The Mountain Between Us

Publisher's Summary

On a stormy winter night, two strangers wait for a flight at the Salt Lake City airport. Ashley Knox is an attractive, successful writer, who is flying East for her much anticipated wedding. Dr. Ben Payne has just wrapped up a medical conference and is also eager to get back East for a slate of surgeries he has scheduled for the following day. When the last outgoing flight is cancelled due to a broken de-icer and a forthcoming storm, Ben finds a charter plane that can take him around the storm and drop him in Denver to catch a connection. And when the pilot says the single engine prop plane can fit one more, if barely, Ben offers the seat to Ashley, knowing that she needs to get back just as urgently. And then the unthinkable happens. The pilot has a heart attack mid-flight, and the plane crashes into the High Uintas Wilderness - one of the largest stretches of harsh and remote land in the United States.

Ben, who has broken ribs and Ashley, who suffers a terrible leg fracture, along with the pilot's dog, are faced with an incredibly harrowing battle to survive. Fortunately, Ben is a medical professional and avid climber. With little hope for rescue, he must nurse Ashley back to health and figure out how they are going to get off the mountain, where the temperature hovers in the teens.

Meanwhile, Ashley soon realizes that the very private Ben has some serious emotional wounds to heal as well. He explains to Ashley that he is separated from his beloved wife, but in a long standing tradition, he faithfully records messages for her on his voice recorder, reflecting on their love affair. As Ashley eavesdrops on Ben's tender words to his estranged wife she comes to fear that when it comes to her own love story, she's just settling. And what's more: she begins to realize that the man she is really attracted to, the man she may love, is Ben.

©2010 Charles Martin (P)2010 Random House

Well done.

I can't stop thinking about this book which usually means five stars. It was "just another crash story" for a long time, but it took place in the High Uintahs, a range of treacherous mountains in my home state of Utah so my visualizations of the terrain were easy to come up with. They most likely would have been anyway due to Martin's good descriptive writing. Still, it took place in familiar surroundings and I liked that.

The protagonist, Ben Payne, just happened to be a doctor which might seem like Martin used his profession as a convenience, and he did, but it was so much more than that. How Martin kept the plot twist so well hidden it s a tribute to his skill as a writer. Even now just thinking about it, it brings emotions to the surface. I loved it.

Great narration!

35 of 37 people found this review helpful

Wonderful

I believe in love again! This book was written well and kept my interest. I’ve read several chapters over and over!

9 of 9 people found this review helpful

Threat of long slow painful death—by the listener

I’ve never used the term “mansplaining” in my life till now, but this book is a long boring explication by the first-person narrator, who’s a doctor, of how clever and resourceful and resilient he is. His companion in the tale is a woman who constantly marvels at him, breathlessly asking at every turn, “how do you KNOW all this?”—though she does manage, at one point, to accomplish the astonishing feat of boiling some water. She never has any ideas on how to extricate them from the situation. No, ingenuity is solely the provenance of the good doctor. Did I mention he’s a doctor? I promise you won’t forget that detail because the writer hammers over the head with it so often that you may end up with a concussion. Oh, AND he’s a state champion runner with a 4.0 GPA AND an Eagle Scout AND completely, utterly, boringly honorable. Every character is flat and one-dimensional; the dialogue is unbearably trite, and so maudlin at the end I thought I might go into a coma. I kept listening only to hear how the writer got to the “twist” ending—which was obvious halfway through. This is one of the most unlikeable narrators I’ve ever encountered. But it’s okay because he’s a DOCTOR, y’all.

42 of 47 people found this review helpful

Could NOT put this down!!!!

From the very 1st line of this book to the last, I was captivated. Pulled in, hooked, engrossed. " Totally exciting and on the edge of your seat" reading. I had read some reviews on this book and had seen it in a couple of my magazines as a "must read". Now I understand why!!! I was so engrossed in this book that I could not put it down.....I had to know what was going to happen next! I am not a fast reader because I have problems with my eyes. But, I read this book in 1 1/2 days!!! For me, that is WAAAY fast. I would read till things were blurry and stop and rest my eyes and then read again. I loved the book so much that I bought the Audible version because this is one I will read/listen to again!!! I cannot imagine going through all these 2 people go through......you think "it can't get any worse" and then,..... there it is, something worse!!! I loved the way he wrote this book and the charactors are so real that you instantly fall in love with them. I laughed and I cried, I got mad and sad, a mark of a great book for me!!! You will not be sorry you got this book. It is a must have for any library, whether book library or audible library. I have it in both places!!! This book is full of intrigue, it's fast paced, and emotional. Imagine you,1 other person and a dog, alone, crashed on the side of a mountain in the wilderness with no one around, injured and hungry, scared and alone, lost in a vast wilderness refuge and and no one even knows you are gone.......No One Knows You ARE Gone........an awesome book of determination, grit and survival. Hope you don't miss this one!!!

11 of 12 people found this review helpful

I have recommended this book dozens of times

What did you love best about The Mountain Between Us?

When someone asks me for a book recommendation, I always suggest The Mountain Between Us. I love the story, the development of the characters and interaction between Ben and Ashley, and the unexpected ending. All these add up to a superb novel about what makes us human. And I thought the narrator was excellent.

What other book might you compare The Mountain Between Us to and why?

A book I read years ago called "The Distant Summer" by Sarah Patterson. Another of my all-time favorites.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It makes me cry every time I listen to it -- and I have done so several times.

Any additional comments?

Read it - or listen to it. You won't regret it.

10 of 11 people found this review helpful

Beautiful!

Amazing story of triumph over extreme hardship and loss. Martin never disappoints! Well-narrated...strong performance. Highly recommend for anyone who enjoys a finely-crafted tale.

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

One Word...SLOWWWWW

Charles Martin is a good writer but I could have condensed this book by about half. In fact I skipped over probably 2/3 of this book. I enjoyed his other book Chasing Fireflies much more than this. It's hard to stay interested when you basically only have 2 characters in the same setting the entire time. I wanted to like it more but I just couldn't get into it.

17 of 20 people found this review helpful

10 stars for The Mountain Between Us

I usually listen to audio books when I walk and jog, but I couldn't put this away. I loved, loved, loved this story. The blend of humor and tenderness was perfect and I wanted to know these characters, to spend time with them. The narrator's voice was perfect, never distracting, he really enhanced the story. There was no cliffhanger ending, it satisfied, but I wish I could visit these people again... that's a great book for me. I'll definitely listen to more from this author.

12 of 14 people found this review helpful

I actually liked the film better

I thought the premise for the story was good, but it’s not like it’s never been done before. The thing that bothers me the most is how idiotic Ashley comes off sometimes. It seems like she never has valuable insights into their survival and everything relies conveniently on the “big smart doctor man” to save the day. And she just doesn’t seem to talk in depth about anything other than Ben’s relationship or if he has feelings about her. It just seems so juvenile and comes across as the thoughts of a 14 year old girl.

AND OH MY GOD WHEN HE TALKS ABOUT HIS WIFE ITS WAY TOO CHEESY.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Please don't end

We sat on the driveway for the last 20 minutes of this enthralling, emotional story. After a month of drive time listening, we didn't want it to end. Conflicted by two relationships you want Ben to make the right choices. The ending is brilliant. The story gripping. Nothing improbable. Suspenseful. Real life. Real emotions. Real insights. Excellent is too poor an accolade. Charles Martin is an amazing author. Thank you, Charles.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful