by Anita Shreve
First published 2009
Margaret and Patrick arrive in Kenya as newlyweds, ready for their year-long African adventure. Margaret finds herself navigating unfamiliar cultural terrain while discovering unsettling truths about Patrick. When a British couple invites them to climb Mount Kenya, they accept without hesitation. The expedition turns deadly when an accident strikes during their ascent up the mountain. Margaret survives but must piece together what went wrong on the slopes above. The tragedy reshapes her understanding of her husband and their brief marriage. She grapples with questions that have no clean answers about responsibility, survival, and the people we think we know. The accident's aftermath forces Margaret to examine whether her marriage can withstand what happened in the thin air of Mount Kenya, and whether forgiveness is possible when the truth remains elusive.
Genres: fiction, drama, adventure, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, gritty, tragedy
Setting: Africa, Kenya, Mount Kenya
Period: 20th-century
Kindle Edition · Little, Brown and Company
Content warnings: death