Castle Peak

Mina Samuels

Liv’s solitary and self-sufficient life is put to the test when she injures herself on the Castle Peak trail in the Sierra mountains during an early morning run. With her phone dead and a surprise early November snow falling, Liv fights against her own nature and the elements to get down the mountain. Author Mina Samuels – herself a runner – shows us the loneliness inherent in today’s lean-in working woman’s culture, and how mental and physical strength co-exist alongside the ability to navigate the subtext of the world. Short, chilling, memorable, Castle Peak immerses the reader in the fundamental interiority of a woman’s experience.

From the Curator

Castle Peak echoes the elements of one of my favorite stories, Jack London’s To Build a Fire, where a calm, beautiful walk in the snow descends – almost imperceptibly – into the panic

(surprise?) of hypothermia and then, certain death. Mina Samuels writes beautifully, with lovely pacing and perfect control. … During this walk up and not quite down Castle Peak, you get to know the psychology of a woman desperate to be in control of her own life and proud of her isolation. It is her badge of courage.

Joni Evans, Founding Member and CEO of wowOwow.com; former President and Publisher of Simon & Schuster

About the Author

Mina Samuels (Playwright & Performer) is a full-time writer, editor and performance artist. In addition to many ghostwriting projects, her previous books include Run Like a Girl: How Strong Women Make Happy Lives; a novel titled The Queen of Cups; and The Think Big Manifesto, co-authored with Michael PortShe has written and performed two one-woman plays: Do You Know Me? and Hazards.

Genra: Short Stories