Leave No Trace

It is a real pleasure to read a survival adventure by an author who really knows what she is talking about. Maybe because I am a tracker too, I was impressed by this book on many levels. It was a completely original story, almost as if it really happened and the scenes were portrayed so well that in some places I had to put it down for a while to recover. I would have no trouble comparing this author to Cormac McCarthy who wrote the bestseller "All the Pretty Horses", except that this author does not leave you with a feeling of hopelessness. Even though this book was written by a woman, don't think you are going to be able to remember that while you are reading it. It is not for the faint hearted or those who look for pat romantic stories. It would make a great movie.

This books was one of the best books I have read in a while. I was so glad I saved it for a vacation day because I was able to read it from cover to cover in one day without any interruptions. This book kept me hooked from the first page. The words created pictures so clear it felt like I was there in Australia. The book was interesting way beyond the mystery value. You not only learned a lot about Australia, but also about survival. You almost felt the thirst, the sweat, the tiredness as much as Tally did. I would highly recommend this very talented author and book. I can't wait for her next book!

Ms. Nyala has successful made the transition between her previous non-fiction work (POINT LAST SEEN) and this current fictional tale of a woman struggling to survive in the Australian desert. Joining her research scientist boyfriend, Paul O'Malley, in the Tanami desert of Australia, Tally Nowata relies on his desert knowledge for survival. Though she works search and rescue in the Grand Tetons, nothing has prepared Tally for her quest to survive when Paul fails to return from a trip to replenish supplies and pick up his ten-year-old daughter Josie at the airport in Alice Springs. When Tally discovers Paul's body in his Land Rover, her hope of survival plummets. With little food or water, she is unsure that she can survive the journey to the nearest village. That journey is further complicated when she discovers a feverish Josie hiding in the back of the vehicle. As Tally and Josie trek across the desert, they find that they are not alone. In pursuit of them are ruthless members of the drug trade whom Paul had the misfortune of stumbling upon Ms. Nyala's gripping description of the search for food and water takes the reader deep into the desert land fighting for survival. It is a world permanently etched in the reader's subconscious, complete with sandstorms, wild dingoes, and deadly heat. And amidst this life or death struggle is Tally's awakening to the protective maternal instincts that she never thought to have. With descriptive prose carefully balanced with Tally's conflicting inner demons, this is a read to be savored.

Tally Nowata works for the US National Park Service as a search and rescue ranger in the Grand Tetons. Currently on a four-month furlough, Tally and her lover Paul O'Malley vacation in the Australian outback. He leaves her at their campsite to pick up his daughter Josie at the Alice Springs airport with a maximum return time of four days. However, Paul fails to return and with her food and water dwindling, Tally begins a trek out of the Tanami Desert while seeking a clue about the whereabouts of Paul and his daughter.The desert climate is a far cry from the Wyoming Mountains she is used to, but even with a cracked rib, Tally finds the jeep with a dead Paul inside and a barely breathing Josie with him. Taking the child with her, Tally must reach civilization before their water runs out or the killer completes the job even as she wonders why.LEAVE NO TRACE is an exciting survivalist adventure that leaves no reader unhappy with the action of a plot that never slows down. The story line feels so real that the audience will drink a lot of water while trekking along with the two females. Tally is a great protagonist as she struggles to adapt her skills and experience to a different, at least in her case, more hostile climate. Fans of action thrillers will want to read Hannah Nyala's thrilling tale.Harriet Klausner