The Mountain Between Us

The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin is a survival story about two strangers who form an incredible bond when the pilot of their small plane has a heart attack and they crash into a remote mountain wilderness in Utah. Dr. Ben Payne on his way home after a medical conference rents a small plane to get him out of Salt Lake City ahead of an oncoming blizzard. He invites Ashley Knox a writer who is trying to get home for her wedding to join him.

Ben, Ashley and Napoleon, the pilot’s dog survive the crash, but Ashley is quite severely injured with a broken leg and several deep cuts. Ben has broken ribs but nevertheless, he immediately goes into survival mode and thanks to both his medical and hiking experience manages to keep them show more alive and hopeful. Eventually they come to the realization that no one is coming to rescue them and Ben knows that unless they somehow manage to walk out of this wilderness, they are going to perish.

The Mountain Between Us is more than just a survival story though. Both Ben and Ashley are questioning their futures. Ben is deeply in love with his wife but they are having difficulties that he doesn’t know how to overcome. Meanwhile Ashley is wondering if she is just settling for marriage as she doesn’t feel the profound love for her fiance that she thinks she should.

Somehow this story worked wonderfully well for me. I love survival stories and even though the plot relied heavily on how convenient it was that Ben was an orthopedic surgeon, that he’s a long-distance runner with incredible strength and stamina, and that one of his hobbies includes wilderness hiking, I was absolutely totally glued to the pages. Also reading this book in summer, it was refreshing to read of their struggles through waist deep snow.

The Mountain Between Us is a story of survival, adventure and romance. It totally absorbed me and I was sorry to see it end, obviously the right book at the right time. Of course, thinking of the movie that was made of this book, and picturing the gorgeous Idris Elba as Ben, certainly went a long way toward my reading satisfaction. show less

I didn’t see this one coming.

This book was a recommend to me by my husband who watched the movie on a flight several years ago. “You would love this book,” he told me. After reading Charles Martins’ Chasing Fireflies, I picked up The Mountain Between Us. Just wow — as I’ve said before, if you haven’t read a Charles Martin book, you are missing out.

Due to weather in Salt Lake, commercial flights are canceled. Desperate to get home, Dr. Ben Payne hires a charter pilot, Grover, to fly him home to Florida to his wife and kids. On a whim, he asks Ashley, a fellow passenger who is on her way home for her wedding, if she’d like to join so as not to be late for her special day. The three, and Grover’s dog, beat the storm and show more head toward Denver when Grover’s heart gives out leaving Ben, Ashley, and Napoleon, the name Ben and Ashley give to the dog, to survive the Uintas Wilderness. Without filing a flight plan, and with neither Ben nor Ashley having told anyone of their change from commercial to charter, no one is looking or them. To make matters more dire, upon impact, Ashley’s shoulder dislocates and her femur breaks. Making it out of the vast, rugged, and isolated terrain alive will take more than shear strength.

The Mountain Between Us is an incredible story that is superbly written, and worth every minute it takes to read it. I hear the movie is good as well, but I have no intention of watching it — why ruin a good book by trying to put the words on screen.

I cannot stress enough how The Mountain Between Us will have you looking inward, mulling over your personal relationships, and checking yourself to uncovering your strength. And the ending — a total shocker to me. I LOVE THIS BOOK and wish it just kept going. show less

I'm not usually a big fan of plane crashes and living off the land kind of books, but this one was really, really good. SPOILERS: They do not eat people and the dog doesn't die, which was all an added bonus in my book. This book was given to me as a recommendation by my mom and I read it very quickly. Great story about survival and if you think you're having a bad day, read this book. I could see the ending coming a mile away that his wife was actually dead. I think about halfway through the book, something was said and it clicked and I went back and read the "voicemail" that he listened to before taking off that he didn't reply to. Oh, I think it was when it brought up the pregnancy and she wasn't going to make it. I was like, oh, show more she's dead. I thought maybe the kids were alive too, but nope. Some weird ass mausoleum instead. Great story, gave me tears while also being a super quick read! show less

Dr. Ben Payne is trying to get home to Jacksonville, Florida, after attending a medical conference. He is on a layover. Ashley Knox, a successful freelance journal, is eager to get home to Atlanta. Her wedding is in two days.

Ben and Ashley are sitting near plugs, on the floor, working until they can board. However, a rapidly approaching winter storm is impacting the Salt Lake City airport. Flights are being canceled, but they each hold out hope. When one of the two de-icing trucks breaks down, a fight out that night seemed remote.

After they pick up a hotel voucher and trudge toward baggage claim, Ben spots a charter plane service across the way. He races over and convinces the pilot to take him to Denver. Grover, the pilot, show more reluctantly agrees. Remembering Ashley and her need to get to Atlanta, Ben hurries back to the terminal and asks her if she wants to catch a ride.

Agreeing, the two hop aboard with Grover and his dog, Tank. They take off with only minutes to spare before the storm closes the airport. Mid-way through the flight, Grover suffers a massive coronary. The plane crashes into the High Unitas Wilderness---one of the harshest (the area gets 500-700 FEET of snow each year) and remotest areas in the continental U.S.

