Pleasant Valley Library Online Book Group discussion

Post your thoughts on The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian here! You can place a hold on the book here, a hold on the audiobook here, or a hold on the ebook here.

I thought this book was just o.k. A bit of a slow read for me...BUT...I didn't expect the ending at all...... which made it worth the read!

I read this for another book club. Yes, the ending was really good. Did you feel Cassie was an unreliable narrator because of her blackouts and drinking?

I wasn't sure what to think about another book by Chris Bohjalian. I had one of his books The Night Strangers on my to-be-read list for years and when I finally read it, I HATED it. The ending was very unsatisfying. I am happy to say that The Flight Attendant was much better.

Nicole, I felt like Cassie was a perfect example of an unreliable narrator! (view spoiler)[I really liked how she kept questioning if she was the murderer. (hide spoiler)] I really love stories with unreliable narrators, it makes things interesting!

The only issues I had with the book are that the ending felt slightly rushed to me compared to the pacing of the rest of the book. I don't think (view spoiler)[enough time was spent on Elena's death considering a lot of the book was told from her perspective and we had learned about so much of her history. (hide spoiler)] My other issue is that I could tell that Cassie was written by a male author, and it was hard to forget it. Besides these two things, I really enjoyed this book.

If you haven't read Midwives, you might try it. It is my favorite book by this author. But I haven't read too many of his other books yet. :)

It seems like lots of books now have the 2 different narrators. More so than in the past it seems. Or maybe I’ve just been coming across them more often. Does anyone have issues with this type of book or do you think it adds something positive to the book as a whole?

Andrea, I think I'll give it a shot!

Nicole, I really like books with 2 narrators as long as the author knows how to do it. I've read some books written like this that aren't that great. However, I just read another book that pulled something like that off beautifully (Sometimes I Lie). I feel like The Flight Attendant falls somewhere in the middle. I liked the differing perspectives but wish more time was spent on Elena's character.

I wanted to read Sometimes I Lie for another online book club but I didn’t get my library hold on time.
I just read the new book Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris and there were 2 narrators also.

NicoleG wrote: "I wanted to read Sometimes I Lie for another online book club but I didn’t get my library hold on time.
I just read the new book Bring Me Back by B.A. Paris and there were 2 narrators also."

I want to read Bring Me Back too. Now that you've pointed this out, I can't stop noticing it! I'm reading Sick Girl by Rachel Hargrove, and it's the same type of storytelling.

On Thursday, I finally obtained my copy and have started the audio. I am really enjoying so far (on disc 5 of 9) but Cassie is not only unreliable, she is very irritating and an unlikable MC. Of course, these are my thoughts halfway through - maybe that will change. I like the story, just not her.

As for two narrators - I usually don't mind it - but so far (again, this may change in the second half) I don't like it because it seems distracting. Plus, in the audio version, the two women reading it sound so similar, it is not easy to tell when one narrator ends and the other begins.

Okay, finished the book today. Even after the ending, (view spoiler)[ when one of Cassie's many lovers turn out to be a Russian spy, but spares her life? And then she isn't married but is a mom and still is a flight attendant? (hide spoiler)] I still thought it was a story interesting enough to hold my attention.

Something I always like to see in a fictional novel is whether I can learn something new. I did learn a lot about flight attendants and the typical life they lead, Cassie notwithstanding. Certainly NOT as glamorous as it seems. And if it appears that way for Cassie, when she lays over in places like Paris, Rome and Dubai, how mundane must it be for those who do this in places like Little Rock, AR or Lexington, KY? Not picking on those cities but not exactly like Paris or Rome.

One other thought on the book - as I learned more about the characters, it was turning out the only one I DID like was Enrico. (view spoiler)[ the guy who was such a gentleman and yet you KNOW he wanted sex with this "easy" flight attendant (hide spoiler)] Not often I will like a book filled with so many people I don't like, but this one was an exception.