Cecily is a lowly journalist for Wild Outdoors Magazine. When she gets the opportunity of a lifetime to interview the illusive alpinist, Charles McVeigh, she jumps at the chance, but there are strings attached. Will she be able to jump through the necessary hoops to seal the deal? Soon Cecily senses that all is not kosher on Manaslu. As the body count rises, so do her suspicions. Is there a killer on the mountain, after all who investigates deaths in the death zone, or with the lack of oxygen in higher elevations is she experiencing hypoxia? Cecily must use every ounce of strength and courage to reach her goal and make it off the mountain alive, but with her lack of experience does she even have a chance? McCulloch uses her first hand knowledge to take the reader on a nail biting adventure. One that everyone won’t survive.

Cecily is a journalist with a nose for the story of the year.  Famed mountaineer Charles McVeigh is attempting to summit all of the peaks measuring 8,000 meters or higher...without the assistance of oxygen or ropes.  Cecily, and several others, have been invited along to the final summit to document the final peak.  But when you're above 8,000 meters with this crew, the mountain isn't the only thing that can kill you.  People are dying all around Cecily.  Freak accidents...or something more sinister?  Who can you trust on top of the world?

I really loved this story and the authenticity.  I had recently read and watched Nims Purja's story of attemping (and completing) a similar feat and was pleased to see that not only had Amy McCullouch actually summited Manaslu herself, but she had done so under the guidance of Nims Purja.  This was a wild story and, although I thought that Cecily was a bit too much of a ninny for this adventure, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

While the topic — remote excursion to the mountains gone wrong (in the vein of Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley), has been done a lot lately, Breathless was such a fresh take! Although the concept was far-fetched — inexperienced journalist takes on one of the most difficult mountain climbs in the world, I found myself unable to put the book down. I was desperate to discover the high-altitude killer’s identity!

The thriller portion of the story moved a little slow at times but the atmosphere of the mountain kept the tension going.

I definitely enjoyed the level of suspense both aspects of the story brought. I started to suspect the outcome along the way and loved that I was correct. I care more for an outcome that makes sense (it does) than one that comes out of nowhere (it doesn’t).

Lastly, I could never ever climb a mountain. Snuck respect to those who do.

I thoroughly enjoyed this thrilling tale about murder, intrigue, and mountain climbing. The author really did a good job with descriptions and obviously was quite knowledgeable about climbing. We are introduced to a cast of characters who have many secrets will are all exposed by the end of the book. I found this book to be quite suspenseful and hard to put down!

3.5 Stars, rounded up.

While reading Breathless I assumed that McCulloch must be a mountain climber because her details and descriptions about what it feels like to be on a mountain were intense. In reading the Afterwards she talks about climbing Manaslu, the eighth-highest peak in the world. Ihave always thought it takes a person very different from myself to take on these mountains, this book reinforced that and makes me think they are a little crazy!

Cecily Wong is a struggling journalist who has done very little climbing but became well-known in the culture because of a failure she had had. She is given the chance of a lifetime to join an expedition with a famous mountaineer and get an exclusive interview with him after their summit. It is the chance she needs to write an article that will get her name out there and probably a permanent job at a magazine. So, she trains and prepares herself for Manaslu. The catch, she must make it to the summit or no interview.

Mountaineers know that death is a possibility when at high altitudes but when bodies start piling up, Cecily thinks there may be a murderer on the mountain. But, high altitudes can bring on paranoia so when she brings up her concern she is threatened with being kicked off the expedition due to hallucinations. She wants to find out why people have died but she keeps most of her concerns to herself so that she can make it to the summit.

The tension builds as we get further into the book and my heart was racing along with Cecily's during the climax. I learned a lot about mountain climbing and what it would be like to go without oxygen during a snow storm. Do NOT sign me up. McCulloch does a great job with bringing the mountaineering to life for us. I was less thrilled with some of the secondary characters.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy in exchange for this honest review.

4 star
Very good mountain climbing murder mystery. It starts out a bit slow describing all the characters, the equipment and the mountain. This is interesting but took about half the book. But once the climb started the adventure and the mystery began. The action scenes were very descriptive, exciting and scary. The mystery was very shocking. By 80% you will be flying through the pages not knowing how it will end. And even the ending will surprise you.
I was given this ARC in exchange for an honest review

The title perfectly describes how I felt while reading this story. Breathless with anticipation of what was to come on every page.

Freezing cold, strong wind and fortitude exude throughout this murder mystery set in the alpine world of Nepal. I felt the chill and endurance in every page. The author made this sport come alive. The environment is just as much of a character as the actual people. The character development was just enough to like or despise each one. This took me longer to read than normal. This had nothing to do with the book but that life just got in the way. I did not want to rehash the premise as others and the publisher have done this quite well.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and author for an advanced copy.

A snowy, isolated setting, with a murderer on the loose? Sign me up!

I loved this book. Not only is the isolation theme right up my alley, but I loved the rich atmosphere built by McCulloch. She described a very detailed scene on this mountain, and I could feel the cold wind from the snow as the characters climbed higher. 

