Reviews

The Mountain Story by Lori Lansens

jennafernandez0824's review

fast-paced

4.5

pretty1npinkk's review

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicide

lesbianelvira's review

adventurous challenging emotional tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use

Minor: Murder, Child abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

read this in two days. i can’t speak fully of course, but i feel like this was a wonderful depiction of boyhood, namely the way it goes in poverty and under the “care” of deadbeat fathers. i was so taken by the contrast of pain and scarcity wolf experienced (save for the love of his best friend), to how fully he intended to take care of the devines. how fiercely loving they all were.

how bridget made her dream come true for her family and wolf, who became family, by committing the ultimate sacrifice.

i’d think i would know where things were going, but was always surprised. there was no perfect happy outcome, but it’s like nola said, there’s value to be found in the sadness.

thatpatti's review against another edition

4.0

I really really enjoyed this.

bails_bookshelf's review

4.0

4.5 stars

segza's review

5.0

2019 is the year I finish books on my “on-hold” shelf.

I started this over a year ago and have kept re-borrowing it from the lib while it sat unread throughout the intervening period. I think I knew how much it would stay with me and wrench my guts so was waiting for the right time to fully dive in. That time is the magical first week of January when I’m off work and I have no plans other than read read read.

This story of overcoming loss of loved ones while developing new bonds and seeing broken bonds being mended, all while 4 hikers try to survive being lost on a treacherous mountain for five days without any supplies is a page turner and emotional roller coaster. It deftly written and as a result will stay with me for a long time (and give me nightmares as I train to hike Kilimanjaro later this year!!!)

nancidrum's review

4.0

Well written adventure novel. Equally appealing for men and women. Especially interesting if you've ever taken the tram up the mountain in Palm Springs, CA and hiked the mountain, which we did in 2007. She keeps you guessing through the whole novel and does a great job telling the story through the eyes of a young man.

randyrasa's review against another edition

3.0

Enjoyed it. I thought it started slowly, and the main characters were more annoying than likeable for a good part of the book, but eventually the plot picked up and the characters became more human. The ending was excellent.

kirstwantstoread's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.75

sjklass's review

4.0

It's a good thing it worked out to be a rainy weekend morning to read the last 150 pages of this intense survival story. I would surely have called in sick. Symptoms, alternating quickened breathing and breath holding accompanied by elevated heart rate. So suspenseful and heart wrenching, this is a character study wrapped up in a thriller. Lost on a rugged mountain, the four characters spend their days trying to be found, trying to survive and the long nights sharing their life stories and reasons for being up on that mountain in the first place. "The most successful people in the most impossible situations are the ones that are sure they're going to get out of it, and they go on thinking that, even if they die trying." This is a thought provoking tale of resilience, redemption and heroism. Google told me that the setting of Mount San Jacinto and the Palm Springs tram was real and not merely fictional. It is now added to my bucket list of places to visit.