What can I say about "Falling" which hasn't been said already. It's a fantastic read, after reading a few chapters I immediately thought about the Die Hard movies. I know they're over the top but they are non-stop action throughout and those are my kind of action movies, what can I say I'm simple lolol.

Falling starts with Captain Bill Hoffman of too work on his day off as a favour for his Boss flying from LAX to JFK, as soon as the flight takes off he receives a msg, he's family has been kidnapped and he has to crash the plane in order to save his family. From then on it's non stop action alternating between the flight and Bill's family on the ground.

I believe the book rights have been bought by a major film studio and I'll be the first on the cinema queue.

Thanks to Netgalley & Avid Reader Press for the advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I should not love books like this, but I always do! I am terrified of the events of this book happening, yet I keep wanting to read more and more with these plots! I was hooked while reading this book and really enjoyed the plot. My heart was racing and I didn't know what to expect. But the story that was written is fabulous! You can tell that the author is a former flight attendant, as it all seems to be so real and accurate. Fabulous book!

It's rare that I get anxious for the characters while reading a book, but the last 25% of this book I couldn't put down because I had to know what was going to happen! This was an epic thrill ride through the sky!

The short story is that the pilot's family has been kidnapped and will be blown up unless he crashes the plane he is flying.

I enjoyed this book so much I had to slow my reading down so that I could really absorb what was being written; I didn't want to miss any clues or information. I loved how there were 2 teams working, on the ground and in the air.

I don't want to say too much and give things away, but you just really need to read this book!

I would like to thank Netgalley and Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this story.

Well, I never would have thought that the contents of this book was what a flight attendant would think about while doing her job while flying around the skies. Falling though is the debut novel of T.J. Newman who has spent ten years working in the airline industry as a flight attendant and has written this fast paced insane ride during that time.

The book begins with Captain Bill Hoffman having a terrifying nightmare of his plane crashing only to awaken near his loving wife Carrie. Shaking off the dream Bill gets a call that he is needed to fly that day and agrees to come in despite promising his wife and son he would be home. As Bill heads out the cable repairman shows up but he takes little notice only concentrating on Carrie’s frosty attitude.

Once Bill’s flight is in the air he finds out that things took a drastic turn at his household once he was gone. Contacting Bill midflight is Sam, the repairman Bill had barely noticed who now has Bill’s wife and children held hostage. Bill is informed that he must crash the airplane or his family will die. Bill’s response “I’m not going to crash this plane and you’re not going to kill my family.”

Ok, I am a sucker for an action packed adventure and Falling by T.J. Newman was certainly that. Seeing that the author has been on planes for years in a post 911 world the scenes on the airplane felt authentic as to what would be happening in the air. My only thought though while reading that was a slight tick off my rating was Bill went to his long time friend and flight attendant for help who happened to have an FBI agent to call, what would happen if she didn’t ran through my mind. Otherwise, I could not put down this high octane thrill ride once it began trying to figure out all along the way who would survive that day and how it would all end leaving me to rate this one at four and a half stars.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Fallen is one of the best books I’ve read this year. The suspense is almost too much. It never stops ! The characters come to life and you’re routing for them all the way. You will never take another trip without this book being foremost on your mind as you step aboard that plane. I see a movie in the making. Great , great book for this amazing first time author.

The premise is interesting and scary admittedly used before.
Your airplane captain has been forced to make the impossible choice : crash the plane or save his kidnapped family.

I found some passages to be a little too long (the Yankees scene, the run on beach scene, the onboard preparation scene) and the outcome to be a little predictable.
The author is obviously very knowledgeable about avionic procedures, which helped the book.

All and all this is a fun fast summer read worth your time definitively not worth the hype.

Thank You to Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a gripping book, full of twists and turns and near misses and heroics. I really couldn’t put it down.

Bill Hoffman is a pilot for Coastal Airlines and is called in on his day off. He leaves behind his wife with a baby and a 9 year old, filled with guilt. But this should be a routine flight and he’s promised to make it up to Carrie. But when the flight is underway, someone sends Bill a photos of Carrie and his children, with a bomb strapped to Carrie’s chest. Bill is told he has to choose between saving his family or crashing the plane.

What I enjoyed the most about this book was the insight into post-9/11 training that flight attendants get and how the world of flight has changed after 9/11. The author was a flight attendant and this insight and attention to detail shows through. And the close bond between Bill and Jo, the experienced flight attendant, is also special. The flight attendants are instrumental in the action of the story and really shone as the best part of the book.

However, I was disappointed in the stereotyping of the terrorists and their motives—it seemed like a lazy choice. I know that the effort was made to profile the terrorists and their losses and the plight of their peoples to provide background. But it fell short and Bill comes across as preachy and holier than thou and the Middle Eastern terrorists as desperate and irrational.