The first half of the book contained a lot of technical description of how the climb would be completed, and I could see some readers getting bored with the level of detail. It took me a bit longer to read the first half of the book because of all of the descriptive portions, but I found it fascinating at the same time. McCulloch is actually an accomplished mountaineer herself who has climbed Manaslu, so she writes from experience. I loved learning about a subject that's completely foreign to me.

The suspense took off during the second half of the book, and by the end, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It isn't often you can read a book with two antagonists--a potential killer on the loose and the extreme weather on the mountain, threatening the lives of all of the climbers. One wrong step, lack of oxygen near the top, or exposure to the extreme cold, and the climber could easily see the end of their life.

I did guess the big twist pretty early on, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book. I highly recommend this book, especially if mountaineering is something you have experience with or may find entertaining.

Stars: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Many thanks to NetGalley and Anchor Books for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is a great book set in the climbing world. Several deaths lead journalist Cecily Wong to worry about more than her personal climbing journey up the mountain. Can Cecily and the rest of her climbing team make it up and down the mountain before they are all killed?

This was one of those books that I am ready to read again after I have finished it. Breathless was just that good! The author takes you through a range of emotions: excitement, discouragement, determination, joy and fear. The excitement of achieving a goal after pushing yourself to the limit, enduring the harsh elements of nature and man.
The author takes you into the base camp, up the mountain until you reach the summit. It is so well written that you can feel the cold, see the snow, and experience the dangers through the wonderful descriptions.
Even, if you are not a mountain climber, or even interested in this outdoor adventure you will love this book.

So I’m sure everyone has a crazy weird thing they are completely obsessed with, right?! Just me? Ok stay with me then. I hate the cold. I hate heights. I hate nature. I hate hiking with the fire of a thousand suns. But oh my goodness how I love books, movies, docos, of high altitude Himalayan climbing. Understand me when I say, I never ever in all my life want to even set foot near a base camp, but I will devour 100 books on climbing.

Holy cow this book by Amy McCulloch. This was so good. I was a fan girl anyhow, you had me at 8000 meter but this was such an epic story for me. The hubby asked me if it was any good. I told him that if the author wasn’t a climber, then this was meticulously researched. Once I finished, I read that she is a climber and I was all I knew it. Well done. Just exceptionally well done.

I loved it. 5 star read for me. Sign me up for your next book right now. Just for full disclosure, I also purchased the audio as well. Well done on the audio copy as well.

When you read as many mysteries and thrillers as I do, it is easy to get into a mode of “Been there, read that”, and you yearn for something original. I am extremely pleased to report that Breathless delivered just what I have been looking for and more. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC

What’s your preferred method of reading? I’m definitely a paper person. I had a really old Kindle and hated reading on it and the iPad just didn’t work for me. So super happy that this Mothers Day weekend - I got a new ereader and I love it. I think this may become my preferred method.🙌

Breathless is an adventure thriller focused on - what seems to me - one of the most scariest skills, mountain climbing. This book follows Cecily, a journalist and novice climber. Her career is on the line - she needs a big story. When Cecily is invited to follow a world renowned mountain climber on his next challenge - she jumps at the chance without really knowing what she is getting herself into. In order to get the story, she has to reach the summit and what follows next is a harrowing tale of mountain climbing, ambition and murder.🤔

Firstly, it was very interesting and terrifying to learn more about mountain climbing. Overall, the story was good - it was a little slow in areas and the characters were all pretty unlikeable which sometimes is hard for me. I need someone to root for! That said, I enjoyed it and had to finish it. If you pick this one up, read the authors notes - knowing she is also an alpinist gives you a new perspective on this book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you to @netgalley and @penguinrandomca for a copy of this book.

.

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3.5 stars. A fun guilty pleasure read that combines mountaineering with a solid murder mystery. The mountaineering portions of the book, centered around an expedition to summit the 8,000+ meter peak Manaslu, ring true, with good but still novice-friendly passages about techniques and challenges of the world's highest peaks. The plot is a shade too clever, featuring an overly elaborate plan by the bad guy monologued to the narrator just before her "inevitable" death, but paced well from its initial sense of creepiness to its compulsively page-turning conclusion. The physical and mental challenges of the Himalayas are page-turning as well. The development of journalist/mountaineering novice Cecily Wong raises her character from protagonist modeled on the author to one with which the reader can identify and empathize. Other characters similarly feel stock at first--the social media influencer, the billionaire mountaineering wannabe, the brooding mountain guide, the dedicated Sherpa, the brilliant but flawed filmmaker--but gain enough depth through the book to be worth the read.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and Anchor Books for the ARC.

I'm really torn on this book. Most times I think that's a good thing because it usually means the book made me feel something. I was drawn to this because of the adventure aspect. I'd read a book last year about mountain climbing that I enjoyed, so I decided to give this one a try.

Breathless contains the typical elements you would expect -- man against mountain and in this case, man against man, but this is really Cecily's story. I really liked the character, and the author does a good job of showing who she is. Cecily doesn't always make the right decisions, but she has good instincts.

