Wow. Wow. Wow.
To be honest, this might be the best book I have read all year.

It was absolutely frightening, heartwarming, and shocking all in one. A plane crashes into a nuclear power plant and the chaos starts there.

The sense of community in this book was amazing. The fear I felt reading this was insane. To be honest, this is one of those books that you will still be thinking about even years later. It makes that much of an impact.

I don’t even want to go into too many details or ruin any parts of this book. Just read it. Especially if you are fascinated by things like Chernobyl. And someone PLEASE make this into a mini netflix series or a movie. This is absolutely PERFECT for that.

Thank you to netgalley for this free advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book but I didn't quite love it like i loved her others. I think the details of the power plant were just kind of boring and over the top. Overall, i did like it though!

There was a lot happening in this one. I did appreciate the imagery. I felt like I was watching a movie. I’m not sure if this book was exactly for me, but it was definitely something different and plausible in real life for the most part. Thanks the NetGalley for the ARC.

I own TJ Newman’s prior 2 books (Falling and Drowning) because I loooove popcorn thrillers and have heard such good things about them. I’ve yet to actually get to them in my TBR stack (The stack is hypothetical. There’s no order. Only mood reads.) so this was my very first Newman expirience! I totally get the hype. This here was edge-of-your-seat reading, folks! I’ve been in a bit of a rut lately with books holding my attention so this was exactly what I needed. I can’t wait to get to the other two now!

Pinned thoughts:
📌 Constant action from page 1
📌 Insanely binge-able
📌 Seriously… you can’t put it down
📌 Short chapters
📌 Multi POV
📌 Adrenaline filled
📌 Heart pounding thriller
📌 Reads like a movie

If you love action thrillers, I highly recommend you pick this one up!

Wow! This is an action packed thriller. There is a great deal of tension and emotion involving the story line (plane crash, nuclear plant failure) with characters that felt whole and real. Newman was a flight attendant so her plane scenarios always feel VERY realistic. In this book there is a lot of information shared regarding nuclear power plants and the storing of nuclear waste that I found fascinating, and also terrifying. The book is engaging and well written and I zoomed through it quickly. The ominous countdown clock at the start of each chapter amplified the high octane story and I like that Newman writes female action characters.

All three of Newman's books involve some kind of plane disaster but read independently from each other. They are all worth the time.

'....but you typically realize the whole world has changed only after it has.'

Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

If you are looking for an action-packed book that will keep you biting your nails until the end, then Worst Case Scenario is the book for you! I think this one would also be perfect for hooking reluctant teen readers.

The book starts when a pilot has a medical emergency and his plane crashes into a nuclear power plant. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, wondering if a nuclear disaster could be averted (I also have another new fear to keep me awake at night). I love the way that author T.J. Newman makes the reader care about the heroes in her books, and tugs at our heart-strings with beautiful, life-affirming messages. Highly recommended for thrill-seekers as well as readers of heart-felt books. Thanks to Netgalley, Little, Brown, and Company, and the author for the librarian preview copy.

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Worst Case Scenario releases August 13, 2024

3.75

In T.J. Newman’s third novel, she creates a catastrophic event that comes very close to being worse than that of Fukushima or Chernobyl, when a commercial jet crashes into a nuclear plant.

More than anything, the heart of this story was about community and selfless sacrifices. Dani, Connor, Steve, Matt, and Joss were characters that brought the emotional depth and devastation. It’s characters like them that have you remembering a story long after you turn the last page.

The first third was tense and chaotic, shifting between a multitude of character pov’s. While this was great in setting the scene, I didn’t feel like I could get fully settled into the story until much later than I would have liked.

<i>Worst Case Scenario</I> was ambitious to say the least, and at times a little too picture perfect by having a newly sworn in president at the ripe age of 39 who didn’t hesitate when calling the big shots.

While this didn’t hold a candle to Newman’s previous release, <I>Drowning</I>, I’d imagine this would hit closer to home and have more of an impact on readers who are also parents.
If you’re picking this up specifically for the airplane part of the catastrophe, you should readjust your expectations as it only plays a minor part.

<i>“Maybe we’re not supposed to get that it will</I> all <I>be gone, </I>we <I>will all be gone—until it’s too late to do anything about it. If life’s a joke and death’s the punch line, in any good setup, you never see it coming.”</I>

SPOILERS AHEAD!

Super thrilling, exciting, and terrifying. I could not put it down and read it in two days. The most interesting parts happened at the nuclear power plant, but there were other disasters going on in other places, like on the nearby highway where parts of the plane landed. So there was always something going on. Because of this, it was a little hard to keep track of all the characters. The book's strong suit is the action and not the characterization, and at times I felt like it went into these philosophic asides that would last for a few pages when I really just wanted to get back to the action. But I was impressed by the emotional impact at the end. <spoiler> I'm always a sucker for a heroic sacrifice, and we got not one but TWO, and more accurately three because of poor Matt losing his father and becoming an orphan. That was rough. </spoiler> Perhaps the best part of all was having a competent president of the United States at the helm. They call it fiction for a reason.

