.

We just completed a family vacation to the Grand Canyon and surrounding area, and I have to pat myself on the back for loading this up on Kindle and Audible before we started the trip. I read the book years ago and knew it was THE perfect audio to play in the rental car. The language is clean, so the hub and I were able to share the book with our 14 year old. We read and listened on the plane and then in the rental car while driving down Route 66. One of the subgroups of characters are friends who are white water rafting the Grand Canyon, and having just rafted those specifically named rapids ourselves - just hours earlier - it made the book that much more exciting for our son.

At any rate, if you're into dams or love the Colorado River, grab this inexpensive Kindle read. Don't expect five stars - just enjoy the ride. And keep your feet dry.

[Marvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK. First a gripe. One of the things about reading this novel was that sooner or later the author would mention my home town of Blythe, California. After all, it is right on the Colorado River and he has mentioned every single settlement from Page, Arizona on down. So on page 301 I finally read this little nugget of dialogue...

"What town is that up there?" Grant asked.

"Oh that would be the thriving metropolis of Blythe, California" Lloyd responded.
There were many words Grant could use to describe Blythe, but neither thriving nor metropolis came to mind.

Then our heroes grab a hamburger and leave.

And there is this little dig on page 239 when Grant is asked what is below Lake Havasu and Parker...

"Not Much. Just a couple of hick towns and an Indian reservation before you get to Yuma".

Hick town? And just what do you have against Blythe, Mr. Hansen?

Fortunately, I'm not the kind to hold a grudge, especially when the author writes such a page turner of a suspense thriller like Wet Desert. And doubly so when he writes it with so much accurate knowledge about the American Southwest and the Colorado River. I have been to many of the places he writes about on the river including having hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and Hansen has captured the area superbly. His characters are also well developed and brings the plot alive all the way to the exciting end. If you enjoy edge-of -the-seat action thrillers you will love this.

[LA · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are on vacation, white water rafting the Grand Canyon and visiting Hoover Dam. Perfect time to re-read via audio w the family!

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

What would happen if an eco-terrorist blew up the Glen Canyon Dam? What would it be like for white-water rafters in the Grand Canyon? For boaters in Lake Powell? For an engineer with the Bureau of Reclamation trying to save Hoover Dam? This one would make a great disaster movie. Are you listening, Hollywood?

[Cherie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great first novel. I was biting my fingernails continueously!

[Karen Kinsella · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful surprise find some months ago in the Kindle free book list. For a first book, Hansen has done a great job; I thoroughly enjoyed it! I don't usually read the adventure/thriller genre, but I love the Southwest desert and the Colorado, and the price was right, so I downloaded it. What can I say? I was carried away by Hansen's carefully crafted story, with not a moment of boredom or suspension of belief. The sense of place is wonderful. The technical details seem credible. Characters are appropriately subordinate to the story, but sufficiently complex and nuanced to be believable. One thing in particular struck me. Hansen never goes over the top in building suspense or eliciting reader reaction, unlike so many current writers of this genre. There are plenty of thrills, lots of suspense, but it never become gratuitous. And I enjoyed it so much more because of that. I liked this so much that I am ordering hard copies to give as gifts. Thanks to Gary Hansen for such a great read! And write another one!

[Kayelle Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like thrillers of all sorts, and one that took place near where I grew up intrigued me. It was easy to picture the area, and the descriptions were accurate. I enjoyed seeing the action unfold, and liked the various characters. I had a good time following them throughout the story. The only disappointment I had was that this seems to be the author's only book. I would love to read more. I hope he decides to tackle other topics, because Wet Desert was an entertaining and fun read. I didn't want to put it down, and was sorry to see it end.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Strongly recommend this book for anyone who loves the West, or anyone who has visited the Grand Canyon or the great Colorado River dams & lakes. Gary Hansen writes in the style of Dan Brown & Tom Clancy -- hard to put down, & hard to quit thinking about it.
I hope to read more from Gary Hansen.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best reads I've had all year.

I'm not sure if either author would appreciate the comparison, but I really think that this is similar to the plot lines and solid research of a Tom Clancy novel.

I am glad to have read it on Kindle, because in book form, I would likely have skipped ahead to see the author's note, because I was so curious about his background. With so many details about the infrastructure and flow of the Colorado river, I speculated that he had a background in that industry. So, I was surprised to see that these details were simply researched meticulously.

