The Wild Inside

A Novel of Suspense

By: Christine Carbo

Narrated by: R.C. Bray

Length: 13 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

For fans of Louise Penny, C. J. Box, and Nevada Barr comes a haunting crime novel set in Glacier National Park, where one man finds himself on a collision course with the dark heart of the wild and the even darker heart of human nature.

It was a clear, starry night in Glacier National Park. Fourteen-year-old Ted Systead and his father were camping peacefully beneath the rugged peaks and sweeping sky when the unimaginable happened: Ted's father was mauled by a grizzly bear and dragged to his death.

Now, 20 years later, as a special agent for the Department of the Interior, Ted is called back to investigate a crime that echoes the horror of that night. Only this time the victim was tied to a tree before the animal's attack. Ted teams up with one of the park officers - a man named Monty, whose pleasant exterior masks an all-too-vivid knowledge of the area. Residents of the nearby community are less than forthcoming. Suspicious of outsiders and intimately connected to the wilderness that surrounds them, they confront their fellow man and nature with equal measures of reverence and brutality. As the days pass with no clear answers, not only is human life at stake but so too is that of a majestic creature who carries with it valuable evidence. Ted's search for truth takes him far into the wilderness, on the trail of a killer, and eventually to a shocking and unexpectedly personal conclusion.

Rich in atmosphere and evocative, lush descriptions, The Wild Inside is a gripping debut novel about the wondrously perilous intersection between man and nature.

©2015 Christine Carbo (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

The Wild Inside

Any additional comments?

Narrated by R. C. Bray and thirteen hours of listening. A victim of childhood trauma, a Department of the Interior investigator, is summoned to Glacier National Park to investigate a grizzly murder. Take grizzly both ways … a morbidly grizzly attack by… you guessed it … a grizzly bear. The investigator’s father was killed by a grizzly bear attack twenty years ago when father and son were on a camping trip. But, this time it’s no accident. The victim has been tied to a tree. What a way to go! Ugh!

I’ve only one complaint, and that is the paranoia of the lead character is a bit overdone. After twenty years he should be over it … especially since his career choice brings him back to woods and the flora and fauna within. He’s even spooked by campfires and breaks into sweats, near passes out, etc., in the park settings. Too much.

The descriptions of the park and the beauty of Glacier National Park is well done, poetic at times. I’ve been there and the awesome beauty is astounding and pretty much beyond description in the written word. Ya simply gotta see it :-).

The story is a good one, well narrated. A pleasant listen.

Enjoy!

Rural mystery with too little happening

From the start, I like the park ranger who was the first person narrator. The reader was great. I have biked through Glacier national park, and so I liked the setting of this novel. I was prepared to really like this book. But it turns out that the first five hours consisted of the ranger talking to one person after another, trying to solve a murder. Each scene was very well written, but the only subplot was the fact that the ranger's father had been killed by a grizzly bear many years ago, and this was a grizzly killing. I kept listening because I wanted it to pick up, but it didn't. I can see why many mystery fans would like this, but this type of mystery (mostly interviewing witnesses or relevant people) is not the kind of novel that keeps my interest. So I stopped when I was halfway finished. Each scene was somewhat engaging, but the whole was lacking to me. I enjoyed what I listened to, but eight more hours of the same seemed not worth sticking with.

Excellent first novel

Loved this story. Definitely a suspense story, and well executed pace. Another stellar performance by RC. Bray.

Meh. Too much unnecessary exposition pulls a decent story apart.

RC Bray was very good as narrator. That's about the best I can say about this misfire. We spent so much time in the protagonist's head that I found it hard to stay focused on the story and my mind wandered, forcing me to rewind. A lot. This reads like a writing assignment of a talented student. This, however, is too wordy and too boring. It listens like neurotic chic lit. I never return a book. I feel that it's my obligation to support Audible and all authors, especially new ones. I spent my credit. Spend yours on Night of the Grizzlies. Now that was a listen!!

A suspenseful nature thriller.

Fans of Nevada Barr will enjoy this read (but don't bring it on your camping trip).

Wild Inside and Wild Out

What made the experience of listening to The Wild Inside the most enjoyable?

The story line was great. I lived in WY for a number of years so could "see" all these places in my head.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

There were a couple of places it kind of drug but it had me guessing till the very end. I guessed wrong ha ha

What does R. C. Bray bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His gruff voice made me think of several of the old timers I knew up in Cody.

Not a thriller or a suspense.

What did you like best about The Wild Inside? What did you like least?

The descriptive language of Glacier park. Too much description going on and on and nothing too exciting.

Would you be willing to try another book from Christine Carbo? Why or why not?

Maybe.

Which scene was your favorite?

Can't recall any

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

If they embellished and made with more action.

Any additional comments?

No

Good suspense and trip to park

enjoyed the personal journey and bear facts.
Sorry don't have 20 words g g

Capturing Story

I loved everything about this book. The setting was second nature to me since I have worked in two National Parks. Can't wait to read more from this author!

Good story, as read by Jack Webb

Not too bad a tale, although I had figured out the perpetrator by the middle. Very strong descriptions of Glacier National Park, well developed characters. However, the narrator read the main character's first person like Joe Friday from Dragnet, with a touch of Philip Marlowe thrown in.