Night Without End

This has many elements that make it a good Alistair MacLean thriller. A plane crash, hostile terrain, a medical man for a protagonist, a closed circle of suspects. I was shivering with cold just reading it. Most of the characters had a chance to play a key role in the story, even the women (as much as is possible in these older thrillers). It’s not top of my list for favourite MacLeans, but it’s definitely just outside the podium.

So, this one just made me want to go get closer to my woodstove! Wow! BBRRRRRR!!!!! The horror of the realization of what was transpiring and where was truly unsettling....and as always, those cool-headed normal guys that suddenly find themselves embroiled in crisis and have to step up and become super heroes, endure unbelievable suffering to try to save the day. That is a quality that we all secretly aspire to be capable of, but truly question whether it would be so, if we were so unlucky to find ourselves in this story. I thoroughly enjoyed not being able to figure out who the villains were or why they were so persistent until brought out near the end. Oh well, this helped me keep my Maine woodstove going longer than normal into show more spring which saved me money on heating oil.....i kept stoking it while i finished the book, stuggling to stay warm! And while i do enjoy the adventure of these guys battling unbelievable odds to survive, the unbelievable part of it probably keeps me from giving a higher rating. And the ending of this was a bit of an abrupt brick wall...no time to decompress....it was just over! If i have made this sound unappealing, that is not my intent....i enjoyed it a lot....it was just a bit unsettling, not bad. Give it a whirl.....but keep a blanket nearby! show less

Gripping tale of survival in a harsh environment, with some intrigue and "who-done-it?" mixed in, with quite good results.

Solid book by the author, and definitely recommended.

Perhaps my favorite book of all-time. It was so good that when the book ended, I cried. Not because it was a sad book, but because there was no more to read. Sappy, but true.

I've read almost all the MacLean novels, and this is my favorite.

Seconds ago the passengers were sitting in the cozy security of their pressurized cabin with a controlled temperature of 70°. Then the crash, the tearing, jagged screeching as the plane ripped along the ice and snow. The tidal wave of the dreadful cold, 40° below zero, swept in and engulfed the survivors-the dazed, the injured, the unconscious and the dying-as they sat in the crumpled wreckage of their seats, wearing only thin suits and dresses.
And so began the terrible arctic night, a night without end, where the darkness would bring with it murder and betrayal and cowardice. And the chilling knowledge that among them was a ruthless agent determined to carry out his desperate mission. -- From the web show more (http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Den/7062/maclean) show less

Upper-Intermediate Early,