Although I primarily enjoy reading fiction, I do love to learn something new when reading a book. Breathless is the perfect example of this - the story is centred on a mountain climbing expedition to the summit of Mount Manaslu – one of the world’s tallest mountains. Having never experienced a mountain climbing adventure before, I was in very safe hands with Amy McCulloch’s - who actually holds the title of the youngest Canadian woman to scale that very mountain! There was a lot of new phrases, terms and concepts to learn, but Amy writes them in an easy to understand way without it feeling patronising and crucially, without ruining the pace of the writing.

Breathless is very well titled – the high-stakes rush of the plot, coupled with the atmospheric setting and sinister characters left me feeling breathless with every page! There are a lot of mini-twists throughout and you are constantly kept guessing at every turn. There are a few well-written red herrings in there as well to catch you on the back-foot. As well as the main storyline of murder on the mountain, there is also the peril of the setting which holds your attention as well as the quest to the summit. The idea of the ice wall climb (and what Cecily discovers on her descent) really stuck with me as well.

Main character Cecily is a great choice to allow exposition to occur naturally. She is a journalist, with her own flaws and fears as well as an inexperience with the larger mountains which allows certain questions to be asked and answered without it feeling unnatural. There are quite a few characters that we meet within her team and other mountaineers that she meets on the way, but they all felt very distinct which stopped it from becoming confusing. I particularly liked the strength with which the female characters were portrayed, such as influencer Elise or ex-beauty Queen Irina. The sherpas and culture and religion surrounding the mountain were also really respectfully depicted.

Overall, Breathless will leave you just that – a well-researched high-stakes thriller with an atmospheric setting and sinister characters. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin – Michael Joseph for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For more of my reviews check out www.kindig.co.uk

I liked the premise of there being a killer on a mountain, knowing evidence is hard to come by - the perfect kills. In part, that was one of my issues with the plot. The ending doesn't feel feasible. I won't give spoilers. It just felt too convenient and, to me, has too many holes. I don't think this evidence alone is enough to convict a person for the one murder it points to, let alone a series of them.
There were lots of characters which sometimes made it hard to keep up with who was who, but I could see how there had to be teams of people. Overall great book!

Cecily Wong , a journalist, is invited to join an expedition to climb one of the world's tallest tree with the lure of an exclusive interview at the end.
However, things start to go wrong from the start. Theft, accidents and mysterious notes.
As they climb more things happen and the more dangerous it becomes.
Will anyone make it to the top let alone back down again?

Amy McCulloch's novel 'Breathless' is an expertly plotted, ice-cold thriller set on the treacherous slopes of one of the highest mountains in the world. The story follows Cecily Wong, a journalist desperate to make her name in the world of extreme climbing, but an inexperienced climber herself. Cecily is tasked with bagging the interview of a lifetime, but in order to succeed she must not only endure the harsh elements and perilous terrain, but also the deadly attention of a potential murderer. Will Cecily escape the killer stalking the mountain before it's too late? 'Breathless' is cool and vivid, the action thrilling, the prose sharp as an ice-pick. McCulloch's novel will leave you gasping!

Cecily Wong is new to climbing but when she's invited to join a team to climb one of the tallest mountains by Charles McVeigh the Alpinist hero she can't refuse; especially as he has promised her an exclusive if she makes it all the way to the summit. However, not all is as it seems and before the climb even starts some one dies. Cecily is convinced that the death is not accidental and vows to see the climb to the end but as she climbs further she realises that there may be a murderer on the mountain and she may be next.

This was a great thriller as the setting wasn't one I'd read about before; the logistics an determination as well as the toll on your body when climbing was eye opening and then add the fact that there may be e murderer stalking the team (was this real or just altitude sickness?) was gripping. The twists and turns in the story had me hooked until the bitter end; loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review

A chilling, twisted, deadly thriller which will keep you guessing and page turning until the last page. Knowing that Amy McCulloch was the youngest woman to climb Mt Manaslu explains how accurate she is with her descriptions and knowledge in regards to mountaineering. This makes Breathless one of the most inspiring books I have ever read.
A breathtaking book taking the reader to astonishing heights of a climb never to be forgotten. All the characters are believable and the plot draws you in so deeply that you feel absorbed into the trip to the summit. Risking your life while trusting in others and then realising your team is being picked off one by one by a murderer. This book is tantalising, scary and chilling.

