Description

A stunning tale of love and survival against all odds, for fans of Cold Mountain. Published in hardback as The Wind Is Not a River.

April 1943. In the bloody turmoil of war, John Easley, a journalist mourning his lost brother, is driven to expose a hidden and growing conflict: the Japanese invasion and occupation of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. But when his plane is shot down he must either surrender or struggle to survive in a harsh wilderness.
Three thousand miles to the south, Helen Easley cannot accept her husband’s disappearance-an absence that exposes her sheltered, untested life. Desperate to find and be reunited with him, she sets out on a remarkable journey from the safety of her Seattle home to the war in the north.
An evocative, richly atmospheric tale of life and death, commitment and sacrifice, All This Will Be Lost, perfect for fans of Cold Mountain, is a gripping story of survival that illuminates the fragility of life and the fierce power of love.

‘Beautifully written, lyrical and elegiac, [this] is a novel you must read . . . John Easley’s struggle to survive and his wife Helen’s struggle to find him form the most triumphant and heartbreaking love story I’ve read in years’ David Vann, author of LEGEND OF A SUICIDE

Publisher Review

This is sweeping epic romance, wartorn drama: think Cold Mountain, think The English Patient … Radio 2, Claudia Winkleman show A perfect storm of a wartime love story. The Times Harrowing … moving and evocative novel. A breathtaking evocation of landscape is coupled with a compassionate exploration of the human heart. Daily Mail A haunting love story … engaging and unsettling. USA Today Gripping, meditative … Payton explores [a] nearly forgotten chapter of American history. New York Times Lyric and deeply moving … a heart-stopping, heart-rending read. Ellen Feldman, Orange Prize shortlisted author of Scotsboro, Next to Love and The Boy Who Loved Anne Fran Part adventure tale, part love story, this beautifully written novel offers a moving portrait of a couple whose lives are forever changed by the only battle of WWII to take place on American soil. Booklist A harrowing, beautiful book. David Macfarlane Top-notch … Payton has delivered a richly detailed, vividly resonant chronicle of war’s effect on ordinary people’s lives. Publishers Weekly A great-hearted, beautifully written, and utterly riveting novel. Ron Rash A suspenseful, beautifully researched title that readers will want to devour in one sitting … Bravo! Library Journal Powerful … Payton keeps his prose taut so that nothing diverts the reader from the suspense of Easley and his compatriot’s struggle to stay alive. Gripping. National Post, Canada Thoughtful, meticulously observed. Washington Independent Review of Books A beautifully written love story and an engrossing adventure tale … All This Will Be Lost will have readers rooting for the lovers, even as it moves them to tears. Toronto Star An epic war story … powerful … The pages of this book practically turn themselves … By turns greathearted and grim, All This Will Be Lost probes the reasons for, and the consequences of, the human practice of war … this story may haunt you long after you’ve put the book down. Seattle Times A rich and evocative tale of life and death, love and faith, determination and resilience … Heartbreaking and yet inspirational in its moving depiction of the indomitable nature of the human spirit, All This Will Be Lost explores how war impacts on ordinary people and the extraordinary sacrifices they are prepared to make … This is an emotionally powerful and resonant story packed with painstaking research, a fascinating slice of little-known American history and an intimate portrait of how people cope under intolerable pressure … and how far they will go for love. Lancashire Evening Post Extremely well written … compelling and surprising … a powerful, engaging book. Throughout, Payton’s writing is exceptional: lyrical in its descriptions of beauty or memories of a better time, and hauntingly stark in its depictions of the horrors of war. It is both a war story that condemns war and a love story that shows how love may be the only thing that can redeem the terrible consequences of war. Vancouver Sun