This is a captivating story that rings so true, at least regarding relationships.

Seventeen-year-old Danger Danielle Warren is experiencing two opposite parents in her split family. Her mother wants to set boundaries as well as protect her from being hurt by Danger's father. And Danger (goes by Danny) fits herself right between them, blaming herself for her mom's bitterness and her Dad's absence.  Like so many kids from split families, she desperately seeks attention from both parents. But, at this point, her dad is far more interested in promoting his career than being apart of his daughter's life.

However, when her estranged father, Cougar, who is part of a survivalist reality show, asks Danny to come with his team to film an episode, it seems the perfect time to work her way back into her father's life. But to travel to the Amazon is bound to bring problems according to Danny's mother. Problems that are sure to hurt Danny, perhaps both physically and emotionally.

Danny learns so much about herself and those she is with on this trip. She begins to realize that others' perceptions of her don't have to become her truths. And for those who thrive on survivalist stories, this is one that you will surely enjoy.

What Concerned Me:

Without giving away the plot, there is one adult scene in the Amazon that I could have done without. Parts of it didn't feel true to the story. Also, there were a few times while walking through the Amazon that it became a bit repetitive and long.

What I Liked Best:

This story of adventure/coming-of-age/romance/ and exploration of relationships captured my interest almost immediately. I think most teens and young adults will be happy they picked it up.

The Speed of Falling Objects-Nancy Richardson Fischer

𝐿𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑠, 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒, 𝑖𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑠, 𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡, 𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑜𝑝𝑒.

𝐷𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠.

I finished this book last night. I normally try to do my reviews immediately after I finish a book because I have a fuzzy memory sometimes (even with notes I like the fresh emotions to write reviews). I finished this book and I didn’t know how to put into words how I felt.

This book was fantastic. It truly was. The writing was wonderful. There were numerous quotes I fell in love with and the characters were real (in the sense that they could be real people with real flaws). The whole premise was terrifying and what the characters endured and lost was often unbearable. Their plane crashes in the Amazon and they have to beat the odds and survive when every thing is against them.

Where I struggled was with Danny’s relationship with her parents. She does her best and does truly love Danny, but she seems to often make decisions based on spite. A loving mother who had Danny young and gave up her dreams to raise her. We get views of her resentment towards Cougar, her using Danny as a pawn under the guise that she doesn’t want her to be hurt by Cougar and her rigid “love” that feels lukewarm at best. She redeems herself by silently making Cougar seem like a half decent father when he is barely even that. Then We have Cougar who at first comes off as a charismatic man, the light in the room kind of man. He’s a star on television and thinks highly of himself. But he is a man who abandoned his family when things got tough. He uses, puts down and humiliates Danny when she is with him. She sees him a handful of times since her accident and when she does it’s definitely not warm and fuzzy. Cougar is a narcissist and his love for Danny is mirrored as love for himself, her flaws reflect poorly on him and he constantly makes her feel insecure about herself. I immediately wanted to be on her moms side, and most of the book I hated Cougar. His ability to abandon his child left me feeling angry. Danny’s need and longing for his love, and her feelings of worthlessness and shame made me feel angrier. The author made these parents real. Their flaws and their love felt like a true to life sad story about parents who’s child gets caught in the crossfire.

In the end I admired Danny’s strength and ability to find herself, accept the things she couldn’t change and let go of the past hurt. She is a broken girl who becomes this fierce woman. As a character her growth and personality were fantastic imo. Her relationship with Gus was cute. I loved how his character progressed. Personally, out of everyone I adored Jupiter. 100% he is someone I could hang out with in the real world.

Truth.

Book Review
The Speed of Falling Objects by Nancy Richardson Fischer
Publishing Date: October 1, 2019
Read courtesy of NetGalley.com

YES! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I haven't cried while reading a book in a long time. Thank you, Ms. Fischer, for getting to me. I cannot wait to get this into the hands of my high schoool readers.

Not only did the author wow me with a book I expected to just be a knock off of Hatchet by Gary Paulsen (it wasn't!), but she also included references to one of my favoritest books of all time, The Phantom Tollbooth. This book was a win-win for me.

Danny's nickname is Pigeon, and she explains why throughout the story. Even the research on all of the pigeon characteristics and metaphors would have wowed me, but Fischer goes on to research survival skills 🔥 , the Amazon rain forests ☔️ 🌳, snakes 🐍 , spiders 🕷 , and scorpions 🦂 (among a myriad of other creepy crawlies), plane crashes ✈️ and the medical possibilities that might occur from one, the planes themselves, and reality television. And it works!

