Member Reviews
A fast paced thriller that kept me guessing throughout. I felt like my heart was going to burst from my chest at parts it was that enthralling
An absolute belter of a book, had me hooked in from the very first chapter, and I guarantee you won’t be putting it down any time soon!
Charlie Reid is trying to patch things up with her son, Theo, so boards a flight that Theo is co-piloting.
But the plane crashes and when Charlie comes to, she has gone back in time to our hour before the disaster, and is stuck in a groundhog style loop.
Can she work out how to save everyone?
It’s a character driven novel about the choices we make.
The chapters alternate between Charlie trying to save everyone in her nightmare scenario and Theo in the search for his father he never knew.
It’s a fabulous taut thriller
Thanks @authorcamward @penguinukbooks @netgalley for the fab read
Fast paced and utterly bingeable I devoured this in 2 sittings, and wow what a ride. A great plot, exceptional storyline and a narrative that left my nerves shredded!
I absolutely loved it! Read this book!
A fast paced mystery thriller with a slightly sci-fi edge. Hugely entertaining, cinematic escapism with great characters and a twisty plot. Recommended.
I read the bio for this book and it was right up my street
But I struggled with the actual book itself. I found it hard going at times which it shouldn’t be as it’s the same hour repeating over and over in Charlie’s life as he is first officer on a plane trying to visit his father
So it should had been thrilling and judging from lots of other reviews people did find that so I accept I am in the minority
And I will watch out for future Cameron ward novels
Woah what on earth did I just read?
That was utterly breath-taking and equally horrifying.
Whatever you do don't read this while on a plane, especially if you are a nervous flier - as someone who is reliving a fatal plane crash over and over again is not going to comfort you!
That being said it's probably a great book to read on holiday while you can spend hours uninterrupted digesting the story and coming up with your own ideas and theories just why Charlie's life is on this spiral.
And once you suspend reality at the Groundhog day-esque elements of this book, I was totally caught up in trying to work out what on earth was going on and why. Even with the chapters from Theo's point of view, where you see a young man on a downward spiral of his own.
There is a lot of science and maths involved at least from Charlie's chapters, most of which went over my head, but I did recognise the sequence, about a page before she did, so something must have stuck in my mind from school!
This is scary, it's compelling and its totally brilliant. Another must read book from an author that I am thoroughly enjoying reading.
Thank you Penguin and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Firstly this would make an epic movie! Secondly, I absolutely loved this novel, it is brilliantly written and I look forward to more from this author.
Charlie has fallen out with her adult son Theo about hiding the truth about his parentage from him. She knows deep down it was for the right reasons, as Theo's Father was not the man she thought he was, and she is grateful he hasn't been in Theo's life.
But Theo feels betrayed by his Mother, and determined to find his Father decides to base himself in the US. As a Commercial Airline Pilot, he is able to move around with ease, and quickly settles himself in the States, making new acquaintances and forging a new life for himself.
Charlie is determined to reconcile with her son, and unbeknownst to him, boards one of his flights from London to L.A. Ten hours in to the flight, something goes terribly wrong. The engines fail, the plane enters a steep dive then everything goes back.
Then Charlie wakes up, and minutes later it happens again, and again, and again.
Charlie has some deeply buried knowledge of time loops, and tries hard to recall anything that could be of use to her situation. She knows that ultimately she must use her power as the only person with the knowledge to stop the plane from crashing and save all of the passengers onboard.
Can she out everything she needs to before her time runs out?
This is the first book I’ve read by Cameron Ward
This was an original story with a Groundhog Day theme
I was unsure if I was going to like it but couldn’t put the book down once I’d started
Great read
Gripping
Will definitely be reading more by this author
This was a great and gripping read and Cameron Ward is quickly becoming a must-read author for me.
I actually really liked the Groundhog Day style of this and it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through.
The pacing, in particular, was well done and it was one of those stories where you want to read just one more chapter and end up having read hundreds of pages in one sitting.
I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending and you did have to suspend belief a few times but I would still recommend giving this a read.
It would make a great beach read but probably not one that you'd want to read while travelling by plane.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I loved this read. It was tense, harrowing and a real demonstration of a mother's love.
I wasn't quite sure if this was something I could become totally engrossed in, but after only a few pages I was hooked.
I loved the different perspectives that allowed the story to really come together.
The information being fed slowly, along with the countdown made this brilliantly tense!
Great thriller I'll certainly read more by this author!
