The Esperanza Fire: Arson, Murder and the Agony of Engine 57

The heart-stopping true story of the tragic and historic California wildfire by the award-winning, national bestselling author of Fire on the Mountain.
 
On October 26, 2006, an arson-set wildfire ignited in the San Jacinto Mountains west of Palm Springs, California. By the time of its containment four days later, over 41,000 acres—almost 63 square miles—had been razed, destroying 34 homes and leaving federal taxpayers to foot most of a $16 million-dollar bill. But the highest, most tragic cost was the lives of the five-man Forest Service crew of Engine 57, the first wildland engine crew ever to be wiped out by flames. It was also the first time an arsonist was successfully prosecuted for murder—and sentenced to death.
 
“Read[ing] like a taut murder mystery, a whodunit novel you can’t put down” (The Forestry Source), “the Bob Woodward of forest fires, the nation’s chief chronicler of . . . tragedy on the fire line” (National Geographic Adventure) delivers “as thorough and gripping an account as could be hoped for, but it’s also a very human one. For CSI, Bones, and NCIS-loving readers, it is an engrossing read” (Booklist).