The best part of Fischer's story is that it is really about growing up as much as if not more than surviving a plane crash in the Peruvian rain forest. It's a full-on metaphor of surviving being a teen, coming-of-age, and finding identity. And she didn't preach at the reader - not once.

I could not put this book down! It had me enthralled almost immediately! This book is amazingly written and I highly recommend it. Danger "Danny" Danielle Warren is one of my favorite characters and her journey is truly inspirational.

I received a copy of The Speed of Falling Objects from Inkyard Press through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'll be totally honest. I did not expect this book to move me to tears but here we are.

Danny is such a good character. I understood her feelings of betrayal.

Find a cozy corner, or better yet a comfy bed, and crank up the a/c when your start this book because you will not want to put it down!

In #TheSpeedofFallingObjects, the backdrop is an amazon rain forest complete with creepy crawly creatures and the vast unknown. Reality star and survivalist Cougar Warren has invited his teenage daughter Danny to join him on his latest show which will feature a young rising actor Gus Price. But plans go awry when their plane crashes, and getting out alive takes on a new reality for the survivors.

What I liked best, aside from the incredible rain forest descriptions and survival lessons, is the way Danny manages to astonish time and again. The shy, quiet girl has a physical limitation but she is smart, observant, and intuitive.

When it comes to her dad, however, Danny is raw and vulnerable. She wonders how is it that the person she wants most to impress has the power to diminish her with a word. Don't we all.

There is chemistry between Gus and Danny that adds a touch of romance to the story without ever losing the focus on the complicated father-daughter relationship.

Even if there is a lot of tension as the survivors encounter one danger after another, characters like Jupiter, yes that's his name, add some lighthearted moments and insightful observations. But, the true heart of the book is Danny. As she reconciles her feelings about her parents and wields her courage like a lioness, she turns out to be the true heroine.

Many thanks to #NetGalley for the ARC of #TheSpeedofFallingObjects!

The plot of this story seemed promising, but within the first 50 pages of this, it completely lost me. The main character's dad is a movie star who has neglected her her entire life, but she springs on the opportunity to plunge (literally) into the Amazon with him in order to receive the love and appreciation he only gave her a few times in early childhood. The language of this whole book just seemed dry, and when it tried to be amusing, it felt awkward. The language is probably what lost me the most, as it just became not enjoyable to read.

Overall, I feel very underwhelmed and disappointed.

The Speed of Falling Objects had me hooked from the very first line.

I flew through this story and really adored Danny’s character. She lost one eye in a childhood accident and has been been dealing with many struggles since. She had to relearn how to do things due the affects of having limited sight and the inability to perceive distances accurately. She went from a fearless child to a teenager who is scared of more things than she’s not. Even with fear setting in she finds the strength to join her dad on his latest filming of his tv show. Her dad takes celebrities into remote and dangerous terrain to teach them survival techniques. Danny cannot pass up the chance to join her dad and get to know him better even if it means entering one of the deadliest places on earth deep in the Rain Forrest of Peru where she will be forced to face her fears straight on.

Nancy Richardson Fischer has created a riveting story that pulls you in and makes you wonder how you’d survive when faced with your deepest fears. It’s full of twists, danger and keeps you wondering what could possibly happen next.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with the ARC. I really really loved this book! I am always watching survival TV shows on TV and a book where survival is the core center plot will be amazing to me! This was a wild adventure ride and I enjoyed my time reading this.

Danny is blind in one eye, afraid of everything, and pretty sure that she's unlovable. Kids at school have teased her forever, and she hasn't spent time with her dad, Cougar, in years. He left after her accident, disappointed in all the things she suddenly couldn't do. Now Cougar is the star of his own reality show where he takes celebrities out into the wild and helps them survive extreme weather, animal-encounters, and death-defying treks through dangerous environments. He's doing an episode in the Amazon, and he invites Danny to come along and meet Gus Price, the latest teen heartthrob who will be joining him. But when their plane crashes in the rainforest, suddenly Danny has to find a way to conquer her fears and use her extensive knowledge of both her dad's show and medicine (gleaned from time with her mom, an ER nurse) to help them all make it home.

