by Julie Clark
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY BESTSELLER, & INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER!
Look for The Lies I Tell, the next novel from Julie Clark, coming in June 2022!
"The Last Flight is thoroughly absorbing—not only because of its tantalizing plot and deft pacing, but also because of its unexpected poignancy and its satisfying, if bittersweet, resolution. The characters get under your skin."—The New York Times Book Review
Two women. Two flights. One last chance to disappear.
Claire Cook has a perfect life. Married to the scion of a political dynasty, with a Manhattan townhouse and a staff of ten, her surroundings are elegant, her days flawlessly choreographed, and her future auspicious. But behind closed doors, nothing is quite as it seems. That perfect husband has a temper that burns bright and he's not above using his staff to track Claire's every move.
What he doesn't know is that Claire has worked for months on a plan to vanish. A plan that takes her to the airport, poised to run from it all. But a chance meeting in the airport bar brings her together with a woman whose circumstances seem equally dire. Together they make a last-minute decision.
The two women switch tickets, with Claire taking Eva's flight to Oakland, and Eva traveling to Puerto Rico as Claire. They believe the swap will give each of them the head start they need to begin again somewhere far away. But when the flight to Puerto Rico crashes, Claire realizes it's no longer a head start but a new life. Cut off, out of options, with the news of her death about to explode in the media, Claire will assume Eva's identity, and along with it, the secrets Eva fought so hard to keep hidden.
For fans of Lisa Jewell and Liv Constantine, The Last Flight is the story of two women—both alone, both scared—and one agonizing decision that will change the trajectory of both of their lives.
Praise for The Last Flight:
"The Last Flight is a wild ride: One part Strangers on a Train, one part Breaking Bad, with more twists than an amusement park roller coaster! Julie Clark is a devilishly inventive storyteller."
—Janelle Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Watch Me Disappear and Pretty Things
"The Last Flight is everything you want in a book: a gripping story of suspense; haunting, vulnerable characters; and a chilling and surprising ending that stays with you long after the last page."
—Aimee Molloy, New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Mother
"The perfect combination of beautiful prose and high suspense, and an ending that I guarantee will catch you off guard."
—Kimberly Belle, internationally bestselling author of Dear Wife and The Marriage Lie
"The Last Flight sweeps you into a thrilling story of two desperate women who will do anything to escape their lives. Both poignant and addictive, you'll race through the pages to the novel's chilling end. A must read of the summer!"
—Kaira Rouda, internationally bestselling author of Best Day Ever and The Favorite
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY BESTSELLER, & INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER!
Look for The Lies I Tell, the next novel from Julie Clark, coming in June 2022!
"The Last Flight is thoroughly absorbing—not only because of its tantalizing plot and deft pacing, but also because of its unexpected poignancy and its satisfying, if bittersweet, resolution. The characters get under your skin."—The New York Times Book Review
Two women. Two flights. One last chance to disappear.
Claire Cook has a perfect life. Married to the scion of a political dynasty, with a Manhattan townhouse and a staff of ten, her surroundings are elegant, her days flawlessly choreographed, and her future auspicious. But behind closed doors, nothing is quite as it seems. That perfect husband has a temper that burns bright and he's not above using his staff to track Claire's every move.
What he doesn't know is that Claire has worked for months on a plan to vanish. A plan that takes her to the airport, poised to run from it all. But a chance meeting in the airport bar brings her together with a woman whose circumstances seem equally dire. Together they make a last-minute decision.
The two women switch tickets, with Claire taking Eva's flight to Oakland, and Eva traveling to Puerto Rico as Claire. They believe the swap will give each of them the head start they need to begin again somewhere far away. But when the flight to Puerto Rico crashes, Claire realizes it's no longer a head start but a new life. Cut off, out of options, with the news of her death about to explode in the media, Claire will assume Eva's identity, and along with it, the secrets Eva fought so hard to keep hidden.
For fans of Lisa Jewell and Liv Constantine, The Last Flight is the story of two women—both alone, both scared—and one agonizing decision that will change the trajectory of both of their lives.
Praise for The Last Flight:
"The Last Flight is a wild ride: One part Strangers on a Train, one part Breaking Bad, with more twists than an amusement park roller coaster! Julie Clark is a devilishly inventive storyteller."
—Janelle Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Watch Me Disappear and Pretty Things
"The Last Flight is everything you want in a book: a gripping story of suspense; haunting, vulnerable characters; and a chilling and surprising ending that stays with you long after the last page."
—Aimee Molloy, New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Mother
"The perfect combination of beautiful prose and high suspense, and an ending that I guarantee will catch you off guard."
—Kimberly Belle, internationally bestselling author of Dear Wife and The Marriage Lie
"The Last Flight sweeps you into a thrilling story of two desperate women who will do anything to escape their lives. Both poignant and addictive, you'll race through the pages to the novel's chilling end. A must read of the summer!"