I would recommend that you understand the basics of nuclear power before you read this book. This thread helped me: https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/10kav6a/eli5_how_does_a_nuclear_power_plant_work/ Basically, nuclear power plants split atoms apart. This creates a lot of energy. Energy gets hot. You need to keep it cool. To do this, you want lots of cool water. If the water starts to heat up or leak, then things get hot and go kaboom. When things go kaboom, radiation gets into the air and everybody dies. This has been Science With Claire™.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC. All opinions are my own.

This is the third disaster book I have read by this author and each has it's own original plot. The author is a former flight attendant and her books all revolve around air travel. This book is about an airplane that crashes near a nuclear power plant in Minnesota, causing some structural damage which could potentially cause a major disaster. The Coastal Air airplane has 295 passengers onboard when the pilot suffers a heart attack and dies in his seat. The co-pilot is in the restroom at the time and the plane crashes before he can return to the cockpit. There are a lot of characters in the book including the power plant workers, the first responders, the people of the town where the plant is located and a few others including the US President.

This book has a great deal of technical information and it is clear the author did a lot of research. At times however, I felt the technical details detracted from getting to know the characters better. It also progressed in a way that was easy to guess exactly what would happen and which characters would live or die. It was a good depiction of people in a small town banding together to hep each other in an emergency and I think this would make a good movie since a movie would be able to develop the characters more. I liked the first two books a bit better than this one, but still enjoyed the quick pace and thriller elements of this story. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this AARC in exchange for a review.

Yes! As a fan of Falling and Drowning I knew Worst Case Scenario would scratch that thriller/chiller/adventure itch. But I never expected that breadth and depth that Newman would reach in this new outing. It’s epic in scope even as it remains personal in the telling. It’s a deft hand that can toe that line so gracefully and successfully. I really, truly enjoyed this read. High recommendation!

If you're familiar with T.J. Newman, you know she writes stories based on her time working in the airline industry. In Falling, a pilot must choose between saving his family from the terrorists holding them captive or intentionally crashing the plane he is flying. Drowning: The Rescue of Flight 1421, is the story of a dozen survivors of a plane crash in the Pacific Ocean that are stuck 200 feet below the surface. This time around, in Worst Case Scenario, Newman gives us just what the title implies. A medical emergency on board causes a plane to crash into a nuclear power plant in a small town in Minnesota.

The characters in this story are compelling. They are the everyday heroes we can all relate to or know; firefighters, teachers, National Guardsmen, preachers, down on their luck truck drivers, engineers, and the people doing jobs we don't think much about until their work can mean the difference between life and death. The multiple points of view the book is told in really work, and keep the reader engaged in the multiple emergencies happening all around the town. I can't remember the last time I teared up reading a book, but the ending of this one really got me. I put aside the things I needed to get done so I could find out how it would all end, and it was well worth it. I encourage everyone to get their hands on a copy of Worst Case Scenario when it comes out on August 13. You are in for a thrill ride.

Thank you to NetGalley, T.J. Newman, and Little, Brown and Company for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the ARC. Another top notch heart-wrenching thriller that pulls at all your heart strings. I was excited to see this book coming out. I thoroughly enjoyed T.J.'s first two books and this did not disappoint. Keep them coming. They are great!!!

T. J. Newman once again brings you to the brink of disaster and heart pounding scenarios that will leave you breathless until the end!! I couldn’t put this book down and once again, she has made me afraid to fly 🙂. Thanks for the advance copy and for a FANTASTIC new Newman thriller.

Former flight attendant T.J. Newman writes exciting novels set in the world of aviation. Worst Case Scenario is her latest.
What happens when an unthinkable disaster besets a small town? What happens when the circumstances can have tremendous repercussions, far and wide?
An unexpected illness has taken the life of a commercial pilot in mid-flight, which happens to be too near to a nuclear plant. The intensity builds from the first page and does not let up in this heart-warming and intense thriller that shows what we can do when we work together as a community under the worst circumstances.
The characters are courageous as they work to save their town and life as we know it. It unfolds quickly ,with intensity and excitement that never lets up. The characters and the unfolding of the story will stay with me for a long time.
This is undoubtedly one of the best books I have ever read. I could not put it down and enjoyed it greatly. I will make it a point to read everything by T.J. Newman.

I was provided an advance copy of this book by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to Little Brown and Netgalley for this advanced readers copy of Worst Case Scenario. This is my third TJ Newman book. I've read each of her thrillers. Worst Case Scenario is different - yes it involves a plane crash - but a plane crash into a nuclear power plant, and the book is focused on the effort to prevent a nuclear meltdown. The story takes place over 16 hours, and shifts between the efforts at the plant to diagnose the extent of the damage and then prevent the spent fuel pools from draining of water - causing potentially a global catastrophe - to the efforts to rescue a boy trapped on a bridge after the plane wing crashed into it. The basic premise is that with the power out to the entire town, the plant is isolated and on its own to solve the problem, with little federal help.