Charlie is a distraught mother, travelling to LA to reconcile with her son who left the UK to find his father.
What makes this a storyline with a difference is, the plane crashes and everyone is killed. Then Charlie wakes and it’s an hour before the doomed flight….. the Groundhog Day plot maintained my interest and I enjoyed Charlie’s dilemma of how she can save herself and all onboard. The Son, Theo’s elements I found irritating and frustrating at times, but, the overall premise maintained my focus and I read in one sitting.
Overall, a solid Good Read and I’m grateful to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the ARC.
I really liked this quirky story. It reminded me of Groundhog Day. The themes are around family, revenge, bad decisions, time travel and forgiveness. The pace is definitely ‘just one more chapter’ . I could easily have read it in one day. I liked the link to maths as well, made it seem more scientifically plausible. I will look out for more my this author. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ebook arc.
Absolutely loved this book! From page one I was hooked and couldn’t wait to pick the book back up. Can’t wait to read more by this author.
Thank you NetGalley and publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This thriller definitely had it's strong points, the 'time-loop' groundhog day element provided a countdown which built the tension perfectly as Charlie - on a plane bound for LA - is travelling to see her son who is actually one of the pilots on the plane. She wakes from what she believes to be a nightmare of a plane crash, only to find the same events happening again and again. Theo, the son, provides flashbacks to the past. While Charlie is a engaging character, Theo is quite a brat who seems hell bent on a life of self destruction - despite his mother and ex-girlfriend trying to offer their help. I think his character didn't help with the ending. No spoilers here though!
Thanks the NetGalley and publishers for an ARC of Spiral.
This book is Final Destination meets Groundhog Day. It is a griping book with a dual timeline thrown in for background. It kept me on the edge of my seat and awake late trying to get to the end. Worth reading.
This is a fabulous thriller that involves Theo an aircraft pilot, his mother and people from his past and present. The book's title is very appropriate as Theo's life spirals out of control as does the aeroplane he is flying.
The synopsis was very intriguing and definitely captured my attention when I read it. The thought of being caught in a loop that replays is good for adding suspense and mystery to a story, and this author has done it very well. This does have an obvious sci-fi edge to it with this time loop that has been included, but it only plays a very small part in the overall story. In some way, this time loop gives the author an additional way to enlighten the reader to the bigger picture.
Theo has never known who his father was, but after discovering some papers he finds that his mother has known who he was. Decidedin he needs to know more about himself and his roots, Theo goes off to the US to find him. What he finds is nothing like he imagined and he enters a world that is dark, and dangerous and will leave him wondering if he will survive!
I really like the way the author used the time loop aspect of this story, each time there was a reset there was a change. In between these the life of Theo, his relationship with his father and other people he meets during his time in the US is told. Alongside this is his mother's story, how she has always feared for him and has been so very protective of him.
Wanting to find his own answers leads to a split from his mother, but that does not mean his mother is about to let him walk from her. After all, she has looked after him and cared for him for all his life and she is not going to stop now.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I found myself wondering just how and if a mother could save so many people and also how quickly Theo's life spiralled down. The story that emerges of their lives and also of Theo's journey takes such a dark turn, but it is not as if he has not been given warnings to stay away. What he imagined is so far from what he discovers and this makes for such an interesting transition from a successful young man to someone who is desperate and on the edge.
A brilliant story with a great slip, well laid out and kept me avidly reading. If you like crime thrillers with a twist then this is one you may like to have a look at. It is one I would happily recommend.
A unique concept which made it 'unputdownable'
The writing style was so engaging I felt like I was
'in' the book fa
Charlie boards a flight from London to LA to surprise her son, Theo who is the first captain on the flight.
All seems to be going smoothly until an hour before landing the plane is struck by turbulence.
It looks as though the plane will certainly crash leaving no survivors.
Suddenly, Charlie wakes up to find herself back an hour before, reliving the terrifying events again.
She quickly realises that she is being given the opportunity to change something and alter everyone's fate. But will she achieve it in time?
This book is perfectly written. I loved the characters and the combination of fast paced, twisty plot with family and relatable emotions.
Well this was different and now I don't want to get on a plane again!!!
My heart was in my mouth at some points.
This is my worst nightmare and it was so believable.
Well written, especially being able to carry off the time loop.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This should have been right up my street but something was just off for me and I ended up not liking it very much. The premise was exactly what I was looking for but unfortunately on this occasion the book didn’t live up to the promise.