“Tilt” by Emma Pattee is a powerful debut novel that is based on the premise of surviving a disastrous earthquake in Portland Oregon. The story centers around a young woman who is about to purchase a crib for her yet unborn child. She is 8 months pregnant and in IKEA when the earthquake hits. The timeline of the book takes us through one single day in this woman’s life, where she is totally focused on her survival, the survival of her unborn child and reflecting on her stale marriage, unfulfilled dreams, and motherhood. I was holding my breath several times as she wove her way through a city in ruins, people desperately searching for their children, violence & death all while trying to find her way home. The images were so vivid to me that I tasted the dust and smelled the smoke!

This book is beautifully written and based on the very real threat of an earthquake of this magnitude hitting the Cascadia fault in the Pacific Northwest.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon Element for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Tilt was a really fantastic read. Set in barely post-pandemic times, the characters felt real and vibrant. The setting - Portland, Oregon - was familiar to me as I have friends there and have visited in the recent past. As such, I've heard a bit about the phenomenon posited here, that the Cascadian fault line has produced a massive earthquake. Our protagonist, Annie, is a pregnant ball of anxiety - her multitude of worries about her marriage, her future child, her relationship with her mother, and her career are evident from the get-go, and I can relate to her ongoing inner monologue!

The journey Annie takes to get from Ikea, where she's buying a crib at the last minute before the birth, to where she thinks her husband is, takes up the majority of the story and is compelling and really readable. I found myself wondering if I'd have the strength to do what she did in her condition. And I was rooting for her to get to a safe place and find her husband before labor began!

I don't want to spoil any of this for anyone, so I'll just summarize: if you like books about relationship drama (both mother-daughter and husband-wife) and if you like disaster stories, I would highly recommend this. Annie is determined and resourceful, as well as insightful and humble. I found the writing to be easy to read and very engaging. Also, I just love the cover. Beautiful!

***Thank you so much to Net Galley and Simon Element for the ARC!***

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon Element/S&S/Marysue Rucci Books for this ARC of Tilt by Emma Pattee.

This book is categorized in the fiction genre but as the story of the span of one day post-earthquake disaster, and the FMC Annie is 9-months pregnant, the description had a thriller aspect.

The writing in this book is *fierce.*
It contains Millennial vibes of generalized-anxiety and ennui that I as Gen X could not fully relate to but could sympathize with.
I however can now relate to Millennial phone dependence and could feel the visceral “phantom limb” of Annie navigating the disaster without it. It’s mostly only herself and her soon-born “Bean” trying to get to Annie’s husband through the wreckage that is now Portland.

The story immediately yanked and held me, whether the MC was talking in her (snarky, astute!) dialogue in thoughts to Bean, questioning her marriage and her life’s decisions, reliving flashbacks, or enduring the harrowing present.
The parallel narratives of Annie’s devolving past in internal dialogue to Bean and the natural disaster/ earthquake aftermath she must survive propels the plot. And creates suspense: at 75% or the book I had to stop myself from peeking to the end to see what happens.

Four stars and I will read any future books from Emma Pattee.

I honestly could not stop reading this book - it had me from the first page. I loved being able to picture exactly where Annie was in Portland, and I related to her feelings about pregnancy, motherhood and marriage very much. The ending was perfect (so many fantastic books are ruined by the ending but I couldn't imagine a better one).

3.5 stars. I was kind of mixed about this one. On the one hand, I appreciated the dictation of the book to the unborn baby. The myriad of emotions were clearly felt and described. On the other hand, I never felt danger or impending doom (in the midst of the natural disaster).

The ending didn't work for me in the slightest, but clearly the author wanted things to end that way.
I really liked the cover, but it actually applied to a minuscule portion of the book, appearing near the very end. Hmm.
All in all, I can clearly see the appeal of this book to a wide audience (and there's almost like a built-in Netflix tie-in) -- it just didn't grab me.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

For how short this book is, it's unbelievable how much it has stuck with me since I've finished it. I think what sealed the 5/5 star fate was the Acknowledgments - the Cascadia earthquake is real, my friends. <a href="https://www.oregon.gov/oem/hazardsprep/pages/cascadia-subduction-zone.aspx#:~:text=Currently%2C%20scientists%20are%20predicting%20that,in%20the%20next%2050%20years.">Per Oregon's gov't site, "Currently, scientists are predicting that there is about a 37% chance that a megathrust earthquake of 7.1+ magnitude in this fault zone will occur in the next 50 years. This event will be felt throughout the Pacific Northwest"</a> Regardless of whether of not you're a mother, that's terrifying.

