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Summit  By  cover art

Summit

By: Harry Farthing
Narrated by: Harry Farthing
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Publisher's summary

In the autumn of 1938, Germany's reichsführer, Heinrich Himmler, is growing frustrated at the British using their regional power in India to block the passage of an SS expedition to Tibet. Determined to spite them, he plots to steal something the British hold dear and have failed for the seventh time that spring to achieve: a first summit of Mount Everest.

Seventy years later, seasoned mountain guide Neil Quinn's ninth visit to the top of the world's highest mountain, this time in charge of the 16-year-old son of a Long Island billionaire, begins to unravel. As a desperate fight for their lives begins in the freezing air high above Tibet, Quinn stumbles across a clue to a story that challenges everything he thinks he knows about the great mountain.

When the bitter aftermath of Quinn's disastrous climb turns to violent tragedy in Kathmandu, his discovery pushes him into a relentless journey that takes him from the dangerous heights of Everest to the equally treacherous margins of a new Europe, where history hungers to repeat itself.

Amid a rich and diverse cast of characters, all with their own reasons to possess the mystery of his discovery, Neil Quinn has to fight, increasingly desperately, for order and the truth.

©2013 Harry Farthing (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Historical Fiction at its Very Best!

This is a great story! "Summit" is a fictional telling of the Nazi's desire (circa 1938-39) to beat the rest of the modern-day world to the summit of Everest. In this fictional account, this goal is pursued in the most deliberate way with fascinating repercussions that create a contemporary (2009) search for evidence that the Nazi's succeeded in their achievement of that goa. I liked the story because there is quite a lot of intrigue in it, but also because it is about the mountain itself, the Sherpas who make it possible for scaling, and the constructs of a cacophony of events in world history just before WWII. In fact, the story moves from 2009 back and forth to 1938-39 smoothly and seamlessly -- weaving the stories of the central characters in such a way that readers get to know them quite well. There are three strong female characters in the story -- although I will admit that in general, it is a book about men and their quest for glory and domination.
The narration is superb and while it is "longish" at 14+ hours, this seemed like a listen that was over far, far too quickly. It was engrossing, informative and imaginative. Highly recommended for those who enjoy history with fiction as the icing on top.

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78 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

When spirits meet in the crossroads of life

Sometimes when I s search through titles and thumbnail clips of stories, I rarely expect to find a story that resurrects my belief in human nature, but this is one of those books. The story is a historical setting for a group of fictional characters.
This story begins with a group of young nazi soldiers smuggling Jewish refugees to safety at the onset of WWII, these men are caught and systematically killed off by the German SS and the one remaining soldier is trained to climb to the top of Everest and wave the 3rd Reich flag in the face of the world.
There is a 2009 parallel going on within the pages of this book and it is a thrill ride, and no less dramatic than the SS story.
There is so much going on in this book that I could not even begin to do justice to it.
There are antiquities dealers, renegade soldiers, love interests, Russian strong arms, true villains to the max.
The ultimate lesson of this story shows how difficult it is for people to do the right thing, and how difficult it s to remain on the side of truth, honor, and loyalty.
I hope you enjoy this one"....it is truly a great story!

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67 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Soaring heights of Everest to okay sea level

Totally enraptured in the initial chapters of this book. The author, who is a climber, took me to base camp, the heights, and dangers of Everest, and also caught me up in pre-WWII Nazism.. My interest waned later in the book (and it IS 17.5 hours long), so I think the story would have been more effective with some tighter editing or perhaps just changing some of the storylines. Once the historical and present day plots strayed from mountain climbing, I found the characters less believable, and the plot "twists" as well. The main baddie is taken to absurd heights of villainy - in action and spoken word. Think of any over-the-top villain and that would be this man. I understand the author was trying to give the tale modern day relevance by introducing the new Right in Germany, but I think it detracts from the story. The conclusion is relatively easy to figure out (will the 1939 duo make it to Everest and what happens if they do). I was hoping for a twist but it wraps up pretty simply and there aren't any loose ends. You'll notice I still gave it 4 stars overall. That is because, for the most part, the climbing portion of the story, while way too minimal a section of the book, is riveting. So the limpness of much of the "sea level" story didn't detract enough to make the overall rating a 3. The author as narrator does an "okay" job. Initially I thought he was really good, but as the novel progressed my opinion changed to just an average job. The main baddie is (again) over the top in actions and dialogue and the author really exaggerates the cheesy evilness factor in his voice. Think Snidely Whiplash, and if you don't know who that is, search youtube for him and listen. Once I began thinking of him as Snidely, I snickered every time he spoke in that fashion. I think the story would have been served better by leaving out the new Nazism, and cutting back on the villainy, and sticking to the heights of Tibet. So it is an enjoyable story, and judging by many reader reviews (other sites), it either reads better than it "listens" or the narrator brings the material down, or my take on this is just different than the majority.

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38 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Some Excitement, Some Duller Stretches

If you are into mountain climbing, you will like this one. For me it dragged a bit in the early and middle parts. A creatively-written plot gets tarnished at times with strange hallucinations and neo-Nazi obsessions. The skinheads are despicable, and though the author tries to paint them that way, he dwells on them a bit too much.

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35 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

What a great story excellent narration

I did not have high expectations of this book, given I had recently selected some real duds. This is a well thought out intricately woven story bringing the past & the present together to create an adventure, a mystery and a character driven story. Well worth the credit!!

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29 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Unremitting brutality marred an otherwise great story

Great dual time period Himalayan summit drama, incredible knowledge of high mountaineering. Should have been a 5 star. Trouble was, I always had to steel myself into resuming the story due to the sadistic thugs, maiming, and outright torture that permeated both timelines. Almost returned the book several times, but my interest in the Himalayas kept me listening.
Why ruin a great storyline, with a deeply researched subject containing plenty of intrinsic drama, with that trashy violence that cheap shallow novels have, because they have nothing else?
Loved the “Henrietta Richards” personna. All mountaineering fans will recognize her immediately.

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23 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

YOU CAN FEEL THE COLD!

For listening and loving to 'The One Man' this title popped up in my 'Since you liked etc.' suggestions. Mount Everest ( all 29,029 feet of her ) in many ways is the star. Seamlessly flowing from one time period to the other, the author draws you in to his thriller and dangles you over the edge. The two main characters fit the puzzle together and leaves you very satisfied at the end. Harry Farthing does a capable job as narrator and you get accustomed to his reading style as the novel progresses. Well worth the time spent.

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15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Must read for the Genre.Excited about newauthor

Been negelecting writing any reviews of late, but was compelled to give a brief one for this. If you're a historical fiction and in particular WWII era fan,this is a must. Great story that had me a bit confused at first with multiple time lines, but they come together almost seamlessly into a well written first rate mystery thriller. I don't give 5 stars very often, felt this one deserved at least one.

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15 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I loved it

It is Exciting , interesting and the performance was perfect . I just loved this book . I can't wait to introduce it to my book club.

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Has the feel of Unbroken

Pretty impressive story and narration, given the author narrates and the fact it is fictional and contains a number of characters of varying nationality and language. This, for me, was a pretty ideal combination, pre-WWII and climbing due to the drama of one and the adventure of the other. The statement regarding Unbroken, it's the period and perseverance. It may not be the best comparison, but I am confident if you enjoyed one you will the other. I look forward to future work by this author and will enjoy recommending to others. The only aspect I felt may have been overdone were the ongoing actions of the Frenchie that seemed to go on unimpeded, but that was pretty easily accepted given the quality of the remainder.

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10 people found this helpful