I didn't really know what to expect from this book, but it was a lot of fun. A little bit of Bear Grylls mixed with Survivor mixed with MacGuyver...basically just figuring out how to survive out in the wilderness where you have to use the random supplies you have (duct tape to close wounds, etc) and find food (snake and grubs) while avoiding all the things that can kill you (spiders and crocodiles and jaguars and SHARKS--did you know there were fresh-water sharks in the Amazon, because I didn't!). They built shelters and rafts, they waded through swamps, and they got to know the strangers they were traveling with pretty quickly due to the intense circumstances. It was an adventure for sure, and it was heartbreakingly clear that they weren't all going to make it. I couldn't put this book down because I had to find out what was going to happen.

All the characters had a lot of personality and a great back-story which is doled out in little pieces along their journey to keep the reader invested in them. You find out why Cougar is the way he is, how Gus became a movie star, and just how broken and defective Danny believes she is. Of course, the whole adventure changes Danny's whole image of herself, so even more than just being a story of survival in the rainforest, it's the story of a young girl realizing that sometimes those voices in your head are WRONG and that YOU get to decide who you're going to be. What a strong and empowering message.

This was a great read! I'm sad that it's over.

***Thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin Teen and Inkyard Press for such a fun read!***

Thank you Netgalley for providing this ARC of The Speed of Falling Objects by Nancy Richardson Fischer.

Danny (Danielle), feels like a lost soul. Dealing with teasing at school for only having one eye, not having a good relationship with her mother, or her best friend, and never really knowing her celebrity father, has left her feeling stranded. Danny is self conscious, easily intimidated and hesitant to make decisions. So it's no surprise when her "Bear Grylls-like" dad offers to take her on the adventure of a lifetime, that Danny eventually decides to go. A trip to the Amazon, on camera, with a hunky teen heartthrob Gus Price. Her mother is dismayed, but Danny is hopeful that this will strengthen her character and draw her closer to her dad.

Things take a dangerous turn quickly after their small plan crashes right in the heart of the jungle. They immediately lose members of their crew and they have to act fast to survive. Will this bring her and her dad closer? Will this kindle a romance between her and her celebrity crush? Things are going to have to get a lot worse before they get better.

If I were a teen, I probably would have loved this. It's got great adventure, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants action, and gooey romance. As a cynical old lady though, it's ridiculously unbelievable. The overly exaggerated characters, the accident itself, and the overnight transformation of Danny. But, that didn't mean that it wasn't fun to read.

Hello Lovelies. Sorry I've been a bit neglectful in posting here. I had the opportunity to read an advanced copy The Speed of Falling Objects by Nancy Richardson Fischer courtesy of NetGalley and Harlequin TEEN. While I was granted the ability to read it for free, in exchange for my honest review, all thoughts are my own.

Here's the thing...I literally can't give this book fewer than five stars because it's the first one in probably at least a decade that I accidentally stayed up all night reading because I literally couldn't put it down. (Okay, I did put it down once, at about three in the morning, to try to sleep, but I couldn't stop thinking about it...apparently others have read the whole thing in less than four hours, but I'm not that fast of a reader.)

The most important factor to me, about this story, was the voice. Regardless of anything else, the voice was so gripping that I kept getting utterly caught up in the story. I don't actually think I'd have ever picked it up if I'd realized that this was not the cute contemporary that for some reason I had assumed it was, and that it was instead an adventure/thriller story set in a rainforest filled with horrible creepy crawlies constantly trying to kill everyone. I'm glad I read it, though. It was intense, and heartfelt. The main character's personal growth was beautiful to watch, and I was definitely rooting for her and her friends. I wasn't actually the biggest fan of the romance, but that was a small portion of the story. I would perhaps rate it 4.5 stars overall instead of 5 because of the romance portion, if it hadn't been the only book that had captivated me so utterly in such a long time.

I would recommend it for fans of The Sandcastle Empire (minus the sci-fi elements) and the show Lost, and thriller fans in general. It was incredibly gritty and vivid and raw. A fantastic read, even if I do end up drinking every bit of coffee I own today to stay awake, lol.

**I will be sharing this review on Goodreads, and my instagram stories today (https://www.instagram.com/read.write.coffee/), and on my Instagram feel at the end of August of beginning of September.

Riveting adventure story with a protagonist who shares her worries and fears. After reading this, you will know more about the dangers of the Amazon than you ever wanted.

I enjoyed this book. Being stranded in the rainforest jungle and needing to survive reminded me a little bit of the hunger games - the characters stuck together and had to survive. It also was realistic - not everyone gets a happily ever after. I loved the main character. Wish her dad was a little different. Gus was a fun character to be a part of the story.

