Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

$0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Breathless cover art

Breathless

By: Amy McCulloch
Narrated by: Katie Leung
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
activate_primeday_promo_in_buybox_DT

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Deep, Deep Snow cover art
Peak cover art
Stranded cover art
The Way of the Brave cover art
Aftershock cover art
The Lodge cover art
The Resort cover art
Higher Love cover art
When You Find Me cover art
The Dark cover art
Crime After Crime: The Complete Series cover art
The Fifth Guest cover art
The Island cover art
The Bond: Two Epic Climbs in Alaska and a Lifetime's Connection Between Climbers cover art
Tell Me Lies cover art
The Next Everest cover art

Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

It's ice cold. You're miles from help. And one of you will be next....

Get the year's most gripping thriller now and listen to the book that everyone will be talking about....

When struggling journalist Cecily Wong is invited to join an expedition to climb one of the world's tallest mountains, it seems like the chance of a lifetime.

She doesn't realise how deadly the climb will be.

As their small team starts to climb, things start to go wrong. There's a theft. Then an accident. Then a mysterious note, pinned to her tent: there's a murderer on the mountain.

The higher they get, the more dangerous the climb becomes, and the more they need to trust one another.

And that's when Cecily finds the first body....

©2022 Amy McCulloch (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

Breathless is a high-altitude, high-stakes thriller that combines fascinating, authentic mountaineering experience with pure thriller entertainment. The suspense rises like the Nepalese mountain it is set on. Reminded me of the best of Michael Crichton, where in-depth knowledge and a masterful plot work together to create a tense adrenaline-fuelled ride. I loved it (Matt Haig)
If you're looking for a book to thrill and transport you, then Breathless is the read for you! Set high in the chilling Death Zone, this thriller had me on the edge of my seat. I loved being immersed in the competitive, high-stakes world of alpine climbing and Amy brilliantly evokes how risky this setting is, a setting that can only get deadlier with a murderer on the mountain... A must read for 2022 (Sarah Pearse, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Sanatorium)

Tense, chilling and terrifying with unforgettable characters and an unpredictable and atmospheric plot. One of the most original thrillers I've read. It deserves to be huge! (Claire Douglas, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Couple at No. 9)

What listeners say about Breathless

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    71
  • 4 Stars
    43
  • 3 Stars
    24
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    2
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    75
  • 4 Stars
    33
  • 3 Stars
    18
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    58
  • 4 Stars
    39
  • 3 Stars
    21
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An enjoyable informed story

It reads as if the author knows her stuff on the mountains and at times I forgot I was listening to fiction. Looking forward to more adventures with our heroine.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Unbelievably boring

I have no idea how this book has been classed as nail biting. 5 hours in and it’s a massive snooze fest. I can’t make myself listen until the end it’s so sloooow going. The characters are uninteresting the main character is just again.., boring.
The narrator tries but fails to distinguish between different voices and she’s also monotone. Maybe good if you’re struggling to fall asleep…

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

A chilling, immersive and incredible book

This is the best book I've listened to for a long set. Set in the epic Himalayan Mountains, this is a story of alpine heroism and murder. The scenes and settings make you feel like you are there on this epic climb with a murderer on the loose. Shiveringly amazing and I totally recommend this.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Breathtaking not Breathless

Totally enthralling from beginning to end. Fabulous storyline and descriptions of the environment so clear they immersed your senses as if you were watching a film.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

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

An epic read!

A fast paced heart thumping read filled with twists & turns with a backdrop of exhilarating mountain knowledge…. Loved it!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Breathless I thought it was a weird Title!

I brought this book with my credit, but it was not the book I wanted. I picked the wrong book!
But it is so good I couldn’t put it down. The narrator, was fantastic,the story was brilliant. Overall, I was very happy with picking wrong book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

What a book!

The only word I can say is, wow. This was an absolutely fantastic read. It compelled me to do my own research into the dangers of mountain climbing and the mountains are really not to be messed with. It’s clear Amy has done a lot of research into writing this.
Onto the story itself, I couldn’t put it down. I loved the atmosphere of slowly building tension right from the word go. From Cecily’s sexist immature and jealous ex to paranoia and death. I was rooting for most of the team. There were times I laughed, scenes which made me cry and the tension towards the end was almost unbearable. The only thing I was a little sad about was I was left with a few unanswered questions, but then that does leave us with a mountain of our own, our imagination. Well done Amy, a truly brilliant read and it was also fascinating to learn about mountain climbing while reading a really good crime thriller along the way! I think Aly’s was my favourite character, with Zach not far behind. Would highly recommend this book to any thriller fans, although if you’re planning on climbing a mountain soon and considering a book to take with you, I don’t think this is the one you’ll want to pack! Perhaps you should read this when you’re back on firm ground again after you’ve reached the summit and made it safely back down!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Breathless

As if climbing mountains isn’t dangerous enough, it looks as if there might be a killer on the loose.
An interesting and different thriller.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Jo
  • 24-09-23

Enjoyable

Absorbing mystery if you have an interest in the mountains. However, the ending seemed very rushed, which was at odds with the slow unfurling of the story up until then. There were technical things one could argue with, but that didn't really affect my enjoyment of the story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

enjoyable listen

An interesting look at climbing in the death zone from a beginners perspective. And a murder mystery rolled into one!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!