FREE EBOOK ↠ EPUB Summit By Harry Farthing é 9781504710213 ✓ HARRY FARTHING

KINDLE Summit By Harry Farthing

FREE EBOOK ↠ EPUB Summit By Harry Farthing é 9781504710213 ✓ HARRY FARTHING ¼ ➵ [Read] ➯ Summit By Harry Farthing ✤ – Johns-cycling-diary.co.uk A summit is a summit and the truth is the truth But the view from 8848 meters isn't always so clear Two mA summit is a summit and the truth is the truth But the view from 8848 meters isn't always so clear Two men seventy years apart push for the top of Mount Everest driven by forces beyond their control and something inside that says climb After eight successful summits Mount Everest guide Neil uinn is confident he can handle anything the mountain throws his way But then disaster strikes steps from the top leaving him with a lot of uestions and a very old swastika embellished ice axe that should nev First of all I wish to thank NetGalley Blackstone Publishing and Mr Harry Farthing for providing me with an ARC of the debut novel Summit which I received in exchange for my unbiased review I don’t know if Farthing is his real name but what a fabulous moniker for a British born writer Mr Farthing has extensive experience bonding with earth’s highest mountains which lends incredible authenticity to this fictional adventure thriller I recall reading Maurice Herzog’s Annapurna at least forty years ago and feeling captivated by the story of men battling the elements while challenging themselves to scale the world’s tenth highest mountain That is non fiction In Summit Farthing draws upon his love of travel and of mountaineering to execute a well drawn story of international intrigue Actually it involves two sagas seven decades apart What ties them together is the Himalayan giant the Tibetans consider to be the “Goddess Mother of the World” Chomolungma known to westerners as Mount Everest The book opens with British mountain guide Neil uinn leading a trek which involves the sixteen year old son of a wealthy American The descent has disastrous results for the team but in the process uinn makes a discovery that pushes him to probe further into Everest’s exploration history That history we see in the parallel story of a German soldier Gefreiter Josef Becker Becker along with his buddies Gunter and Kurt is involved in smuggling Jews through the mountains into Switzerland and returning with assorted contraband Each story line held some interest for me but what did a 2009 expedition and a 1938 Nazi soldier have to do with one another? For those who are looking for a fast paced thriller I suggest you look elsewhere No reading this book is like – well I suppose it’s like climbing a very steep incline One does it slowly at a careful deliberate pace Farthing alternates chapters between uinn and Becker patiently taking the reader one step at a time toward the moment when the mystery unfolds and the link between the past and the present becomes evident That is when my interest really piueduinn Becker Ang Noru Sherpa Henrietta Richards Sarron GrafAll of these characters came to life for me uinn and Becker Two men from different generations and cultures It seemed to me that each man has despite his shortcomings and flaws a dignity and strength of character that help him endure all of the mental physical and moral challenges that are thrown at him throughout the course of his uest Along the way there are those who go out of their way to assist like Henrietta Graf the Tibetan monks and Ang Noru As always when there is a hero there is an adversary For Becker it is his superior officers and the British officer Macfarlane The biggest presence in the book is the mountain herself She is climbed because she is there Some seek to conuer her Some desire only to become one with her Some ascend and never come downFarthing shows us how she brings out the best and the worst in humankind For the billionaire who sent his teenage son up to the summit to gain fame for the family name or the Nazi commanders who sought glory for the Third Reich would there be triumph? Or do men like Neil uinn and Josef Becker who climb because the mountain calls to them seek to understand the soul of the mountain? As the Sherpas chant “Om mani padme hum” which is a Buddhist mantra or meditation seeking blessings and compassionBecker and uinn have other motives certainly The suspense builds as uinn with the help of Henrietta Richards tries to find answers to his mystery What about Josef Becker? Does he reach the summit of Everest? I honestly wasn’t sure until the very end Well done Mr FarthingIf I have anything critical to add it would be that I spent a lot of time looking up terminology and foreign words This is something I often do as I read but I found myself doing it freuently as I read Summit Perhaps a few descriptions or definitions along the way would be helpful if it wouldn’t slow down the pace I did learn a lot about Everest and I even looked to see if there was any evidence of Nazi attempts at Everest in the late 30s as the writing was so convincing For those who appreciate adventure history and mystery I recommend Summit4 stars