You just boarded a flight to New York.
There are one hundred and forty-three other passengers onboard.
What you don’t know is that thirty minutes before the flight your pilot’s family was kidnapped.
For his family to live, everyone on your plane must die.
The only way the family will survive is if the pilot follows his orders and crashes the plane.
Enjoy the flight.
Falling is a book that has loads of publicity. The author is ex cabin crew, she wrote the novel whilst working the red-eye shifts as her passengers slept. Getting her story published wasn't easy and she submitted it 41 times and got 41 knock backs before she was taken on by an agent. Shen then landed a seven figure deal for a two-book deal, and the story is being adapted for film. What an incredible story and inspiration for all of those writers who continue to chase down that elusive publishing deal.
This is a fast-paced, high action story with an intriguing and compelling quandary as the theme of the plot. It is one of those books that the reader see visually when reading, and it's going to make one hell of a film!
Captain Bill Hoffman is a long time, well respected pilot. When his boss asks him last minute to pick up a shift, he doesn't feel able to refuse. His wife Carrie is not pleased though. Scott, their young son has a big game that day and Bill will miss it. It's probably the worst decision that Bill will ever make.
After take off, Bill is unable to contact Carrie by phone, he hates leaving her after an argument and it's a little into what he thought was a standard domestic flight that the video appears on his phone. He sees Carrie and Scott, they are in danger and the man with them gives Bill two choices.
Crash the plane and kill everyone on board, and save his wife and son's lives.
Crash the plane and kill everyone on board, and save his wife and son's lives.
Don't crash the plane, and his family die.
The reader sees the whole story from three different points of view. Inside the plane via Bill and head cabin crew member Jo, and on the ground from FBI agent Theo. Three people, stuck in the middle of one of the most dangerous situations, all with a different viewpoint. All three of them are aware of different things, at different times, whilst the reader gets to know everything just before they do. This is a really great way of increasing the tension of the story, and that tension really really does mount up to what is a frantic and desperate race towards a fabulous finale.
It's clear that the author has a background in the industry, her description of procedure and use of professional lingo adds to the air of authenticity. Her characters are well described although I did get a sense of James Bond / Tom Cruise about Theo at times, he certainly got himself into some pretty amazing scrapes to solve his case.
I have no doubt that Falling is going to be a big Summer hit. It's fun and great entertainment and will make everyone feel a tiny bit uneasy next time they board a plane.
T. J. Newman, a former bookseller turned flight attendant, worked for Virgin America and Alaska
Airlines from 2011 to 2021.
She wrote much of Falling on cross-country red-eye flights while her passengers were asleep.
She lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Falling is her first novel.
Twitter @T_J_Newman
Instagram @tj_author
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