I did find this entertaining and I hope that when this becomes a movie they make different choices about the ethnicity of the terrorists.

This was such a good book! One of my favorites for the year! I sat on the edge of my seat. Suspenseful and fast paced. This would make a great movie. Can't wait for my patrons to read this!

Different, exciting, tense and a unique view of commercial aviation. The pilot rises to a life or death challenge to him, his crew, his passengers and his family. He's like the Jack Reacher of the skies.

Definitely worth the read!

A thrilling debut by T.J. Newman - pretty fast paced, tense and I can see it being turned into a movie or TV series someday. I was inspired by the author's story and excited to read this book after hearing she was a former bookseller turned flight attendant for Virgin American and Alaska Airlines from 2011 to 2021. Big thank you to NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for this ARC. "Falling" debuts on July 6th, 2021. "

"Falling" opens up with a pretty gruesome action sequence. We meet Captain Bill Hoffman and his family right before he takes off to fly from LAX to JFK for work. Soon after, his family is kidnapped, strapped to explosives and it's a no win situation from there. If he doesn't crash the plane, his family dies. From there - Bill has to make a lot of difficult decisions as he navigates this horrific terrorist attack with the goal of everyone making it out alive.

Overall, I liked the pacing and the different storylines throughout. We have a lot of good action scenes - Bill in the cockpit, the flight attendants teaming up in the cabin, the hostage situation with Bill's family and The FBI and ATC involvement. I wasn't super satisfied with the antagonists overall arc - I wish there had been more character development and felt the ending was a little abrupt. We also don't hear much from the passenger's POV and that would have been an interesting addition. A quick Summer read - do not recommend reading this one on a plane!

The synopsis for this book was terrifying to me, so much so that after I sent my request part of me hoped I wouldn't get it because I have a slight fear of flying. This is NOT a book for anyone with a severe fear of flying and I would definitely recommend to NOT read it while you're actually on a plane but FOR SURE read this book otherwise!

This was such a fast moving story. It has to be - it takes place on the 6 hour cross country flight from LA to New York. In that short time, Captain Bill Hoffman has to choose between his family's lives, and the lives of the 144 souls on board his flight.

Yes, this book is about a ridiculously impossible choice this poor airplane captain has to make, but really it's the flight attendants, Jo, Daddy and Kellie who are the real MVPs of this story. (But it must be noted I had a lot of trouble with the character name "Daddy".... I read it as Dave instead.) Flight attendants are the ones that are there for your safety first. After reading it, it gave me a whole new respect for the profession.

This book gave me so much anxiety and will probably mess with my head the next time I get on a plane but I thought it was such a great read!

Thank you NetGalley and Avid Reader Press for the advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

There is a great story here, but it's not the one between the covers. The author's story of bookseller turned flight attendant who was rejected by 41 agents before finally getting published is certainly terrific and inspiring, and it's much more intriguing than this Speed-meets-Snakes On A Plane mashup. I don't begrudge Ms. Newman's efforts, but her hard work is undone by the fact that there wasn't an editor on this book. There couldn't have been one, given the groan-inducing tropes and cliche characterizations that define EVERY character, the cringe-worthy ending, and the Airbus-sized hole in the plot that appears at the halfway point that pretty much was the nail in the story's coffin. Flashbacks throughout the story don't advance the plot but bloat the novel, some scenes are just ridiculous (like someone getting their shoulder dislocated and an EMT "relocated his arm back into his shoulder socket" on scene and then the character running off, Martin Riggs-like from Lethal Weapon, without any ill effects), and hackneyed writing ("He had an intangible mysteriousness, a mercurial quality of shadow.") that take this reader right out of caring. I get it, though: any agent would look at this and think "This would make a great movie!" and then ignore how to actually make it great. Which is too bad, because there are elements in here that are interesting, especially since this is an insider to the flying industry writing about something that we all just take for granted.

If you're looking for a beach read that's completely skimmable in a couple hours, then this is your book. If you're looking for something more substantial that actually lives up to the billing of "Jaws at 35,000 feet," you need to look elsewhere.

Captain Bill Hoffman, a veteran pilot, begins his pre-flight checklist on a routine flight from LA to New York. Receiving a call from his wife, Carrie, he finds out his family have been kidnapped and he must make a deadly choice to either crash the plane killing all aboard or sacrifice his family's lives. If you're looking for a tense, character-driven adrenaline rush to hold you hostage for an exhilarating read, look no further than "Falling" by T.J. Newman! This debut novel by a bookseller turned flight attendant, straps you in for a fast-paced, non-stop roller coaster ride that will not release you until the heart-pounding ending. The characters were so richly written, I found myself cheering and crying along with them as they struggle to survive in their extraordinary situations. One of the best books I've read all year, I highly recommend this first-class thriller!

