From the author of When Elephants Fly comes an exceptional new novel about falling down, risking everything and embracing what makes us unique. Don’t miss this compulsively readable novel about the most unlikely of heroes. Danger “Danny” Danielle Warren is no stranger to falling. After losing an eye in a childhood accident, she had to relearn her perception of movement and space. Now Danny keeps … and space. Now Danny keeps her head down, studies hard, and works to fulfill everyone else’s needs. She’s certain that her mom’s bitterness and her TV star father’s absence are her fault. If only she were more–more athletic, charismatic, attractive–life would be perfect.
When her dad calls with an offer to join him to film the next episode of his popular survivalist show, Danny jumps at the chance to prove she’s not the disappointment he left behind. Being on set with the hottest teen movie idol of the moment, Gus Price, should be the cherry on top. But when their small plane crashes in the Amazon, and a terrible secret is revealed, Danny must face the truth about the parent she worships and falling for Gus, and find her own inner strength and worth to light the way home.
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In The Speed of Falling Objects, the Peruvian rainforest comes alive as does a young girl’s passionate journey of self discovery. This riveting, moving, and beautifully written tale is packed with excitement – you won’t put it down.
I felt every emotion while reading this and loved every minute
This story had so much, it was a plane crash story, a survival story, a bully story, a romance, a broken family story, a story of a journey, a story of fame and what people will do for fame, a story of overcoming fears and insecurities, of disabilities and how someone can internalize feelings from childhood and let that affect their entire life. Especially it is a story about communication and how the ability to communicate or a lack of communication can affect people.
The main character in the book is a girl named Danielle “Danny” who is about to turn seventeen. She has only one eye and it seems that the kids at her school bully her because of it. They don’t tease her as much as they did when she was younger, due to the fact that her father is famous for hosting a survival show where he takes famous celebrities out into the wild for different treks and adventures. Though the students at her school don’t realize that she hardly knows her father since her parents divorced when she was younger.
Her father invites her on his next adventure along with one of the biggest movie stars in the world. They travel with some of his crew into the Amazon when the plane crashes after veering off course in a storm. Her father is a huge jerk and makes a good villain. I think all readers will hate him. I don’t want to give away too many spoilers, but the journey they go through as they trek through the Amazon is full of danger, surprises and quite a few twists and turns in the plot.
There are so man unexpected moments and feelings that come up. Not only for Danny, but for her Mom Sam, her Dad John “Cougar” Warren, his assistant Cass, camera man Sean, sound guy Jupiter, Movie Star Gus Price “GP”, and pilot Mack. They all bring up so many emotions as you get to know them and they get to know each other.
In a weird way it reminds me of the breakfast club in how they all get to know each other. But so much more emotional because Danny is dealing with so many things. She is trying to get to know her father again and trying not to disappoint him. She still has deep feelings of abandonment from her father leaving when she was young. It doesn’t help that he still wants to film his show despite the fact that they crashed. The ending was so great also. I am finding it hard to put into words how much I liked it.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Danny is a fierce, yet vulnerable, heroine in a thrilling fight for survival. This gripping page-turner shows that, in the end, the greatest danger of all might lie within our own hearts.
Danger Dannielle Warren, also known as Pigeon, is about to turn seventeen. She is called Pigeon by her classmates, because of the way she turns her head to see with one eye. Ever since her childhood accident, she has had trouble judging three dimensions. She has also spent her whole life wanting her world-famous father’s love and approval. Her dad happens to be the great Cougar Warren, renown survivalist who has his own television show. Now’s her chance! He has asked her to star in his show in the wild Amazonian jungle in Peru. Her co-star is the teen heart-throb, Gus Price. But how will she function in the wild and untamed jungle? She must take this opportunity to get to know the father who left when she was just seven years old. She must take this chance to become the person she was meant to be. It is, after all, her fault that she has been such a disappointment to her parents.
Nothing goes as planned, and the small plane carrying them to the Amazon jungle crashes. Now, it’s a matter of life and death. Danny learns a little about the person she is meant to be. She also learns the truth about her father.
This is a wonderful story of discovering the truths beyond childhood perceptions and realizing that parents are human and imperfect. It is also about being yourself, shining your own light, no matter how unexpected and unusual. This wonderful story is populated with unforgettable and realistic characters and extraordinary and memorable settings. This remarkable story will leave you feeling inspired, enthusiastic, and believing that anything is possible, if you just be yourself.
THE SPEED OF FALLING OBJECTS, at its heart, is a coming-of-age story; it’s wrapped up in a sexy action packed adventure that is super fresh and satisfying.
Blurb: Danger “Danny” Warren is no stranger to accidents; she lost an eye in a childhood accident and has spent most of her childhood overcompensating in other ways to make up it up to her now divorced parents. When her father, a famous survivalist she hasn’t seen in years calls and invites her to join him as he films the next episode of his popular TV show, Danny jumps at the chance to prove she can be the perfect daughter he’ll want, even at the cost of losing her mother. Except there’s another accident: their small plane crashes in the Amazon jungle. When a secret it revealed that shatters Danny’s perception of her father, she must face the truth of the fallibility of both of her parents and find the inner strength to stand on her own two feet in order to survive.
