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ISBN:	0553807501 (ISBN13: 9780553807509)
Edition Language:	English

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

Buddy Levy

Hardcover | Pages: 324 pages

Rating: 4.12 | 1762 Users | 128 Reviews

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

Title	:	River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon
Author	:	Buddy Levy
Book Format	:	Hardcover
Book Edition	:	Special Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 324 pages
Published	:	February 22nd 2011 by Bantam
Categories	:	History. Nonfiction. Travel. Adventure. Biography. Survival. Historical

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

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.
 
Interweaving eyewitness accounts of the quest with newly uncovered details, Buddy Levy reconstructs the seminal journey that has electrified adventurers ever since, as Orellana became the first European to navigate and explore the entire length of the world’s largest river. Levy gives a long-overdue account of the native populations—some peaceful and welcoming, offering sustenance and life-saving guidance, others ferociously hostile, subjecting the invaders to gauntlets of unremitting attack and intimations of terrifying rituals. And here is the Amazon itself, a powerful presence whose every twist and turn held the promise of new wonders both natural and man-made, as well as the ever-present risk of death—a river that would hold Orellana in its irresistible embrace to the end of his life.

Overflowing with violence and beauty, nobility and tragedy, River of Darkness is both riveting history and a breathtaking adventure that will sweep readers along on an epic voyage unlike any other.

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

Ratings: 4.12 From 1762 Users | 128 Reviews

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In theory a really interesting topic and the mystery and intrigue of the book seemed mesmerizing; however, parts of the voyage became really monotonous and repetitive. Perhaps due to the lack of solid information on the subject. Thus the books manages to just be a little better than average.

This is a compelling story, to be sure, and a reminder of the time before Brazil was ruled over by Portuguese speakers and before Brazil's native population was reduced to insignificance.  Although there are clearly some conclusions that a reader can draw from this book, including the appreciation of Orellana's humanity and the poisonous nature of politics among the hidalgos who conquered most of Latin America for Spain.  And while this is an epic tale of survival, a great many readers are

This is a really great book. I almost gave it five stars. The story of the men in this, especially Orellano, is just fascinating. I only wish the maps were easier to see on my Kindle and that the stories focused more on the heart of the journeys and less on the other people who went to El Dorado or what happened once they got back from the Amazon. Still very much worth a read for anyone interested in history, adventure, etc.

Incredible true story about exploration of the Amazon. Buddy Levy does a fantastic job of creating a true story that is not only accurate and detailed but also a page-turner and thrilling adventure. I thoroughly enjoy an author who can write non-fiction and make it feel like you are right there with the characters, experiencing all the pain, hardships, and triumphs. Have not read many books like this and have bought his Conquistador book and am greatly looking forward to reading it. He also has

I'm normally not a hugely enthusiastic reader of stories about conquistadors, since said stories usually make me rather ill. For a conquistador story, this one was pretty interesting--it is actually more of a survivalist narrative of Francisco Orellano's 1542 navigation of the Amazon River. Fairly well written, pretty good survivalist story, alas, the guy was still a conquistador (at one point, he roasts the women and children of an entire village by setting the town on fire because the men were

Amazing narrative true story of two 16th-century Spanish conquistadors who went to the Amazon to conquer the natives and claim their riches of gold, silver and cinnamon, only to be met with complete disaster. Although I enjoyed Lost City of Z, I found this tale much more engrossing. Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco Orellana entered the Amazon together with 220 Spaniards and 4,000 Native Americans. Both left the Amazon a year and a half later, separately, and months apart, with only 130 men left in

This book deserves more stars than just five! I loved it. It chronicles the amazing story of a Spanish conquistador's exploration of the Amazon river, the first Western person to do so, as well as many other intriguing incidents surrounding that event. It's the age-old quest for El Dorado that ends in tragedy, but with astounding feats all along the way. The author writes very well, and I literally could not put the book down. Luckily I had a cold and lots of time to read, and it was easy to get