Especially for a first-time novel, I really think the characters were well developed. The plot moved at a perfect pace. I found myself staying up late to read 'just one more page'. The ending really worked for me. I was afraid that it would wrap up with either no resolution to the reconstruction, or with another (lame) ending where the bad guys didn't get caught etc. From my perspective, this ending was well-done, and I think that this is generally an area of weakness with novels.

Well done, Gary Hansen!

[Bruce Cline · Rating 5 out of 5]

363 pp., 2007 Loved it! It's got blowing up Glen Canyon damn (yeah!), near over-topping of Hoover dam (wow), the humiliation of high level bureaucrats (yeah), rescue by number crunching functionaries (yeah), clandestine activity (!), rafting! (actually very little), the Grand Canyon (yeah), sex (actually none), and water flowing to the Colorado River Delta (yeah!). This is an easy read and one I recommend for everyone who a one time or another has dreamed of Glen Canyon damn going away. Hayduke lives!!!

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nice effort from a first time author. I think this was a well researched book with an interesting plot line involving an environmental terrorist and various famous west coast American dams. This book is a nice suspenseful thriller featuring a heroic mid level government engineer. The main flaw, like in most of anything in this genre, is the lone hero factor. It's hard to swallow in the world that we live in, that one lone person would be able to make major decisions that would have a major effect on the lives of many Americans. I would have expected the CIA & Homeland Security to be involved in anything involving national security, not just the police and the FBI. So read this for the enjoyable story knowing you'll have to suspend disbelief at some of the decisions that our hero is able to make on his own.

[Randy Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

A environmental terrorist wanting to see the Colorado
river flowing once again into the ocean and thereby
restoring the Colorado delta which at one time was one of
the worlds largest and still can be found on most maps
and has been dry and dead for close to a hundred years
blows up a dam which start a chain reaction that puts all
the dams on the river at risk. This book is a five hundred+
page non-stop race against time and water. It is a disaster
story with many people effected and of course some make
and some don't and during all of this a man hunt for the
terrorist. This is a five star book in my view and I'm sure
most would agree.

[Kenneth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such a unique story. It was very interesting to read all about the different dams along the Colorado River and I've learned a lot that I didn't know before. The problem I had was that the details water flow that was described in this book was difficult to follow. The "links in the chain" run so far down the line that it was almost like trying to explain a Rube Goldberg in words alone. Very difficult to do. For that reason I only gave it 3 stars. I must say though that I loved the character "Lloyd"!

[Janell Barney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I lived and worked on Lake Powell for almost 20 years so this book really got inside of me. I was there in 1983 when the runoff was so high the marina store at Bullfrog had to be sandbagged. I was there when the water got so low the Castle Rock cut had to be closed. Lake Powell is a part of my soul and I can't imagine it being drained. I enjoyed the book and attention to detail and places. I also worked for the Page Police Dept for 5 years so I kind of took exception with the characterization of that organization but overall I would recommend the book.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I admit that I purchased Wet Desert by Gary Hansen because it was free and had an interesting plotline. Turns out that it was better than I could have imagined! Hansen is a great storyteller as he weaves the various characters' stories through the story. Although it is a cliche, this time it is appropriate to say that I had a very difficult time forcing myself to lay Wet Desert down. By the way, make sure you read Hansen's notes at the end of the novel that describes his journey in the writing of his story!

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Amazing book from a first time author. I was glued to the pages for 3 days straight. This is the book the should have been the sequel to the "Monkey Wrench Gang". It is full of fascinating data, beautiful landscapes, historical facts, intriguing characters, and a story that goes well beyond the "chasing a terrorist" cliche that the front cover so simplistically describes.

I would definitely recommend this book!

[Mtbike40 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw this book at Amazon for the Kindle for 99 cents and it had pretty good reviews. I decided what the heck it sounds interesting and I was not disappointed. From the very beginning this book kept my attention and I was looking for more time to read. If you have ever visited the Colorado River, Lake Powell or the Hoover Dam, this story will just come to life for you. I would recommend this book to those who like fast paced thriller books.

[Kevin Rood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced, believable, and a plot that held my attention so that I could barely put this book down. Almost makes me want to write about some topic related to my 24 years as a trauma ER and flight nurse.

[Joey Collins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrible! Probably the worst book I've ever read- couldn't even finish!

[Frank Muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book and hope that they consider making a movie out of it. Not easy to make an engineer the hero!