The mystery / thriller aspect worked for me in general, though the pace of the first eighty percent of this story was quite slow with periodic flare-ups to keep things interesting.Then everything concluded so quickly at the end I didn't have time to savor the developments. A lot happens very quickly at the conclusion of the story, but I ultimately loved the final scene.

Overall, I enjoyed the story but wished things had moved along a little more evenly throughout the book. There's a good supply of heroes and villains, a mystery that will keep you guessing until the end, and Cecily's story is interesting and engaging (it was what kept me reading). The author's notes at the end are also worth a look.

This is how you write a slow burn thriller! 4.5 stars

The story was a bit different than I was expecting but I was oh so pleasantly surprised. Locked room mysteries aren't typically my thing so I wasn't sure if an And Then There Were None-esque plot on a mountain would work. This is ultimately a whodunit mystery with a decent body count but the bulk of the mystery is about so much more than that. I spent the first 2/3 of the book just as confused as our protagonist, Cecily, about what the hell was going on.

As I said in my header, this is a slow burn but the best kind. I read the entire first half in one sitting and was shocked I made it halfway through so quickly even though there hadn't been a ton of action. I was so immersed in the story! McCulloch spend the first half of the novel emphasizing the dangerous setting and some background information about mountain climbing. I knew nothing about climbing until this book and I think she absolutely nailed it. She hit that sweet spot of giving the reader all kinds of new, detailed information about trekking, mountains, altitude sickness, mountain gear, etc. so the plot and struggles of the trekking group made sense - but also not too much information that the reader felt overwhelmed or bored.

I really only have one critique and it kills me this is such a pet peeve of mine because I loved Cecily as a protagonist otherwise... but there were quite a few moments where she completely lost any common sense or deductive reasoning skills. Thing that were blatantly clear to the reader never occur to Cecily or she brushes them off.

Overall: I loved this book. Such a unique setting and topic for a thriller to take-on and it paid off. Highly recommend.

Thank you to @vintageanchorbooks for my gifted copy of the physical book and to @netgalley for my E-ARC for an unbiased review. #photorepost

Ⓑⓞⓞⓚ Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ

𝑩𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔
𝙱𝚢: @amymccullochbooks
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚛: @vintageanchorbooks
𝙿𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝙾𝚗: May 3rd 2022
@𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚜 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: 3.93
𝙼𝚢 𝚂𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚎: ⛰️ ⛰️ ⛰️ ⛰️ / 5 Mountains

"One slip, and that could be the end. 𝘖𝘳 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘴𝘩… The thought slid into her mind unbidden. She swallowed, and hurried to catch up to the others." ━Amy McCulloch, 𝑩𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔

𝗔 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻'𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲-𝗶𝗻-𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲-𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗻𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀.

Cecily Wong is asked to summit Mount Manaslu, the eighth-highest peak in the world, it's a career-making opportunity. She's been personally invited by Charles McVeigh, one of the most acclaimed mountaineers in the world. But there's one caveat: he won't give her the interview until she's scaled the mountain as part of his climbing party.

Cecily is by far the least experienced of the group. When strange things start to happen around her, she becomes concerned. And then people start to die.
Stranded on the mountain with a team she barely knows, Cecily must battle more than the elements in an epic fight for survival--against one of the world's most dangerous mountains and against an unknown assailant who is picking climbers off one by one.

Wow! What an incredible journey this book has led me. This is a tense atmospheric book that kept me glued to the pages. I enjoyed the backdrop of mountain-climbing challenges, what it takes to be up there on the mountains. The formidable and unforgiving terrain, the self-determination, mental and physical strength necessary to scale the mountain.

This book was filled with mountaineering information! You could probably become one if you read this book enough times. Ha-ha. That was the downfall I felt with this book. Maybe a little too much information, or overly descripted. I did feel like I need to read every single line or I felt like I would miss something serious.

All in all, I highly recommend if you are a thriller fan looking for a killer read on a mountain top with barely air to breath.

Not the strongest of climbers, in fact her modest claim to fame was due to article on her failure as a climber, but for journalist Cecily Wong it was the chance of a lifetime. Accompany climbing sensation Charles McVeigh as he attempts the last climb on his record breaking series of summits. She knew it would be tough. She didn’t know it would be murder. When the first of the climbers died, everyone assumed it was a freak accident. But then another one died. How do you survive when you’re stuck on a mountain with a killer?

I’m not sure if it’s the man vs nature aspect as people attempt to brave the extreme elements or what but I’ve always been a fan of books/movies about climbing. Whether it’s true life experiences like Into Thin Air or wildly unrealistic films such as Cliffhanger, there is just something I find fascinating about mountain climbing, so I was pretty sure I’d enjoy this one. And I was right.

Breathless is an intense thriller that had enough twists and turns to keep me flipping the pages well into the night. 4.5 stars. rounded up to 5. Thanks so much to Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Anchor and NetGalley for the chance to read and review an ARC of Breathless.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R161IL7I4D3ZSI/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv