9 Books Set in US National Parks (Almost) As Refreshing as a Vacation in Nature

Glacier National Park:

What was supposed to be a pleasant father-son camping trip beneath the clear skies of Glacier National Park turned into a full-fledged nightmare when Ted Systead’s father was attacked by a bear and dragged to his death. Now, twenty years later, Ted is a Special Agent for the Department of the Interior and has been called back to investigate a similar horrific murder—but this time, the victim was tied to a tree before being mauled. As Ted investigates, he realizes that the locals are wary of outsiders treading on their territory. Ted’s search for answers leads him deep into the wilderness on the trail of the killer, until he reaches a shocking and unexpected conclusion. 

Yellowstone National Park:

Jake Trent left his life as a prosecutor for a more placid and peaceful existence as a fishing guide in Jackson, Wyoming—but after three seemingly unrelated deaths occur in one day, Jake’s idealistic life is completely disrupted. And to make matters worse, evidence points to him as a suspect. Attempting to get to the bottom of these crimes and clear his name, Jake teams up with beautiful park ranger Noelle Klimpton to follow a trail of clues through Yellowstone National Park. 

Yellowstone National Park:

Set against the beautiful backdrops of Maine’s backcountry, exotic Indonesia, and scenic Yellowstone National Park, ETERNAL ON THE WATER follows Cobb, a devoted teacher and nature lover who takes a sabbatical from teaching at his New England boys’ prep school to kayak to the last known campsite of Henry David Thoreau. Cobb hopes this break from his daily life will bring him closer to the experiences Thoreau and other early nineteenth-century transcendentalists underwent. On his journey, Cobb meets Mary, a beautiful adventurist who also happens to be a teacher, and the two grow inseparable. Mary eventually reveals to Cobb that she may be carrying the gene for a devastating, incurable illness that runs in her family, turning an adventure of commitment to each other into a journey of joy, hope, heartbreak, and unending love. 

Yosemite National Park:

Born on Emancipation Day in 1863, Elijah Yancy never had to live as a slave, but as a Black and Native American boy, he is exiled from his home in the Reconstruction-era South for his own survival. Rootless, Elijah walks west to the Nebraska plains—and, like many other young African American men of the time, he joins the US cavalry. Only memories and prayers keep him afloat as Elijah navigates his new life—which ultimately plants his troop in the newly created Yosemite National Park in 1903. There, living under the light of stars and campfires, Elijah is intent on becoming a man who owns himself completely. Yet in his transformation, he can’t help but remember the pieces of himself he left scattered along the roads he took to get where he is. 

Acadia National Park: 

Anna Pigeon is a National Park Ranger traveling between parks to solve mysteries in the deep wilderness. In this nineteenth novel by Nevada Barr, Anna is about to start her new post as Acting Chief Ranger at Acadia National Park in Maine. Elizabeth, the adopted teenage daughter of Anna’s longtime friend Heath Jarrod, is targeted by a cyberbully and unsuccessfully attempts suicide. To remove Elizabeth from the situation, Heath brings her to live with Anna. But the move doesn’t prove easy: the stalker follows them, and, to top it all off, a murder occurs just days into their arrival on their otherwise deserted island home. There are more compelling national park mysteries where this came from; if you love BOAR ISLAND, make sure to check out the rest of the Anna Pigeon novels. 

Grand Canyon National Park:

In the spring of 1983, a dam failure resulted in massive flooding along the Colorado River, sparking a crisis. But in the midst of this emergency, Kenton Grua decides to use the catastrophic flood as a kind of hydraulic slingshot in an effort to set the all-time record for the fastest boat ever propelled down the entire length of the Colorado River, from Lee’s Ferry to Lake Mead. This epic and remarkable tale of survival through the Grand Canyon will leave readers in utter astonishment. 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: 

While on a visit to the beautiful Great Smoky Mountains, middle-aged widow Grace Conley decides she needs to leave her busy life in Nashville and open a bed-and-breakfast in tiny Townsend. Her entire family is taken aback at Grace’s decision, and to further complicate the situation, Grace’s daughter, Margaret, has come to live with her after graduating from college. As the women become intrigued by local men and bask in the beauty of the Smokies, they begin to realize that it’s never too late to start over. 

Arches National Park: 

DESERT SOLITAIRE is the story of author Edward Abbey’s quest to experience nature in its purest form. Abbey, a ranger at Arches National Park outside Moab, Utah, at the time, grapples with the condition of the remaining wilderness and the future of a civilization that cannot reconcile itself to living in the natural world. Although written in 1968, Abbey’s cry to preserve the earth’s natural beauty is now more urgent than ever. 

Great Smoky Mountains National Park:  When a plane carrying Kathy Kelly’s Iraq War–veteran husband and her two children vanished from the sky, her world was turned upside down. No trace of the plane was found. When the wreckage is uncovered in the wilderness of Great Smoky Mountains National Park eight years later, there is still no sign of Jack or the children. Could they have made it out alive after all? As Kathy desperately searches for clues, she discovers a briefcase containing millions of dollars in cash, a priceless mask stolen from an Iraqi museum, and a clue that links her family’s disappearance to Kathy’s mother’s death years prior. To make matters worse, Kathy soon learns that others have been looking for the wreckage as well—and these “others” are determined to make sure she never finds her family.