River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon

Buddy Levy

Dec 2017 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Jonathan Davis

About this audiobook

From the acclaimed author of Conquistador comes this thrilling account of one of history's greatest adventures of discovery. With cinematic immediacy and meticulous attention to historical detail, here is the true story of a legendary sixteenth-century explorer and his death-defying navigation of the Amazon—river of darkness, pathway to gold.



In 1541, the brutal conquistador Gonzalo Pizarro and his well-born lieutenant Francisco Orellana set off from Quito in search of La Canela, South America's rumored Land of Cinnamon, and the fabled El Dorado, "the golden man." Driving an enormous retinue of mercenaries, enslaved natives, horses, hunting dogs, and other animals across the Andes, they watched their proud expedition begin to disintegrate even before they descended into the nightmarish jungle, following the course of a powerful river. Soon hopelessly lost in the swampy labyrinth, their numbers diminishing daily through disease, starvation, and Indian attacks, Pizarro and Orellana made a fateful decision to separate. While Pizarro eventually returned home barefoot and in rags, Orellana and fifty-seven men, in a few fragile craft, continued downriver into the unknown reaches of the mighty Amazon, serenaded by native war drums and the eerie cries of exotic predators. Theirs would be the greater glory.

Ratings and reviews

good

About the author

Buddy Levy is the author of the recent books No Barriers (with Erik Weihenmayer) and Geronimo (with Mike Leach). His other titles include Conquistador, which was a finalist for the 2009 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award, American Legend, and Echoes on Rimrock.

Jonathan Davis, a three-time recipient and fourteen-time nominee of the Audie Award, has earned accolades for his narration from the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, the Audio Publishers Association, AudioFile magazine, and USA Today. Jonathan was recently inducted into the Audible Narrator Hall of Fame.