Thanks NetGalley & Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the ARC!

Synopsis –

Adventure journalist Cecily Wong is attempting to summit the 8th highest peak of Manaslu in the Himalayas with the sole purpose of getting an interview with the acclaimed mountaineer Charles McVeigh. This is no easy feat, especially when there is a killer on the mountain.

Review –

Starting from the base camp, as the trek & acclimatization journey begins, Cecily begins connecting the dots with a conspiracy theory related to one of her co-climbers & things gets worse as bodies begin to accumulate one by one.

The high-altitude conditions, the chilling cold, the thin air along with the dynamic weather, provided the perfect atmospheric setup for this whodunnit plot.

I was suspecting almost everyone & even Cecily proved to be unreliable at times, owing to the disorientation due to oxygen deprivation.

As Cecily’s past, her weaknesses & strengths come into play, the story becomes multi-layered towards the end & though it was not exactly a mind-blowing finale, I really enjoyed this terrifying yet adrenaline-charged adventure.

Definitely recommend it to destination thriller lovers !

Cecily Wong is a journalist that is about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime, all in the name of scoring an interview with Charles McVeigh. Little does Cecily know; she’s set herself up quite literally for a thrilling climb!


Full of characters that you will both love and hate; this psychological thriller is a great adult debut from Amy McCulloch.


I did find the storyline to be more adventure than thriller and I personally enjoyed it the most when the twists ramped up towards the end. Easy enough to follow if you are someone like myself who has never climbed a mountain before.


Perfect snowy (or cold weather) read!


Looking forward to more from Amy McCulloch.


3 Stars – Winter Read!


Publication Date: 17th February 2022


Thank you to #NetGalley, #PenguinMichaelJosephUK, #MichaelJoseph, #AmyMcCulloch for an ARC of #Breathless in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of my favourite books that I read in 2022. I've loved Amy's YA books, and she's done an amazing job with her debut adult novel as well. Her mountaineering experience was evident, and she added details that brought the book to life without overpowering the narrative. It was such a thrilling read, and I'm excited to see what she writes next!

A taut and tense read, full of chilling situations and a few twists. Not just the climbers but the reader who was gasping for breath every now and again.

⭐️ 3.5 ⭐️
Rounded up to 4 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I love books with a snowy setting, particularly locked-room style thrillers, and the setting for this one didn’t disappoint.

I thought Breathless was a good, solid read. Well-written with well-rounded characters. The author obviously has an extensive knowledge/experience of mountain climbing and I did learn some new things from the book.

I thought the story and details of the climb became slightly repetitive and my interest did wain somewhat towards the end, but I still thought it was an enjoyable, entertaining read and I’d certainly read more from Amy McCulloch in the future.

Breathless ! Yes this definitely left me Breathless and on the edge of my seat a brilliant atmospheric read. I loved learning about mountaineering while enjoying a great murder mystery. Highly recommended

Breathless ⭐️⭐️⭐️

When struggling journalist Cecily Wong is invited to join an expedition to climb one of the world's tallest mountains, it seems like the chance of a lifetime.

She doesn't realise how deadly the climb would be ….

What I liked …
The dangerous setting, learning about the world of mountaineering, the unreliable narrators thanks to altitude paranoia

What I didn’t like ….
The repetitiveness, the confusion of where they actual were on the mountain (maybe a map would help), the convenient ending, Cecily!

I would struggle to be able to review this book due to issues with the file/download. The issues stopped the flow of the book. The issues are:
- Missing words in the middle of sentences
- Stop/start sentences on different lines
- No clear definition of chapters.

I’m not sure if it was a file/download issue but there were lots of gaps and stops/starts which really ruined the flow. I would love the chance to read a better version as the description of the book appeals to me. I would be more than happy to re-read the book with a better file or as a physical book as the book topic and genre are of interest to me. If you would like me to re-review please feel free to contact me at thesecretbookreview@gmail.com or via social media The_secret_bookreview (Instagram) or Secret_bookblog (Twitter). Thank you.

A murder/thriller with a difference. Set in the world of mountaineering, a journalist and inexperienced climber is asked to join an expedition led by a legend in mountaineering who climbs the highest mountains alpine style. When someone dies on the mountain it is looked on as a tragic accident.......the perfect place in fact for someone set on murder.

