George Mallory's final moments remain a haunting, hotly-disputed mystery. Did the dashing young mountaineer manage to reach the summit of Mount Everest, making him the first man to ever do so? Or did he and his climbing partner, Sandy Irvine, perish heartbreakingly close to their unfulfilled goal?

A love story, a tale of adventure, and a study in obsession all at once, Above All Things is simply breathtaking. With Tanis Rideout's debut, a major new voice in Canadian fiction arrives (Joseph Boyden, Author Of Through Black Spruce )

Above All Things has it all: adventure, tragedy, mystery, and a deeply moving love story. It's gorgeously written and beautifully paced. I could not put it down. Prepare to be dazzled (Alison Pick, Author Of Far to Go )

Rideout's debut is provocative, challenging, captivating and polished - quite possibly perfect (CBC Books, 10 Canadian Writers to Watch )

A must-read for Everest buffs with a sensitive side, and for those who want to understand the anatomy of climbing accidents. It is also the perfect summer read for anyone lured by the romance of adventure, as the story goes well beyond the vast summit of Everest into much trickier terrain: the unmapped topography of the heart (Globe and Mail )

Rideout's graceful turns of phrase, her realistic knack of winging us back and forth between Cambridge and Everest, and her powerful portraits of Mallory and his climbing team allow Above All Things to reach its own spectacular literary summit (Toronto Star )

Timeless romance, an unflinching love story that touches the very core of the human condition. Rideout leaves readers holding the book close to their chest, knowing that the purpose of life, above all else, is love (Telegraph-Journal )

With Above All Things, Tanis Rideout finally fills in this void, illuminating one of the great, tragic adventure stories of the modern-day age. It's a fantastic read (David Grann New York Times bestselling author of The Lost City of Z )

Tanis Rideout's Above All Things is truly mesmerizing, a powerful weaving of the tensions and heartaches of a marriage in conflict with an obsession. It is the story of British climber George Mallory's third scaling of the walls of the world's highest mountain, and it is brilliantly told. It will take you up the slopes of Mount Everest, a climb so vividly described, you will almost feel the biting wind, the intense cold, the great drama of an historic event. But this is more than an adventure tale. Above All Things takes the reader into the hearts of both Mallory and his wife as they struggle to understand each other and their own conflicted yearnings. A deeply satisfying blend of truth and imagination that stands out from the crowd (Kate Alcott, Author Of The Dressmaker )

This magnificent novel, at once rugged and sensual, elaborates on George Mallory's assault on Everest in 1924, the ones who went, the ones who waited. Deeply felt, richly imagined, immaculately styled, and utterly compelling, Above All Things takes us to the heights of human experience and endurance, both in physical fortitude and erotic longing. Rideout brings us to the summit and back down, shaken but somehow saved by grace (Robert Goolrick, Author Of A Reliable Wife and Heading Out to Wonderf