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384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 3, 2002

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713 people want to read

About the author

Susan Grant

62 books451 followers
Susan’s childhood dreams of becoming a space explorer fizzled when she found out calculus was involved. Luckily, she didn’t need math skills to fly jets--or to create sky-high stories in her head, first for herself, then for friends, and now for readers everywhere.  

A New York Times/USA Today bestselling author and a military veteran, Susan won the prestigious RITA® Award for her book Contact, a sci-fi aviation-thriller romance.

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5 stars
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329 (27%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
Profile Image for SheLove2Read.
3,102 reviews203 followers
March 19, 2012
I really enjoyed this sci-fi romance by Susan Grant. Imagine being the co-pilot of a 747, plucked out of the sky by an unknown entity. Your captain dies, leaving you in charge of 300 terrified passengers in a situation that defies all meaning: aliens have "saved" you because a rogue comet has destroyed Earth. You're being transported to a new world, forced to learn a new culture and language and oh...there is a race of being who want you for slaves and are in pursuit of your "saviors".

Jordan is my favorite kind of heroine: just as scared as everyone else but stepping up to the plate and doing what needs to be done. She doesn't have all the answers but she is determined to lead "her people" into whatever future they are facing with confidence. She's a smart cookie who questions herself but never lapses into unbelievable territory or TLTL-land. Her budding attraction to the Alliance liaison could easily have become eye rolling but it was written in a way that you could see this happening to yourself.

I think what I liked most about this book wasn't even the romance but the determination and grit of the "survivors" who find out what happened to them and eventually...SPOILER ALERT.....how to get home. Everyday average people thrust into a nightmare of epic proportions who step up to the plate in true American style - take no prisoners and leave no man behind.

If you're looking for a sci-fi romance or just an interesting read, check this one out. 4.25 stars/A-





Profile Image for Steelwhisper.
Author 5 books440 followers
October 19, 2019

1.5* rounded up.

This book gives me sort of this feeling...



I'd probably have rated it higher, if I hadn't read the absolutely fabulous aliens trilogy by R. Lee Smith, namely Heat, The Last Hour of Gann and Cottonwood, which really, truly sets the gold standard in the genre. I can't for the life of me understand how this here "Contact" can win a RITA, while Lee - even after the absolutely fabulous threesome cited - is still practically unknown.

So, let me break it down a bit.

The Good
=========================

I finished the book. That's something for me these days in this genre, because most romance books currently are so bad, I can't finish them. For once no gimmicks stood in the way of doing so: the book was written in 3rd POV past tense, the prose was unobtrusive, spare and mostly free of negatively impacting vernacular or needless vulgarity (except for an archetypal Irish man who used US slang for some reason). It flowed enough to tide over some slow patches of plot, though towards the end I was skimming anyway.

The female lead, except for her uber-mommy-ness, was relatable, self-reliant, smart, self-assured and acceptably strong. The hero wasn't painted as an alpha-male, in fact, both functioned pretty much on the same level. Which was a relief to read for once. It is also pretty clear that the author is a pilot herself, unfortunately she didn't include more of that part of her expertise, which I would have greatly liked.

The Bad
=========================

Unfortunately the characters and the story weren't particularly interesting. After half of the story I was close to a DNF simply because it was going nowhere and there was an absolute lack of intriguing people and activities. I'd have liked to see and know much more about the atrocities committed by the alien slavetraders, instead a lot was wasted on basic adjustments and complaints of the stranded people. Who, by the way, behaved rather atypically for a motley group of passengers forced into such a nightmare - or facing the destruction of Earth. The behaviour of the entire group did not really work out for me.

All in all there was too little action, not enough progress, and the situation had everyone being a sitting duck waiting for stuff to happen. Which it did, sort of deux ex machina style, and not of the protagonists' doing. Things were done to them, be it the passengers, the captain or the alien in charge of them. And the things which were done to them were uninteresting.

============ major spoilers below =============

The Ugly

============ major spoilers below =============

What really irked me was the very pat world building. I mean, come on, when I read about aliens I want aliens! "Cottonwood" gave me a heroine bonking a bloody 7-foot-ant, "Heat" oversized birds of prey and "Gann" a lizard - and here everyone is just some form of homo sapiens? And even if homo sapiens, dammit, then make them half way diverse! Instead everyone was thoroughly whitewashed, the most outré were rosy-skinned albinos with white hair and reddish eyes. At that point I would have taken an alien with blue, purple, scaly or bright green skin and it would have been more interesting. But no, the "we aren't in Kansas anymore"-moment you expect from SciFi never happened.

