Worst Case Scenario

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars | 2,296 ratings

Price: 17.05

Last update: 12-25-2024


About this item

Following her explosive debut thriller Falling and its harrowing follow-up Drowning, #1 internationally bestselling author T.J. Newman is back with Worst Case Scenario.

When a pilot suffers a heart attack at 35,000 feet, a commercial airliner filled with passengers crashes into a nuclear power plant in the small town of Waketa, Minnesota, which becomes ground zero for a catastrophic national crisis with global implications.

The International Nuclear Event Scale tracks nuclear disasters. It has seven levels. Level 7 is a Major Accident, with only two on record: Fukushima and Chernobyl. There has never been a Level 8. Until now.

In this heart-stopping thriller, ordinary people—power plant employees, firefighters, teachers, families, neighbors, and friends—are thrust into an extraordinary situation as they face the ultimate test of their lives. It will take the combined courage, ingenuity, and determination of a brave few to save not only their community and loved ones, but the fate of humanity at large.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Stache
    5.0 out of 5 stars A terrifying tale of disaster, bravery, and sacrifice with amazing characters you care about.
    Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2024
    I’ve experienced emotion reading a book, but I’ve never shed a tear while reading before. Until I read Worse Case Scenario.

    To be honest, at times I found all the technological information a bit boring. But T.J. Newman does an amazing job developing amazing characters, and once I got to know these people, I cared deeply about what happened to them and the small Minnesota town where they live.

    From putting us right in the cockpit of a commercial airplane as the pilot suffers a major heart attack with his co-pilot in the bathroom, to what happens on the ground when the plane crashes, killing all 295 on board, leaving a devastating trail of destruction—including significant structural damage to a nuclear power plant—Newman tells a story of the largest homeland crisis the nation had ever seen, a crisis having the potential to be worse than the 1986 Chornobyl tragedy.

    Through the eyes of firefighters, plant employees, kids, family, and yes, the President of the Unites States, Newman takes us on a rollercoaster adventure that follows humanity’s struggle to survive. Debris from the plane and the power plant is everywhere.

    When the lives of others are in the hands of a few, survival often requires sacrifice. The scene of a courageous fire chief speaking with his young son for the last time before he embarks on a mission of no return, using a shoelace to show his son how to tie a knot that would not tangle a fishing line, something he long ago promised to teach his son, is a real tearjerker.

    So are the efforts of an unmarried PhD research scientist groaning in pain as she purposely exposes herself to radiation to turn off a water valve deep in the plant’s basement, in her mind going over her life choices to not marry and have kids, thankful she wasn’t leaving anyone behind.

    Then there’s the brave woman firefighter, risking everything to save a little boy in a submerged van where the boy’s father, sister, and mother had died. “Mommy’s sleeping,” the father tells his son just before closing his eyes forever. “I’m going to sleep for a little bit too.”

    With these terrifying scenes and others, Newman takes us on a heart-wrenching and terrifying adventure that might just leave your eyes watery and tearing over what brave and unselfish people will do in attempting to save the life of another person. Newman also educates us how vulnerable we are to a nuclear power plant crisis and what might happen should an accident (or attack) really happen.
  • Hendricks Book Reviews
    4.0 out of 5 stars ...an impressive and emotionally expressive read!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2024
    Book Review – Worst Case Scenario – T.J. Newman
    Former flight attendant turn author T.J. Newman penned a ‘trifecta thriller’ with her third explosive and harrowing novel entitled “Worst Case Scenario.”

    When a commercial pilot suffers a heart attack and the plane crashes into a nuclear power plant with hundreds of passengers in the small town in Minnesota, the crash site suddenly becomes ground zero for a catastrophic national crisis with global implications, reaching a level of disaster that has never ben witnessed before.

    Worst Case Scenario is not just a thrilling read that keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to end, but it’s an epic tale of the human spirit’s strength and resilience in the face of overwhelming odds. The story leaves a lasting impact and touching emotions. While reading, it inspired me to find hope and heroism in the darkest moments of the story.

    Newman’s exceptional character development was all inspiring. I found myself deeply invested in all the characters, the nuclear power plant workers, firefighters, teachers, families, neighbors, friends, and even the complete strangers. The writing was such that I felt their fears, hopes, and determination as they faced an insurmountable challenge.

    An impressive and gripping and emotionally expressive read. Heartfelt, Suspenseful, and Exciting. Highly recommend it.
  • GOEriq
    5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from this author!
    Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2024
    This is T.J. Newman's third book, and while I have loved all three, this is my favorite. Newman is a former flight attendant — she wrote her first book, "Falling," when she was working red-eye flights, and when it became a smash hit, she became an author full time. All of her books deal with terror on a plane. This one is a bit different because a plane crashes at the very beginning of the book, and the book then focuses on the community below as it works together to stave off disaster.

    I always describe Newman's books as '90s disaster movies, but not as cheesy. If you liked movies like "Armageddon," these are the books for you. In this latest book, the plane crashes almost immediately and hits a nuclear power plant in rural Minnesota. We meet several members of the community as they race to save people's lives in the immediate disaster, stop a nuclear meltdown, and work together as a community. There are a lot of characters, and we get just enough of their back stories to learn what they are fighting for, the type of person they are and how they might help or be affected by the disaster.

    Newman goes into the details of the nuclear disaster just enough to terrify the reader but not so much that we wish we had a PhD in nuclear engineering. You don't need the intricacies. You just need to understand the potential horror, enough to make your heart pound, keep you turning the pages, and cheer for these local residents. It's a fast-paced, wild adventure that I couldn't put down.
  • Keith Bowden, aka Godzylla
    5.0 out of 5 stars TJN Is Always "Must Read"
    Reviewed in the United States on December 18, 2024
    If TJ Newman's name is on it, it's a must-buy, must-read-as-soon-as-possible book for me. I didn't even need to know anything about the story now, just give me the book and let me read it.

    And so was how I read her third novel. And this one, oh... Okay, this isn't really a spoiler, but kind of: it's an incredibly intense thriller. I tore through this one and it had me on the proverbial edge of my seat and absolutely wrecked me.

    I was simply devastated throughout it, and at the end - full-on ugly crying, snot, throat in pain. It's beautiful.

    I don't like giving reviews that discuss plots because I don't want stories "ruined" for me, so this is as close as I come to telling you that you're in for a wild, crazy, lovely, but also painful ride. Enjoy.

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