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jennabeck13's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Drowning by T.J. Newman
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)
Genre: Suspense
About 290 pages
When Flight 1421 crashed shortly after takeoff, the water landing was initially thought of as a blessing as most passengers survived the landing. That blessing was short-lived as jet fuel started leaking and the water started on fire. In an effort to save those who couldn’t get on a raft, they shut the doors to the plane, effectively turning it into a submarine as the plane begins to sink. With only a few hours of oxygen, the rescue crews must scramble to come up with a solution to save the remaining passengers. One crew member, Chris, is particularly determined to safely rescue the passengers as her daughter and ex-husband are stuck on that plane. In a race against time, both those on and off the plane must get creative if they want to prevent drowning.
It seems like a character flaw of myself that I’ve read books about plane crashes a week before a flight twice this year… but the resulting anxiety was worth it. Newman nailed this one! Her real-life experience as a flight attendant adds so much value to her storytelling. It was so easy to picture every moment unfolding and she kept me on my toes the entire read. I really hope that Newman continues writing and I can’t wait to see what producers come up with when bringing this one to the big screen!
Favorite Quotes:
“And that was all life was. Shifting the balance, every day, to make room for joy and grace in whatever circumstances you’ve got before your time runs out.”
“Time is luck. You grab it. You hold on tight. And you be there. You have to be there for it. It’s going, with or without you. And no one knows for how long. No one knows.”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cancer
caseythereader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Cursing, Suicide, Blood, Confinement, Child death, Grief, Vomit, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Gore
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Cancer
jessyhayward's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Drowning by T.J Newman is a survival thriller based on one terrifying situation: being trapped in a plane that is submerged in the ocean. It follows Will and his young daughter Shannon as they navigate this terrible and rare dilemma while being surrounded by a diverse range of strangers. Unfortunately, air is running out and so is time.
This novel is short and suspenseful and I finished it in a few hours. I enjoyed it. The writing is engaging and transports you straight to the setting of the characters. It is descriptive and very good at showing rather than telling; I empathised with all characters and even came close to tears throughout the story. It felt…real, I suppose. The characters were very realistic and reacted as I’d expect anyone to. I loved Will, Shannon, Chris, Bernadette, Maia, and pretty much everyone else, honestly.
My only “criticism” is that it’s a little too quick. The pacing was far too fast and I did feel like the ending could’ve lasted longer. I also would’ve liked to see the impact of this event on the main characters. This is just my opinion, though, and I’d still recommend it to those who like this sort of book.
This novel is short and suspenseful and I finished it in a few hours. I enjoyed it. The writing is engaging and transports you straight to the setting of the characters. It is descriptive and very good at showing rather than telling; I empathised with all characters and even came close to tears throughout the story. It felt…real, I suppose. The characters were very realistic and reacted as I’d expect anyone to. I loved Will, Shannon, Chris, Bernadette, Maia, and pretty much everyone else, honestly.
My only “criticism” is that it’s a little too quick. The pacing was far too fast and I did feel like the ending could’ve lasted longer. I also would’ve liked to see the impact of this event on the main characters. This is just my opinion, though, and I’d still recommend it to those who like this sort of book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content
Minor: Child death and Alcohol
schnaucl's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
I really liked it. It was tense and well written. I'd read more from this author (though perhaps not on a plane).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Grief, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, and Cancer
roksyreads's review against another edition
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
An excellent, tense, and well-written thriller.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Car accident, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
_thelitlibrarian's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
4.25 stars
-
TW: Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Cancer, Infidelity
-
As someone who has a fear of flying, this probably wasn't the best choice for me. That being said, I LOVED Drowning by T.J. Newman. I applaud this book for jumping straight into action, six-minutes after taking off, flight 1421 is forced to make an emergency water landing. During the rough landing, the engine explodes and chaos ensues. Passengers are forced to make a choice - and fast. Leave the plane and die, or stay in and fight for survival.
We're left with twelve passengers left on the plane, as they start to sink to the bottom of the ocean. We get a glimpse into the passengers lives as we deal with the fact that they may not survive. Their only hope? An elite rescue team led by diver Chris Kent, who's daughter Shannon and soon-to-be ex-husband Will just so happen to be on board of the plane. The stakes are high, and it seems like nothing can be done. This is a page-turner! Once you start it, you won't want to put it down. This thrilling novel allows us to see the 'ins' of a flight and crew, and what happens once disaster strikes. Although I appreciated all the technical flight terms, sometimes it got a little too detailed and was a little hard to follow along.
I really enjoyed the different POV's one from the plane, and the other from the crew above the water. It really added to the tension of how they were going to pull off the rescue, I really liked Chris' determination, although her rescue plan was not first choice, she didn't give up as she knew it was the ONLY way to have everyone on board survive. I've always avoided disaster and rescue movies, and books so I was hesitant going into this one, but in the end it had me in tears.
-
I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
-
TW: Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Cancer, Infidelity
-
As someone who has a fear of flying, this probably wasn't the best choice for me. That being said, I LOVED Drowning by T.J. Newman. I applaud this book for jumping straight into action, six-minutes after taking off, flight 1421 is forced to make an emergency water landing. During the rough landing, the engine explodes and chaos ensues. Passengers are forced to make a choice - and fast. Leave the plane and die, or stay in and fight for survival.
We're left with twelve passengers left on the plane, as they start to sink to the bottom of the ocean. We get a glimpse into the passengers lives as we deal with the fact that they may not survive. Their only hope? An elite rescue team led by diver Chris Kent, who's daughter Shannon and soon-to-be ex-husband Will just so happen to be on board of the plane. The stakes are high, and it seems like nothing can be done. This is a page-turner! Once you start it, you won't want to put it down. This thrilling novel allows us to see the 'ins' of a flight and crew, and what happens once disaster strikes. Although I appreciated all the technical flight terms, sometimes it got a little too detailed and was a little hard to follow along.
I really enjoyed the different POV's one from the plane, and the other from the crew above the water. It really added to the tension of how they were going to pull off the rescue, I really liked Chris' determination, although her rescue plan was not first choice, she didn't give up as she knew it was the ONLY way to have everyone on board survive. I've always avoided disaster and rescue movies, and books so I was hesitant going into this one, but in the end it had me in tears.
-
I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Child death, Cancer, and Cursing
pages_with_a_preoccupied_prin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Cancer
kelsokake's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Absolutely riveting. It had me hooked from the first sentence and i devoured it in one sitting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Cancer
sophieamreacher's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Phenomenal book. This had me enthralled from the first to last page. The characters, the writing, the plot, all amazing. I loved it so much and it made me feel so anxious and made me cry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Gore, Confinement, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Body horror, Death, Child death, Blood, Suicide, Medical content, Medical trauma, Vomit, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol
cassmills's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail