The Falling by T.J. Newman was an interesting read. However, I struggled with the novel. I love novels and films that discuss planes, as I love to travel.

The plot of the novel is quite interesting and intriguing. The novel follows the story of a pilot, Bill, whose family has been kidnapped by a terrorist. The terrorist gives the pilot limited time to make impossible decisions.

Unfortunately, halfway through the novel or lesser, I had to stop reading the novel because the terrorist was depicted in a very stereotypical and problematic manner, and moreover, the author had decided to call them as Yazidis, which shows that there was no research done to recognize and realize the trauma that the community has suffered under ISIS. More specifically, I study social justice and human rights, with a focus on gender-based violence. At a conference a couple of years ago, I met someone from the country who spoke about the atrocities that these groups of people, in particular, have faced.

To me, while the plot overall was interesting and offered a good framework, I think a lot more research needs to be done, especially when representing something so sensitive and moving. We need to think about terrorists in a more complex manner and move away from constructing Brown stereotypes of them. Terrorists can be of any race and creed.

While the novel attempts to paint a complex portrait of hijacking, I think more nuance and sensitivity could have also been presented to the readers on such a sensitive subject.

I thank Netgalley and the author for proving me with an early Advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review.

Hands down the best thriller I've read in a really long time! Make sure that when you're ready to start it, you have the rest of the day free because you won't want to stop. The plot was fresh, the character development was fantastic, and I felt like I was right there along with them. This reads like a movie and I really hope it gets turned into one!

This was definitely thrilling! Not in the thrilling that I am used to, but it will definitely have you on the edge of your seat!

I liked the concept that this isn’t done often. Yes, there are movies, but I haven’t read any books regarding terrorism on a plane. It was eventful from almost the very beginning until the end. I did enjoy the different perspectives as well.

This isn’t normally a book that I would seek out, but I do recommend it. Something different than my normal thriller. It was fast paced and well written.

Falling by T. J. Newman is a thriller about a flight to New York. The pilot's family has been kidnapped, and he has been told that he must crash the plane if he wants his family to survive. Who will he choose to save: his family or the souls on board the plane? This book grabbed my interest from the very start, and I read it all in one sitting! Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

Oh my goodness what a thriller! From the very beginning to the very end I was captivated. What a unique story! The captain of an airline flight is forced to choose between saving his family, or the 144 passengers on board his flight. It was a perfectly paced story with great character development. One of my favorite Thriller Suspense books I’ve read. It’s hard to believe it’s her debut novel. I read the kindle version, and liked it so ,ugh that I purchased the audible version so when I couldn’t read I could listen. Fabulous narration by Steven Weber. I highly recommend this book or audiobook to anyone who enjoys a good thriller/suspense novel.
A very special thank you to Avid Reader Press/Simon and Schuster via NetGalley for the advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review..

Bill Hoffman, an experienced pilot, is all set to fly to New York with a plane full of passengers when he receives a chilling message- his wife, young son and baby daughter are being held hostage by an Islamic terrorist, and will be killed unless he crashes the plane.. What will he decide? This is a tense and suspenseful thriller with a terrible dilemma at its centre. The plucky crew and several courageous passengers join the struggle, but it becomes evident that someone on board is involved in the hijack and it is hard to know who to trust- the reader is kept guessing until the end. The characters are likeable ( if a little too noble at times) and there is an effort to portray fairly the reasons behind the horrific act planned by the terrorists. An enjoyable and thought-provoking read.

Okay ya'll, I LOVED THIS ONE! I read it in one sitting! I could vividly picture the entire story- much like a great action movie. I recommend for a fast-moving book.

As I flew over to Hawaii this summer I read this quick read. A scary thriller about a highjacked plane. not a great choice when you are flying over the Pacific Ocean, but one I truly enjoyed. A suspenseful read and one that left me on the edge of my seat. I wasn't sure which way the story would go. A great one! Highly recommend to all that love a suspenseful edge of your seat read.

One of the most unforgettable and breathtakingly-paced novels I have ever read, and likely ever will read, Falling is compelling, comprised of so many shocking twists and turns, and surprisingly nuanced in the way it considers each and every one of its characters' heartache. This is a book you could gift anyone and they'd be on the edge of their seat from the minute they learn the premise until the very last page!

What is it about? You just boarded a flight to New York with 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, the kidnappers demand that he crashes your plane. What follows is a fast-paced story of heroes on board the plane, champions on the ground, and even a compelling argument for the kidnappers’ side.

Why is it one of the best reads of the year? You know going in that Falling has an impossible hostage situation, but from the very start it goes in alllll kinds of directions that you simply could not envision. The author was a flight attendant for ten years and it absolutely shows in the depth of the writing, but also in the extensive imagined scenarios that civilians simply would not be able to dream up. You’ll learn some insider secrets about airplanes –some quite dark, some delightful. It feels very much like it’s both pulling back the curtain on the flight industry airline industry, and a celebration of the many miracles that the humans behind the scenes pull off. But more than anything you’ll be on the edge of your seat trying to figure out what is going to happen next and how on earth they’re going to get out of this situation. The pacing! The seamless, stellar switching of perspectives! It’s mind-blowing that this is Newman’s first novel, because she has written Falling with a breathless pacing that I haven’t seen in tenth or fifteenth novels by many bestselling authors.