Even sexually/romantically the entire thing could have taken place anywhere on Earth, with a nice dude who behaved as if straight out of a typical contemporary mainstream romance. The sex itself was infinitely boring (I have no idea where the 4 heat level rating of some of the reviewers comes from, this sex was overly frumpy instalust), I soon was skimming any romantic scenes. I mean, there the heroine has sex with an alien, and it's as interesting as doing missionary with any mediocre Earth guy... duh.

Lastly, I was seriously riled by the needless inclusion of an allegedly psychic child (the heroine's daughter) who - completely without any logical explanation - knew everything happening to her mother. In fact, the whole circus and to-do about children in the epilogue was absolutely soppy, sloppy and getting on my nerves. I'd expect someone meeting with aliens to do something different than conventionally settling on some ranch to breed children and horses. Which is where again this book falls way short of what R. Lee Smith writes.

So, 2* for finishing it and for a basically interesting idea and an okay heroine.
Profile Image for Mari.
1,529 reviews10 followers
January 15, 2018
After I listened to An Accidental Goddess by Megan Sybil Baker I browsed through the 'readers also enjoyed' scroll here on GR. I saw this book and I thought it looked interesting and I already had the book in my library.

I liked it. Jordan is a single mother who is a 747 pilot for an airline. During a redeye from Hawaii her flight is intercepted and taken aboard a space ship. Jordan and her passengers are told that the earth has been destroyed by a comet and they are all that remains.

Kao is an officer for the Alliance who is still recovering from being tortured as a POW.

Jordan and her flight crew along with Kao begin to suspect that earth still exists but there are darker reasons why the airplane and it's passengers were abducted.

I liked the characters and the way they interacted with each other. There weren't any unrealistic jerk passengers to deal with. The story kept me guessing as to who the good guys were and the motives of the abductors. The romance between Jordan and Kao was realistic and they made a good couple. The book isn't quite up to re-read level but it was enjoyable.
Profile Image for Cara Bristol.
Author 108 books941 followers
December 12, 2019
Read Contact by Susan Grant and you'll see why it won the coveted RITA award--it's amazeballs.

Jordan Cady is a pilot, the first officer aboard a 747. While on a flight, the crew attempts to veer around a storm. Turns out it's not a storm but a huge alien spacecraft that engulfs the plane.

Alien Space Force Lieutenant Kào Vantaar-Moray informs the crew and passengers, Earth was destroyed by a comet, they were rescued in the 11th hour, and they are to be resettled on another planet.

While mourning the loss of her daughter, and attempting to step up to become the leader the survivors need, Jordan grows closer to Kao, who as a former prisoner of war, has his own issues to work through.

But no one is who they seem, and figuring out who she can trust will be Jordan's biggest challenge if she's going to save her passengers and crew.

What a great story and romance. So realistic, believable and nuanced. Wonderful characters.  I figured out early on who the villain was, but there were still surprises to come, culminating in a nail-biting ending. A must read!
Profile Image for Cc.
2,086 reviews1 follower
November 27, 2019
Jordan and Kao

Their whole 747 was abducted midair. The Captain of the flight has a heart attack which makes Co-pilot Jordan in charge of the safety of everyone in charge.

Turns out they’ve been abducted by aliens; aliens that are very much human. Kao, an alien, is put in charge of the Planes inhabitants.


This is a decent story that was very character driven with out much action. ( makes sense since 90% of the time the people from the plane were held on a single deck on the space ship.) The question of how/why Boo on Earth was aware of what was happening to her mother was never addressed. Then there’s the epilogue that was pretty saccharine. Overall I gave it 3.5 ✨


While reading I couldn’t forget the Malaysian Flight that disappeared 11 months after this book was published. It sure made me think of so many, “what if’s.” Eerie fore shadowing real life.
Profile Image for Jill Dunlop.
419 reviews26 followers
June 11, 2010
Jordan Cady is a pilot for United Airlines. While making a quick flight to Hawaii her plane is swallowed up by an unknown alien aircraft. The lead pilot has a heart-attack from the stress and dies, leaving Jordan in charge of almost 300 people that make up the crew and passengers of Flight 58. Kao Vantaar-Moray has been assigned to debrief the survivors from Earth. The alliance patrol ship rescued flight 58 right before Earth was hit by a comet. It is his job to help the last remaining survivors of Earth assimilate to their new life.

