Night Fall

By: Nelson DeMille

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 14 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's Summary

Based on true events, but unlike anything you've ever heard before, number-one New York Times best-selling author Nelson DeMille has created what may be his finest work to date.

At dusk on July 17, 1996, on a deserted Long Island beach, a man and a woman engage in adulterous sex in front of a video camera. Suddenly a terrible blast lights up the dark summer sky. TWA Flight 800 has just exploded in midair with 230 souls onboard, and the video camera has recorded the last moments of the doomed airliner.

Five years later the government has declared the crash a result of mechanical failure. But John Corey, an ex-NYPD detective who is now a contract agent with the Federal Anti-Terrorist Task Force, is persuaded by Kate Mayfield, his wife and task force partner, that the case deserves a second look.

Kate, a career FBI agent, plays by the rules. Corey plays by no rules but his own. Against long odds and warnings from their superiors, they set out to reopen the case and discover its most crucial piece of evidence. The hunt will lead to a conspiracy at the highest levels and a race toward an elusive and lethal truth that could be even more horrifying than the crash of Flight 800, one with unimaginable consequences for America...and the world.

©2004 Nelson DeMille (P)2004 Time Warner AudioBooks

Critic Reviews

"A timely and intense thriller starring a thoroughly likable hero." ( Booklist)

Addictive mix of fact & intriguing storyline

Nelson DeMille begins with the horrendous crash of TWA Flight 800 and takes us through an investigation, five years after the fact. Retired NYPD detective John Corey, previously appearing in Plum Island & The Lion's Game, attends the memorial service on the fifth anniversary of the crash with his now wife FBI Agent Kate Mayfield who was involved in the initial investigation of the TWA Flight 800 tragedy. Agent Mayfield was not satisfied with the "official" explanation of the crash but has been warned by her superiors not to further question this explanation or the CIA's animation which supposedly illustrated what "really happened".

DeMille does a brilliant job of walking us through an investigation, examining fact and theory within the framework of the novel to create a book which not only entertains but also informs. And what great entertainment it is. Different aspects of the official investigation have been woven into the story in a way which enhances the listener's understanding the aircraft accident investigation procedures without being over technical and bogging down the story line. DeMille handles the topic with sensitivity for the families of the victims of Flight 800 while taking you on a roller coaster ride of plot twists and turns which culminates with Sept. 11, 2001. Don't start this book without plenty of time to listen because you will not want to put it down.

Scott Brick, as always, adds his superb narrative skills to the audio book. Brick is a virtuoso who captures nuances of accent, dialect and timing which most narrators cannot master without being overdone. He is particularly adroit at bringing female dialog to the listener without it being distracting or turning into a vocal caricature as is often the case when a male narrator attempts female dialog.

The talent of the author and narrator left me wishing that the story would not end. DeMille has an extraordinary talent for creating addictive storylines.

This is a treat for deMille fans

I couldn't stop until the last word...and now I want still more. I delight in John Corey's sardonic wit and his ability to put the pieces together, even when no one seems to want them put together. This book is a slight departure from the earlier deMille novels in that it is based on a true recent mystery (TWA Flt. 800) and introduces a more logical solution than "official" explanation of mechanical failure...especially in hindsight, considering the events of the past three years.

I've only recently discovered deMille's novels, but already I'm a fan for life.

Awesome, thriller.....

This one is timely,and really gets you thinking about Terrorism, and how much the public is "allowed" to know . Makes me distrust the current administration even more so. Although a work of fiction, depending on your political leanings, one can take thisbook in any direction one chooses.
I've enjoyed every book by this author,one of my all time favorite writers!

Don't Miss This One

The third John Corey book and absolutely riveting. Funny, suspenseful and wonderfully written. We couldn't wait to get back in the car and finish listening. We drove HUNDREDS of extra miles to see how it came out. Read/listen to the first two, Plum Island and The Lion's Game first so you don't spoil your own fun.

Anyone else notice the really bad ending?

I enjoyed Night Fall all the way up to the last chapter, and if it hadn't been for the ending I'd likely have given it 4 stars instead of 2.

An hour or two before the end of the audio book I realized what likely going to happen, but I hoped it wouldn't (but it did).

It seems to me that the author couldn't think of a way to end the story, so he instead chose to make everything that lead the characters up to the big climactic struggle completely moot by removing the climax altogether, killing off many of the supporting characters and destroying all the evidence that had been collected to solve the crime. What a waste. Had this been a physical book rather than an audio book, I'd have flung it across the room in disgust.

I think DeMille felt hamstrung by writing about non-fictional events in that he didn't want to develop a satisfying ending that would have violated current known history. I'd have been perfectly happy with a fictional ending to a non-fictional event. As it is, I feel very, very cheated.

DeMille writes a novel about TWA Flight 800 crash

Night Fall was released in 2004, eight years after TWA 800 exploded and fell from the sky off the eastern tip of Long Island on July 17, 1996. This novel, Book 3 in the John Corey series, takes on and adds to the conspiracy theories surrounding TWA Flight 800. John Corey and his wife/ATTF partner Kate Mayfield take on the case outside their ATTF jobs. Based on Audible customer ratings this novel is the customer favorite of the books in the Corey series. DeMille excels at creating suspense and character development in all of his novels; Night Fall is a great example. Scott Brick narrates brilliantly as usual. I highly recommend all of Nelson DeMille's books except The Quest (I'm not a big fan of The Gold Coast and The Gate House either but they are worthwhile; The Quest is simply a bad novel). The Corey series need not be read in order

Good Book Weak Ending

I love the main character and supporting cast of characters. As in the previous book, Lion's Game, John Corey is his usual wise cracking, unrelenting self and the author does a great job interjecting humor into the serious and sobering plot. I remember the TWA 800 tragedy but never realized the huge number of eye witnesses to the crash/attack, so I was very engaged in the storyline throughout the book. All that being said I was anticipating the final show down between Corey and Nash and was disappointed at the actual ending. I would have given the book 4 or 4.5 stars had the ending been more to my liking.

Disappointing!

This book was like eating a delicious chocolate sundae only to find a cockroach in the bottom. I don't understand how an author could so brilliantly build up a story line with good facts and characters only to dribble off in the end leaving the reader with NO satisfaction with regard to the plot. I was truly angry at having invested over 14 hours into this book.

Feeling a little cheated

Like some others, I found the ending rather disappointing. I was prepared for a showdown meeting that never materialized. The suspense kept building and building, then the rug was pulled out from under me.
Apart from that, it was very enjoyable indeed.
As usual, Scott Brick's narration is first rate.

I was riveted...

I got this book because the narrator was rated very highly. And for good reason. This book had me riveted from the first 15 minutes! Fiction, but based on fact made it all that much more interesting.
The ending was nothing like I had expected and I liked that. You won't go wrong with this one.