For those of you that haven't or couldn't attend book club lately, we're publishing this months' discussion questions here. All previous book club selections have been posted, complete with summary, discussion questions and, when necessary or appropriate, additional resources to better understand the topic or context. Here are the questions from our current title, Falling. We hope these questions spark discussions of your own.
Falling
by TJ Newman
Summary:
#1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER * INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
“T. J. Newman has written the perfect thriller! A must-read.” —Gillian Flynn
“Stunning and relentless. This is Jaws at 35,000 feet.” —Don Winslow
“Falling is the best kind of thriller…Nonstop, totally authentic suspense.” —James Patterson
“Amazing...Intense suspense, shocks, and scares...Chilling.” —Lee Child
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. -- Publisher Description
Discussion Questions
Never judge a book by its cover… but if you did, how does the cover of Newman’s debut book influence your read from page one.
The essence of this title is the infamous trolley problem. Save one (or a few) or save many. Do you have a different solution than that posed in the book?
The book takes place mostly in real time. How does this affect your read? Are there any others that do similarly that you’ve read? How well do you think Newman did?
TJ Newman worked as a flight attendant for Virgin America and Alaskan Airlines for a decade. Do you find this experience gives readers more of a feeling of authenticity? Were there aspects that surprised you?
How did the characters grow, change or become more relatable? Was it believable? Did it make sense for how Newman solved the book? Were you surprised by any of them?
For many people, this book is going to bring about memories of 9/11. How did this affect you?
Flight crews don’t always know each other. But all are trained in how to work together. Were you surprised by how well or not they worked together?
When did things really break down? Discuss some memorable moments as tension rose.
Compare this book to Captain Sully and his famous 2009 landing of a crippled passenger airline in the Hudson.
How did this affect your desire to travel? Did it?
Does the book offer a satisfying ending? How would you have changed it?
What scene was the most cinematic? How so?
How would Fallen have been different if they had followed a different set of characters on the flight?
If you were to end up in this situation, how would you have fared?