I cannot think of anyone to whom I would not recommend this book. It is filled with non-stop excitement and action coupled with the kind of suspense every reader seeks. A pilot takes off on a commercial flight from LA to New York. About a half hour into the flight he learns his wife, son and infant daughter have been kidnapped. The ransom fee...he must decide between allowing his family to die (his wife is strapped into a suicide vest) or crashing the plane with 149 souls on board. The story takes place in the plane, at their home and surrounding areas and in the controllers tower in NY. The climax is all one would hope for and the conclusion most satisfactory. Thanks to Net Galley and Simon and Schuster for an ARC for an honest review. This has best seller written all over it

This was a decent thriller with an outdated premise. You don't get many hijacked planes these days due to post 9-11 security. There were no surprises as to the villains, or the flight attendant heroes. I do admit every time I picked up my Kindle to read the book I had a sense of dread so the plot did its job. The character development was a bit clumsy (especially with the flashbacks), but a novice writer can learn to correct that in future books. Also, POV (point of view) was all over the place. Again, novice writer.

Would I recommend this book to friends. Sure, for a quick read but not if they have qualms about flying. This book was offered to me by NetGalley and the publisher. Thanks for the advanced copy.

When I was reading the PR for this book, I learned that the author was rejected by countless agents before finally landing one and receiving a huge advance. That's a great amount of pressure, but this book delivers because it grips you from beginning to end. I read it over two days and I was not sorry to have put off other things to finish it.

The no-win dilemma presented is something with which everyone can identify - choose your family's survival or choose to sacrifice others.

Our hero is a pilot whose family has been kidnapped by terrorists who are demanding that he crash the plane or sacrifice his family instead. Of course, he intends to do neither - but how he pulls this off is quite the ride.

While this is mostly a thriller, you're left pondering some philosophical questions. It's also a story about community, commitment, and integrity. I also learned some things about other cultures that I didn't know, so I was left with some things to think about. The characters are endearing, and while this isn't a literary masterpiece, the writing is sound and the pacing is outstanding.

I thoroughly enjoyed it devouring this novel and I'm grateful to Net Galley for offering me the chance to read it.

This was an awesome book, so glad to have the opportunity to read an early copy of this author's debut novel.

On a routine morning in L A Bill Hoffman, pilot is getting ready to fly to New York. He's preoccupied and his wife Carrie is busy with their 10 month old daughter and 10 year old son. He doesn't notice when a cable repair technician is at their front door.

Bill has to miss his son's opening little league game as he was asked to fill in as a favor for the chief pilot.

It isn't until Bill is on his way to to L A International airport that the cable technician points a gun at Carrie and then straps a suicide bomb vest on her and himself..

While Bill is airborne he .gets a message informing him to put his headphones on so he can view a Facetime message. The message shows him the situation at home and informs him of the demands of the bomber..

The bomber tells him he is to intentionally crash the plane otherwise his family will be killed.

He is told to crash t he plane at a to be determined target in Washington D C and is informed not to tell the FBI but he tells the senior flight attendant who has a nephew with the FBI.

He is informed there is a backup person on the plane to ensure he complies and he is to open the cockpit door and throw a cannister of poison gas into the cabin of the plane.

Bill refuses to intentionally crash the plane and desperately searches for a means to save his family and the passengers on board the plane..

This novel grips you right from the beginning and doesn't let you go until the end, an edge of the seat thriller.

I almost didn't read this book because the first chapter really turned me off. It seemed to be just gratuitous gore. After the first few pages I just skimmed it and decided to give the book a couple more chapters before throwing it out. I'm glad I did. Once i got into chapter 2 and 3, it became hard to put the book down. The story is not the best written, but the plot does grab you and keep you reading. I thought Carrie was a great character, strong and consistently supportive of her husband and family. Bill was an amazing pilot and genuinely seemed to want to do his best to balance his time between career and family. There did not seem to be any single clear hero, but the closest person to it, in my opinion, was Jo--although the focal point of the story was Bill. She was sincere and creative and a true leader. Theo was a bit hard to accept. Some of his recklessness didn't really support him getting a promotion in the end. I'd like to have seen him as a bit more mature, willing to take the risks, but not being quite so careless. I also think the story would have been stronger had there been a clear hero. There really isn't a good character arc for any of them characters.

Overall this was a good book. However, I have no idea how the first chapter of the book related to anything. You could completely get rid of it and I think the overall story would be stronger. I believe that first chapter will turn some readers off and they will unfortunately not read further to find a really good story.

What a great first book! Packed full of action, the pages fly from a full airplane to the pilots family under siege. You will fall in love with the flight crew, as well as the pilots family.

A totally serviceable entry in the summer beach read/thriller category. I almost abandoned it around the 50% mark when some of the twists and stupid decisions by characters strained my credulity too much, but I stuck with it because the book moves quickly. This was clearly written in the mold of a big budget Hollywood thriller, and also clearly heroism fantasy from a flight attendant.