I LOVED this book. Everything about it. The writing is tight and adroit. The character development is fully fleshed out and not just the protagonist but secondary characters have skin and bones as well. The dialogue, the exposition, the motivation, the conflict – all of these facets connect like perfectly firing synapses. Fisher’s plot is an old story made exquisitely new: edgy, realistic, and on point. For YA fans this action packed story is highly recommended, but don’t let the YA designation keep you away. This is a book for all ages, all genders and all walks of life. It is a book I will keep on my shelf and reread.
Danny is a 16 year old girl who wants her her non existent father’s love. When he offers her the trip of a lifetime to the Peruvian rain forest, she jumps at the chance to go. Danny’s father Cougar is a tv star that goes to remote locations and does survival shows. Danny was involved in a childhood accident when she lost her left eye so her mom doesn’t want her to go on the trip with her dad. When their plane goes down the survivors must do everything in their power to survive in the rain forest. This is a story of survival! I loved Danny!! She is strong but vulnerable and she made for the perfect heroine!!! I would love a sequel with the characters in real life and see how they are doing now!!! I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.
A thrilling, edge-of-your-seat adventure with characters you’ll fall in love with.
A perfect blend of adventure and romance, set in one of the most dangerous and fascinating places on Earth. In Danny’s story, readers will also explore a complex father-daughter relationship and cheer on our heroine as she journeys not only through the Amazon but on a mission that will force her to figure out who she really is and what matters most to her. I inhaled this story!
Nancy Richardson Fischer has pulled off the wondrous feat of writing a story where the characters’ emotional journeys are as intensely compelling and deeply gratifying as their harrowing life-or-death adventure. I could not put this book down, and I will be recommending it to every teen I know. Truth.
This was not a typical read for me. Given that, as soon as I began reading, I couldn’t put it down. The main character, Danny, is someone many of us can relate to in one way or another. A soon to be 17 year old who is unsure of her place in the world, who wasn’t?? She has a chance to prove herself by accepting a proposal from her estranged dad, who wants her to be on an episode of his “survival in the wild” television program filmed in the Amazon. Well.. let me tell you, it’s true survival.
Nancy Richardson Fischer’s ability to develop her characters to be so real and relatable, as well as her knowledge of the pitfalls and danger of the Amazonian jungle, is to be commended. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone.
I really enjoyed the first book by this author, so I was definitely interested in reading this one. And I was not disappointed. The detail that went in to all of the types of creatures and plants and environment of being stranded in the Amazonian rain forest was incredible. I shivered with disgust at all the bugs and snakes and caimans as they appeared and landed on characters or bit characters or even just peeked up out of the swamp water as our characters passed by them. I shuddered and gagged at the thought of eating the nasty sounding grubs that they had to eat in order to survive at one point. But getting past the forest as an actual character in the book, like it was, the characters themselves were all so perfectly developed that they made the story even more than just what you kind of expected to happen. There was the hot young movie star, but he wasn’t the perfect guy, and even when it seemed that he and our main character, Danny – otherwise known as Danger Danielle Warren, were kind of connecting, he still had issues that ended up causing more strife between them and teen strife at that! In the middle of the Amazon! And Danny’s dad, Cougar, wow, I just wanted to slap him or punch him sometimes for how he interacted with. his daughter. While in a way there were setups woven into Cougar’s filming plan, the crash itself was an actual terrible accident, and it was done in a very realistic, deadly way. With a death right after the crash, and other deaths in the days following the crash that had been caused by injuries received from that accident. In the end the relationships are what really stand out and some will be saved, some will be lost even as they are saved, and new ones will be formed and hopefully last beyond our final chapter.
I devoured this book in one sitting. There’s adventure, drama, and just the right amount of romance, but most importantly, there’s a lovely message for all readers: having anxiety and fears is okay, but so is not letting them rule your life.
Danger “Danny” Danielle Warren fears everything. Snakes, creepy crawlies…not being loved by her absentee, famous father. At the beginning of the book she questions everything about herself. Why can’t she be like her dad, Cougar? Adventurous, brave and fearless. Why can’t she be pretty and lovable? But after her and her father’s crew become falling objects, that all melts away and she comes to the realization that she’s all of that and more. No longer will she be stepped on and belittled. Watching her grow and stand up to her father was nothing short of amazing. The author perfected the pace of the book and made me feel like I was growing right alongside Danny.
My absolute favorite character was Jupiter. Many times I wondered why he couldn’t just be Danny’s father instead. He was so supportive and was an honest fighter for her cause. The little things that he said to cheer her up always made me smile. For example, after her father just got done making her feel small and unimportant, Jupiter says to Cougar, “Never underestimate the strength of a tiny ant, right, Cougar? They’re mighty in their own way.” I almost cried because that one metaphor showed me how great he is and how much he wanted Cougar to treat his daughter with the respect she deserves.
Well done, Nancy Richardson Fischer, just…well done. The amount of effort and care put into this book shows and I can’t wait to read more of your work. (Especially because you’re a PNW native like me!)