The River Wild

To help heal a marriage on the rocks, river-rafting expert Gail, her husband Tom, and their son embark on a white water adventure in Montana. Along the way, they encounter two inexperienced rafters supposedly looking for their friends downriver. Little do they know that the men are escaped convicts whose bid for freedom has a body count. Things take a turn when the young family learns that they are now the captives of two armed killers, and it becomes clear that there is much more at stake than a marriage. Desperate to evade both the police and federal marshals, the men force the family down the river and into the mouth of a deadly class 5 white-water rapid. Careening towards mortal peril, Gail and Tom must bond together to save their family from the brutality of nature and the savageness of man.

This high-stakes thriller is both a testament to the power of mother nature and a classic adventure story that is perfect for fans of CJ Box and Craig Johnson. Denis O’Neill, the screenwriter for the movie The River Wild, brings the striking beauty of the film into his writing and ratchets up the danger that races forward to a breathtaking conclusion.

Denis O’Neill is an author, screenwriter, producer, and nature enthusiast who holds a master’s degree in journalism from Boston University. He worked on staff and as a freelance writer/producer for Boston’s public television station, WGBH-TV. He began publishing articles and short stories in Sports Illustrated, the Boston Globe Sunday Magazine, Fly Rod & Reel, Antiques, American Photographer, and others. His original screenplay, The River Wild, was produced in 1994, directed by Curtis Hanson, starring Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, and John C. Riley. A Shot at Glory, directed by Michael Corrente and starring Robert Duvall, was released in 2001. He lives in Los Angeles.