When the pilots die after a hijacking, the only person left with flying experience is the woman who's terrified of flying.
The Pilot's Daughter grabbed me with its premise. I needed something for my commute, and it fit the bill perfectly.
Cora is traveling to Samoa to honor the work of her late husband, a pilot who was killed in a helicopter crash. Since his death, she's developed a fear of flying. Unfortunately for her, this particular flight is hijacked.
As if that isn't bad enough, Cora and the homicide detective sitting beside her, Kyle, manage to stop the hijackers, but not before both the pilot and co-pilot are killed. Suddenly, the passengers' survival depends on the one person who never wanted to be on a plane again.
That's an excellent setup, and Audrey Cole keeps the tension high from beginning to end. Between the hijacking, the aircraft riddled with bullet holes, and the race to get everyone safely on the ground, there wasn't much downtime. It made for a very entertaining audiobook.
My biggest complaint was Cora herself. I completely understood her fear. Losing her husband in an aviation accident gives her every reason to panic. But there were several moments when her crying, pleading, and insisting she couldn't do anything without Kyle became frustrating. I wanted her to get a backbone, for heaven's sake. Fear is believable; helplessness gets old fast.
Kyle was a solid counterpart. As a homicide detective, he brought a calm, steady presence that balanced Cora's panic, and the romantic element didn't overshadow the life-or-death situation unfolding around them.
Overall, this was an entertaining romantic suspense novel with a unique premise, plenty of action, and enough tension to keep me invested. While Cora occasionally tested my patience, the story itself kept me listening all the way to the end.