In hindsight, the natural disaster plotline took a back seat to the profound unveiling of motherhoods' countless dimensions. How Emma Pattee was able to articulate the dualities mothers face daily is beyond me. It was done so seamlessly, too. I was so busy holding my breath for Annie that I couldn't prepare myself for the emotional toll this book would take on me with each chapter.
At one point, my kindle kept slipping through my hands they were so sweaty. Next, I'd have to take a second to breathe so I didn't cry - the sentiments hit THAT close to home.

I bring up motherhood in my reviews (almost to a fault) because your lens is forever smudged by tiny fingerprints once you enter it. I can say with certainty that you have a mom somewhere. Even if you don't want to become a parent yourself you still have that one vital link to <i>someone's</i> motherhood, at the very least. So, you start from that place of understanding. Maybe you've felt a baby kick inside their mom's belly? Okay, now you have a little more understanding and can identify more closely with mentions of baby's kicks. You've had a baby in your own belly kick? Okay, now you can remember the strange sensation of little schools of fish flipping around, bumping into your bladder. You see what I mean? I know this is a simple idea to grasp - I only mention it because SO MUCH of the beauty I found in the book lies in that idea. Beyond the living roles, the (absolutely heartbreaking) exploration of becoming a mother without having a living mother to guide you is yet another perspective to be had.

Thankfully, the intensity was broken up really well. Annie is only a few years older than I am and I can confirm the millennial vibes were immaculate. We've grown up embedded with such a fun (this is sarcasm) mix of shame and need for validation, seeing something and immediately thinking "I need to Instagram this" or "I can't wait to tell so-and-so this story" instead of actively participating in the world around us and helping where we can.

I don't know much about writing, but I'd think that taking on a novel with a timeline of A SINGLE DAY is hard. I only said "there's no way this would really happen" 2x; I usually hit at least 5x when reading anything remotely dystopian. I could keep writing about this book forever probably, and am very willing to if anyone else would like!!! Buuut for my review, I'm going to call it after mentioning... This is Emma Pattee's debut novel!?!?!?!?!? No way??? Can I have dibs on #1 fan?

{Thank you bunches to NetGalley, Emma Pattee and publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!}

Tilt is exactly what you want in a survival story. High stakes, great backstory, and realistic enough that it scares you. I really enjoyed the direct prose of this book. The narrator talking to her unborn child as she fights to survive a massive earthquake was compelling. Like many survival stories, you want to yell at the characters for their dangerous choices, but it just adds to the suspense. Thanks so much to S&S/ Marysue Rucci Books for the ARC through NetGallery.

Holy shit this book is insane! I loved it! Considering I just had a baby at 37 weeks it was heart pounding and wild. This is a quick but fun must-read if you like thrilling plots, scary apocalypse stories, and innovative story telling.

Sigh. I love this book. Thank you to NetGalley for the truly great honor of reading this book prior to publication. I cannot wait until pub day to get my hands on a final copy, but also so that I can share some of my favorite quotes! This book was incredibly quotable and I was constantly highlighting passages as I read the ebook ARC.

This book is riveting, it's evocative, it's beautiful, and it sucks you in immediately. If you're anything like me (read: a bit of a worrywart) it might also play on some very real life fears that you have. It's a quick read and so worth it.

Nine-month pregnant Annie is shopping in IKEA when a catastrophic earthquake hits Portland, Oregon. The story is told over the course of one single day, with flashbacks to her past that really flesh out both her character and the story itself. The reader is engrossed in Annie's thoughts and reflections as she communicates with her unborn baby and searches the wreckage of the city for her husband.

As a thirty-something myself, I found Annie's thoughts and feelings to be so relatable. Her introspection and musings on her relationships (and life itself) felt very true to the experience of being in your 30s in a time when the kind of catastrophe depicted in the book is so very possible.

