Member Reviews
Like all of Moriarty’s books, this one has a rich storyline that keeps you pensive throughout as you consider how you would feel or react to what the characters are experiencing. Her books are always a treat!
All The stars🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Do you believe in fate?
It was just another routine flight from Hobart to Sydney. But one passenger on board will change the lives of everyone she came in contact with.
Cherry Smith simply stands in the isle, slowly making her way to the back of the plane, pointing at everyone, predicting how they will die and at what age. Can you imagine the sheer terror and confusion from those who didn’t like their future?
A psychic prediction or self-fulfilling prophecy?
Told from several points of view.
Cherry, from childhood to the day of the flight (and aftermath).
As well as several of the passengers who received her predictions.
Would you want to know your future? The date and method of your death? Would that change how you live? Or is destiny already firmly in place.
I was so vested in the lives of all the characters. I cheered, cried and tried to protect them to the best of my (reader's) ability as they waited to see if the predictions would come true.
A slow moving story-line, but as all the pieces started falling into place it was absolutely brilliant. I loved every single page and didn’t want it to end.
WOW! I certainly didn’t expect this read to touch me the way it did. But by the end, the tears just began rolling down my cheeks.
Cherry’s story reminded me of my own mother who always felt she could predict people’s futures too. I always quietly chuckled when she would share this with me. Now, as the six year anniversary of her passing quickly approaches, I felt deep in my heart she put this book in my hands…a gift and a beautiful reminder.🥹💝
This book leads you to focus on the important things around you. Your life, love and ultimately death.
I think this book will resonate differently with every reader depending on your experiences and where you are in life’s journey. I know this book will stay with me for a very long time. I am placing it proudly on my favorite's shelf. Thank you Liane Moriarty for wring such an incredible story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing
Overall rating is more a 3.5 or 3.75.
Are we all fated to a life predetermined for us, or do we shape our lives by the choices and events we face?
Liane Moriarty tries to answer this question in her latest book, Here One Moment. On a short flight between Sydney and Hobart, one of our main characters, Cherry, walks down the aisle of a plane, pointing at each passenger and saying two things: at what age she predicts they will die and the cause of death.
Once the plane lands, every other chapter is about how the passengers deal with their individual predictions, interspersed with chapters detailing Cherry's life and how she got to the moment on the plane.
It is a part of human nature to wonder if there is some master plan at play or if everything is just left up to chance. I really enjoyed following the stories of the few plane passengers after they left the plane.
Cherry's chapters, unfortunately, really brought the reading experience down from a 4-star read to 3.5 or so. One of my major pet peeves in a book is when an author feels the need to include how their writing is supposed to make the reader feel by putting it in quotation marks after the passage (i.e. this was funny, it was not sarcasm, I was not happy, etc). Write the passage as you intend; I bet that 9/10 readers will pick up on it; if not, it's ok to let that reader believe what they want to. Isn't that what writing is all about?
Overall, this was a good book. I just feel that the Cherry bits could have been chopped and it would have been a great book!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy of the book for review purposes.
Sadly, I did not finish! Too many characters made it confusing to follow and the constant reminders of death made reading this depressing! I made it through 30% percent of the book and then decided to move on!
I have loved everything this author has written so far, but sadly this one just wasn’t for me :(
When I first read the synopsis of this one I was intrigued immediately- I loved “The Measure” by Nikki Erlick and this gave me similar vibes. While I didn’t end up loving this one *quite* as much I still really enjoyed it!
Moriarty starts this novel with keen (and hilarious) observations of people’s behavior at the airport. It was a fun way to get into the story and it really drew me in to the setting! Once on the plane, the story alternates between the perspectives of the passengers and the ”death lady”, Cherry, who makes predictions as to how and when everyone on the plane will die. In general I was more invested in the chapters of the passengers; the Cherry chapters dragged a little bit in the middle for me but the chapters were short and that definitely kept things moving!
Like all Moriarty novels, all of the little threads are woven together by the end in surprising and interesting ways. The ending and overall message of this book was particularly strong! I was really moved by the characters, what they learned about life, and ultimately what they learned about themselves. I feel like this would be a great choice for a book club as there are a lot of scenarios and plot points that would be great for discussion!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review!
4.25 stars
Enjoyable but slow. The story was definitely intriguing from the beginning, but then slowly tied it all together.
Wow. Just wow.
An older woman gives an entire plane of people their date and cause of death. As a few of her predictions come true- we follow the ‘psychic’ wnd 5 different POVs from the plane.
15% into this book and I knew it was going to a favorite of all time. I was instantly obsessed with the writing, the story and the cast of characters.
