John Morgan and his wife can barely contain their excitement upon arriving as new teachers in a Yupik Inuit village on the windswept Alaskan tundra. Lured north in search of adventure, the idealistic couple hope to immerse themselves in the ancient Arctic culture. Their move proves disastrous when a deadly epidemic strikes and the isolated community descends into total chaos. When outside help fails to arrive, John's only hope lies in escaping the snowcovered tundra and the hunger of the other survivors. His thousand-mile trek across the Alaskan wilderness grows more improbable when he encounters a blind Inuit girl and an elderly woman. The two need his protection from those who would harm them, and he needs their knowledge of the terrain and their companionship to survive. The harsh journey and constant danger push him beyond his limits as he discovers a new sense of hope and the possibility of loving again.
"If you're not scared, be scared: Don Rearden's The Raven's Gift will propel you pell-mell into a terrifying future of plague on the Alaskan tundra—all too real if you've talked with elders who survived 1917—all too frightening if you have sense to know this future can start five minutes from now." —Seth Kantner author of Ordinary Wolves
"The Raven's Gift has a winning plot, characters we've never met before, and intriguing details of a world most of us will never venture to—creating a read that opens our eyes and finds the fault lines of a heart in one breathless sitting." —Jodi Picoult, New York Times Bestselling Author
"Rearden's fresh, new voice is a kaleidoscope of cultural collision and the astonishing landscape of the heart." —Ron Spatz, Editor. Alaska Quarterly Review
"A many layered Alaskan intrigue which is gritty and engaging and an absolutely good read . . . all in a world, that Alaskan world—which I could believe." —Ron Carlson, author The Speed of Light, Five Skies, News of the World
"Don Rearden's writing is captivating and new. This is a writer who has many books in him. I predict he will be widely read, well respected, and greatly admired." —Jo-Ann Mapson, author of bestselling novels Bad Girl Creek, The Wilder Sisters, and Hank & Chloe, author of bestselling novels Bad Girl Creek, The Wilder Sisters, and Hank & Chloe
"Take a remote Alaskan village, add a dedicated teacher, toss in a plague. The Raven's Gift is a page turner with a message: We Alaskans are lost if we cannot find our own way." —Bill Streever, author of Cold: Adventures in the World's Frozen Places
"In The Raven's Gift, Don Rearden has created a kind of allegory for a people and place at risk, a generous and honest portrait of Yup'ik communities. His Alaska is one you won't yet have seen." —David Vann, author of bestselling novels Legend of a Suicide and A Mile Down.