I received a free ARC ebook of Falling from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Hang onto your hats, fellow readers, Falling is a thrill ride of a novel. What begins as a rather routine flight for a commercial pilot, Bill, turns out to be a life or death journey for Bill, his family, and the passengers entrusted to his care. Exactly what would anyone do when their immediate family is threatened by death? Will Bill violate every professional ethic, distort every moral compass to save them at the cost of those assigned to his plane? Are there others he can rely on? Is there really anything anyone can do? The threats to the plane and its passengers sound so plausible with their isolation from those on the ground serving as a terrifying complication.

Newman's debut as a novelist is first rate. Her experiences as a flight attendant make the onboard protocols ring true and her admiration for those employed to care for strangers shines through her characters. I look forward to reading more by T.J. Newman.

I read this in one long sitting. So, it obviously kept my attention. Pre-covid I flew a lot and I have several commercial pilot and flight attendant friends, so the plot was a draw. I found it a solid book. Not the best book I have read this year, or even month, but it was good. I would have preferred the writing to have been a little more passionate - it was a little flat. And the political parts are enormously important but were not presented in a compelling way. I think more social impact could have been made.

But I thought it was a good book and will be recommending it to a pilot friend tonight.

I'm sure this book will find its audience, but that is not me unfortunately. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

What a disappointment. After reading all the accolades I settled down to read what sounded like a mesmerizing story.

First and foremost, the writing is extremely choppy and poor. The dialogues are amateurish, even corny. There is no flow to the book, and events happen with no sequencing or lead up. It's all just a tangled web of ideas tha make no sense,

Don't waste your time on this one.

If you have a fear of flying this would NOT be the book you want to read before or while on a plane!

T. J. Newman's opening is so descriptive I actually felt nauseas as if I was on the plane with everyone else. The author brings you out of your safe, comfortable environment and forces you to face the worst nightmare of everyone who chooses to defy gravity

That descriptive talent continues as the reader is brought into another further devastating situation. Or maybe just as a mom I was ultra sensitive as it further enhanced my belief no strangers are allowed in my home without someone else I know here.

Newman had me glued to the book and completely ignoring the world around me as I dived headlong into this amazing thriller! Much to my daughter's happiness since I let her have free reign to do what she wanted while I binged through, I just could NOT put this down. I needed to know what was going to happen, who was involved, why, and most importantly how it was going to end.

There was definitely a very post-9/11 feel in the last chapters. I still remember the sense of patriotism and community that soaked the very air Americans were breathing and Newman managed to capture a small essence of that in her characters.

This is the kind of book you'll turn your phone on 'Do Not Disturb' for because the emotional waves that roll over you will be powerful and addicting to the end. I found myself nearly dropping the book to pump my fist in the air and cheer at one point wanting to join in because I got so swept up in the tidal wave.

Book Club read as you and your friends play the 'What would you do' game with different character roles.

Loved it--I couldn't put this down, and read it nearly all in on go! The pacing, plot, characters: all of it was great. "Falling" is definitely one to add to your TBR.

Falling will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. A pilot's family is kidnapped, and he is given an ultimatum - crash the plane or his family dies. The author, in her debut novel, does an excellent job of explaining the whys and hows of the situation. The book showcases the dedication and quick thinking of airline pilots and flight attendants, as well as the determination of a mother to save her kids.

The author also treats the villains as human beings with understandable grievances. My only quibble with this book (and what keeps it from getting 5 stars) is it gets preachy at the end regarding the villains' cause. Otherwise it is an outstanding thrill ride.

This book is not family friendly due to graphic violence and language.

Falling, the debut book by T.J. Newman, is about a highjacking and the impossible decision facing the captain of choosing the life of his family or the lives of his passengers. Newman, a former flight attendant, writes with the authority and conviction of someone intimately knowledgeable about the airline industry. The fact Newman was rejected by 40ish publishers is bananas because I couldn't put Falling down (see what I did there). For being her first book, it's a master class in building suspense and tension without violence. I can't recommend this book enough.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing an advanced copy of Falling.

I was really in the mood for a good thriller. The acclaim for this one was high so I was excited when I saw that I was approved with it. I read it all in one sitting... Not because it was good but because I wanted to finish it to move on to something else. It really did not click for me. All the "I will not crash this plane, my family will not die" stuff was weird and not earned in the least. I was expecting a back story to shed some more light on why our main character would say that... Nope. And the "reveal" of who the bad guys are? Come on... It's cliche at best and offensive at worst. There are so many little things that irked me about this book..the baseball game, big daddy, the cliche characters. Seriously there were so many cliche characters from the terrorist with a sad back story, the tough looking guy with a heart of gold, the rogue fbi agent. I understand that books like this are the equivalent of watching a Michael Bay movie and that's fine, but the author shows talent and could have taken this is some interesting places if she wanted to. Again, I really wanted to like this book. The cover was cool at least! Oh, and if this was real life that plane would have been shot down way before it got to spoiler.

