Absolutely a beautiful story. One that is full of adventure and some really hard domestic abuse.. But the story is told with such grace! The history is well researched and the characters fully developed and engaging!

I love finding historical fiction novels about things that aren't a mainstream part in history. In Come Fly With Me, we get a glimpse of what it was like to be a new Pan Am stewardess. I was invested in both the main character's storylines and how they intertwined with each other, learning how to be strong and independent in their own ways with each other's support.

Without spoilers, I was a little saddened with the ending, but also knew it was coming.

3.5/5

I absolutely loved this story. Come Fly With Me at its heart is a beautiful story of female friendship that takes place during the Golden Age of air travel. This was my first book by this author and I look forward to reading more of her work.

Come Fly to Me is a historical novel set in 1962 - 1963. Two very different women, Judy Goodman and Beverly Caldwell, begin work as Pan Am flight attendants. Judy is escaping a violent marriage and lies about her marital status in order to apply. (Pan Am flight attendants during this time period had to be single.) Beverly is tired of her NYC society life and her controlling father. Judy and Beverly become fast friends while training in Florida. They bond over their love of Sinatra music and determine to fly to the locations he mentioned in song. The story follows them as they begin their careers and both navigate new romances and complications from their old lives.

I wanted to read Come Fly With Me because I love reading about the 1960's. I also am interested in Pan Am and this glamorous time in air travel.

The author did a wonderful job with period details, which were subtle and never detracted from the storyline. She also did a great job alternating between Judy and Beverly's viewpoints.

I really loved this book. I read it over a weekend and I was so engrossed in the story that I read every moment I had free time! I found it both entertaining and very moving. I looked up a few flight details from the book and learned some new flight history because of this novel. I highly recommend Come Fly With Me for other fans of historical fiction, and especially for other readers who love the Mid-Century time period. Five enthusiastic stars!

I didn’t know I needed this book. It started out a little as one thing and morphed into something surprising.

There are three narrators. Beverly and Judy in the 1960s telling how they became coveted Pan Am flight attendants. And in the present, a mystery narrator discusses their past and spreading their friend’s ashes.

It’s a beautiful story of friendship and how life was for women in the 1960s. I quickly fell in love with the two and their new glamorous life. Their travels. Their friendship. Their romances.

The descriptions of their exotic locations surrounded me. French Polynesia and Hawaii. It made me want to jump on a plane.

I loved getting to know the loves of the two. Their history. Their family. And how their new adventures changed their lives.

While not really focused on the romance, I loved that we got to know the men in their lives. Joe and Mark were both swoon worthy in their own way.

This ultimately grabbed me and was a warm hug. The golden age of flying. These woman and their larger than life experience.

Such a great read.

I’ve been off Historical Fiction, lately, as it mainly seems to come in the WW2 variety.

I love that I’m finding more books that deviate from that period.

The Matrix – 12th Century
Joan – 15th Century
The Briar Club – 1950s
Lessons in Chemistry – 1960s

This book is another excellent example.

It’s also super-niche – specifically focused on the ‘golden age’ of PanAm air travel.

I loved all the nerdy details about becoming a flight attendant – some of them haven’t aged well – and now understand why it was such a sought-after career.

My favourite part, though? The strong female characters, nurturing strong female to-the-bitter-bitter-bitter-end friendships.

I’m here for all of it.

(Thanks to Lake Union Publishing for providing me with an eARC of the book.)

I learned about the many tasks stewardesses were in charge of and what they had to deal with. The story is split between the two main characters who leave their old lives behind to pursue a life with more freedom. I liked reading about the close friendship between the two women as they experienced their new lives together. Compared to the more "traditionally feminine" roles at the time, being a stewardess and being able to fly around the world was a new and exciting opportunity for women. The research the author did for the book showed in the details of the story.

(CW: death, grief, plane crash, misogyny, sexual assault, domestic violence, abusive relationship)

Last night I finished reading Come Fly with Me for one of my book clubs. Excellent, touching, informative book about Pan Am's stewardesses in the early 1960's. Loved this book and it will stay with me a long time. Great characters! More than historical fiction, a story of women evolving and gaind their own independence! Thanks to Camille DeMaio for writing this book! And, thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Press for the ARC!

"Come Fly With Me" by Camille Di Maio combined so many things I enjoy in stories: adventure, pioneering women, historical fiction, And I've always had a fascination with early air travel and the development of the flight attendant program.

Judy and Beverly come from different backgrounds (Judy is from small-town Pennsylvania while Beverly is from high-society New York City), but both are applying for the Pan Am flight attendant program for different (but similar) reasons and the two soon hit it off and become close friends as they navigate the strict requirements in hopes of having the chance to explore the world.

As the two become flight attendants, we see their relationship develop as they each also learn more about themselves and life itself.

We know from the beginning that there is a tragedy in the future, so readers are immediately invested in following along and finding out what really happened.

I knew I would like this book, but I didn' t know I would like it so much that I would finish it in two days--the writing was engrossing, the characters realistic and likable, the plot fast-paced, and, of course, I loved reading about what they had to learn and the adventures they took.