[george · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read! I learned quite a bit about the Colorado River. And best of all, the hero is an Engineer! Fantastic.

[Kenna Kupfer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great book!! I couldn't put it down. I was sucked into this story. It was intense and thrilling! I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone.

[Jeffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. Just wow. A fantastic read. Fast, interesting, and a fascinating subject. I loved it.

[Cara Hollingworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

My mother told me I had to read this book. Since my mom rarely recommends books to me, I was intrigued.
The bad first - This book was published by a small house making it kind of hard to find. I ended up ordering it through inter-library loan. It came all the way from Prescott, AZ. (I live in central Iowa.) Second, if you are anal like me, be warned that there are quite a few grammatical errors here. In fact, I had to laugh because whoever borrowed the book before me had proofread some. Don’t let this deter you from reading the book though. The errors are small and don’t mess with the flow of reading.
Now, the good - If you’ve ever travelled or lived in this area, this book will transport you there again. If you haven’t, you will start planning your next vacation. The imagery is amazing. The views he packs into your head in 360 pages is staggering. Even more impressive is that he does it in addition to giving you a phenomenal story. The characters are well designed and realistic. The science is technically correct (or at least enough that if fooled me) and well balanced. The story line...... It’s a fast-paced, edge of your seat mystery that is really hard to put down.
I rarely recommend books to others but this one is a must read.

[Zack Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely an interesting concept - what if someone blew up Glen Canyon Dam? It's a fantasy popularized by Edward Abbey and adopted by any number of environmentalist-minded people ever since. This illustrates what the consequences of that would be.

The book is an OK read. It goes down quick - things are happening constantly. I think the book takes place over two days. But it has some notable weaknesses.
1. The villain has no real humanity, no name, no motivation other than a vague pseudo-liberal environmentalism. He's not much more than a strawman Hansen has created.
2. The characters are interesting and the dialogue is wooden. At no point did I ever find them particularly compelling. I'm surprised I remember the protagonist's name.

What this book has that I haven't seen much is a genuine pro-dam bias. Nearly all the literature on the Colorado, especially Glen Canyon Dam, is anti-dam. But not this one.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the fact that I learned more about dams than I ever thought I would want to, I enjoyed this book. I found myself going online to look up the locations and dams as the story went along.
An environmentalist decides to destroy the dams and diversions of the Colorado river and restore it to it's original path in the Gulf of California. The main character Grant Stevens is a desk jockey in the Bureau of Reclamation. He gets left in charge when all the high muckie-mucks go off to a symposium in Africa. Despite being told not to make any major decisions, he and his select team do their best to try and minimize the destruction of everything in the released river's path. Along the way you meet people who get caught in the effects of the deluge. A solid four star read.

[Kayla Worden · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the longest it had taken me too read a book in a really long time. I had a super hard time getting any momentum, couldn't get excited about the drudgery of going from dam to dam and not really doing any investigative work to find the bomber. The ending made me angry and the epilogue trying to put a bow on the story made it worst. Thought I would have really enjoyed this, but the lack of suspense really killed me. This electrical engineer author seeking to understand civil and appeal to a chemical engineer, feel completely flat.

[Suzanne Gert · Rating 3 out of 5]

A friend bought this for me and I read it on his recommendation. I'm not normally a Tom Clancy/Robert Ludlum thriller type reader, but I enjoyed this. The prose was a little stilted and there were some grammar and syntax errors, but the action was solid and the idea (eco-terrorism, Colorado River) was something fresh to me. I'd enjoy seeing this made into a film (are you listening, Dwayne Johnson)?

[Greg Humphreys · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining read. Found myself engaged to the very end, and always looking for moments to get back to the book. If I were to state one complaint, the writer was high on details about some irrelevant things such as the make and model of boats, and low on details for some of the more relevant things. Still, this was a fun book that I thoroughly enjoyed and could not put down. (as you noticed, I am not one to do lengthy interpretations of the book, just tell you if I liked it or not)

[Emlynn McDermott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book years ago. I think there were—maybe—seven reviews at the time. I loved it! Because of all the news regarding dropping levels of Lake Mead and Lake Powell, I recently decided to re-read WET DESERT to see whether the story holds up to time. I'm happy to report that it's a tale that's more timely now than ever. If you like a good techo-thriller, then you'll enjoy this fictional story.