No Way Down: Life and Death on K2

“ey relies on a copious study of the events and interviews with survivors and families to artfully and assiduously piece together an account of a fractious day in brutal real time. ality by ality.” (Holly Morris, New York Times Book Review)

“Unputdownable.... A portrait of extreme courage, folly and loss, leavened by a small dose of survival, as complete a version of the calamitous story as will probably ever emerge. . . . [A] step-by-faltering-step recreation of the thin-air fight to survive, bristling with cinematic immediacy.” (Justin Marozzi, Financial Times)

“Harrowing.” (Jan Gardner, Boston Globe)

“An astonishingly dramatic and sad tale of disaster on K2. ey expertly puts together the complex story of what happened as eleven people died high on the summit slopes of K2 in August 2008.” (Joe Simpson, author of Touching the Void)

“Brisk and engrossing. . . . Mr. ey reveals a deep sympathy for his characters and their quest. . . . Entertaining.” (Michael J. Ybarra, Wall Street Journal)

“[A] fascinating tour de force…. ey wove his tale together after hundreds of interviews with dozens of people, and the result is a triumph of storytelling.” (Malcolm Ritter, Associated Press)

“A compelling narrative from interviews with most of the survivors. . . . The most complete report of the tragedy to date.” (Grayson Schaffer, Outside magazine)

“Harrowing. . . . ey is an intrepid journalist and gifted storyteller. . . . Thrilling and wrenching. (Kirkus Reviews)

“ey takes readers right onto the ain…. As avalanches shear away ropes, darkness falls and rescue attempts succeed and fail, the book becomes impossible to put down….. The vivid story will captivate readers. No Way Down doesn’t just tell a harrowing adventure story-it will also make you think.” (BookPage)

“Both a gripping read and a clear-eyed investigation, No Way Down provides a compelling education in the game of climbing on the world’s highest ains to readers who have never tied into a rope, and is an essential addition to any aineer’s bookshelf.” (Michael Kodas, author of High Crimes: The e of Everest in an Age of Greed)

On August 1, 2008, no fewer than eight international teams of ain climbers—some experienced, others less prepared—ascended K2, the world's second-highest ain, with the last group reaching the summit at 8 p.m. Then disaster struck. A huge ice chunk came loose above a deadly three-hundred-foot avalanche-prone gully, destroying the fixed guide ropes. More than a dozen climbers—many without oxygen and some with no headlamps—faced the nearly impossible task of descending in the blackness with no guideline and no protection. Over the course of the chaotic night, some would miraculously make it back. Others would not.

In this riveting work of narrative nonfiction, journalist Graham ey re-creates one of the most dramatic tales of death and survival in aineering history.