One of Summer’s Most Anticipated Reads, according to Goodreads, SheReads, and Bookish“I think Beatriz Williams is writing the best historical fiction out there. It’s lush with period detail but feels immediate.”—Elin HilderbrandThe beloved author returns with a remarkable novel of both raw suspense and lyric beauty— the story of a lost pilot and a wartime photographer that will leave its mark on … beauty— the story of a lost pilot and a wartime photographer that will leave its mark on your soul.
In 1947, photographer and war correspondent Janey Everett arrives at a remote surfing village on the Hawaiian island of Kauai to research a planned biography of forgotten aviation pioneer Sam Mallory, who joined the loyalist forces in the Spanish Civil War and never returned. Obsessed with Sam’s fate, Janey has tracked down Irene Lindquist, the owner of a local island-hopping airline, whom she believes might actually be the legendary Irene Foster, Mallory’s onetime student and flying partner. Foster’s disappearance during a round-the-world flight in 1937 remains one of the world’s greatest unsolved mysteries.
At first, the flinty Mrs. Lindquist denies any connection to Foster. But Janey informs her that the wreck of Sam Mallory’s airplane has recently been discovered in a Spanish desert, and piece by piece, the details of Foster’s extraordinary life emerge: from the beginnings of her flying career in Southern California, to her complicated, passionate relationship with Mallory, to the collapse of her marriage to her aggressive career manager, the publishing scion George Morrow.
As Irene spins her tale to its searing conclusion, Janey’s past gathers its own power. The duel between the two women takes a heartstopping turn. To whom does Mallory rightfully belong? Can we ever come to terms with the loss of those we love, and the lives we might have lived?
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Love of surfing, flying but mostly of life. Positively radiant historical fictiion w lovers that lierally found each other anywhere on the globe
An interesting peak into the early years of aviation.
Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams
It’s 1947 and award winning photojournalist Janey Everett arrives on the island of Kauai, Hawaii with one thing in mind. Track down and interview Mrs. Irene Lindquist. Gain her confidence or trick her it doesn’t matter which, as long as Mrs. Lindquist reveals her true identity.
This page turning story slides between several periods of time to tell the story of famous aviators Sam Mallory and Irene Foster, both seeming to have disappeared years before, and Janey’s quest to find out what happened to them.
I loved this book. I can’t explain how much I enjoy being surprised by unexpected plot twists. This happened not once but twice in Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams, and in big ways! I always enjoy Williams’ exceptional writing, but the surprise turns in this story has made Her Last Flight my favorite by her yet. Possibly my favorite book this year.
I typically end a review by listing out the topics that might make the book of interest to a reader, but I believe this one has something for everyone. If you enjoy a good story, this is for you.
What a delightful book. Twists, turns, mysteries, and murder. Just fabulous.
I’ve been interested in the ‘beginning’ of flight all my life. With this work by Beatriz Williams, I’m ready to read more about the women who were brave enough to head straight into a this bastion of young men fearlessly taking to the skies. Barnstormers, acrobatic fliers, call them what you will, their exploits began the legends of the flying aces. Then, a young woman reluctantly decides to join their ranks. Now we begin our story.
Told through the eyes of a young Irene Lindquist, and an older Irene, with Janey Everett pushing the story throughout, we learn of a young woman, Irene, enamored with a young man, Sam Mallory. He’s a flyer and teaches HER about flying. At some point, the student becomes the star and they go their separate ways. At the height of Irene’s career, she vanishes.
Now Janey has ‘found’ the lost flyer, Irene, on Kauai and wants to tell her story. Janey also has a connection with Irene’s young man, Sam, and wants to find out more about him. She also wants to let Irene know about his fate. That’s all I’ll say about the storyline. I don’t want to give any more away!
This is my first Beatriz Williams book. I’m now a fan! Brilliant writing, and you can tell a lot of research was done about the time period and the beginning of flight.
This was really good. It was a bit confusing in the beginning with the dual timelines but the story came together in the middle, and the ending was quite stunning. One of this writer’s best books.
When I think about this novel, I think of it as a pile of legos. At first they are scattered on the floor. Then as you work through the book, one by one, each lego takes its place in a perfectly created whole that leaves you feeling completely satisfied. Awarded four stars on Goodreads.
