3 Stars
Publisher: Doubleday Books, Doubleday
Date of publication: March 13th, 2018
Genre: General Fiction, Mystery, Thriller
Number of pages: 368
POV: 3rd person
Where you can find The Flight Attendant: Barnes and Noble | Amazon
Book synopsis (from Goodreads):
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Guest Room, a powerful story about the ways an entire life can change in one night: a flight attendant wakes up in the wrong hotel, in the wrong bed, with a dead man—and no idea what happened.
Cassandra Bowden is no stranger to hungover mornings. She’s a binge drinker, her job with the airline making it easy to find adventure; and the occasional blackouts seem to be inevitable. She lives with them, and the accompanying self-loathing. When she awakes in a Dubai hotel room, she tries to piece the previous night back together, already counting the minutes until she has to catch her crew shuttle to the airport. She quietly slides out of bed, careful not to aggravate her already pounding head, and looks at the man with whom she spent the night. She sees his dark hair. His utter stillness. And the blood, a slick, still, wet pool on the crisp white sheets. Afraid to call the police—she’s a single woman alone in a hotel room far from home—Cassie begins to lie. She lies as she joins the other flight attendants and pilots in the van. She lies on the way to Paris as she works the first-class cabin. She lies to the FBI agents in New York who meet her at the gate. Soon it’s too late to come clean or face the truth about what really happened back in Dubai. Could she have killed him? If not, who did?
Set amid the captivating world of those whose lives unfold at forty thousand feet, those who spend their nights in far-flung cities, rolling suitcases trailing their every step, The Flight Attendant unveils a spellbinding story of memory, regret, and murder far from home.
Trigger Warning: Self-harming behavior, excessive drinking, talk of verbal abuse, talk of uncontested sex while drunk
My review:
I had requested this book from Doubleday because I was in the mood for a good mystery/thriller. I was taken in by the blurb. So when I was approved for the book, I was pretty excited. Then I read the book. Talk about a letdown. I came close to DNF’ing several times because the story couldn’t keep my attention. But when I start a book, I read it through to the end, no matter how bad it was.
The Flight Attendant started off with Cassie, waking up in a strange hotel room in Dubai with a hangover. That hangover turns to horror when she realizes that she is in bed with a corpse. The man she had slept with the night before had been killed, his throat slashed and he bled out all over the bed. Cassie panics and leaves. Her leaving starts an avalanche of lies that catch up with her.
I was so annoyed with Cassie during the book. It seemed like her mentality was that of a horny college student who can’t hold their alcohol. Her exploits before Dubai and mostly afterward always included alcohol. There was a point where I sighed and said to myself “Why doesn’t anyone say something to her or suggest she goes to rehab to dry out?” I mean, even her own sister didn’t trust her alone with her niece and nephew because of the drinking.
She also didn’t listen to anyone. She had a lawyer that was supplied by the flight attendant union. That lawyer told her to plead the 5th. But did she listen? For a little while. Then she told some of the truth and more lies. I was yelling at the book in my head and said “Lady, are you effing kidding me? Shut up!! Listen to your lawyer!!” I almost put the book down after that. Like I said, she annoyed the ever-living out of me.
I did like the parallel storyline of the assassin. I thought it was very interesting how she came to be one. I also thought her not killing Cassie when she had the chance was very telling. I did think that she was going to let Cassie go.
The end of the book was a big mind screw. Everything was turned upside down and that is what saved this book from getting a 1-star rating. I was not expecting the twists that appeared out of nowhere. So wasn’t expecting any of that and I loved it!! I thought the epilogue was a little much but I was happy for Cassie. I guess.
The Flight Attendant was a very slow-moving book up until Cassie goes to Italy for the 2nd time. Then it picks up the pace. I couldn’t get into this book. Besides it being slow, the characters came across as flat. I couldn’t connect with any of them. The ending was fantastic and it saved the book for me. The twists that the author did shock me and they made the book.
Will I reread: No (but I will read other books from the author)
Will I recommend to family and friends: Maybe
Age range: Adult
Why: Sex, violence, language
I would like to thank Chris Bohjalian, Doubleday Books, Doubleday and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Flight Attendant.
All opinions stated in this review of The Flight Attendant are mine
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**