—Kaira Rouda, internationally bestselling author of Best Day Ever and The Favorite
Reviews-
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April 1, 2020
Two women risk everything to leave their troubled lives behind. In just a week, Claire Cook's husband, Rory, will announce his campaign to be a U.S. senator from New York. No surprise there, since his family is chock full of high-profile politicians. As Rory's wife, the poised and beautiful Claire seems to lead a charmed life, but it's getting harder to hide the bruises under a carefully cultivated veneer of elegance. Claire tried to leave him once, an attempt that ended with cracked ribs. But this time, she's ready. She's been squirreling away cash, she's secured a fake ID and passport, and a trip to Detroit will provide the perfect opportunity to make her escape. However, before Claire leaves for the airport, Rory decides to send her to Puerto Rico to meet with a humanitarian group instead of going to Detroit. Even worse, Rory goes to Detroit in her place and intercepts the package containing her cash and papers. At JFK, Claire, seemingly by chance, meets Eva, a grieving woman looking to make a new start after her husband's death. Claire suggests that Eva take her flight to Puerto Rico, and Claire will head to Eva's home in Berkeley, where she'll attempt to slip into Eva's life. After touching down, Claire learns that Eva's plane crashed and Claire is presumed dead, but she's not out of the woods yet. Claire cleverly set up a way to keep track of Rory's messages to his head honcho, and when evidence suggests that Eva might not have actually been on that doomed plane, Claire's plans take on a new urgency and it's revealed that Eva's story masked a dark truth. Propulsive prose drives Clark's tale of the intersecting lives of these two smart and resourceful women, and emphasis is placed on the importance of female friendship and support. Readers will surely find themselves hopelessly invested in Claire's and Eva's ultimate fates. A tense and engaging womancentric thriller.COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Starred review from April 6, 2020
In this outstanding thriller from Clark (The Ones We Choose), New York socialite Clair Cook, who has a plan to run away from her emotionally and physically abusive husband, and Eva James, a woman heading home to Berkeley, Calif., who says she’s mourning her late husband, meet by chance at an airport bar at JFK before their flights. Claire tells Eva that she would do anything not to go to Puerto Rico, where her husband is expecting her. Eva agrees to fly to Puerto Rico in Claire’s place, and the two swap e-tickets and phones. On arrival at Oakland’s airport, Claire learns that the Puerto Rico flight has crashed, killing everyone aboard. Though she’s devastated that Eva has died in the crash, Claire takes the opportunity to assume the life Eva left behind only to discover that Eva was not who she said she was and was fleeing her own dangerous past. The moral dilemmas that the multifaceted, realistic characters face in their quest for survival lend weight to this pulse-pounding tale of suspense. Clark is definitely a writer to watch. Agent: Mollie Glick, Creative Artists Agency. -
May 15, 2020
Claire Cook is a smart, sophisticated woman who has married into political royalty. Her life becomes an endless schedule of meetings and "handling," she's no longer able to make her own choices, and she must act the perfect wife and hostess. The world doesn't know that her husband has a deep anger focused on Claire and that he controls her every move. She plots an escape, but her carefully laid plans go awry. In an airport lounge, she meets another desperate woman named Eva. The two women decide to take one last gamble and switch flights: Claire will go to Oakland; Eva will go to Puerto Rico. But when the flight to Puerto Rico goes down, Claire realizes that Eva was not at all who she claimed to be and that Claire is still in just as much danger as she was before. Narrated by both Eva and Claire, the story moves to the past to see how these women came to their ultimate destinations. VERDICT Clark (The Ones We Choose) is an exceptional writer who has crafted a tale about disappearing in an age when technology makes it almost impossible. Highly recommended for fans of thrillers, mysteries, and crime fiction.--Jennifer Funk, McKendree Univ. Lib., Lebanon, IL
Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Aimee Molloy, New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Mother "The Last Flight is everything you want in a book: a gripping story of suspense; haunting, vulnerable characters; and a chilling and surprising ending that stays with you long after the last page."
- Kimberly Belle, internationally bestselling author of Dear Wife and The Marriage Lie "I'm a sucker for suspense stories crafted around an airplane crash, and Julie Clark's The Last Flight lived up to the hype and then some. Clark starts with a bang then keeps the pace at full throttle, deftly weaving two seemingly separate stories into one wild and entertaining ride. The perfect combination of beautiful prose and high suspense, and an ending that I guarantee will catch you off guard."
- Kaira Rouda, internationally bestselling author of Best Day Ever and The Favorite Daughter "The Last Flight sweeps you into a thrilling story of two desperate women who will do anything to escape their lives. Both poignant and addictive, you'll race through the pages to the novel's chilling end. A must read of the summer!"
- Kathleen Barber, author of Truth Be Told and Follow Me "Julie Clark's The Last Flight is a stunner: both a compelling, intricately woven tale of suspense and a thoughtful, nuanced portrayal of two very different women, each at a dangerous crossroads in her life. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough!"
- Wendy Walker, nationally bestselling author of The Night Before "Strong women take center stage in this Breaking Bad meets Sleeping with the Enemy thriller. The Last Flight has it all - original characters, fast pacing, and clever twists, all in one explosive package!"
- Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke, authors of The Two Lila Bennetts "The Last Flight will propel you headfirst into the frantic lives of two women, both determined to escape their current reality. Julie Clark weaves their stories effortlessly, delivering a pitch-perfect suspense novel that absolutely lives up to its hype. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up!"
- Rene Denfeld, internationally bestselling author of The Child Finder and The Butterfly Girl "Get ready to hold onto the edge of your seat. This is a fantastic thriller about real people facing tremendous challenges. Exciting, touching, haunting, The Last Flight will stay with you long after you turn the final page. Julie Clark has written a bang of a novel."
- Janelle Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Watch Me Disappear "The Last Flight is a wild ride: One part Strangers on a Train, one part Breaking Bad, with more twists than an amusement park roller coaster! Julie Clark is a devilishly inventive storyteller."
- Kirkus Reviews, starred review "A tense and engaging womancentric thriller."
- Publishers Weekly, starred review "The moral dilemmas that the multifaceted, realistic characters face in their quest for survival lend weight to this pulse-pounding tale of suspense. Clark is definitely a writer to watch."