Beatrice Williams again proves herself a master storyteller. She understands how to skillfully piece together bits and pieces of narrative, from different periods of time, so that the full story builds steadily and with increasing suspense.
In this novel, the three main characters are:
Janey Everett – a noted photojournalist working in the months following the end of World War II on a book about a 10-year-old aviation mystery.
Sam Mallory – a highly skilled aviation instructor working in the early days of the industry, when figures like Charles Lindbergh were making daring trips that fired the imagination of the press and public.
Irene Foster – a pioneering aviatrix cut from the same cloth as Amelia Earhart.
In no way do I want to spoil your own enjoyment of the story, but I will add a bit about some of the drama that gets layered on.The Spanish Civil War makes an appearance, there are several plane crashes, assorted marriages and love affairs, and a romance that is challenged by both people and circumstance. It’s a very engrossing read!
I was so excited to receive a copy of this book from the publisher. I’m a bit late getting around to reading it but it was well worth the wait.
I will say it started a bit slow more for me and I think the second half of the book was much more interesting.
I was surprised by the twists I wasn’t expecting.
It was an enjoyable book and I definitely recommend
Oh Beatriz Williams you sneaky devil!! Williams has hit it out of the park (again) with Her Last Flight. The more I read this author, the more I appreciate her novels and if you are a historical fiction lover you really can’t go wrong with any of her books. I loved this book immediately and it was incredibly good on audio. The narrator for the audiobook is Cassandra Campbell and I was incredibly impressed with her skills.
Her Last Flight switches back and forth in between excerpts of Janey Everett’s book about Sam Mallory and Janey’s firsthand viewpoint. This kept the pace moving pretty quickly for me, even though the book was a slow burn overall (as most historical fiction is). The plot is very complex and there are a couple of reveals that I didn’t see coming at all. I love the way Williams can weave a plot and different characters together to create nothing short of a masterpiece. It is also very obvious that she spent a lot of time researching this book and it was fascinating to read about women in flight.
I love how immersive Williams’ writing is, and once again I felt like I was right there in the book. So much so that it felt like the story was fact rather than fiction. I also loved the strong female characters depicted in this book. Janey and Irene are two of my favorite characters, and there is nothing more empowering than reading about women that don’t cower in what would be considered a man’s job. Highly recommend Her Last Flight for the historical fiction lovers and readers who already appreciate this author, with the audio being especially amazing!
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.
Her Last Flight
Reasons this book is worth your time to check it out from your local library:
-Two very strong, inspirational female protagonists from two different generations, who are dedicated to their calling, their work passion – one a photographer and one a pioneering aviator
-Accurate historical aviation details (checked them with my air traffic controller husband, who is knowledgeable).
-Williams is a very gifted writer.
-The author has an endearing way of including the reader in the story, by addressing some comments to us.
-Easy to keep up with changes of time and location, because she delineates them by chapters. Easy to read.
-Delicious suspenseful twists and turns, which I will not divulge
Reason to not spend your money on it: In this time of not only the Covid-19 virus but also the most divisive election in US history, people need to be able to escape via books and movies. But the author just couldn’t resists bringing politics into it, via the Leftist Republic. It was disappointing, but I should have known better than to read a book published in 2020. Most authors just can’t seem to resist pushing their political beliefs down our throats. In this ccase, that even meant a character who promoted the kind of government that is oppressing innocent and vulnerable people, as I write this. Lesson learned.
Great book!
Beatriz Williams spins another unforgettable tale with HER LAST FLIGHT. Told in dual timelines, Williams weaves the tale of two strong women, both in professions that were, at the time, male dominated. In 1947, Janey Everett tracks down Irene Lindquist believing her to be missing aviatrix Irene Foster, who disappeared 10 years earlier during a flight around the world. Irene was the student of Sam Mallory, a forgotten aviator pioneer and Irene’s instructor and partner, and Janey thinks she can shed light on the blanks in her book about Sam. Both women have secrets and parts of the past they need to come to terms with, and the more time they spend together, the more they learn about each other and the past, which also forces Janey to re-examine her beliefs.
Williams uses the novel Janey is writing as a window to Irene and Sam’s story in the 1930’s, a method I found thoroughly enjoyable. Her research and presentation of the historical aspects of aviation were intriguing and the story kept me engrossed until the end and the twist that took me by surprise.
