Mountaineering books tend to follow a fairly predictable pattern. Expedition through exotic locations; long arduous haul up snowy slopes; a near death experience at high altitude; rounded off with some metaphysical reflections.

Scottish mountaineer Sandy Allan’s account of his epic climb on the Mazeno ridge of Nanga Parbat (8,126 mtrs), observes the conventions. But he manages to rise above the cliches to produce one of the best adventure tales I’ve read in years.

Allan and his Scottish climbing partner, Rick Allen, were in their late 50s when they took on this inconceivably demanding route on one of the highest mountains in the world in 2012. The Mazeno Ridge is about the same length as the Cuillin Ridge in Skye, 10 kms, but it is nearly all above 7,000 metres and requires fourteen days of intense climbing.

You might wonder what the point is – but the ridge remained unclimbed after…