When Ben comes to, he is suffering from several broken ribs. Ashley has a leg fracture. The dog seems to be okay. It’s snowing. Hard. And it’s bitterly, bitterly cold.

Thankfully, Ben is a mountain climber. He has some equipment with him. One big problem. He could hike his way out; if he knew where he was. Not only that, Grover didn’t have to file a flight plan, so no one knows they are missing.

The story that follows is Ben, Ashley and Tank’s month-long quest to find food, water, warmth, and a way out.

Author Martin did an amazing job of repeating the same harrowing scene without the story becoming repetitious. Along the way, the two learn about each other lives, but Ben has a secrets. They are doled out slowly and are shocking, which only added to the tension of the story.

The Mountain Between Us gets 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world. show less

This was more than a survival story, it was about forgiveness, hope, and looking toward the horizon. When two strangers find themselves on a charter flight over the mountains, they never suspect that they will soon crash and have to brave the horrible winter alone after their pilot is killed. Stuck high in the mountains, Ashley has a broken leg and Ben has broken ribs. Fortunately for her, Ben happens to be a doctor and has some survival skills. He sets her leg, but they will need to find food and shelter if they want to make their way down the mountain. They are in a nature preserve with no roads or buildings for miles and the altitude isn't helping their healing or breathing. The two must find hope and companionship if they want to show more stay alive. They may even find more than that high in the mountains. I was mad for the first half of the book, caught on to a potential twist (I was right) and pretty much predicted the end. I still enjoyed it though! show less

THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US
Charles Martin

MY RATING ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
PUBLISHER Broadway Books
PUBLISHED June 2010

SUMMARY
A chance meeting at the Salt Lake City airport, and a canceled flight all lead to a small charter plane crashing in the remote Utah wilderness. It's January. The pilot, Grover has had a heart attack. The passengers Ben Payne, a doctor from Jacksonville Florida and Ashley Knox, a writer from Atlanta, barely survived. He was headed home from a medical conference and she was headed to her much anticipated wedding to Vince. Ben has broken ribs, a collapsed lung and can barely breathe, and Ashley, full of cut and scrapes, has a badly broken leg. There is no way she can walk. They are in the middle of nowhere and no show more one knows where they are. There is no cell phone service and no crash position indicator. To survive they will have to make it out on their own.

Ben, has to figure out how to get he and Ashley off the mountain and out of the wilderness. Although, Ben is separated from his wife Rachel, he faithfully uses a voice recorder to capture his feelings, thoughts and experiences for her. Ashley is fascinated by Ben's faithfulness to his wife despite their separation. Ben, Ashley and even Napoleon, Grovers dog who also survive the crash, have to battle the freezing temperatures, treacherous terrain, hunt for food, and have the will to survive a physical, as well as emotional maelstrom.

REVIEW
CHARLES MARTIN is one of my favorite authors and he has a way of bringing characters to life, and making you feel what they feel. Both Ashley and Ben are strong characters and full of emotion. Ben's emotions, his fear and desperation, are eloquently captured by the voice recorder for his wife. Despite her tremendous pain, Ashley uses humor to effectively lighten up the intense quest for survival. You can't help falling in love with all the characters in this book. Even Napoleon's fight for survival captures your heart.

Not only does THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US capture an intense survival adventure but also includes Ben's flashbacks to his life story. Ben shares about growing up with a hard driving father, who woke at 4am for training runs on the beach. He shares about seeing Rachel in high school on the track for the first time, followed by their courtship and marriage. All of this combines to give the story immense depth and make it interestingly complex and emotionally charged.

The settings are vividly described. From the freezing Utah mountain terrain, full of snow covered birch and evergreen trees, to the warm sandy beaches of Ponte Vedra, and the loggerhead turtles, you can't help but feel you are there. This book is one of those books you will want stay up reading until late into the night. CHARLES MARTIN has a way of doing that to readers. THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US is currently being made into a movie, which is set to be released in September 2017. Read the book first! show less

Ben is a Florida surgeon, out of town for a medical conference. Ashley is a writer, headed home to Georgia for her wedding. They meet by chance in a Salt Lake City airport, but are forced to wait an extra day for departure when an incoming storm cancels their flights. Both anxious to get home, Ben decides to charter a small plane from a private pilot and invites Ashley to accompany him, knowing she is anxious to get home to her fiance. Shortly after takeoff, the charter plane crashes. The pilot is dead, but Ben and Ashley, along with the pilot's dog, survive. Ashley has a broken leg, and Ben suspects he's broken some ribs and possibly punctured a lung. Stranded in the snow-filled mountainous wilderness of Utah, no one knows where they show more are and with no help anticipated to arrive, they must find their way back to civilization on their own.

Despite the fact that this sounds like a somewhat cliche'd survival story, it was more than that and I found myself engrossed all the way through. The chapters alternate between the present survival tale and Ben's flashbacks to he and his wife, who he's estranged from. I didn't care as much for the flashback portions -- I found them mildly sappy and predictable -- but I was totally swept up in the tale of survival, despite the odds and despite some bits that were probably a bit farfetched. I really wanted to watch the movie after finishing this, but it's gotten mixed reviews and seems to vary a lot from the book, so I'm not sure if I'll watch or not. But I did enjoy this book and would recommend it. show less