Beatriz Williams has been a must-read for me since I read ONE HUNDRED SUMMERS eight years ago, and she never disappoints. I love the way she develops the characters and her stories and the seamless way she integrates them into the historical timeline she sets them in.
Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.
#HerLastFlight #BeatrizWilliams #WilliamMorrow #BeatrizBinge #TheBookClubGirls
I listened to this on Audible (I love Cassandra Campbell as a narrator and she did a great job). I kept getting confused on the characters and well at the end, I see why. It was a really great story and the perfect wrapped up ending. Another win by Beatrix!
I am a huge fan of Beatriz Williams and anxiously await each of her books. I love the way she takes specific moments in history and brings them to life through complex female characters who challenge what was expected of them during these times. From Lily Dane in A Hundred Summers to the Schuyler Sisters of The Secret Life of Violet Grant, Tiny Little Things and Along the Infinite Sea, Williams writes women who are determined not to be constrained by the limitations of their gender and who, in their own ways, never give up on love. Her Last Flight features two such women – Janey Everett and Irene Foster – in my favorite book of hers yet.
Janey is a photojournalist in 1947 investigating what happened to famed aviator Sam Mallory who flew in the Spanish Civil War and never returned. She ends up in Hawaii in search of Irene Lindquist, whom Janey believes is the legendary Irene Foster, Sam’s protégé and flying partner whose own disappearance a decade earlier during an around-the-world flying race remains one of the world’s biggest mysteries. The story is told in alternating timelines, from Janey’s POV in 1947 as her search for Sam unfolds, and through excerpts from her future book which tells Sam and Irene’s story from the 1920s-1930s.
Both Janey and Irene are amazing characters, strong and fierce women who go after what they want, and the supporting cast – from Irene’s publicity-obsessed manager and Janey’s Spanish paramour during WWII to Sam’s manipulative wife and Irene’s alcoholic father – is equally as colorful. Williams has a true gift for writing dialogue – I couldn’t get enough of Janey’s snappy comebacks and witty turns-of-phrase which were at times laugh-out-loud funny and at others, just devastating. I also loved all of the details about the early days of aviation – from how dangerous and expensive it was to how the pilots had to keep topping themselves to stay relevant – and was surprised and excited to learn what happened to Octavian and Sophie Rofrano from Williams’ earlier book, A Certain Age.
There are two plot twists in Her Last Flight that literally made me gasp out loud – I didn’t see them coming AT ALL – but they both made perfect sense looking back on the story builds. I could not put this book down and read it in the course of two nights which was both good and bad – while I couldn’t wait to see how it would wrap up, I also didn’t want it to end.
This is my first 5-star read of the summer. Pick up Her Last Flight. You won’t be disappointed.
Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow and the author for an advanced copy of the book.
The story of Janey Everett seeking information about a famous pilot, Samuel Mallory, leads her to Hawaii and the doorstep of Irene Lindquist. With the use of a dual timeline, I was captivated to keep on reading and find out more about the histories of Janey and Irene. The rich history of aviation and women in aviation was woven into the story throughout the flashbacks and storyline. I found myself wanting to keep reading to find out more around the mystery of Samuel Mallory’s accident. If you are looking for a historical fiction book that is different, this one is for you.
I received a copy of this story from Netgalley and the opinions are my own.
Irene Foster is a female pilot back in the 1930s and 40s. She learned under one of the bests, Sam Mallory. Sam Mallory disappeared in the Spanish Civil War. Janey Everett, a photo journalist, is obsessed with finding out exactly what happened.
Irene Foster or Lindquist as she is known in Hawai’i, is an amazing woman. She is a pioneer in the field of aviation. Sam Mallory is a complete risk taker where flying is concerned. These two set the world on fire with their antics on and off the airfield.
Janey Everett is determined to find out about these two. She is a piece of work. She is no nonsense and does not hold back in her quest for the truth.
Wow! What a fabulous tale! I enjoyed the characters and the history! This story had some major twists at the end. I figured one out and one was a complete surprise. Now, this book is wordy as all Beatriz William’s books are. BUT! This is a fabulous read….DO NOT MISS THIS ONE!
I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.
HER LAST FLIGHT is another beautifully detailed book telling the story of two pilots, Irene Lindquist and Sam Mallory.
