Reeling from guilt and grief over a tragic loss, can an ambitious pilot earn the respect she craves?
Tris Miles is held back by her job as a First Officer for tiny Clear Sky Airlines. She needs to be a Captain–the only way she knows to prove her worth as a pilot and atone for a deadly mistake that cost the life of a loved one.Tris accepts a prestigious job with Tetrix, Inc. where she hopes to … job with Tetrix, Inc. where she hopes to advance quickly. But as the company’s first woman pilot, she encounters resistance, marginalization, and harassment on a daily basis. Fortunately, Tris has one thing her co-workers can’t deny–skill.
In the skies over Europe, Tris, her passengers, and crew are in real danger. Will Tris lead her passengers to a safe landing? And if this is the end, can she find the strength to forgive herself?
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Gritty, inspirational and heart-warming, perfect for our current time. Tris is determined to achieve her dream of being the captain of her own plane. As she navigates the male-dominated world of corporate pilots, she makes hard decisions but stays true to herself all the way to the end. You’ll find yourself immersed in this story from the beginning, and the intimate view of pilot life will make you feel as if you’ve walked that path yourself. Written by one who knows what it’s like to challenge glass ceilings and break through, this is a story we all can learn from and be encouraged by.
Tris is ambitious and applies for a job to become a Captain, a pilot in command. Working her way through a personal tragic loss and dealing with problematic co-workers, she discovers what she really wants in life.
Robin Kardon, very well done. Your novel is unique, beautifully written, and about real people. I loved that. I highly recommend this amazing book to anyone. I couldn’t put it down and don’t experience that often.
Praise for FLYGIRL.
This book grabbed me, threw me into the cockpit of a commercial jet and wouldn’t let me out until the end! I know nothing about aviation and even less about women in aviation, so this journey, written by a woman who lived that life, felt real. Her painful losses and her struggle to be taken seriously gave me hope for anyone who has the tenacity to ignore the naysayers and continue down a difficult path to make a living doing something you love. Tris Miles is one in a million.
This wonderful novel is about sexual discrimination in the aviation area in the early 90s. I would like to think that we’ve come a long way with women’s rights since the early 90s but some of the situations in this novel are still happening to women in the work place today.
Tris wanted to be a pilot. She gave up her teaching job to fly for a small airline but was relegated to a position as first officer with no idea when she would be promoted to captain. She takes a job with a company that flew corporate flights and had a bigger airplane that would enable her to learn even more and put her goal of becoming a pilot closer to reality. She is faced with discrimination from the male pilots at every turn – from them noticing her physical attributes instead of her ability to fly to being talked down to because she was a woman. Tris keeps her eye on the prize – her goal to become a pilot – and despite her personal demons, shows her skill as a pilot on every trip she takes.
This was a very enjoyable novel full of very real people. It was interesting to see Tris fight the battle of work place discrimination on a daily basis and to see her continue to fight to achieve her dream. It was very interesting to read about flying and the author went into a lot of interesting detail about piloting an airplane. Overall the best part of the novel was the character of Tris who continued to follow her dreams dispute the roadblocks that were put in her way by her male counterparts.
Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.
Flygirl by RD Kardon is a debut novel, and she starts off a winner. It’s a story of a female pilot, Tris, in the late 90’s, who attempts to fulfill her dream of becoming a Captain for a small private commute airline. Dealing with male discrimination is discouraging and Tris has to work even harder to make the cut. Through it all, she maintains her dignity and belief in herself.
With no flying knowledge, it was interesting to sort out the jargon associated with piloting an airplane, but Kardon does an excellent job of making in understandable, while keeping it interesting.
Tris was a likable character, while the flyboys left room for improvement.
A really good read and my thanks to RD Kardon for the ARC.
#Flygirl #JDKardon #acornPublishing
I was hooked the minute I saw the cover and title of this book because I’ve always had a fascination with women who have taken to the skies. Being a predominantly male role through history, one can just imagine the challenges confronting women who try to enter their “club”. That’s what this book is about! Tris, the main character is doing just that. What makes this even more interesting is that the author, R.D. Kardon, wrote it from her own experience as a woman pilot.
