Reading The Abominable by Dan Simmons

Recently, I was offered a review copy of The Abominable by Dan Simmons. A story about a mysterious expedition to Mount Everest in the 1920’s? The avid reader inside me was intrigued so I happily accepted it.

I came home one day to find a heavy package on my doorstop. It was the book which turns out to be over 600 pages long! But always down for a good challenge I put my nose to the grindstone and started to read and read and read. But there’s nothing like being engrossed in a good book, right?

And The Abominable is an engrossing read. It takes place in the mid 1920’s and is about a trio of mountain climbers on an expedition to Mount Everest. But this isn’t just any excursion, it’s also a recovery effort.  You see, one year prior two men perished on the mountain under mysterious circumstances and the trio has been enlisted to search the mountain and recover their bodies…and hopefully learn the reason behind their demise.

Sounds interesting, right? And it is. I often pride myself on figuring out the mystery before the conclusion but this book had me guessing. I honestly, didn’t know what was coming until the final chapters. I was intrigued throughout and only got distracted by detailed mountain climbing discussion. I don’t participate in the sport itself so it was a bit overwhelming but what could I expect from a book about Mount Everest?

And my only real complaint is that there was no sign of this guy in any of the 600 pages.

Just kidding.