Coincidentally I read this just after watching the Netflix documentary 14 Peaks. If anything, it added to my wonderment and awe at the author's background and ingenuity in creating a thriller based at 8,000 metres in the Death Zone. Blogger and (newbie) journalist Cecily Wong has been invited on the trip of a lifetime to climb one of the world's tallest mountains. She's under pressure before she has even begun to climb: an antsy ex boyfriend who thinks he should have got the commission, an editor turning the screws for regular copy and then there is the first body Cecily discovers. The trip has been carefully put together by professionals and an enigmatic leader - Charles - but can they trust each other? Who owns the tent Cecily keeps spotting and why are those in her expedition dying? With no wifi, and with the death toll rising and a mountain to climb will the killer get Cecily or will the mountain? Such an exhilarating and satisfying brilliant read. The detail about everything from summitting to the use of oxygen in the 'Death Zone' to the generous depiction of sherpas alongside a nail biting plot saw me race through this. Bravo Amy :)

A thrilling and chilling page turner, Breathless is set in the Himalayas on one of the World's highest peaks. Is there a killer on the mountain. Cecily, a journalist and mountain climber, is out to dispel the doubts her boss has about her journalistic capabilities and the doubts that she has herself about her climbing ability.
She is offered the chance to prove both on Manalsu, 8000 metres high in tbe Himalayas, a strange choice for someone with no inexperience at this level. The doubts remain as the bodies pile up on the mountain. Are the deaths climbing accidents or something more. Cecily''s journalistic mindset is out to find the truth, but at what danger to herself. Will her lack of experience and her own self doubts stop her.
Enjoyable, different, and fast moving.

A chilling mountain climbing murder mystery: a single narrator shares their suspicions and builds creeping dread whilst more "accidents" occur around them on a make or break attempt to summit an 8000m peak with a team of strangers. This was lots of fun, quite addictive and broke me out a reading rut!

The premise sounded really good unfortunately this book wasn't my cup of tea.too many characters and long descriptions of everything, I was confused and lost my interest.

Thank you for my earc in exchange for a honest review.

If ever a book had my name on it it was this one so I went in with high expectations and I wasn’t disappointed. Great plot, Cecily gets the gig to interview one of the all time best alpinist mountain climbers Charles, but only after she has summited Manaslu with him on his final summit of his Fourteen Clean challenge. She needs this interview both professionally and financially, so despite being racked with self doubt after becoming cragfast on Snowdon, she signs up for the trip.. The book is beautifully and accurately described, and I know this because I’m a keen walker, I live near and often climb Snowdon and I’ve been to Nepal on a few occasions including trekking to Everest Base Camp.
Crib Goch, Kathmandu, Tengboche, all faithfully represented as is life on trek in the Himalayas.
As the story progresses and the bodies mount up you quickly realise that all is not as it should be, that the team spirit is at best fractured, that our hero’s can become our enemies and getting off the mountain alive may be biggest challenge

This was the perfect setting for a wintery thriller, perfect for a tense atmosphere! I loved the concept of this, I thought it took it one step further than the usual wintery thriller by adding the intensity of the mountain climbing experience. There were good twists and turns, some I expected and some I didn’t, and a likeable main character with plenty of drama.

I was drawn to the cover of this book, it’s appealing and a very good fit for the story.

The plot centres around Cecily, a journalist who has been invited on the trip of a lifetime to climb Manaslu, in the Himalayas. If she manages to summit the mountain, she secures an exclusive interview with a famous climber, Charles.
Charles is undertaking a challenge to climb the fourteen highest peaks in the Himalayas, “alpine style”, so not using oxygen or rope lines.

Cecily has climbed a few peaks in the UK and has had some traumatic experiences so is understandably reluctant about her mission. Her career depends on it and she needs the money after getting into debt buying her kit.

As she gets to know her team, she fears she’s being watched. Then one of her fellow climbers dies in an apparent accident, but Cecily is suspicious.

This was quite a readable story, if you can suspend belief. Cecily’s training for this huge mountain was to go up and down a local hill a few times. 🙄
I also found the ending a bit underwhelming.

I wasn’t a big fan of any of the characters and felt the only one that was reasonably developed was Cecily.
One of the characters is never mentioned again and just seems to fizzle out. He felt like a very obvious red herring and a bit pointless.

