From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Killers of the Flower Moon, The Wager is a riveting story of shipwreck, survival, and the wild extremes of human behavior. David Grann delivers a narrative with the suspense of a thriller, revealing the profound implications of the events aboard the Wager, and challenging the very notion of empire.
On January 28, 1742, a makeshift vessel stumbled upon the coast of Brazil with thirty severely weakened men. These survivors of the British ship, the Wager, recounted an incredible ordeal. Dispatched from England in 1740 during a war with Spain, the Wager was in pursuit of a Spanish galleon laden with treasure when disaster struck off the Patagonian coast.
Marooned and facing death, the crew constructed a crude boat and embarked on an extraordinary 2500-mile voyage across tempestuous waters, only to be branded as heroes upon their return. However, a subsequent arrival of three castaways in Chile unveiled a starkly contrasting narrative of mutiny and betrayal. As the Admiralty held a court martial to uncover the truth, the account of anarchy, conflict, and murder emerged, leading to a verdict that could mean the gallows for the accused.
Grann's masterful recounting of this historical saga echoes the literary achievements of Patrick O’Brian and the gripping survival tales akin to The Endurance. The Wager is a testament to the extremes of human conduct in the face of adversity, crafted by one of today's most exceptional nonfiction storytellers.
In the vein of The Pisces and The Vegetarian, Chlorine is a debut novel that blurs the line between a literary coming-of-age narrative and a dark unsettling horror tale, told from an adult perspective on the trials and tribulations of growing up in a society that puts pressure on young women and their bodies. It is a powerful, relevant novel of immigration, sapphic longing, and fierce, defiant becoming.
Ren Yu is a swimmer. Her daily life starts and ends with the pool. Her teammates are her only friends. Her coach, her guiding light. If she swims well enough, she will be scouted, get a scholarship, go to a good school. Her parents will love her. Her coach will be kind to her. She will have a good life. But these are human concerns. These are the concerns of those confined to land, those with legs.
Ren grew up on stories of creatures of the deep, of the oceans and the rivers. Ones that called sailors to their doom. Ones that dragged them down and drowned them. Ones that feasted on their flesh. Ones of the creature that she's always longed to become: mermaid.
Ren aches to be in the water. She dreams of the scent of chlorine—the feel of it on her skin. And she will do anything she can to make a life for herself where she can be free. No matter the pain. No matter what anyone else thinks. No matter how much blood she has to spill.