The Cold Vanish

Seeking the Missing in North America's Wildlands

By: Jon Billman

Narrated by: Stephen Graybill

Perfect for listeners of Jon Krakauer and Douglas Preston, this "authentic and encyclopedic" book examines real-life cases of those who vanish in the wilderness without a trace (Roman Dial) — and those eccentric, determined characters who try to find them.

These are the stories that defy conventional logic. The proverbial vanished without a trace incidences, which happen a lot more (and a lot closer to your backyard) than almost anyone thinks. These are the missing whose situations are the hardest on loved ones left behind. The cases that are an embarrassment for park superintendents, rangers, and law enforcement charged with Search & Rescue. The ones that baffle the volunteers who comb the mountains, woods, and badlands. The stories that should give you pause every time you venture outdoors.

Through Jacob Gray's disappearance in Olympic National Park, and his father Randy Gray who left his life to search for him, we will learn about what happens when someone goes missing. Braided around the core will be the stories of the characters who fill the vacuum created by a vanished human being. We'll meet eccentric bloodhound-handler Duff and R.C., his flagship purebred, who began trailing with the family dog after his brother vanished in the San Gabriel Mountains. And there's Michael Neiger, North America's foremost backcountry Search & Rescue expert and self-described "bushman" obsessed with missing persons. And top researcher of persons missing on public wildlands Ex-San Jose, California detective David Paulides who is also one of the world's foremost Bigfoot researchers.

It's a tricky thing to write about missing persons because the story is the absence of someone. A void. The person at the heart of the story is thinner than a smoke ring, invisible as someone else's memory. The bones you dig up are most often metaphorical. While much of the book will embrace memory and faulty memory — history — The Cold Vanish is at its core a story of now and tomorrow. Someone will vanish in the wild tomorrow. These are the people who will go looking.

©2020 Jon Billman (P)2020 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Colorful side characters, like psychics and Bigfoot hunters, provide some light moments, but what makes a lasting impression is the story of Randy and his ultimately dashed hopes of finding his son alive. The author's personal involvement makes this tale all the more affecting." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

"Required reading for anyone concerned about the missing, Billman's authentic and encyclopedic book leads us across the landscapes of the vanished with a journalist's acumen and a searcher's sympathy. It's both true and useful, a storytelling textbook I wish I'd read before my own son went missing." (Roman Dial, author of The Adventurer's Son)

"The Cold Vanish is part mystery, part glance into a world of heroes and charlatans, death, and loss that most of us, fortunately, do not know, and don't want to know, but perhaps should. The Cold Vanish is informative, and in a sad way, captivating and well worth a read." (National Parks Traveler)

Investigative and Intriguing!

Most importantly, a big thank you to NetGalley, Jon Billman and Grand Central Publishing for providing me with a copy of this publication in exchange for an honest review.

“Most states’ missing persons statistical figures climb irregularly upward; however, many of the missing on public wildlands aren’t counted. Or they’re not separated from the urban missing. In most states, no one even knows who should be counting. It seems a special mess considering the technological resources we have in our pockets. Sometimes the lost are found, but often not. The mountains are shrouded in fog.”

If someone likes a book, they call it their "cup of tea". If that's the case, this book is my pitcher of refreshing iced tea on a sweltering summer day! Jon Billman's 'The Cold Vanish' is chock-full of eerie cases of people vanishing into thin air in the Unites States' National Parks and the Canadian wilderness. Each disappearance is described in great detail, so much that you'll want to read this with all the lights in your house ON.

More important than the curiosity and mystery surrounding these cases is the underlying question as to why we don't have an accurate, efficient system in place to track the missing population nor to update their families with searches and activity regarding the recovery of their loved ones. Those systems we do have in place are so wrought with inaccuracies and contradicting information that some government agencies refuse to use them.

Written with verve, this book will raise extremely important questions and inspire the reader to immediately get up and do something to bring these missing PEOPLE home and give their families the answers they deserve. 5 solid stars to Jon Billman and 'The Cold Vanish'.

Didn’t like the narration.

I absolutely love this genre and am an avid mountain explorer, so this was extremely up my alley. But the narration killed it. It was dry. And uninteresting. Maybe just not my style. I did find a lot of the book interesting though and if you like mystery and know some of the places talked about, it can get intriguing for sure.

A Father’s 16 month journey for his son. POWERFUL!

After listening to the entire story, I have just now been able to start to get a grip on the feelings in my stomach and the void in my heart. This incredible dad, his enormous heart, his wonderful spirit, unbelievable determination, the journalist (writing the story) who became his real and always friend......
I feel weirdly like I know these people and can call them friend. I don’t know that I have ever had a book/story effect me like this one has. I don’t imagine that I will ever ever ever forget their names, their heartbreak, their journey, the friendship and respect they had/ have for one another.
I agree with another reviewer when they said, “they don’t make men like Randy anymore! “
Just an incredible story written with love and respect! Get this, listen to it (REALLY listen to it) and be left speechless and wowed and overcome with the power of love! BIG LOVE TO JACOB’S family from Fort Worth, Texas!!!

great outdoors

I did not know how the book narrate, but it gracefully interweaves the story of father and son finding each other

Thought provoking but a little too long

I listen to a fair bit of this book and eventually stopped. While the stories definitely make one pause and think especially those who spend time outdoors, it did start to be a little overwhelming after a while the story after story. I wonder if there could’ve been a different way to tell this tale about cold vanishing with a shorter number of case studies. I just couldn’t get myself to finish it

Fascinating, beautiful, creepy

This is so much more than a true crime/missing persons story. It reads like a novel, complete with wacky John Irving-ish characters. It would be more disturbing were it not for the perfect Peter Coyote voice of the reader, Stephen Graybill. I was captivated to the end, which touched me deeply.

Good listen

Love the book , sheds some light on some wild missing stories! And a nice documentation of a fathers love and grief

Disorganized and disappointing

I really wanted to like this book, it’s a great concept. The story is so disorganized and not at all what I expected. Way too much about Bigfoot. I’m only finishing it because I can’t return it. Disappointed in what could have been a good book.

Interesting stories, sleepy narrator

Anyone, outdoorsy or not, should give this a listen. It provides a lot of insight into an overlooked topic. It especially (indirectly) emphasizes the importance of family and community. If you get lost, you better hope that people care of you are found.

Do more like this, Jon. Good job!!!

I enjoyed the many stories very much. Always like books like thos how people just up and vanish.