Oh, this is a good one! The story starts with an almost impossibly perfect premise (a plane crash and survival with a father, a celebrity and a crew.) As such, our characters are thrown into a survival situation that reveals values and gets everyone into an authentic zone where relationships come alive and challenge the bugs for the most present influence. This is a quick read, but does more to accomplish a living, breathing environment than so many other recent book. Dialogue locks you in, and you're right there with these characters for a gripping, thought-provoking adventure. You'll be asking what you'd do, think and want if you were ever in that kind of scary situation, which is the mark of a very successful book. Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for a review copy. I enjoyed this one very much and will look for other titles by this supremely talented author.

This book was fabulous! Danny is the most amazing character and I think I fell in love with Jupiter just a little bit. From the time the plane crashes in the jungle until the very end and that last game of truth or dare I could not put this book down. It was so well written that I was pulled completely into the story and didn’t want to leave!

The Speed of Falling Objects is a great edge of your seat novel. I fell in love with the story and characters from the very first chapter. This is a great story that teaches you if you dig deep inside yourself you can accomplish anything. GREAT STORY FOR ALL!!!!!

The Quick Cut: A girl who lost her eye at a young age agrees to go on a trip to the Amazon with her long absent celebrity father. Chaos arises when the plane crashes and everyone's life is thrown in peril.

A Real Review:
Thank you to Inkyard Press for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Parents take a serious fall from grace the older we get. When we're young they often are seen as heroes who raise us and show us right from wrong. As we wise up, eventually the reality of being human like the rest of us sets in and disappointment occurs. So when one parent is missing in action, does the fall look like a crash & burn or do they stay mythical in status? For our heroine Danny, the reality of her parent's faults come epically crashing down.

Danny is a girl with many faults. Having lost her eye at a young age (and her father soon after), she has spent her life keeping her head down and playing it the safe route to ensure she keeps her remaining eye. Being the book smart one in the room is the way to going into any situation well advised. Unfortunately, thats all thrown out the window when her absentee dad offers Danny a spot on a trip to the Amazon and she accepts...with the plane crashing on the way there. Will she find that the truth hurts or is she more resilient than she gives herself credit for?

I inhaled this book in less than eight hours. Once I started this story, I could not stop myself because it just pulled me in and I had to know the ending for Danny. She's gone through so much in her life and blamed herself for so many issues with her parents that its hard not to feel for her. Once the action gets going, reality hits hard core for this group with snakes, bug bites, traumatic injuries, & impossible odds to find safety. I kept dropping my jaw in shock each time the odds increased and for good reason - you couldn't help but wonder if this would end ugly.

Danny takes a true journey in this book between discovering the truth of her childhood, seeing her father for who he is, realizing the person she truly is, & what strength she has inside her. Those are all areas in life alone that are tough to swallow and she takes the hits one after the next like a champion (even if she doesn't see it at first). It's intense and heroic all at once.

On the polar opposite side, her dad named Cougar is selfish, conniving, and basically Bear Grylls if you want another celebrity to match him against. Although on the outside he's a wilderness man, it doesn't take long for his true colors to show and how much it impacts everyone in his circle. I absolutely wanted him to die full disclosure but by the end felt bad for it. You see his reason for the way he is and instead he becomes a flawed man rather than a villain.

With a great story and heroine to pull you in, Nancy has written another hit that cannot be missed.

My rating: 5 out of 5

Thank you NetGalley for the digital copy of The Speed of Falling Objects by Nancy Richardson Fischer. Danny (Danielle) feels like a misfit since losing an eye and being caught in the middle of a divorce. Raised by her mom, she hasn't seen her famous survivalist dad for years. Her mom is bitter since the divorce and her dad doesn't come around. Danny accepts an invite to be in one of his survivalist television shows filmed in the Amazon Rain Forest to try to get to know her dad better. In the end Danny learns who her father truly is. This story is about how people aren't always what we think they are, that people will disappoint us; but in the end we have to look for the good in people so we can move on and live a full life.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Thanks NetGalley!

What an intriguing storyline. Danni lost an eye and had to relearn a lot. Her dad is a famous tv star whom has been mostly absent. Danni blames herself ro this, thinking she isn't "enough" for him so she jumps at the chance to start on his tv show. Unfortunately the plan crashes, and she learns a secret that will make herself question her father as she knows him.

such a fun/good read.