Title: Falling
Author: T.J. Newman
Published: June 2nd 2021
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 300
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Suspense, Thriller
RRP: $29.99
Rating: 3.5 stars
You just boarded a flight to New York.
There are 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, everyone on your plane must die.
The only way the family will survive is if the pilot follows his orders and crashes the plane.
Enjoy the flight.
Review:
“You see, Bill, you probably already get the obvious. Here’s the rest. You will crash you plane or I will kill you family.”
Falling by T.J. Newman offers the audience a high octane and exhilarating reading experience from the first page to the parting word. Gripping, nail biting, harrowing and exciting, Falling is Hollywood blockbuster film material. T.J. Newman has produced a crisis style novel that will really get your heart pounding.
The story of an ill-fated flight on route to New York, Falling regales the tension filled experience of the crew and passengers on board a journey doomed for disaster. On this flight, the pilot is the target of deadly threat made to his family. This pilot has an incredibly tough decision to make, in order to save his family, the crew and passengers on board his flight must die in their place. What follows is a battle to save a family and the passengers of this fateful flight, as lives hang in the balance when the pilot is ordered to crash the plane.
With over a decade of experience in the airline industry as a flight attendant, debut author T.J. Newman was inspired to pen a fictional story based around her extensive knowledge. With much of the flight industry in crisis due to COVID-19, it was interesting to see a book put the airline industry in the spotlight. I was quite shocked with the terror filled opening of Falling, as it offers a very vivid account of an airline disaster. I was ready the settle into the incoming white knuckled ride, thanks to this tension filled premise. For the most part I found Falling to be knife edge style read.
It is abundantly clear that T.J. Newman has a wealth of information at her fingertips in regards to the airline industry, thanks to her previous employment as a flight attendant. I felt this area was a clear strength in Falling. We are issued with authentic characters, especially the crew, with special mention to the pilot figure of the tale, that I felt was directly drawn from real life figures. Newman is also very adept at the technical aspects of her book in relation to the structure of the plane and flight procedures. I think Newman really nailed this area of her novel, due to her insider knowledge.
In terms of plot, the overall story arc was full of tension, suspense, moral dilemmas, hard choices, conflicts and emotion. The crisis side of Falling is fleshed out very well, providing the reader with an insight into how an in-air disaster of this scale would most probably play out. The reactions and responses of the cast seemed to be plausible, as well as harrowing. There was a real screen feel to many of the scenes in Falling, which perhaps suggests that Newman’s debut should be optioned for film rights. Newman also works hard to build a clear heroes and villains style cast, with blurred lines in between. It was interesting to observe how different figures react under pressure and who falters under such trying conditions. I decided that I didn’t want to be in the shoes of any of these characters, especially the pilot!
The pace was really quite unrelenting in Falling and it encouraged me to zip through this one in no time at all. This was great, but I think some parts went over my head in my race to get to the end. My overall reading experience with Falling could best be described as a complete blur, a whirlwind, with lots and lots of action. I’m generally not a fan of action and disaster thriller books or films, so Falling was a good read, but not absolutely brilliant for me.
Falling by T.J. Newman was published on 2nd June 2021 by Simon & Schuster. Details on how to purchase the book can be found here.
To learn more about the author of Falling, T.J. Newman, here.
*I wish to thank Simon & Schuster Australia for providing me with a free copy of this book for review purposes.