I’m particularly interested in the choice to include Kurdistan's history. I wonder why, and why like this? It’s done beautifully – the way Newman doesn't completely subvert the terrorist act, but makes it deeply personal from all angles. It’s so specific a scenario, and yet a hundred thousand people —more likely millions— have been affected this way. Also it was so thoughtful to have both Carrie and Bill be reading up and educating themselves about the impact and making a choice to be better than "the average American". It felt wise and kind and like I could exhale the tension and worry that there would be no compassion or clarity in the truth of the matter and the context.

Brava, T.J. Newman, for crafting something this magnificent and affecting!

What a rollercoaster ride of emotion. I honestly didn't think I would ever find myself reading a book for pleasure about an airplane hijacking after 9/11. I immediately got sucked into the storyline and was hooked. I read this in one night, staying up much later than intended because I couldn't pull myself away from the action. I had to know what happened! All in all a very exciting and interesting read.

This was definitively a roller-coaster ride! The novel was exciting, captivating, and fast-paced. Addictive thriller with well-developed characters and interesting storyline. A fun read!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book had an interesting and surprisingly realistic concept. It was actually quite frightening to think about. The story was quick paced and kept me interested. While some of it tied up a little too tidily and sometimes it was a bit cliche, I did enjoy it and can easily see it made into a movie.

This much-hyped thriller is one I wouldn't recommend reading on a plane. It's got a fast pace with uneven writing and is based on the premise that the plane is going down or the pilot's family dies.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

I liked this one, it was an interesting suspenseful ride. If I remember right the tag line for this one was "YOU WILL NOT KILL MY FAMILY AND I WILL NOT CRASH THIS PLANE." I thought this was a great opener and found the story compelling, and yet at times a little slow. I did enjoy the big show down with the flight crew and the cockpit (I won't spoil it), there was a moment near the end though that was a little far-fetched for me involving a Dodgers game and the reasoning behind the terrorist threat was believable, but the characters involved seemed a little two dimensional at times. I do recommend this one, maybe as a library checkout or paperback purchase.

This book was just pure, brainless fun. The premise is intriguing, the writing is just okay, the characters are a bit flat, but boy was the plot fast and exciting! Lots of problems, the main one being the hijackers' reasons for doing what they did, but you don't really care because the pages keep turning! A great book for a time when you just want to be distracted and don't really want to think about what you're reading!

Well, this is a book you have to read in one session, unless you're okay with your imagination taking over your dreams and giving you nightmares? Me, I'm not. Ha.

Well written, just the "right" amount of WTF and YESSSSSS!

It's a Harrison Ford movie, in a book. Immensely readable, but not while you're traveling. Please. Save yourself.

My Highly Caffeinated Thought: A fast-paced and high-octane thriller with a depth of emotion and intrigue to keep you flipping the pages.

FALLING is one hell of a ride. From the moment we get on board this flight, the author develops a narrative balancing the suspense, honest reactions, and the protocol details to the situation our characters are thrust into.

What I loved about this book is the people. The characters fleshed out a story that could have fallen flat. However, Newman carefully constructs each person we meet and allows them to develop as things progress. The moments when the reader gets those candid reactions or thoughts are what make FALLING stand out for me. Of course, the action, as well as the tension, propels the drama, but the small instances when Bill, Claire, their young son Scott, and Jo make decisions or behave in a certain way are what remains in my memory after the book is done.

I have no doubt we will be hearing from T.J. Newman again. With a blockbuster debut like this one, I cannot wait to see what thrill ride she sends us on next.

A solid thriller that seems destined to be a movie. There was a stark difference between the heroes and villains, although I appreciated the thought given to the terrorists' situation. You can't go wrong naming a character Big Daddy.

Bill Hoffman is a pilot for Coastal Airways, trying to balance a full schedule at work while trying to be there for his wife and children. Called into work unexpectedly, Bill's wife is a little angry and disappointed that her husband is putting work first, as always. Little do they both know that their marriage and their lives will be tested in extreme ways.

Having been plugged by some major modern authors, I was expecting more from the story than I ultimately got. There were gaping holes in the plot, but the story itself was fast paced. Bill's character was mainly told through his wife, not developed naturally through the plot. The reasons behind the suspects' motivations was not fully explored and left questions unanswered.

In the post 9/11 world in which we live, certain elements that exist in this story just are not realistic. Admittedly, I am not a frequent flyer, but I always see the flight crew going through security. Without spoilers, all I can say is that a major aspect of the plot could not have happened in the way that it did, resulting in a big hole in the story. Falling would be more at home as a two hour television movie, especially regarding the fast pace and action elements.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy of Falling by NetGalley and the publisher, Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster. The decision to read and review this novel was entirely my own.

Falling is an impressive debut novel. I enjoyed the book and think that this would make an excellent movie.
While I liked the book - I do think it was a bit overhyped - I was really expecting for it to be a lot better than it was.
I do think some of the blurbs from major authors were a bit misleading. This is a good book but its really not as amazing as they make it out to be..