In June 2024, John Geiger led an international team that discovered the wreck of Sir Ernest Shackleton's last ship, Quest, off the coast of Labrador, where it struck ice and sank in 1962. That event captured global attention and renewed interest in the legendary explorer's fatal last voyage.
This sweeping narrative takes readers from Shackleton's early polar expeditions, including the famous Endurance calamity that demonstrated his spectacularly resilient brand of leadership, through to his last journey to Antarctica in 1922, during which he died of a heart attack aboard the Quest. Geiger re-examines Shackleton's triumphs, his testy relationships with rivals like Vilhjalmur Stefansson, and the Quest's extraordinary posthumous legacy as it sailed into history--and finally to its resting place.
Rich in adventure and anchored by contemporary exploration, Quest blends historical drama with cutting-edge discovery to illuminate a polar epic for a new generation.
About the Author :
John Geiger is CEO of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society and author of seven books including the international bestsellers Frozen in Time: The Fate of the Franklin Expedition.
Review :
"With his discovery of the legendary Quest, Geiger brings the whole incredible Shackleton saga to a close. An utterly gripping story, blisteringly well told." - Mensun Bound, author of The Ship Beneath the Ice: The Discovery of Shackleton's Endurance
"The definitive account of my grandfather's final expedition" - Hon. Alexandra Shackleton
"John Geiger knows how to tell a story, and what a story this is. Of all the personalities in Polar exploration there's none to match Ernest Shackleton. One of the last missing pieces in the history of this charismatic figure was the fate of the Quest, the ship on which he died in January 1922. Geiger channels one of Shackleton's greatest qualities, his stubborn refusal to be beaten, in his own mission to find the Quest. The result is an enthralling story of marine discovery. But more than that it is, in these days of sophisticated technology and global communications, a powerful reminder of what one man once achieved with sheer willpower. John Geiger has done Ernest Shackleton proud." - Michael Palin, author of Erebus: The Story of a Ship
"A fascinating dive into the depths of little-known polar history by a master of the genre. John Geiger brings to life the clashing personalities, restless ambitions, and epic sweep of the end of the golden era of polar exploration. Geiger thrillingly frames the tale of Shackleton's last voyage with his own modern-day quest to discover the wreck of the great explorer's final ship." - Adam Shoalts, PhD, author of Vanished Beyond the Map
"In this riveting blend of history and adventure, John Geiger recovers the forgotten truth that Sir Ernest Shackleton intended his last great expedition to be all about Canada. Having scoured the archives, Geiger leads an expedition that brings Shackleton home to this country. His investigation turns up not just a wreck but the missing link between Canada and one of history's greatest explorers. Written in clear, vivid, and beautifully controlled prose, Quest restores Canada to the heart of the Shackleton legend and brings his journey full circle, celebrating a legacy that escapes the Antarctic ice and returns at last to the North that called him home." - Ken McGoogan, author of Dead Reckoning and Searching for Franklin
"John Geiger brilliantly unravels the complexity and intrigue of Shackleton's final years and comprehensively details the fascinating saga through which Quest, a modest Arctic sealer, is entwined with Canada's story over more than a century. Quest informs, inspires and cannot fail to move. It is another must-read hit from this most insightful of authors." - Jan Chojecki, author of The Quest Chronicle