I feel a bit biased in my love for this book for reasons I can't explain, but I will read it again. And again. And again! And I can't wait til pub day.

I really enjoyed Tilt and the idea of a major earthquake and the after effects of it. I got drawn in and was cheering on Annie in her quest to find her husband. I loved the flashbacks which gave more insight into her life and relationship. What I didn’t love was the end. It was very disappointing but that’s all I’ll say so I don’t spoil it!

Oh my gawd! This book! Annie’s story of a major tragedy is just plain amazing. I felt like I was right next to her climbing through the rubble of an earthquake’s aftermath. And I could relate to her constant thoughts about the decisions she has made up to this point. A good look at human nature in the face of something unimaginable. I would gladly grab a second book - please make this a series!!!!

This is an absolutely stunning debut. It's so stunning, in fact, it's hard to believe it's a first novel. The entire story had me glued to the page, worried for our main character, contemplative about my own life and relationships, and utterly aware of the inevitability of the events happening.

I really enjoyed this book, though I will admit that the ending prevented me from giving it a higher rating. The ending makes perfect sense in the context of the story and writing, but there are too many loose ends for me. I want more closure, but I suppose Annie, the main character, did too.

As a West Coast mom, the story hits home. The aftermath of a massive earthquake is an interesting, horrific setting that could be all too real. The plight of mothers trying to get and find and protect their children… awful. I’m going to check my earthquake kit ASAP.

Annie is not the most likable character. She does some questionable things before the earthquake that makes her less relatable for me. She’s like the stereotypical negative portrayal of a millennial; however, by the end, I think that’s changing.

Unexpectedly tense and gripping!

Annie regrets not purchasing a crib months ago and she finds herself in an IKEA when an earthquake hits Portland. She’s desperate to meet up with her husband and begins to walk to his workplace. Along the way, she recounts her relationship with her husband and with her unborn child.

I didn’t expect a story of a woman essentially walking across Portland could be so harrowing and moving. The writing is lovely and energetic and explores grief, fear, love, the kindness and unkindness of strangers, and motherhood. The ending is a bit abrupt yet satisfying (though I wouldn’t have minded spending even more time with Annie).

Thank you very much to Simon Element and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

3.5 stars that I'm rounding up simply because of how relatable this woman and her internal thoughts are. It's a page turner as you tag along with our main character, in her last few days of pregnancy, who is traversing the city after an earthquake while in an IKEA store. She is trying to get to her husband and this is the story of that event with inner dialog and discussion with her unborn baby, which she calls Bean or Garbanzo Bean. She is not the perfect person, mother to be, or wife. She is unhappy with where her life is and her husband and life seem to have become a disappointment. She's not even sure about motherhood, but it's kind of late for that now. I didn't love how it ended, as it felt very abrupt and didn't give me a closure, but I think that's the intent. To leave you unsettled and come to terms with what you think would be the best outcome.

The story of a failing marriage, dying ambition and pregnancy alternate with survival after a devasting earthquake in Tilt, the masterful debut novel by Emma Pattee. On the first day of her maternity leave, Annie, eight months pregnant, goes to IKEA to buy a crib. This simple visit turns into a nightmare when the earthquake hits. She is saved by the clerk she had argued with minutes earlier and the two start an unforgettable journey across the city, she to the café where her husband Dom works and Taylor to her daughter’s school. Surrounded by destruction, Annie’s uncomfortable walk across what used to be a vibrant city is full of horror, crime, looting and people just trying to help one another survive. Lessening the tension of these long hours are the flashbacks of Annie’s troubled marriage, as her dream of becoming a playwright and Dom’s quest to become a famous actor die in the reality of making a living, paying rent and finding money for any extras.

Tilt is an amazing book. Emma Pattee writes so beautifully, so lyrically, that you want to savor every word. “All the dinners we’d spent across from each other, dreaming of having a better life. The boring sameness of my job, the way we sit at our desks and eat our sad salads” or “Into the night air and smell of smoke and dust, the stars exploding behind my eyes”. The earthquake is based on the very real threat of danger from the Cascadia fault. It is hard to believe that this a first novel. I look forward to reading what she writes next. 5 stars.

Than you to NetGalley, Simon Element and Emma Pattee for this ARC.