What a comeback. Let me tell you, about halfway through I did not have high hopes for this book. It began ominously as a fortune teller gave unwanted predictions (age and cause of death) to her fellow passengers on a flight to Sydney. Following these emotionally catastrophic predictions, the reader is provided two timelines: the fortune teller’s past and the passengers’ current lives, as some face death sooner than others. I kept wondering the significance of the fortune teller’s chapters, and to be honest, I started to get pissed off. Why would I care about her entire life story, including descriptions of the loves of her life and that she got food poisoning? She’s not the one dying! When the significance of her chapters came together after about 90%, I was shocked. Chapter 113 came (yes, you read that right) and I started to feel bad for getting so annoyed with the woman. The light bulb went off and I was kinda sad. The fact shone that you never know what a person is going through. If you feel like giving up, I encourage you to keep reading. I am glad I did.

“‘But just because you achieved one dream doesn’t mean you can’t now try for another.’”

“But that’s the thing about life: both your wildest dreams and your worst nightmares can come true.”

“She became my new friend. Friends can save your life.”

One of the best books I have read in a long time. The depth of the characters, the backstory of Cherry, all of the intricately woven ties to each other. It truly was so well done. The concept of what would your life be like if you knew the age and cause of your death had you questioning what you would do in the same situation. Would you let it ruin your life or would it make you look inward on what you could change to better your life until it was your time? We follow a group of people who choose both options and get to know them, as well as the “Death Lady” who predicted their deaths on a plane. Such fantastic storytelling by Liane Moriarty.

From the very start you get pulled into story when an older lady starts predicting everyone on the planes death. And not just what will happen to them, but when as well, which puts everyone's lives in a tailspin. However, there is more to the story behind the infamous death lady, which she was called due to her notoriety. This story was extremely well written and intricately woven between all of the characters and Cherry herself. This book was not only sad, but uplifting in ways with an extremely satisfying ending. This book was a reminder to live everyday like your last and hold your loved ones tight!

I was obsessed with Moriarty and reread everything she's done. Somehow the last couple (including this one) just haven't resonated with me. Lots of characters, with a life history of the main protagonist. Well told with some twists at the end but just ho him for me.

What does this group of complete strangers have in common? They are all on the same flight with an old woman who walked down the aisle telling folks how and when they are going to die. When her predictions start coming true, many of these passengers want to know who this woman is and why she said what she did. The chapters flow from passenger to passenger as we learn more about their lives and, in between these chapters, we learn about the life of this 'fortune teller.' It took me a while to get involved with these people and once I did, all I wanted to do was find time to read. This is by far my favorite Liane Moriarty book and would make for interesting book club discussions. Do you believe in fate? Can you change your future? Would you want to know how and when you are going to die? Would you live differently? This book has already been decided on for our December meeting and I'm really looking forward to it.

Liane Moriarty, you beautiful genius. This might be my new favorite LM book.

I loved this— the interlaced stories, the slight supernatural element, and the many twists and turns the story took. I was riveted the whole time.

“But that's the thing about life: both your wildest dreams and your worst nightmares can come true.”

“The problem is that we then subconsciously believe people who suffer must deserve it. It's what allows us to look away, to turn the television off. People sometimes say that everything happens for a reason. No. No, it does not. There was no reason for these terrible things to happen together. No reason at all. They just did.”

I’ve dealt with anxiety and OCD my whole life. One of my triggers is nighttime. I would (and still sometimes do) often spiral about death. I remember when I was a preteen, I so convinced I wouldn’t wake up in the morning, that I laid on the couch and stared at then textured walls of my childhood home’s living room until the sun rose. This happened more times than I can count, and still sometimes does. Back then I thought I was psychic, predicting the future. OCD makes you believe you are capable of some pretty powerful things. And that isn’t always a good thing.

Enter Here One Moment. Despite anxiety meds and 15 years of trying to understand myself better, this book sent me back to staring at those textured walls. The anxiety palpable. I couldn’t quite settle into this book because of that. That’s not to say it was bad - it was wildly entertaining. Beautifully written. Rich, layered, crispy. I loved the dry and pithy humor. I loved the depth of characters. And in typical Liane Moriarty fashion, there were loads. But she’s so great at writing these vastly different characters with unique voices. It’s easy to follow.

The concept was thought provoking - if not absolutely terrifying. I still highly recommend this book. But maybe my next read will be a pallet cleanser for my poor anxiety lol.

This book has only been out for 1 month and with 29,000 reviews, I knew it would be good but did not expect it to be this great!!! If I could give this book 10 stars, I would! Another fantastic novel by the great Liane Moriarty. Bring it’s 512 pages, I was hesitant about starting it with all the hurricanes going on down in FL, (where a lot of my family live) I wasn’t sure I could fully concentrate but this pulled me in from the very page. I really think it’s her best novel so far!!! A fave for 2024!

Here One Moment hooks you with an intriguing premise from the start, but it doesn’t quite deliver the page-turning suspense you might expect. Though fairly standard characters, they are interesting enough to keep you invested in their storylines. While the momentum falters in the middle, the author pulls it together for a satisfying and well-wrapped ending.

Thank you to Netgalley and Crown Publisher for allowing me to read a copy of this book. The page count was over 500 pages but, the book flowed and was eager to see how this book would evolve. This book Here One Moment reminded me to never take one moment for granted. There were amazing stories of how things change constantly based on predictions. I felt concerned for the characters and wondered if the predictions were correct. While not, a huge fan of this author I took the chance and it will encourage me to read another book.

