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The acclaimed author ofConquistadorandLabyrinth of Icecharts one of history’s greatest expeditions, a legendary 16th-century adventurer’s death-defying navigation of the Amazon River.
In 1541, Spanish conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro and his lieutenant Francisco Orellana searched for La Canela, South America’s rumored Land of Cinnamon, and the fabled El Dorado, “the golden man.” Quickly, the enormous expedition of mercenaries, enslaved natives, horses, and hunting dogs were decimated through disease, starvation, and attacks in the jungle. Hopelessly lost in the swampy labyrinth, Pizarro and Orellana made the fateful decision to separate. While Pizarro eventually returned home in rags, Orellana and fifty-seven men continued into the unknown reaches of the mighty Amazon jungle and river. Theirs would be the greater glory.
Interweaving historical accounts with newly uncovered details, Levy reconstructs Orellana’s journey as the first European to navigate the world’s largest river. Every twist and turn of the powerful Amazon holds new wonders and the risk of death.
Levy givesa long-overdue account of the Amazon’s people-some offering sustenance and guidance, others hostile, subjecting the invaders to gauntlets of unremitting attacks and signs of terrifying rituals.
Violent and beautiful, noble and tragic,River of Darknessis riveting history and breathtaking adventure that will sweep readers on a voyage unlike any other.
Author Biography
Buddy Levy is the author of seven books, and his work has been featured or reviewed in The New York Times, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, The Washington Times, The Daily Beast, and The A.V. Club. He was the co-star, for 25 episodes from 2010-2012, on HISTORY Channel’s hit docuseries Brad Meltzer’s Decoded, which aired to an average of 1.7 million weekly viewers and is still airing as reruns today. In 2018 he was an on-camera expert on the 4-part TV Series The Frontiersmen: The Men Who Built America (HISTORY, Executive Producer Leonardo DiCaprio).
Levy was a contributing writer on the 2018 documentary film The Weight of Water, based in part on the book No Barriers, which Levy co-authored with blind adventurer Erik Weihenmayer.
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