APRIL 2023 - AudioFile
Narrating the preface, author/marine archaeologist Mensun Bound sets the tone for the true story of two electrifying and dangerous searches for the ill-fated ENDURANCE, which sank off the coast of Antarctica in November 1915. The suspenseful adventures to find the ship at its last known coordinates are then recounted through Bound's meticulous note-taking and the inviting tones of Charles Armstrong. The first expedition in 2019 ended in bitter disappointment, while new technology aboard the second, post-pandemic, voyage brought success. Filled with scientific and nautical information, as well as snippets of diaries left by Shackleton and members of his crew, Armstrong's brisk, conversational delivery details the events faced by Bound's team and their journeys to the inhospitable icebound Wedell Sea. S.G. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
12/19/2022
The final chapter of one of the age of Antarctic exploration’s most famous sagas is told in marine archaeologist Bound’s page-turning debut. Drawing on diary entries from Ernest Shackleton’s ill-fated 1914 expedition to the South Pole aboard the Endurance, Bound explains how the ship became trapped in sea ice, splintered, mand sank. Though the entire crew survived—thanks to Shackleton’s famous 800-mile lifeboat journey to South Georgia Island to seek help—the Endurance was never recovered. In 2019, Bound and his own crew traveled to Antarctica in an attempt to locate the wreckage, using coordinates pieced together from small bits of information in the journals of Shackleton and his men. After ramming through miles of ice pack as thick as six meters in some places, the expedition launched a remote submersible, only to have it go “rogue” (it has yet to be found). Three years later, Bound returned to the site with many of the same crew members; on Mar. 5, 2022, their deep-diving sonar submersible spotted the remarkably well-preserved Endurance on the floor of the Weddell Sea (“A moment of absolute perfection,” Bound writes). The shifts between past and present are skillfully handled, and Bound vividly conveys the anxiety and anticipation of archaeological expeditions. Armchair adventurers will be swept up in the thrill of discovery. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
An engaging account…Bound narrates it thrillingly, giving the reader the sense of much more than the catch of a lifetime… If Mr. Bound and his colleagues rekindle interest in Shackleton’s expedition a century ago they will have done a service. This book is a good place to start.” — Wall Street Journal
"Mensun Bound, tells their story, and that of a follow-up mission two years later, with passion and flair...By its end, The Ship Beneath the Ice has amply justified those superlatives...[told in] evocative prose...all hail to him and his comrades as the Endurance’s successful suitors." — Washington Post
"Bound’s passion for what he’s doing and his love for the most unexplored geography on Earth is evident on every page. His writing blends the required scientific explanations with what touches on poetry...It’s captivating stuff, even for readers who will never see an iceberg." — Associated Press
"Utterly captivating. ... In his engrossing account, Bound, the maritime archaeologist who led the expedition that found the wreck, alternates between past and present, reminding readers of what happened in 1915 and also taking them along on his modern-day expedition to find the Endurance. Bound is a terrific storyteller; he writes with a sense of showmanship, instilling the story of the Endurance’s discovery with drama, suspense, and pulse-racing thrills. ... This is simply wonderful.” — Booklist (starred review)
“The story of Shackleton’s Endurance is one of the most extraordinary in the history of exploration. This is more than just an astonishing sequel. It is a tale just as powerful, and one which redefines the meaning of impossible” — Sir Michael Palin, author of Erebus
“As thrilling as any tale from the heroic age of exploration. ... Bound’s account is a triumph. The storytelling is piano-wire taut, the writing saturated with polar moodiness." — Sunday Times (London)
"Gloriously written. ... With the verve of a thriller, Bound's narrative deftly weaves together his voyages and Shackleton's. ... Bound is blessed with a poet's ear for richly evocative language." — Times Literary Supplement (London)
“Captivating and engrossing. … Bound has a natural flair for storytelling and his narrative cracks along with the pace of a well-crafted thriller.” — Mail on Sunday
“An enthralling tale of an extraordinary venture which brings Shackleton’s epic story bang up to the present day.” — Camilla Nichol, chief executive, UK Antarctic Heritage Trust
“The final chapter of one of the age of Antarctic exploration’s most famous sagas is told in marine archaeologist Bound’s page-turning debut. . . . Bound vividly conveys the anxiety and anticipation of archaeological expeditions. Armchair adventurers will be swept up in the thrill of discovery.” — Publishers Weekly
“Exciting, dramatic. ... Bound nicely interweaves the fascinating history of Shackleton’s expedition into his own. An entertaining true-life adventure tale perfect for naval aficionados and armchair expeditioners.” — Kirkus Reviews
"Bound’s remarkable book climaxes with the 2022 triumph of his team finally locating the spectacular wreck, over 3,000 metres down in the least forgiving waters on Earth. Bound is one of the world’s most successful and respected marine archeologists." — The Australian
praise for the author Telegraph UK
The Indiana Jones of the deep.”
APRIL 2023 - AudioFile
Narrating the preface, author/marine archaeologist Mensun Bound sets the tone for the true story of two electrifying and dangerous searches for the ill-fated ENDURANCE, which sank off the coast of Antarctica in November 1915. The suspenseful adventures to find the ship at its last known coordinates are then recounted through Bound's meticulous note-taking and the inviting tones of Charles Armstrong. The first expedition in 2019 ended in bitter disappointment, while new technology aboard the second, post-pandemic, voyage brought success. Filled with scientific and nautical information, as well as snippets of diaries left by Shackleton and members of his crew, Armstrong's brisk, conversational delivery details the events faced by Bound's team and their journeys to the inhospitable icebound Wedell Sea. S.G. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2022-12-06
A fifth-generation Falkland Islander chronicles the “journey to find the greatest shipwreck of them all.”
Written in a brisk diary format, Bound’s exciting, dramatic book is very much a personal one. The author served as director of exploration on the two attempts to find Endurance, the famous vessel captained by Ernest Shackleton that sunk in Antarctica in 1915. The wreck rests 3,000 meters below the surface. After years of preparation, on Jan. 1, 2019, Bound and his team of 51 scientists set off for the east coast of the Antarctic Peninsula on an icebreaker, with its crew of 44, to find the ship. As Bound shows, the trek was “a bold new step forward in subsea technology and, I thought, probably a challenge too far.” Maneuvering their way around shrinking icebergs, the author noted with sadness the small number of penguins, seals, and whales they encountered. Indeed, “the Antarctic Peninsula is the canary in the coal mine for climate change.” While testing their autonomous underwater vehicle, they almost lost it under the ice. After days of research, they set off for the Endurance. They faced numerous technical complications that required new parts to be flown in, but they finally reached the site and began exploring with the AUV. Unfortunately, the ship got stuck in the ice, the weather deteriorated, and they were forced to give up. However, on Feb. 1, 2022, they launched another expedition, this time featuring a Sabertooth diving vessel with a tilt camera. Late in the month, they arrived at the site area and began search runs. On March 5, Sabertooth found something 4 meters above the seabed. The author enthusiastically recalls when the team first saw the shape of the hull and then the bow. Then a shout: “That’s it. It’s the Endurance!” Remarkably, it was in a semi-intact state. Throughout, Bound nicely interweaves the fascinating history of Shackleton’s expedition into his own.
An entertaining true-life adventure tale perfect for naval aficionados and armchair expeditioners.
