Not every journey is smooth sailing, as evidenced in the stories shared in the Deadly Expeditions series. These narrative nonfiction graphic novels, each with a different artist, take advantage of the visual format to share accounts of difficult adventures in history. They reference historical materials like diaries, photos, and records to help piece together each journey's pitfalls, which are often weather-related. The Greely Expedition's Fatal Quest for Farthest North shares the struggles of the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, led by U.S. Army Lieutenant Adolphus Greely, just 600 miles from the North Pole. Henry Hudson and the Murderous Arctic Mutiny likewise tackles challenges of the Arctic, relating Hudson and his crew's attempt to find a Northwest Passage for European trade in the 1600s. The Mount Everest Disaster of 1996, though more modern, similarly finds adventurers embarking on an extreme journey riddled with obstacles as they endeavor to reach Everest's summit.

The Tragic Trip of the Donner Party tells probably the most familiar historical account, the westward trek of the Donners and their friends and the deadly outcomes of the trip. Each work concludes with further details of each expedition, a map charting its course, a glossary, and supplemental resources.