Despite the hype and blurbs from two of my favorites ,McKinty and Winslow, I did not like this book at all. It was not suspenseful, intelligent or particularly well written. And it was so corny as to border on parody—read the scene at Yankee stadium and tell me if you disagree. I usually try not to pan a book, and it is the author’s first book, but this one does not live up to the hype at all. Compare it to a similar thriller, say Black Sunday by Thomas Harris, and tell me which one is more intelligent and suspenseful. I am hopeful the author does better with her next book.

Oh man was this book A RIDE! Holy anxiety inducing free fall of a story!

A story of a devoted pilot who one day makes the choice to choose work over family, it doesn’t seem like too big of a deal. Sure his wife is upset, but choosing this flight was an honor when his boss asked him to cover it. Surely he can make it up to his wife. Only...this flight is different in every way. Sooner than he anticipated, Bill will have to make the choice of work or family again. Only this time, whoever he doesn’t pick will die. How is Bill supposed to choose between his family and the 150 souls depending on him for survival?

Good thing Bill is determined to not choose.

A cat and mouse game at thousands of feet in the air, this tense novel is a breathless read. I highly recommend it! Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in advance!

With a title like that and a plane on the cover you know something’s going to go terribly wrong. If they just had a plane and titled it Flying then you’d be in for a doozy of a surprise. So pop some corn and get ready for a high altitude adventure.
It’s been a while since I’ve read just a purely adrenaline driven thriller for thriller’s sake, not a mystery, not a procedural, not a murder solving thing, just something silly and fun and boombastic. A Michael Bay movie, essentially, though with a more complicated, politically correct and woke morality. Is that a sign of times or just a reflection of the author’s gender? Who knows. Doesn’t matter.
It was going to be an ordinary day for one ordinary all American family. Bill, the father, was off to do his job and be a pilot and Carrie, the mother, was to stay put and take care of their two kids. It was going to be an ordinary flight too for Bill, a straight through from west coast to the east. But then it all went to sh*t. All of it.
Now Carrie and the kids are kidnapped and the only way Bill can save them is if he crashes the plane. And, as if that wasn’t enough, there’s also someone on the plane itself, an accomplice. So the pressure is on. Can Bill, the heroic, patriotic pilot save the day?
What do you think? You know this movie before it’s inevitably made into one, don’t you. It has rousing (Independence day style) speeches and strategically lachrymose moments and principled diligent goodness in the face of evil. It has a freaking baseball game. This entirely production is so American, it just needs a flag, an apple pie and personal arsenal.
You know Bill won’t let you down because he’s the good guy and Carrie will hold her own too, because she’s the good woman behind the good guy and also a total motherbear. And you know the flight attendants will prove to be both heroic and awesome, because…well, mostly because the author was a flight attendant herself for 10 years prior to finding success as a popcorn moviebook writer. Seriously, Newman’s own story is way more inspirational than her book, a book she wrote on numerous flights and passed around for 41 rejections before getting a multibook deal with a major publisher. Now that’s kinda awesome.
The book itself isn’t awesome as such, but it’s really committed to being the best summer high flying extravaganza it can be and that’s quite something. It practically pops its own popcorn at an altitude. You almost have to admire that sort of zeal. And much like all those silly huge productions, it is inherently entertaining. It might be the most amount of fun you can have on a place without Samuel L. Jackson shouting obscenities. It’s definitely all the thing the recent 7500 movie tried to be and failed

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Avid Reader Press for an advanced digital review copy of the thrilling novel Falling by T.J. Newman.

While I am sending thanks, I want to say a big thank you to the author herself. T.J.--This novel is what I have been waiting for and you wrote it better than I could have ever imagined. Being a flight attendant myself, I love how you she described the details and intricacies of flying and that lifestyle. As you know, that job and lifestyle is unlike anything else. My heart was racing the entire novel and it really made me think about what I would do if I was working that flight.

It’s a beautiful sunny day in Los Angles. A mother is getting ready to take her son and daughter to her son’s game. A father, Bill, who is also a well-established pilot is getting ready for his transcontinental flight from LAX to JFK. It’s a perfect day for flying until Bill is faced with a decision that will change his life and the lives of many others. Someone is holding his wife and children hostage. The demands are to crash his plane full of 149 souls on board to save his family or to save the plane, which would kill his family. How does Bill cope to make that decision and who will he save? Who can be trusted on that flight?

This is a page-turning, non-stop thriller with excellent character development. Just when you think you have it figured out, something new develops. The author’s experience working as a flight attendant is very evident in this book. The three flight attendant personalities in this book were so spot on. Over the years, I’ve worked with all three of these personalities at one time or another on my own flights. Honestly, I loved everything about this book. If you’re looking for a novel that you won’t be able to put down, I highly recommend this one. I look forward to reading anything else T.J. Newman writes. If this is her debut novel, I can’t imagine what she has in store for us next!