As a thriller this is interesting and the story keeps you going. The author makes an effort to provide depth to the characters and spends a lot of time doing into the thought processes in the face of likely death. But at times it seems this slows the story. The world is about to end, there isn't time for such introspection. And at times, I felt like too much of the focus was on the rescue efforts. While I kept thinking this, I will admit I was emotionally involved at the end. So, perhaps my criticism is misguided.

Is this the best of her books? I don't think so. But TJ Newman is a talented writer and seems to have found a niche, and I will gladly continue to read her books.

I am a big fan of TJ Newman's first two books and was very excited to get the opportunity to read an early copy of the newest, Worst Case Scenario! This book did not disappoint. It true Newman fashion this book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time!

When the pilot of a commercial flight has a heart attack while the co-pilot is out of the cockpit, the absolute Worst Case Scenario unfolds. The plane crashes into a nuclear power plant starting a chain of events that will make or break the rest of humanity. This book takes you through the heartache, the stress and the heros that risk it all to save others. This book, like her others are cinematic and must be adapted to the big screen! TJ Newman has quickly become a must read author for me.

Worst Case Scenario is another nail-biting page turner by once flight attendant T.J. Newman. The difference here is I felt like she has fallen in the trap now of writing for the screen and movie goer instead of the book reader and this may be a rare case of the movie will probably be better than the book. There is no lack of action but it was just too much thrown at me all at the same time. Is that how a disaster like this would unfold - too much? Yes, of course. But it just didn't really work that well for me on the page. I found myself skimming chunks at a time trying to find the meat of the story. There was a story buried in the rubble and an underlying theme of community but I know I will enjoy the movie more than the book. While the main story here was on the ground after the plane falls from the sky, I hope Newman considers a bit more straying from the topic she has started her writing career with. If you are a very focused disaster genre reader, you will likely enjoy this one more than I did. Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. Worst Case Scenario will be available on 8/13/23.

This was a great read to read. I kept seeing a group of people reading this, and I kept thinking Man, I remember a book with a plane, and I am certain it looked like this. This had me going back and looking at my reading logs, and sure enough, I read a book by this author previously and enjoyed that book. This is one of those stories that you hope never ever happens, and let me tell you, it intrigues you as a person of what does happen who makes the call to go in and shut things down, knowing it can kill you.
That is where we go in our story. It starts in the air, and our countdown begins. Can level 8 be avoided, or will the town of Waketa become the new Chernobyl? We got great characters who did the unthinkable, the unselfishness, and the ones who, even though they knew things could go wrong, the part that truly got me was when Steve and Matt were talking about fishing. That whole scene and why Steve no longer goes fishing hit closer to home than I liked. It just reminds me of my daughter and her father and how they are the best fishing buddies ever.
There was so much I felt went on, and the fact the action kept up with the story was great. I found myself wondering how I would act in a situation like that. Could I hold it together to make sure everything was good? Would I sacrifice myself to help all? Would I even go against orders and help save one person? It makes you think about what you would do. In the end, I have truly loved this author's writing style, the way she pulls you in and holds you captive. Pick this book up; you won't be disappointed.

I might be a math teacher but I’m also a huge history nerd. When I was a kid I was so fascinated by the events of Chernobyl (watch the HBO series if you haven’t). This book was right up my alley. There’s action on every page and multiple story lines to follow. I did have a difficult time keeping track of all the characters but I don’t think it affected my experience too much. This is a story of love, bravery, disaster, and community. If you love a good “end of the world” book or movie definitely check this one out. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to the Little Brown and company and Netgalley for this THRILLING eARC in BOTH audio AND standard format, I wanted to see how much the narration added to my enjoyment and as it does enhance it, my standard review remains unchanged; this author is truly a standout!

An EASY 5 stars from this reviewer; I love how this author imagines these all too possible worse case scenarios, they should be viewed as potential cautionary tales. Newman also does meticulous research, which adds scary credibility to this story.

T.J. Newman’s Worst Case Scenario is a high-octane thriller that plunges readers into a catastrophic event with relentless intensity. The novel opens with a chilling premise: a commercial airliner crashes into a nuclear power plant in the small town of Waketa, Minnesota, after the pilot suffers a heart attack mid-flight. 

Newman, a former flight attendant turned bestselling author, masterfully weaves a narrative that is both gripping and emotionally charged. Her background in aviation shines through in the meticulous details and frighteningly realistic portrayal of the crisis and the potential cost of human lives. 

A standout aspect of Worst Case Scenario is its exploration of human resilience and ingenuity in the face of unimaginable adversity. Newman skillfully balances the fast-paced action with poignant moments of human connection and sacrifice.

Newman’s ability to maintain suspense and keep readers on the edge of our seats is commendable.

Worst Case Scenario is a riveting book which showcases T.J. Newman’s talent for crafting intense, emotionally resonant thrillers. Whether you’re a seasoned thriller enthusiast or new to Newman’s work, this book is sure to leave a lasting impression.

NOTHING BUT Pros from this reviewer, including;

Gripping and fast-paced narrative.

Well-developed characters.

Realistic and detailed portrayal of a nuclear disaster.