This is a thriller which stands out due to its location, it engages, informs and entertains. My only gripe would be at times I felt the description was slowing it down.

I have to say that this was an enjoyable read. By the time I had finished the book I felt I knew a lot more about mountains, particularly very high ones over 8000 meters, the way climbers tackle said mountains and the dangers that they confront. It was also fascinating about how the groups who climb work together as a team and the very important part played by the sherpas. Even the equipment they need and the type of food that they eat. So the book has been really well researched and it did feel as if I was on the mountain with Cecily. The story itself was very exciting with lots of twists and turns but maybe it just went a bit over the top which made it rather less believable.

A murder-mystery thriller centred around the ascent of a forbidding mountain by a disparate group of characters who all have their own very different reasons for being there. The dangerous mountainous setting and hostile environment give a real sense of jeopardy and danger. I would have liked the final chase sequence to have started earlier and thus lasted longer, but nevertheless 'Breathless' is an enjoyable read.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately this book was not for me, it was a bit slower than I would like and it just didn't hold my attention. I am sure other people will love it!

This is not a relaxing read and is all the better for it. Tension builds from the first pages of the story as everything from lack of experience, sabotage and the extremes of nature all conspire against any possible happy ending. No clues to the ending either which takes you right to the final pages to see any positive outcome.

*Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.*

Let's forget for a second that the protagonist is going up a ridiculously intense mountain range with people she doesn't know and nowhere near enough training / equipment ... and she'll probably survive, right, because she's the heroine??

Now throw in some shady menfolk, a likable Insta-star, a douche bag of an ex-boyfriend and the ever present danger of the mountain and altitude itself. Suddenly, survival is not guaranteed.

I had my own ups and downs with this book. The reporter made some dumb decisions and I couldn't say I rooted for her very often. The one nice character was killed off, and the native guides are rarely more than racial stereotypes. That being said, the premise was a good one.

I started this book with high expectations but soon found myself weighed down by technical details and a main character that I found it difficult to empathise with. In order to gain an interview with a world renowned mountain climber, journalist Cecily Wong sets out (a complete novice) to climb a mountain. In the style of one of those crime novels where victims have nowhere to escape to, her fellow climbers are killed off one by one, leaving Cecily and the survivors stranded on a mountain in appalling conditions, with a killer . Apart from the technical descriptions which I found quite tedious, the pace in general was slower than I general like which was not helped by the fact I had guessed the killer relatively early so wit felt like I was limping to the finishing line. An unexpected twist near the end partially saved the day but was probably a bit to late for this reader.


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Unfortunately, I did not connect with this book as I'd hoped to. I very much enjoy this kind of story - a frozen terrain, impossible for help to reach. The atmosphere usually just hooks me right in. I'm so sorry, you know how it is. A weird reading slump hits and a couple of books in a row just don't seem to hit the mark. I'm sure if I picked Breathless up at a different time, it would be a different review here that I'm writing. Reading is very much affected by mood. I wish the author all the very best with this wonderfully evocative and atmospheric book.

This is a dark, chilling and gripping thriller from Amy McCulloch set in the Himalayas, featuring journalist Cecily Wong, an inexperienced mountain climber haunted by past failures. She is to be part of a group intending to climb Manaslu in Nepal, the eighth-highest peak in the world, to interview the well known mountaineer Charles McVeigh on the last of his record-breaking series of summits. For the sake of her career, she has staked everything on this venture. The highlight for me is the incredible sense of the mountainous location, the forbidding remote landscape of ice and snow, beautiful, awe inspiring, yet terrifying, I felt as if I was right there on what turns out to be a harrowing and dangerous ascent. Cecily has no idea what she will be up against, aside from the challenging, tense and exhausting climb, there are worrying rumours and 'accidents', is there a killer amongst them? This is a atmospheric, claustrophobic and breathless thrill of a story, with twists and turns, and a Cecily being pushed to her physical and mental limits in a hostile and deadly environment. Many thanks to the publisher.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange of an honest review.

This book was phenomenal! Loved everything about it. I was hooked.

Atmospheric and exciting. I thoroughly enjoyed this story, especially the setting where human beings were forced to battle against the hostile conditions and landscape. A gripping page turner of a thriller. Fabulous! 5 stars

I enjoyed this, I was gripped from early one, so that’s always a winner in my eyes!

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.