What if a pilot is asked to choose between the lives of his family and those of his passengers and crew? That is exactly what happens when Bill Hoffman’s wife Carrie and two children are kidnapped. Does he crash the plane and save his family? Bill refuses either option but how does he get out of this dilemma? And so we have an edge of the seat thriller as his jet rockets from Los Angles to New York. This is a terrific debut by TJ Newman, a former flight attendant turned writer. I can’t wait for the movie!
Thank you to NetGalley, AvidPress, and TJ Newman for the arc

This story had my heart in my throat the entire time!
It is intense, ongoing, frightening and just amazing!
You just never know what a day will bring.
This is exactly the situation for Bill, Carrie,their two children, and the coastal airway flight 416 crew and passengers.
I tore through the pages of this novel in a day to find out how things would end.
Truly a crazy ride!
WOW! Just wow!

Falling is a debut novel that is heart pounding, action packed and an absolute page turner. I was apprehensive to read an airplane thriller. As a somewhat nervous flyer, I wasn't sure how I would respond. I was racked with anxiety during certain parts and I had to keep reading to know what happens one way or another. I also wish to add that I sometimes have a very negative reaction on the way 9/11 is handled in fiction. I felt that the author did approach this topic in a factual type manner as it related to flying and was done as tasteful as possible - if that is even a thing. I tore through Falling in just over two days and look forward to seeing what Ms Newman has up her sleeve next. I am willing to take a big fat guess that Falling will be finding its way to a screen of some sort. I could practically see the cast as I was reading. Thank you to NetGalley and Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster for my early release copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Falling will be available on July 6, 2021.

“All I want is to see what a good man— a good American man— does when he’s in a no-win situation. What does a man like you do when he has to choose. A plane full of strangers? Or your family? See, Bill, it really is about the choice. You. Choosing who will survive. That is what I want.”

Falling is the first novel by American author, T J Newman. Contact from his wife, soon after the take-off of Coastal Airways Flight 416, destination JFK airport, New York, brings a shock to veteran pilot Bill Hoffman. Carrie is shown bound, gagged and trussed up in a suicide vest, holding his ten-month-old daughter, Elise. His ten-year-old son Scott is also bound and gagged.

The man holding them captive in their own kitchen gives Bill a choice: crash the plane (destination to be specified), or watch his family murdered over WhatsApp. There is no other demand: this is it. But from the outset, Bill is adamant he will do neither. “I get why you’re doing this but it doesn’t justify what you’re doing!”

There’s just a five-hour flight time, and it goes without saying there’s to be no telling, not to the crew, cops, or FAA. Crashing the plane will be a nasty business, involving gassing the passengers and killing the First Officer. Bill is grateful for a reliable flight crew, but how can he possibly save the one hundred and forty-nine souls on board, and his family?

It’s a real pleasure to watch this edge-of-the-seat drama unfold: plenty of lateral thinking and resourcefulness from characters meeting unanticipated challenges, heroic acts and plenty of action both in the air and on the ground, including a baseball game and a trail of destruction left in the wake of an FBI agent following a hunch. There’s a twist or two, and right when it looks like Bill might pull it off, the threat that the military might shoot them down.

Most thrillers require a degree of suspension of disbelief, but Newman, no doubt through her intimate knowledge of the subject, makes her story so easily believable, readers may hesitate before boarding another plane. About the only thing that seems really far-fetched is the unfailing internet/cell phone cover all the way across America. Newman’s debut novel grabs you on page one and doesn’t let go. Unputdownable!
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and the publisher.

As someone who doesn’t like airplanes, I am always drawn to books, movies and television shows involving plane accidents. The beginning of this book reminded me of the Saw films where the main character is given an impossible choice to make, neither one being a good option. Right away as a reader you are put in the shoes of the pilot deciding what would you do and are eagerly anticipating what he will do so that everyone survives. I could easily see this being portrayed as a movie, and it was so cool knowing the author had experience working for an airline and could incorporate her knowledge of flight into this book.

4.5 stars

One of my favorite reads of 2021! It had me turning the pages, as I just couldn't wait to find out what happened next in this fast-page, highly engaging novel. Sure, I had to suspend belief a few times, but this book was such a needed escape that it more than made up for that fact. I already don't care for flying, and this book just deepened that feeling! This story would make a wonderful movie.

It's hard to believe this is a debut release. I truly look forward to reading more from this talented author!

Awesome. Was on the edge of my seat by the third chapter, finished within 2 days.

This is the thrilling read of a pilot flying from LA to NY when is has to make the choice of saving his family or crashing the plane with 144 other passengers.

Told from various points of view, yo will not be able to put this book down.