There was not one moment of the story that I wasn’t flipping pages as quickly as I could. There wasn’t one POV or character that I didn’t fall absolutely in love with.
Hat offs to Liane- this was masterfully done and I’ll take so much of this book with me throughout my life.
HERE ONE MOMENT by Liane Moriarty
Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing | Crown for the ARC ebook of Here One Moment
The intriguing premise of this book is a psychic onboard a plane and predicting passengers causes and ages of their deaths. Of course this stirs a commotion onboard when this strange lady is walking throughout the plane and pointing at passengers while repeating the phrase, “fate won’t be fought.” You get the backstory of each character as they reckon with their alleged fate. You will get to know Cherry, the Death Lady, and the life that brought her to this day on the plane. Here One Moment is a captivating read from the start and the tension builds and is maintained throughout. I liked how Liane Moriarty wrapped up the end of this story. A long book, but with short chapters that make it not seem so long. Always look forward to what she will write next.
Touching upon grief, free will and destiny, loneliness, love, family, and choices.
What an immediately intriguing novel as we are introduced to the absolutely common lady on a flight. Moriarty takes us on a whirlwind adventure between The Death Lady’s unwarranted predictions and the passengers lives following the landing. Here One Minute will grip you from the start.
Thank you to NetGalley for this preview which is highly recommended!
I had high hopes for this one, but it just sort of fizzled out for me. The premise pulled me in, and the book started strong. But I think it got bogged down with the details of too many characters. I just wanted to find out what would happen, so I kept reading. I did not find the ending especially satisfying. I’ve been a fan of other books by this author, so in spite of this miss, I’ll look forward to what comes next from her. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I've been a long time fan of Liane Moriarty so getting this preview was a treat! While most of Moriarty's books seem to fall in the thriller category, this veered more towards a mystery with a dash of potential magical realism.
This plot centers around a woman on a plane tagged as "The Death Lady" after proclaiming how and when her fellow passengers will die. A handful of passengers who were given predictions of early or unnatural deaths are followed in alternating chapters opposite a first person account of the Death Lady's own life story. I loved the character building of Cherry (The Death Lady). She was slightly awkward in a quirky, humorous way and it made smile. The story of the passengers often centered on questions of choice and freewill vs fate and destiny. The account of Cherry's life was an often heart gripping tale of love and grief. The balance was perfect for me and it earned a solid 5 stars from me!
I am a HUGE Liane Moriarty fan, so I was incredibly excited to get the chance to read ‘Here One Moment’ before the publication.
The premise of this book was extremely intriguing. A seemingly normal flight is suddenly disrupted by an old woman predicting ages and causes of passengers death’s. Count me in!
The beginning of the story was everything I wanted it to be. It was eerie finding out the different ages and death predictions. Some people getting the prediction of living into their late 90s and dying of old age, others within a few years and dying from things like drowning, workplace accidents, or car accidents.
The middle of the book is where it lost me. There were waayyyy too many characters. It was extremely hard to follow, and could have been 100 pages shorter for a more impactful story.
Not all of it was bad, though. Moriarty did an exceptional job of building worlds around these characters. Each page you read, you expected the predictions to come true for that character. The ending was wholesome and taught a very important lesson. I can never complain about that.
I feel like this would make an AMAZING tv series.. and almost felt like she wrote this for it to become one?? I would for sure be thrilled if it does go that direction, though!
‘Here One Moment’ will be published on September 10th, 2024
Huge thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read and review!
4.5 stars. This was so fascinating to read. I loved going back and forth between the airplane passengers and Cherry. I'm not sure how I would do if I was told when and how I would die. Great writing, great characters. Would definitely recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book - I loved it so much! I loved that it was set on a plane and although it took me a few pages to get used to how it was jumping around a lot between different characters - I loved how everything came together in the end. It reminded me of Anxious People by Fredrik Backman & Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt - I just love that interconnected and heartwarming style of book that is at the same time such a compulsive page-turner.
On an ordinary flight from Hobart to Sydney, Australia, passengers learn how and when they are going to die. For some, their deaths are far in the future — but for others it’s much sooner. The woman who made these predictions soon becomes known as “The Death Lady” and many passengers are left with a feeling of unease.
During the flight we are introduced to a handful of passengers and find out their predicted fate. After the flight we get an intimate look into their lives — and how they continue to go about their days.
The chapters jump around to the POVs of different characters, including “The Death Lady.” I became so invested in each of the characters. A lot of the chapters leave off on little cliffhangers, leaving me glued to the book.
This is a book that makes you reflect on life and what’s most important to you.
Liane Moriarty is a master storyteller. I had no idea how everything would come together, but it really couldn’t have ended more perfectly.
