The story unfolds when the pilot dies midflight over "one of the largest stretches of harsh and remote land in the United States" and crash-lands the plane at 15,000 ft elevation and 50 miles from any civilization. No wheels, no wings, Ben and Ashley, injured but alive, must battle the elements, a mountain cat or two, find food, not freeze to death, and somehow get themselves off the mountains. Don't be fooled; this is not just a story of survival, though I love survival stories! But it's also a story about mountains.... personal mountains, and specifically Ben's mountain. A mountain he must climb, conquer and hopefully descend!
The Mountain Between Us is well written and holds you til you finish. Matter of fact, I finished this book, sitting outside on a warm, VERY warm, Sunday afternoon...... in the elements! It only seemed right to do so. I was accompanied by a sparrow wetting it's wings in a nearby bird bath, three lazy cats sprawled out on my lawn sleeping soundly and letting the bird bathe, and a best-friend Border Collie, eyes on me, sitting at my feet. There was a delicate breeze that made it all lovely and bearable as I spent time with Ben and Ashley who were not having a lovely time in their own brutal elements. I survived the heat; Ben and Ashley, they..... Well! You read it yourself!
Charles Martin also wrote When Crickets Cry and Where the River Ends. Both worth your time. The Mountain Between Us is the June 2012 selection for the Delphi Public Library Faith-Inspired Book Club!