Wow, I really loved this! Have submitted a review for it to be listed as a staff pick on my library's website. Will encourage this as a book discussion title.

⭐️⭐️💫

So there are some pretty heavy themes here: grief, death, substance abuse, physical abuse, mysticism.

It starts with a flight from Tasmania to Australia when a woman stands and begins to pronounce the age and causes of death of the passengers. It then diverts unto a multiple narrator layered story of the past of the “death lady” and the present of the passengers. And the questions remain: is this real, and, if so, can you beat fate.

I personally found the story very bouncy from one person to the next and hard to follow. Although the “death lady” (Cherry) was the most common narrator, I found her story the least interesting in comparison to the passengers.

Having read other stories following a similar theme, I just never got excited and into this one.

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Liane Moriarty, you beautiful genius. This might be my new favorite LM book.

I loved this— the interlaced stories, the slight supernatural element, and the many twists and turns the story took. I was riveted the whole time.

How would you live your life if you were told how you were going to die and at what age? This is what happens to a plan full of passengers. When some of the predictions begin to come true, others try to change their fate. This was a great portrayal of our time on Earth and how we spend it.

Wow, what an incredible read! This book has been on my radar for ages, as it's penned by one of my all-time favorite authors, and I couldn't wait to dive in. I had an absolute blast with it! The concept is truly captivating. The story kicks off on a flight where a mysterious “fortune teller,” later dubbed the “Death Lady,” predicts the manner and age of death for each passenger.

As we meet these characters, we follow several of them post-flight and witness how this chilling knowledge shapes their lives. I found it utterly fascinating to see how each character processes their predictions, and Moriarty masterfully intertwines their stories. Cherry’s chapters were a highlight for me; she served as a compelling anchor in the narrative. It was intriguing to explore how the other passengers navigated their newfound awareness and motivations.

This is definitely one of the most original books I've encountered this year, and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. It would be perfect for a book club, sparking some truly unforgettable discussions. I highly recommend it!

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for providing this read. All opinions are my own.
I reallyenjoyed the premise of this book. While not similar in plot, it reminded me of Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle. In that book, the main character knows how long her relationships will last. It seems like knowing this information becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. It's much the same here - essentially, does knowing the date/cause of your death change the way you will live your life? And does the fact that the person who told you that was correct on more than one occasion mean that she will also be correct about yours? Another layer of complexity is that we are surrounded by an ability to know things about other people to an extent that was never possible before. Thought-provoking, and maybe a little long.

I have read almost all of Liane Moriarty’s books. My favourites are Big Little Lies and The Husband’s Secret. I hate to say it, but her last few books haven’t wowed me. I had really high hopes for this one and it certainly started out strong for me but I was disappointed by the ending and the “explanation” of the central plot point.

The book starts out on a plane flying from Hobart to Sydney. A woman in her 70s walks down the aisles of the plane and tells every passenger and flight attendant what age they will be when they die and what their cause of death will be. The story then alternates between present time and some of the passengers of the plane and goes back in time to tell the life story of the “death lady”.

I thought the book would be similar to The Measure and would make me ponder how I would live my life if I knew when I was going to die. I thought it would have profound insight about life, love, death and loss. For me, it merely scratched the surface of those heavy topics.

How would you live your life if someone predicted your death? Would you carry on as normal, or do everything you could to prevent the prediction from coming true? An entire flight of people get to answer those questions in this thought-provoking novel.

It starts on an incredibly compelling note, with a woman walking through a plane, aisle by aisle, as she points to each passenger and states the age and cause of their deaths. The creepy, Twilight Zone vibes HAD me! And what followed was also intriguing. Though, you may disagree if you’re not down for a character-driven plot.

The book toggles between the POV of the mysterious, all-knowing passenger and several others from the same flight as they live out their days post-prediction. So we spend a LOT of time with each of them. Personally, I love character-centric books, so this worked for me. But it did start to drag in the final act, especially once I figured out exactly what was going on.

I’m also torn about the ending! It had me feeling some feels, that’s for sure. And it did, technically, make sense. But part of me felt a little let down. I’ll leave it at that so nothing gets spoiled!

I did appreciate what this book had to say about living life…that there’s beauty and purpose to be found in all of our days, no matter how many or how few of them we have on this earth. I haven’t read many Liane Moriarty books but heard from others that this plot is very much her style. So, if you’re a fan, you’ll probably love it!

Synopsis: A crowded flight interrupted by an elderly woman giving each passenger their cause of death and what age they’ll die. A mother and her children, a flight attendant, a career-driven father and more learn their fates. What will they do with this news and who is the mysterious elderly woman?

Thoughts: The premise of people hearing their fate and how they will react was so intriguing. But between those stories, Liane Moriarty gives the background on Cherry, the woman who is predicting deaths. While this background information is handy and makes me sympathetic to her, the sections got long. I was anxiously waiting to find out what will happen with the passengers on the plane. Over all great message to live your life to its fullest.

Thank you to Liane Moriarty, Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the copy.

Retiree and recent widow Cherry is on a flight in Australia when she stands up and begins approaching people on the flight. She predicts the cause of death and age of death for most of the people on the flight. As people slowly begin to pass away and fulfill Cherry’s prophecies, the other people on the flight get more and more worried. The book covers Cherry’s life and the lives of many of the passengers after they get their death prediction.

Liane Moriarty is a good writer, but I just didn’t enjoy this book very much. There are a lot of characters and sometimes she wouldn’t return to them for a while so it would take me a minute to remember their situation. Cherry’s life is interesting at some points but overall I wasn’t invested in the book.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Crown Publishing and Liane Moriarty For a copy of this book.