“Everyone loves a particular version of you and when that person is gone that version goes with them.”
🔆 Genre: Contemporary fiction
💙 Steamy rating: Mild
🔆 Profanity: Moderate
One ordinary but delayed flight changes the lives of six passengers when a physic predicts their age of death and cause of death. Some predictions are fairly soon. The passengers’ lives intertwine as they fear their demise is coming and desperately try to change their presumed fate.
I love Liane Moriarty’s quirky storytelling. She has a way of bringing her characters to life. This book introduces many characters right out of the shoot, so I suggest you write them down to keep track of them. The story starts out slow as you develop an understanding of the six characters and the psychic - their past, their future, and fear of their death. It’s told in first person by the psychic and rotates in third person for the other characters. I was engaged in the character’s lives the entire time. The last 30% flew by quickly. This book did have sad parts, but it wasn’t completely doom and gloom. Don’t let my trigger warning completely scare you off.
Triggers: So much death, car accident, heart attack, Cancer, grief, psychic predictions, misogyny, alcohol abuse, and infidelity
Thank you @netgalley and @crownpublishing for the advanced copy of Here One Moment. Liane Moriarty is one of my favorite authors, and I enjoyed this one.
I almost stopped reading this book. Sudden death hits close to home many times over for me. But I powered through and appreciate the purpose and message of this novel. Thank you NetGalley for the advance ecopy.
I was so thrilled when I got this ARC of Liane Moriarty's soon to be published book from NetGalley! I was not disappointed. This book is filled with characters whose lives converge for one flight that connects them in an unexpected way. I enjoyed following the various passengers as they went on with their lives and how the events of the flight effected them and connected them. Meanwhile I thought it was so perfect how Moriarty also spoon fed us the back story of the woman who made the flight so unique. Just so well done. There are so many characters to cover and yet we come to know them all in such interesting ways.
It was a regular day, with regular people going about their regular lives, when everything changes for a group on a short flight from Hobart to Sydney, Australia. First, the delay - the wait to fix a small part on a plane causing people’s days to be thrown off, getting most of them annoyed, and by the time the plane departed, everyone was already waiting to get off.
Then, a woman gets up and starts pointing. “I expect pneumonia, age 103.” “I expect catastrophic stroke, age 72.” “I expect old age, age 100.” “I expect heart disease, age 84.” “I expect pancreatic cancer, age 66.”
On through the entire plane, as a harried flight attendant tries to keep order (“I expect self-harm, age 28”) the woman gives her predictions to every single passenger. But who is she? She looks like a regular woman - elderly but fit, dressed nicely, lovely hair - someone’s grandmother, perhaps. Soon though, this woman is “The Death Lady”, after the plane lands and people realize the magnitude of what happened during that 90-minute flight.
Most of the plane’s occupants will live long lives and die of “normal” things like cancer or heart disease. But there are also people, mostly young people, who will die tragic deaths…soon. The fascinating thing is some of these deaths will be preventable now that the people know, but “fate can’t be fought”. They can try to change things, but what is destined will happen. Or is it possible to change your destiny…?
Not long after, the first passenger dies, exactly as predicted. Then another, and another. The Australian Psychics Association condemned The Death Lady’s actions, claiming she is a charlatan, but so far, her predictions seem to have merit. As for the woman herself? She doesn’t know what to believe; she’s embarrassed the whole thing happened and hopes nobody finds out who she is, as the press is having a field day with the story.
I’m going to make my own prediction right now. I expect this book to be in my top five of 2024, if not my favorite book of the year. Only time will tell, but this was very unique, thoughtful, entertaining, heartbreaking, heartwarming - it was all the things. This was a long book, but I wished it had been longer. I love thinking about the Butterfly Effect, the Chaos Theory, whatever you call it if you believe in it, and this book definitely will have you thinking. A flawless five stars for this one!
(Thank you to Crown Publishing, Liane Moriarty and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released September 10, 2024.)
I couldn't put it down!
The premise of Here One Moment, a "psychic" on a plane predicting strangers' causes and ages of death, initially sounded a bit woo-woo to me; but what makes this book captivating, like all of Liane Moriarty's books, is her characters. She could write a book about people waiting in line at the Department of Motor Vehicles and make it a fascinating read. So, whether you're interested in clairvoyance or think it's absolute nonsense, you will be drawn into the story and dying to know these people's outcomes. In some cases, I started to wonder if this woman not only predicted these deaths, but helped to cause them. It was intriguing to hear the passengers' backstories as we wait to see if they'll die according to The Death Lady's predictions.
Thank you to Crown Publishing for providing a complimentary Advanced Reader Copy through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.