Blackout

Rating:
Summary: Thrilling, so addictive I couldn't put it down until 3am!
Review: Blackout was an amazing book by Nance and I strongly suggest it to all pilots. The conspiracy was amazing and the true story uncovered in the last 3 pages and the thrills ended on the last page! Bravo Nance, I'm now a huge fan!

Rating:
Summary: Couldn't put it down
Review: I picked this book up at Dallas-Ft. Worth airport just before leaving for Geneva via Brussels this week. I finished the book by the time I got to Geneva. Few books have kept me turning pages like this. Tom Clancy's books (the real ones, not the Op-Center and Net-whatever balony) have gripped me like this as well, but they are much longer.

I guess it helps that John Nance is a pilot, and that I am an aviation nut. He goes into a lot of detail on how to fly a 747 in the first half of the book, and I don't remember spotting a single technical error, which is very unusual.

The plot is quite plausable, and there is enough information withheld (and fed to you bit by bit) to keep you guessing right up to the final chapters as to who are the bad guys and who isn't, unlike certain books which give the reader all the info and you have to read how the characters discover what you already know. So good marks to John Nance for that.

The only reason I give 4 instead of 5 stars is that the book COULD have been a lot more. Just imagine if John Nance had given the manuscript to Tom Clancy for a bit of reworking. The book would have come back with a LOT more character development, and more artfully crafted descriptions of scenes and action. The book may have ended up being twice as long, but the story and characters are easily interesting enough to keep your attention for a good, long round-the-world trip.

Charles

Rating:
Summary: Thrilling, so addictive I couldn't put it down until 3am!
Review: I've read several of John Nance's novels and been drawn in by the plot of every single one up until now. The number of positive reviews on Amazon of Blackout puzzles me. I found the number of chases to be reminicent of a bad action movie that relies on car chases and stunts to cover up a lack of plot. The characters in Blackout were shallow and stereotypical and not at all believeable.

Generally I will read a novel in a few days, but this one took me two weeks because I kept putting it aside after reading one unbelieveable encounter after another. I did finish it, because I wanted to know how it would all wrap up, and truthfully, not much was wrapped up at all.

I would recommend Phoenix Rising, or even Turbulence, but not Blackout. It was just BAD.

Rating:
Summary: Tough to put down
Review: Not having read any of Nance's works, I decided to take a chance and picked up Blackout from the bargain book table. I'm glad I did. Nance takes the reader on a page-turning adventure than starts with the unexplained crash of a U.S. passenger jet in the Caribbean. The story quickly shifts to a meeting in Hong Kong where an FBI agent Kat Bronsky (who specializes in airline terrorism) meets up with Washington Post reporter Robert McCabe (who claims to know something about the downing of the plane). Nance then chronicles the efforts of this pair to uncover the truth regarding the downing of the first jet (and those that come later). Blackout is clearly a page turner that grabs the reader early and keeps him guessing. Prepare for some level of sleep deprivation as you stay up too late in order to read "just one more chapter."

Rating:
Summary: Tough to put down
Review: Not having read any of Nance's works, I decided to take a chance and picked up Blackout from the bargain book table. I'm glad I did. Nance takes the reader on a page-turning adventure than starts with the unexplained crash of a U.S. passenger jet in the Caribbean. The story quickly shifts to a meeting in Hong Kong where an FBI agent Kat Bronsky (who specializes in airline terrorism) meets up with Washington Post reporter Robert McCabe (who claims to know something about the downing of the plane). Nance then chronicles the efforts of this pair to uncover the truth regarding the downing of the first jet (and those that come later). Blackout is clearly a page turner that grabs the reader early and keeps him guessing. Prepare for some level of sleep deprivation as you stay up too late in order to read "just one more chapter."

Rating:
Summary: FBI Superwoman keeps the airlines profitable
Review: The first half of BLACKOUT by author John Nance, a commercial pilot himself, is an edge-of-your-seat ride maybe best left at home on your next plane trip. It makes severe air turbulence the event of choice for the truly discriminating road warrior. Meridian #5, a 747 on a flight from Hong Kong to the States, has its pilot killed and the co-pilot completely blinded by a mysterious flash of light shortly after take-off. As there�s no other qualified pilot aboard, uh-oh, who�s going to land the aircraft? How about that smart-alecky 14 year old kid in coach? You think? And what is the relationship of this incident to the other airliner that nosedived into the Caribbean just two months earlier?

Enter FBI agent Katherine Bronsky. Kat can fly planes, both jets and prop jobs. (Too bad she�s not on Meridian 5.) She can also pilot helicopters and drive a Sno-Cat. Best of all, she can disguise herself to look like a blond and expensive workin� girl. (Now, that�s my kind of woman!) In this potboiler�s second half, she mothers a group of Meridian 5�s passengers as they�re pursued from the jungles of Vietnam to the snowfields of Idaho by murderous villains. (How did the plane land, you ask? Well, read the book.)

BLACKOUT is perfect escapist entertainment for a day at the beach or the ski lodge. The first half is infinitely better than the second because of the in-flight action. The latter suffers from being a more-or-less ordinary and extended chase sequence built around several mighty close shaves. There is indeed an element of mystery as the reader wonders which of the Good Guys back at FBI HQ is actually one of the Bad Guys trying to eliminate Kat and her charges before they spill the beans on the nefarious conspiracy that got Meridian 5 into Deep Bandini, and is about to send commercial air travel into the toilet. Unfortunately, the conclusion seems just too pat, and several threads are left hanging. It�s like the author had to finish by a too soon publishing deadline. However, I�ll still award 3.5 stars, rounded out to 4.

Rating:
Summary: Real page-turner!
Review: The strongest point of this book is that it's a well-written suspenseful page-turner with no visible factual bloopers. With this book, you're guaranteed a day or so of compelling reading.
As the other reviews mention, this book could benefit from more complex characters. Most characters are totally "good" or "bad" (except for one revelation at the end).
One chilling sentence in light of recent events is the book's prediction on future terrorism: "So who's next? Are we going to get a 747 impacting the World Trade Center...?"
I agree with the other review that the ending is inconsistent with the book. When the responsible parties are revealed, it is just inconceivable (even with fictional poetic license) that such parties would take the actions they did for the purpose they did. It's also never cleared up how the communications were intercepted (if we believe the "I really tried to stop them" statement), and it's a bit inconsistent that the "bad guys" could so convincingly pretend to be FBI agents, down to minute behavior and ID, and yet not know the location of the FBI academy.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: This book was a pge turmer!! I couldnt put it down. I bought it at the airport,right before my first ever airplane ride. I was by myself and the book was so realistic and so exciting that i was actually gripping the armrests!! THe element of suspense danger and a growing romance between Kat and Robert made it all worth it!

Rating:
Summary: Not as good, but still good!
Review: This is the most fascinating book I have read in many years. The detail and descriptions were incredible and actual; the characters were a true group of characters; and the storyline was spell-binding. I could not put the book down. This is the mark of a true bestseller. John Nance has written many books regarding airplanes and the airline industry, but this one is by far the best. I will be depressed when I am finished.