–Jennifer Niven
The Ice Master

Mining disasters are not often the stuff of literary achievement, but The Deep Dark is a remarkable work that not only captures life and death in a hard-rock mining town, but turns the tragic men and women who live there into friends, family, and neighbors. Gregg Olsen is an impeccable researcher and the truth shines through on every page of this book, but that is not its only strength. Olsen is one of those rare writers with the self-confidence to simply let a story tell itself. It is some story, well worth telling, and never to be forgotten. –Homer Hickam October Sky and Sky of Stone

The Kellogg mine fire is a sad and fascinating piece of American history, and Gregg Olsen is the perfect guide as he leads the reader down into a whole new world underground, with its own lore, language and laws. The Deep Dark is as gripping and necessary as true-life drama gets. –Stewart O’Nan The Circus Fire and Snow Angels

In the tradition of Young Men and Fire, The Deep Dark is an exceptional, haunting documentary. Like an epic folksong, it crackles with the language of rough men working—and dying—in unspeakable ways, and pays tribute to a community that might otherwise be bleached from our memories. This book does what all superior journalism should do: it unearths an important story, and tells it with great feeling. –McKay Jenkins The White Death and The Last Ridge

Gregg Olsen’s narrative is so riveting I had to keep reminding myself that this is a nonfiction page-turner, not a suspense novel. The grit, the darkness, the stifling air and choking smoke, the fear of being trapped deep underground, the tender camaraderie between the toughest of men – I experienced all of them reading this book. Olsen has paid worthy tribute to the victims, survivors, and their families by unveiling their world and allowing us to share their struggle. –Stephen Puleo Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919

*Olsen presents the extraordinary story of the Sunshine Mine disaster in gripping, heartrending prose. His dogged research and extensive interviews with survivors, relatives of victims, and rescuers has given the book a you-are-there feel as it weaves together a compelling narrative of the agonizing scenes above and below ground. In Olsen's telling, we come to see that the story is not merely a deadly disaster, but rather a tale of the uncommon courage, perseverance, and heroism of everyday people. –Edward T. O'Donnell Ship Ablaze: The Tragedy of the Steamboat General Slocum

Gregg Olsen has presented a well-researched, graphic account of the worst disaster in Idaho history and the worst underground fire in a hardrock mine in American history – eleven days of searing heat, choking smoke, death and misery that spawned a flurry of lawsuits and court battles that changed safety procedures in mines worldwide. When the ‘Shine resumed underground operations in December of 1972, I hired out as a replacement for one of the guys who died in the fire…I eventually mined for 16 years and I can tell you The Deep Dark is as real as it gets. I actually found myself short of breath as I read. –Jerry Dolph Fire in the Hole: The Untold Story of Hardrock Miners

Gregg Olsen has written a harrowing story about the men and metal that inhabit the earth. It is a dark, grimy world of hoistmen, skip tenders and their grail, silver. When tragedy strikes below, a miner's hell, all smoke, dust and blackness, Olsen makes it vivid, real. He puts you there. Cap lamps go dark, but he finds the light—humanity. First the earth moves, then the Spirit. –Gary M. Pomerantz Nine Minutes, Twenty Seconds

Gregg Olsen brings all his considerable talents to this story and the result is a gripping account of men facing their last moments and struggling to survive. Olsen’s research is meticulous, and he tells the story in a way that makes you feel the damp air on your skin and smell the deadly smoke coming up behind you. By skillfully drawing the reader into this tale of terror and desperation, Olsen ensures that these men and their bravery will not be forgotten. –Gregory A. Freeman Sailors to the End: The Deadly Fire on the USS Forrestal and the Heroes Who Fought it

Absolutely wonderful... not only did [Olsen] make it come hauntingly alive through [his] prodigious reporting, but it is simply a super story that is at times heartbreaking but importantly filled with hope through the perseverance of the survivors and the victims' families. –Gerald Posner Pulitzer Prize finalist and author, Why America Slept: The Failure to Prevent 9/11