Book: Come Fly With Me
Author: Camille Di Maio
Format: Digital
Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance
Places Featured: Several
Review Score: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Really well researched historical novel regarding TWA stewardesses. The Point of View (POV) alternates between two stewardesses who become friends and also journal entries from French Polynesia. I loved both the main characters.

Weigh-ins and management turning a blind eye to fondling of the stewardesses by customers; average length of time that stewardesses were in the air was about 18 months, as they were single and attractive. (Evidently some men booked flights to find perspective mates.)

Well written, very interesting. I'm nearing 60 and still remember the ashtrays in the armrests.

Highly recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley ... for yet again introducing me to a new-to-me author. And thank you to Lake Union Publishing for approving my request to read the advance read copy of Come Fly With Me in exchange for an honest review. Publication Date Feb 18, 2025.

Come Fly With Me is a beautiful story. Judy and Beverly are looking for a change in their lives and apply to be stewardesses for PanAm. This story takes you on a journey of their blossoming friendship and to beautiful locations as they begin their careers. Di Maio shared in great detail what it was like for a woman to work for PanAm back in the 60's, including all of the rules and regulations. Her characters were very well developed and relatable. I enjoyed reading this story.

The first chapter sets this emotional book up as a melancholy read, and overall I loved it. This is a story of female friendships, resilience and love. I like historical fiction, but get tired of war related topics. This didn’t touch on a war but instead the beginnings of airline travel and the stewardesses who made that better. Great read in my opinion!

This was one of my favorite reads so far this year.

The book is set in the early 1960s. It’s told in two points of view: Beverly and Judy who are both flight attendants for PanAm.

Both women want to become part of the prestigious and competitive job of being a PanAm Stewardess but for very different reasons.

I loved both of these characters. I loved their backstories. I loved the portion of the book while they are working as stewardesses. I also loved the present time line which also tells part of the story.

This book has friendship, romance, and a look at life as an international stewardess in 1962.

I was initially drawn to this book because I love reading/learning about this time period, the golden age of traveling, the allure of plane travels and being a stewardess. I loved the TV show about the PanAm stewardesses starring Margot Robbie, so I knew I would enjoy this novel. And it was lovely to be reeled into the story from the get-go. It's pleasant to read and filled with excitement. A solid piece to indulge in for some escapism.

I enjoyed this book about the Golden Age of travel in the 1960’s. I enjoyed following the story of two Pan Am stewardesses. I thought the early and later parts of the book had the strongest storylines and the middle dragged a bit. Overall, an enjoyable read. 3.5 stars

I’ve read a couple nonfiction books about the Golden Age of air travel and enjoy learning about this period in time and culture, so Come Fly With Me was a book that hooked me pretty easily. Both of the main characters, Judy and Beverly, saw employment as Pan Am stewardesses (as flight attendants were known in the 60s) as a form of liberation from their previous lives. However, with the sexism and double standards rampant in the industry (weight requirements complete with regular weigh-ins, makeup regulations, and a ban on married stewardesses, to name a few), it was a reminder that while it provided a good job opportunity for a lot of women, progress was, and is, always a process.

I thought Judy’s backstory (escaping an abusive marriage) was more compelling than Beverly’s (spurning her old money family and what would have practically been an arranged marriage), and the subplot involving Beverly’s estranged family seemed a little half-baked and contrived, as if the author realized Beverly needed another storyline and decided to throw in some Polynesian relatives she didn’t know about. The ease with which Beverly’s cousins welcomed her and desired a relationship felt a bit far-fetched. I am recalling being dragged to family reunions as a kid and the tacit obligation to get to know distant relatives solely because we were related, so maybe I’m being a little cynical.

Come Fly With Me could probably be classified as a historical romance, although the amount of spice was minimal to nonexistent. But there was a fair amount of slow burn romance that developed, which I think was more satisfying than if the book had been a more stereotypical mattress romp of stewardesses going to bed with all the hot passengers and captains.

The book was clearly well-researched with lots of historical details and Pan Am history included. Even the major drama at the end was based on a real Pan Am crash. So while sometimes the events of the book seemed exaggerated for dramatic effect, there was a lot of factual information included. This book was equal parts fun Jet Age historical fiction and tug at your heartstrings drama.

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC!

I am a sucker for Pan Am themed media and this book really did that era justice. The two congruent stories played well off of each other and made this a lovely read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Come Fly with Me by Camille Di MAio!

I thought this was an enjoyable read. It was well written, and there was good character development. It was clear early on that one of the main characters was going to die but it was not clear how this was going to come about until the very end of the book. Overall, there seemed to be a lot of plot at the beginning and end of the book but the middle felt a bit slow and meandering.

Come Fly with Me is a fun book about Pan American flight attendants in the 1960's.

This story is about two women with very different backgrounds that end up being flight attendants and best friends. They both want to leave their current life for very different reasons and start over with Pan Am. Both women dream of traveling the world and this job is perfect for them. There is a lot of fun romance along the way.

The characters in the book are well developed and fun. The chapters are told from the POV of each of the two main women characters during the 1960s. There are also chapters in the current time that are from a woman that is not named. There is a lot of detail about the lives of the women before and after they decide to change their lives. These details make the pace of the story slow. There is a lot of information in each chapter but not a lot happens in that same chapter. But the book is still good.