{"id":1517,"date":"2019-09-18T16:13:26","date_gmt":"2019-09-18T20:13:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/?p=1517"},"modified":"2019-09-18T16:13:26","modified_gmt":"2019-09-18T20:13:26","slug":"descent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2019\/09\/18\/descent\/","title":{"rendered":"Descent"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"By Tim Johnson
\nAlgonquin Books, ISBN: 978-1616204778
\nPaperback, 400 pages. \u00a92015<\/p>\n

On the first day of their family vacation in Colorado, 18-year-old track star Caitlin drags her younger brother, Sean, out in the pre-dawn darkness to bike behind her as she runs. Hours later, the local sheriff calls. Sean has been badly injured in an accident. He was found alone.<\/p>\n

Search parties comb the mountains around the resort town for days, weeks, months, until the search for Caitlin is called off. The family is shattered, each member finding their own separate, crooked path through the pieces left behind, each asking hard questions and dreading the answers. What happened? Who\u2019s responsible? If there\u2019s no body, is she still alive?<\/p>\n

Author Tim Johnson weaves a masterful tale in this multi-textured thriller where tragedy and the struggle to keep going peels back hidden depths in each of the characters. Descent<\/em> gives us an inside view of lives shredded by guilt and loss, the terrible toll manifested in unpredictable ways Caitlin\u2019s family could never have imagined. Even local residents are affected by the family\u2019s shocking loss. As in life, some touched by trauma fold while others are honed. Such is the case in Descent<\/em>, where character development sometimes takes surprising turns.<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s story settings are real. I saw the Rockies and the flicker of a fire through the black boles in the night forest. I smelled the pine, heard the chittering of the aspens and the crunch of the snow, tasted the rust on my tongue. Each scene felt, for me, as visceral as if I were in it myself. I felt the despair, frustration, fear, and pain each of the characters endured, as well as the hope that slowly, through the length of the book, languished and threatened to flicker out. And when hope flares for the last time, the choice between the inevitable and the unthinkable pushes both character and reader beyond the edge of endurance. I can\u2019t imagine being put in such a no-win conundrum. I hope I never have to plumb my own strength or capabilities to that depth.<\/p>\n

I liked that Johnson didn\u2019t try to explain every behavior, every action, every thought or word from his characters. Instead, he laid the seeds that might have led to such things, then let them germinate in unexpected ways. And the plain fact is that sometimes people do horrific things and the rest of us never understand why. It\u2019s appalling to contemplate, yet that\u2019s just the way of the world. The plot of Descent<\/em> takes on this topic with sensitivity, compassion, and a healthy dose of bald truth whether or not it was acceptable or understandable.<\/p>\n

This is my second Tim Johnson experience (the first was The Current<\/em>, reviewed here<\/a>). It definitely won\u2019t be my last. In Descent<\/em>, the author\u2019s lyrical writing style was, at first, a bit daunting. It didn\u2019t take long, though, to fall once more into its rhythm. It felt, to me, almost bardic\u2014a more captivating way to tell a story, one that drew me in naturally until before I even realized it, I was too invested in the lives of these characters and the outcome of the story to put it down. Pacing is well done. Johnson leads us through the emotional turmoil of the tale with just enough rests in between the action to almost let us catch our collective breath before ramping it up once more. Shimmers of hope dangle here and there, gleaming in the light of narrative revelation to keep us tantalized and forging on page after page toward the nail-biting conclusion.<\/p>\n

Tim Johnson is definitely on my list of must-read authors from now on. Descent<\/em> is a captivating read, a twisting journey through the shards of a family\u2019s worst nightmare. If you love a good thriller, don\u2019t miss this one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Tim Johnson Algonquin Books, ISBN: 978-1616204778 Paperback, 400 pages. \u00a92015 On the first day of their family vacation in Colorado, 18-year-old track star Caitlin drags her younger brother, Sean, out in the pre-dawn darkness to bike behind her as she runs. Hours later, the local sheriff calls. Sean has been badly injured in an…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1518,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s8n0kX-descent","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":469,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2017\/11\/20\/therapy-the-search-for-meaning-and-other-reasons-to-write\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":0},"title":"Therapy, the Search for Meaning, and Other Reasons to Write","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"November 20, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Monday nights are my Busy Nights. Balance the books, do the laundry, update the website, etc. So last Monday when I got The Dreaded Phone Call about an elderly person in my life and had to deal with life and death decisions, it threw me off my game, thus my\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog Posts"","block_context":{"text":"Blog Posts","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/blog-posts\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":244,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2017\/07\/10\/fingerprints-of-god-the-search-for-the-science-of-spirituality\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":1},"title":"Fingerprints of God: The Search for the Science of Spirituality","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"July 10, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"by Barbara Bradley Hagerty. Riverhead, \u00a9 2009 ISBN 978-1594484629 Paperback, 336 pages. From $14.97 Lifelong Christian Science devotee Barbara Bradley Hagerty, inspired by a spiritual encounter she could not explain, spent years exploring the nature of God. Fingerprints documents her journey through the labyrinth of stories from people who\u2019ve experienced\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/FingerprintsGod-192x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1239,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2018\/12\/30\/the-current\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":2},"title":"The Current","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"December 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"By Tim Johnston Algonquin Books, ISBN: 978-1616206772 Hardcover, 416 pages. \u00a9 2019 An unexpected winter road trip across several states toward a small town in Minnesota lands college students Audrey and Caroline in the icy waters of the Black Root River. Audrey survives. Caroline does not. Despite Audrey\u2019s claims that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/TheCurrentCover.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":163,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/09\/choices\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":3},"title":"Choices","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"April 9, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I sometimes envy people who have had that \u201cAha!\u201d moment which inspires the words, \u201cThis is what I was born for!\u201d To have that certainty, that conviction, that gut-deep knowing that you have found your true purpose must be profoundly and life-alteringly fulfilling! It would, of necessity, focus you, give\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Archived Writings"","block_context":{"text":"Archived Writings","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/archived-writings\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6223,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/13\/service-model\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":4},"title":"Service Model","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"July 13, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Adrian Tchaikovsky \u00a9 2024, Tor Books 373 Pages ISBN 13: 978-1250290298 As I\u2019ve come to expect from any Adrian Tchaikovsky book I read, Service Model was brilliant. Told with sensitivity, humor, humanity, and a touch of philosophical wonder, the story follows the personal development\u2014inasmuch as a robot can expect\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A robot, silhouetted against the clear image of a green and gold sky where the moon hangs close, stands amidst the dark ruins of a city. Text reads, Service Model, Adrian Tchaikovsky. \u201cAdrian Tchaikovsky is one of the best storytellers in the business. Come see for yourself.\u201d \u2013 John Scalzi.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ServiceModel-194x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3486,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2023\/08\/24\/monk-and-robot-books\/","url_meta":{"origin":1517,"position":5},"title":"Monk and Robot Books","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"August 24, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"A Psalm for the Wild-Built By Becky Chambers \u00a9 2021 TorDotCom ASIN: B08H831J18 Kindle version; file size 3476 KB Paperback, 151 pages. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy By Becky Chambers \u00a9 2022 TorDotCom ASIN: B09CNFL3W7 Kindle Version; file size 5020 KB Paperback, 152 pages It\u2019s years after The Awakening, when\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Psalm-188x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/Descent.jpg?fit=333%2C499&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1517","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1517"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1517\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1519,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1517\/revisions\/1519"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1518"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1517"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1517"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1517"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}