Ghosts of K2

The race for the summit of the world’s most deadly mountain

At 28,251 ft, K2 might be almost 800 ft shorter than Everest, but it’s a far
harder climb. In this definitive account, Mick Conefrey grippingly describes
the early attempts to reach the summit and provides a fascinating exploration
of the first ascent’s complex legacy.

From the drug-addicted occultist Aleister Crowley to Achille Compagnoni and
Lindo Lacedelli, the Italian duo who finally made it to the summit, The Ghosts
of K2 charts how a slew of great men became fixated on this legendary
mountain.

Through exclusive interviews with surviving team members and their families,
and unrivalled access to diaries and letters that have been archived around
the world, Conefrey evokes the true atmosphere of the Savage Mountain and
explores why it remains the ‹mountaineer’s mountain›, despite a history
steeped in controversy and death.

Wrought with tension, and populated by tragic heroes and eccentric dreamers,
The Ghosts of K2 is a masterpiece of mountaineering literature.