It is also about Janey Everett, a war correspondent/photojournalist, who is trying to get the story of Sam Mallory out of Irene who has hidden herself from the public.
The book smoothly moves back and forth between 1928 to 1947 telling the background stories of each character.
The characters are likeable for the most part, and pull you into the story.
HER LAST FLIGHT is a mesmerizing read and difficult to put down simply because of Ms. Williams’ writing style and storytelling skills.
Historical fiction fans, aviation fans, and fans of Beatriz Williams will not be disappointed in this lush tale of passion, loss, and determination.
This book was given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I won this arc copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway in return for my honest thoughts and review. This book comes out June 30, 2020 I will be definitely buying a finished copy when this book comes out. I read Breatriz Williams book The Golden Hour last year. Now I will read anything Breatriz Willams writes and comes out with. I haven’t been disappointed with what I read from this author. I enjoyed the time switching through this book. I never thought I didn’t understand what was going on. I enjoyed some the characters and love the two main female characters. And then there were characters where I was like what the heck. Can’t we such… I didn’t see that twist coming towards the middle of the book. But I loved it really changed out I thought this book was going to end. I highly recommend this book..
About Book-
This books takes place in multiple times we twitch back and forth from 1920’s to 1947. A young woman by the name Janey Everett is in search for the missing and once famous female pilot named Irene Foster. To get in information on the man that she used to fly with named Sam Mallory. For a book that she is writing about. All things Sam and Irene and their flights together. Highly recommend reading this. I have no bad to say about this book.
I totally enjoyed this amazing book. Inspired by Amelia Earhart, this well-researched novel went beyond fact to create a fascinating “what-if” story combining the early days of aviation with an enduring love affair. The novel switches between the points of view of two strong and independent women as Williams cleverly drops clues for the reader here and there like bits of bread crumbs. By the end of the book I had nothing but admiration for Williams in how she cleverly told this story of suspense and romance, love and loss.
Thanks to LibraryThing and publisher William Morrow for an advance reader’s copy. All comments and opinions are my own.
This is the first standalone of Beatriz Williams I’ve read and I am in awe!! It is beautifully written and well researched for aviation and the time period of the 1930’s/1940’s. The ladies, Irene and Janey, are strong and independent! Their stories were woven together by solving the mystery of Sam Mallory’s disappearance. A wonderful read! Thank you to Book Club Early Program, William Morrow, and NetGalley for this ARC. This is my honest review.
Her Last Flight by Beatriz Williams is an amazing historical fiction gem that alternates between two female characters in two different timelines ( 1947ish with Janey Everett and late 1920s-1937 with Irene Foster/Lindquist).
The author gives the reader insight into both strong, fierce, and fiery women in each alternating chapter and weaves an intricate and intriguing story where the reader learns all about both Irene and Janey through their upbringing, background, passions, failures, flaws, triumphs, and harrowing journeys to “land” them both where they are at the culmination of their paths to the final, and stunning conclusion. Though these women seem to be very different at first, as one reads the tale impressively woven by Ms Williams, we learn that they are more similar and have far more in common by the way of the charismatic, charming, imperfect yet somehow perfect, and undeniably fascinating Sam Mallory pilot and daredevil extraordinaire.
The plot (which the reader can read from the synopsis itself) is unique and fascinating. I loved learning more about planes, aerodynamics, some of the history of aviation and its progress into mainstream media during the 30s-40s. I also truly enjoyed reading the subject matter regarding the female role, introduction, and brake throughs into this male dominated field. I have a soft spot for seeing strong women that are determined to overcome the mountains and barriers to be able to access and succeed in fields that were originally “off limits” to women.
This book has it all: romance, history, family, loyalty, love, gut-wrenching losses, and perseverance to overcome any obstacles.
Despite their faults, I found I was drawn to Janey and Irene and actually loved them both more because of it all. I rooted for them, I shed tears, and I smiled at the amazing twist and positivity perfect ending. I was riveted to this book from page 1 all the way to the perfect end. Nothing else could have possibly fit as well as this was truly a satisfying ending.
This book most definitely receives 5/5 stars. I have been a huge fan of Ms Williams from the beginning, and this latest novel did not disappoint. You will truly enjoy it!