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New Release Spotlight — TOXIC SOUP by RR Rowley

The Poisoning Must End

Toxic waste at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation has been poisoning the environment, human beings, and wildlife for more than six decades. When her brother dies a horrible death at Hanford, Casey Long, a kayaker and windsurfer by day and bartender by night in the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon/Washington, swears to put an end to the upriver contamination. But, how can she possibly take on the entrenched fortress of a facility?

After she confides in Little Bear, a bitter Native American fisherman, they contrive a dangerous plan. Joined by a peculiar mishmash of collaborators, they risk everything to save the environment and achieve justice for all injured parties, past and present.

Book Details:
Genre: Environmental Thriller
Published by: The Wild Rose Press
Publication Date: April 11, 2022
Number of Pages: 272
ISBN: 1509241167 (ISBN-13: 978-1509241163)
Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Read an excerpt:

When the abandoned reactor sites came into view, they swung their kayaks into a backwater eddy. Spooked ducks sprang into flight in front of them. Boats gliding, they studied the depth of the water, avoiding the chance of running aground. Before them, some sickly grasses appeared at the edge of the river. Was this it? Casey paddled closer, excitement rising. Pointing to a spot upon the bank, she called to Rex, “See that? See that? Is water trickling out of the ground over there?”

He removed his sunglasses and squinted. “You’re right. There is a wet spot over there.”

Straggly, yellowed grasses drooped away from the seeping water. They moved even closer to get a better view. A foam rose from the trickle of liquid and spread to a nasty orange and pink gunk smeared over exposed rocks. “I see it!” Rex cried out, a jolt of fear zapping through him. “Radioactivity!” he screamed, quickly backstroking. “You’ve got your evidence. Let’s get out of here! I don’t want to be anywhere near that stuff.”

She had her proof. Toxicity flowed into the river. How many other places existed? Perhaps beneath the water, the contamination was much worse. Untouchable Hanford is getting away with whatever they want. Something needed to be done, but what? Something not only for Charley but for the birds, the fish, and all the little creatures suffering at the hand of man’s dereliction of duty. She knew what she had to do.

***

Interview with RR Rowley

What was the inspiration behind this story?

I have long been appalled by the life-threatening accumulations of nuclear waste worldwide. However, when I moved to the Columbia River Gorge area, I became aware of the decades of contamination flowing from the Hanford Nuclear Reservation into the spectacular Columbia River.

The Hanford story is a terrible and tragic one that has been kept secret for the most part, even from persons in the Pacific Northwest region. My intent for Toxic Soup is to call attention to that poisoning through an imagined horrific motivating event reacted to by a cast of characters drawn from profiles of persons working and playing upon the river and in the surrounding forested mountains and clear watered streams.

Tell us about your main character.

Casey Long is a feisty windsurfer and kayaker whose world is turned upside down by her brother’s death at the Hanford Reservation. She is bi-sexual and endured a childhood in poverty, protected by her now-deceased brother and ignored by her drunken mother. Driven by her love for her brother, she seeks a way to avenge his death. Informed of Hanford’s derelict history, her anger deepens. Essentially a good person, she must cross her moral bridge to claim victory. Helping her along the way is her brother’s ghost and a fierce wolf spirit conjured by a Native American accomplice. But, there is a price to pay.

Which is your favorite minor character, and why?

Little Bear, a Native American fisherman on the Columbia River, is my favorite minor character. His deep love of the river and the damage done by The Hanford Reservation to his tribe, his family, and the river motivates him to join Casey in her vengeful plan to achieve justice. His insights, sense of humor, and loyalty to Casey endear me to him. Not a little bear but a great bear.

How did you come up with the title?

It sprang into my mind as an ah-hah moment. I was involved in a passage describing the horrible contents of one of the massive waste storage tanks, and it struck me that the ingredients were stewed together like a soup. That led me to carry the metaphor over to Casey’s predicament, the thickening soup brewing within her vengeful quest, and it was then that I knew the title worked for me.

Were you surprised by the behavior of any of your characters at any point while writing?

Yes. Casey surprised me. She begins the story with a female lover, but the relationship becomes testy by the novel’s end. She likes men, challenges them, and tends to get them to do want she wants, even sometimes taking one to bed when left alone by her lady lover. This action stems from low self-esteem derived from her damaged childhood. What surprised me was her slowly developed turn towards exploring an emotional involvement with a man. Something even she did not expect.

Of all the books out there, why should readers choose this one?

There are several reasons. Toxic Soup is not just a straight genre romp. The thrills and suspense required to justify the thriller heading are there, but along with the edge comes romance, adventure, literary descriptions and insights concerning nature, and many moral questions to consider. Finally, the underlying environmental issue of nuclear waste and what it means for all of humanity make this novel relevant to the times we live.

About the Author

R R Rowley has lived coast to coast in the USA, in London, UK, and has spent many years on his farm in Grenada, West Indies. He has owned and operated several companies and was involved in start-ups. Currently, he resides in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State.