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by Noah Hawley
From the Emmy, PEN, Peabody, and Golden Globe Award-winning creator of the TV show Fargo comes the thriller to read in 2016.
On a foggy summer night, eleven people--ten privileged, one down-on-his-luck painter - depart Martha's Vineyard headed for New York. Sixteen minutes later, the unthinkable happens: the passengers disappear into the ocean. The only survivors are Scott Burroughs - the painter - and a four-year-old boy, who is now the last remaining member of a wealthy and powerful media mogul's family.
With chapters weaving between the aftermath of the tragedy and the backstories of the passengers and crew members - including a Wall Street titan and his wife, a Texan-born party boy just in from London, a young woman questioning her path in life, and a career pilot - the mystery surrounding the crash heightens. As the passengers' intrigues unravel, odd coincidences point to a conspiracy: Was it merely dumb chance that so many influential people perished? Or was something far more sinister at work? Events soon threaten to spiral out of control in an escalating storm of media outrage and accusations - all while the reader draws closer and closer to uncovering the truth.
Amid pulse-quickening suspense, the fragile relationship between Scott and the young boy glows at the heart of this stunning novel, raising questions of fate, human nature, and the inextricable ties that bind us together.
What are you reading this week? And what did you think of last week’s books? (1/8/2026)
I am reading Before The Fall by Noah Hawley. Catching up on some older books that were on my list but never got to! I am enjoying the writing and story.
-Donna_J
Edgar Awards, 2017
"Starred Review. A masterly blend of mystery, suspense, tragedy, and shameful media hype...a gritty tale of a man overwhelmed by unwelcome notoriety, with a stunning, thoroughly satisfying conclusion."- Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. A pulse-pounding story, grounded in humanity." - Booklist
"Like the successful screenwriter that he is, Hawley piles on enough intrigues and plot complications to keep you hooked even if you can spot most of them a sea mile away." - Kirkus
"I started and finished Before The Fall in one day. That begins to tell you what kind of smart, compellingly dramatic read it is. So read it."- James Patterson
"Before The Fall is an astonishing, character-driven tour-de-force. The story is a multi-layered, immersive examination of truth, relationships, and our unquenchable thirst for the media's immediate explanation of unfathomable tragedy."- Karin Slaughter
"This isn't just a good novel; it's a great one. I trusted no one in these pages, yet somehow cared about them all. Before The Fall brings a serrated edge to every character, every insight, and every wicked twist."- Brad Meltzer
"Before The Fall is a ravishing and riveting beauty of a thriller. It's also a deep exploration of desire, betrayal, creation, family, fate, mortality, and rebirth. ... I was spellbound from first page to last; I haven't fully recovered yet."- Michael Cunningham
This information about Before the Fall was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Award‑winning author Noah Hawley is one of the most accomplished auteurs and versatile storytellers working in television, film and literature. Over the course of his more than 20-year career, Hawley's work as a novelist, screenwriter, series creator, showrunner and director has garnered acclaim—winning an Emmy®, Golden Globe®, PEN, Critics' Choice, and Peabody Award. As a bestselling author, Hawley has published six novels: A Conspiracy of Tall Men, Other People's Weddings, The Punch, The Good Father, Before the Fall and Anthem.
Name Pronunciation
Noah Hawley: HAW-lee
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