From quite early on I had a theory and I was really disappointed to find I had pretty much guessed correctly and there wasn’t any shocking twist or surprise for me. Usually my theories are way off!
It was a bit predictable for me.

Cecily is so scared and paranoid all the time that I found it diluted the emotion and potential tension. This was a shame as it could have been very sinister and creepy.

The setting is very well described and it’s clear a lot of research went into mountaineering and the Himalayas.

I would say this book is worth a read, but I was left a bit disappointed.

2.5 stars rounded to 3.

Thanks to Penguin Michael Joseph UK and NetGalley for an advance copy for review.

I totally agree with main character Cecily who said: "So many mountains, so many stories, so many egos, so many beards." It was hard to keep all the various 'bearded' characters straight especially at the beginning and much of the mountain 'stuff' was overly and unnecessarily technical for me. The storyline was unique and gripping to start but then became a bit slow going (much like the climb) before finally unfolding into a dramatic but rather bizarre and disappointing end. A great premise which sadly didn't quite deliver for me.

Loved this pacy thriller set during a climb to the summit of Manaslu in the Himalayas.

Struggling Journalist Cecily Wong has been given the chance of a lifetime to interview the famous mountaineer Charles McVeigh, but only after she reaches the summit. However, there are many unexplained events that take place and she's not sure if she's safe on the mountain.

I had recently watched the movie on Netflix "14 peaks" about the fearless mountaineer Nims Purja who embarks on the seemingly impossible quest to all 14 of the world's 8000 m peaks. What I loved about this novel was not just the thriller angle but the insights into what it takes to climb a mountain. I'm in awe of people that reach the summits!

"Where better for a killer to hide than a place known as the Death Zone"

This book taught me a lot about the mountains, climbing and the conditions etc there was no doubt in my mind that the author certainly knew about this world, I went from knowing nothing to knowing something and it was both an enjoyable and educational read. The plot was good and kept me guessing I really had no clue what was going to happen, and I loved that. Great book, I would happily recommend..

Wow! This book is superbly written you really get a feel of being high up on a mountain the atmosphere is amazing and feels very real. What I think makes this such a good read is that apart from the obvious excellent murder mystery the book is very interesting with lots of facts and descriptions about different mountains and mountaineering and I particularly liked the blog posts and interviews done by Cecily Wong the main character. The feelings of isolation and fear really do come through in the story and I was gripped especially towards the end when the tension started to rise and I wasn’t at sure what the outcome would be for Cecily trapped on a mountain not knowing who to trust.
So a fabulously written book that I shivered my way through it was exceptionally well researched, interesting and well crafted I really loved it and if you want a murder mystery with a difference then you have it here!
My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The title definitely does it justice. This is one of the most tense, claustrophobic books I’ve read in ages. Loved the descriptions: the technical detail was fascinating without detracting from the story, and the plot turned me in circles - I had no clue who was responsible. Cecily is a great character: flawed, believable and I was rooting for her from the beginning. The ending is SO gripping, and I honestly think I was holding my breath for most of it.
It’s a brilliant book. I never, ever want to go near a mountain.

Fantastic premise! Excellent hook and brilliant follow-through. I adored this book and loved the twist towards the middle - it truly changed the game and I did not catch it! Excellent

Breathless by Amy Mc Culloch Is a chilling, tense thriller with a difference.
Struggling Journalist Cecily Wong has been given the chance of a lifetime to interview Charles McVeigh on the summit of Manaslu mountain in the Himalayas. One of the largest mountains in the world over 8000m after completing reaching the summits of 14 mountains with out Oxygen or fixed lines. Charles is at the top of his game and known to have rescue some people on his missions. To get an opportunity to interview him is the highest honor.
Cecily is all known to help be a hero and help rescue a woman on the mountain of Snowdon. But she is not experienced as the other members of the team climbing Manaslu and it shows when she is climbing the mountain. But things start to go wrong on the mountain and people end up dead. At first, they think it’s just an accident, but as other things happened, and Cecily gets a warning letter that there is a killer on the loose on the mountain.
This is an intense thriller, set a cold death defying, mountain setting. I thought it has an original storyline and well-developed characters. This is great read if you need a murder with a difference. I thought it was well researched and quite realistic and then realised when I browsed the authors Goodreads page that the author went on an expedition on the exact mountain herself and shows pictures of the base camp as described in her book. 5 stars from me.