Review: "The Longest Night" by Andria Williams

This was a captivating story concerning the first accident of a nuclear reactor in the United States. As with fiction, the names of the people have been changed but the details of the accident are accurate. This is Ms. William’s tale of the meltdown of the CR-1 and the lives of the men who helped operate it. The story centers on Paul and Natalie’s life at Idaho Falls when Paul is sent there to work on the prototype reactor. Paul realizes that there are problems and there could be an impending accident. During a heated confrontation with his supervisor where he tries to warn of the imminent doom, he strikes his boss and ends up being redeployed to Greenland, leaving his now pregnant wife and two children to fend for themselves. Because Natalie forms an innocent friendship with a local, vicious gossip and innuendo reach Paul in Greenland and their marriage begins a downward spiral.

This tale has it all! The characters are well defined and you are drawn into their lives and drama. The author does an excellent job of bringing each to life and you either love or hate them. The story flows along, gaining momentum. The problems at the reactor and the characters personal lives are rushing to a pinnacle that seems unstoppable. Although fiction, she does a wonderful job of blending the novel with the true story to make it understandable and page turning.

Because of the accident at Three Mile Island, this disaster was over shadowed and is little known. This is a definite must read though. You don’t need to be interested in nuclear energy to enjoy. Just the story of the lives of the characters is exciting and worth the read. Add the accident and you won’t want to put this book down.