I felt myself drawn to Tris from the start. I applauded her determination to fight for a spot in this male dominated profession. I recognized the strength in her conviction to stay true to her goals and not let the personal weaknesses and demons she was fighting hold her back.
I read through this book and right into it’s sequel immediately, I was so engaged. I thank the author for sharing these copies with me and will be looking for anything more that she writes in the future!!
“Flying is a series of small corrections.”
This is a book not only about a woman in the aviation industry but also about sexual harassment in the workplace. It is set in 1997-1998 but I could have been reading a story about my own experiences and career from the 1970s on. I do believe that it’s better nowadays (or it was when I worked in the late 1980s and 1990s but sexual harassment still does happen – often. Just watch the news.
Because of some of the content, I found myself reliving past experiences, which was difficult, to say the least.
But I did enjoy the story. Tris Miles wants to fly and she wants to do it well. She leaves the teaching profession to become a pilot and finally leaves a small airline company that flies turboprop planes, has terrible pay, and slow advancement to go to work at a company that had its own corporate jets. Her ambition – to become a Captain.
But from day one she has to endure endless harassment by other pilots because she is the first and only woman ever hired there.
As I mentioned, this was a difficult read for me just because it triggered bad memories but otherwise I enjoyed this story of a woman pilot with skill and integrity trying to outrun her past.
I am now off to read the next book featuring Tris Miles ANGEL FLIGHT.
“She would risk failure and mistake—but not regret.”
This was a fun read that I definitely began to miss any time I set it down after not too far in.
So many working-class people should be able to relate to Tris; if you’ve ever worked in an environment packed with sexual harassment, if you’ve ever climbed your way into upper management at a young age and had people disrespect you just because of your age, or if you’re female and ever found yourself in a male-dominated profession, you’ll relate to her struggles all too well. I found the tie-ins to my own real life and ability to relate at times to have enhanced the reading experience.
Overall, the author did a great job with character development. Tris had to be smart in more ways than one to survive, as a woman in the position she did … she and all other characters were very well designed and consistent throughout.
The cover fits the content well.
Editing/proofing: book is mostly clean, just a few errors noticed.
Formatting: Aside from a small amount of wrongfully hyphenated words, this was very well done and very easy on the eyes.
Overall: 4 stars.
I couldn’t stop reading R.D. Kardon’s debut novel FLYGIRL from the moment my plane was airborne out of San Diego. Read the book anywhere, but I highly recommend doing so in flight. The travails of main character Tris Miles, on her arduous journey to realize her dream of becoming a jet captain, take on a special meaning at 30,000 feet.
The setting is the late 1990s, an era of male-dominated flight decks. Tris Miles wants to be in the pilot’s seat and deservedly so. She adroitly flies planes–better than most–but must also unjustly navigate a tangle of sexual discrimination and the pain of abuse to prove her worthiness.
Can Tris bravely take her own direction and discard the advice from some friends who tell her just to play the game and bide her time? Can she outlast the harassment and claim her prize? Will anyone see beyond gender to her skills?
The author did a superlative job creating a captivating and, sadly, timely story about sexual discrimination at the corporate level. Her well-developed characters left me with my nose in her book and no time to enjoy the pretzels landed out by the flight attendant. By the time my plane landed at Reagan National in D.C., I was on the last page.
I challenge you not only to read R.D. Kardon’s FLYGIRL, on land or on a plane, but to live the heartfelt and important message of gender equity the story reveals. Do try not to scowl at the all-male crew in the cockpit as you deplane.
If you are a corporate pilot you will know this story. If you want to become a professional pilot you should read this story. It is well written, hauntingly accurate of the real world of aviation. I think that this is a great read even if you don’t fly!
Flygirl by R.D. Kardon, Robin D. Kardon is a #FiveStar #mustread This book stirred up all the emotions especially the frustration of dealing with the chauvinistic male and sexual harassment. Tris is a strong women who works under the pressure of the old boy’s club to fulfill her dreams to become a captain or Pilot in Command. In spite of daunting treatment she moves forward with grace!
Flygirl – This is my first read by this author and I liked her story. Well written and interesting, she tells the truth about those times. For a woman being a pilot was no different than being a soldier, an office worker or any other job that was either male dominated (especially) or had a man in charge. 4*