I usually don't read a lot of books in the science fiction category. I don't know why that is, because when I do, I really seem to enjoy myself. Contact was a very enjoyable read. Jordan finds herself in the role of not only Captain, but the leader of the survivors. She steps up the challenge of providing strength that others can rely on to get through this very tough time. Even though she wants to curl up into a ball and mourn the loss of her daughter and her life, she straightens her spine and gets to work.

While working out the details on their new life with Kao, she develops a friendship with him and discovers that Kao is not the cold-hearted, unfeeling man she first assumed him to be. She discovers that she has much in common with him and he helps her battle her grief over her daughter. I really liked that the author showed Kao's growth through out the story. Kao has been through a lot and it was good to see him work though all his problems and fight for what he most desired.

There is a secondary political plot that is also important to the development of the story. It was relatively easy to follow along with and didn't detract from the romance in any way. If anything I wish that more of the story could have been on the survivors assimilating in the new world. The majority of the story took place on the Alliance patrol ship. It would have been nice to see more of the other planets. But keeping things simple worked in the favor of making it more realistic and believable.
Profile Image for Tara van Beurden.
401 reviews9 followers
September 24, 2020
Another awesome read from my good friend Susie! This one follows Jordan Cady, co-pilot aboard United Airlines Flight 58. While on route from Honololu to San Francisco, the flight is swallowed up by a bizarre vessel, despite Jordan and the captain's attempts to evade it. The captain dies of a heart attack shortly after and suddenly Jordan becomes captain. What Jordan and the crew and passengers of United 58 go on to discover is that they have been rescued by the starship Savior after Earth was destroyed. Their handler is Kao, the son of the Savior's captain and an ex-POW, a victim of a cruel race that have just recently been defeated. As the story unfolds, and Jordan and Flight 58 try to cling onto hope that someone has survived back on Earth, Jordan and Kao also start to fall for each other. However, their budding relationship is jeopardised when one of the passengers from United 58 discovers that Earth actually may still exist, and the strange albino Talagar (the bad guys!) crew member Trist (there are some Talagars that are on the good guys' side) opens doors for United 58 that seem to support the case that Earth is still spinning. It was a good read. I enjoyed the relationship between Kao and Jordan, and Jordan did an admirable job as Captain, taking on the leadership role on 'New Earth' despite her reluctance. Frankly, she deserved a medal for that. The story also felt like it had some added credibility based on Grant's history as an pilot. Overall, another solid piece from Susie!
Profile Image for Cris.
1,461 reviews
August 23, 2008
Overall, a good read, but not something to get excited about. It’s more of a sci-fi story with a strong romance sub-plot than your typical romance since the emphasis remains on the plight of the humans from the airplane with the love story developing as an outgrowth from events. Sensuality rating would be 4 out of 5 for several fairly conventional love scenes. I would have liked for the ‘aliens’ to *be* more alien than they were.

Pacing: Somewhat uneven; slow beginning, picks up in the middle and then has an abrupt ending.

Possible Read-A-Likes: Other novels by Susan Grant. Similar sci-fi elements appear in Jayne Castle’s novels, but the romance is preeminent in Castle’s novels. Linnea Sinclair’s novels are similar in theme; solid sci-fi story lines with a strong romance although I think Sinclair does a better job.
Profile Image for Linda C.
2,490 reviews3 followers
June 7, 2015
On a routine flight from Honolulu to San Francisco, United 58 with just under 300 passengers and crew disappears from the radar. Copilot Jordan Cady suddenly becomes Captain when they are sucked into the interior of an enormous space ship and the Captain suffers a heart attack. They are told that they have been rescued just as Earth is being hit by a massive broken up comet and destroyed. Kao Vantaar-Moray is put in charge of interfacing with the earthlings, who as refugees need to learn the 'key' language and prepare for living on a new planet in the Alliance. However, not everything is as it's presented and there is a war going on in the system. Kao, himself is a recently returned POW with a shady past and guilt issues. There is plenty of action, an interesting theory on the evolution of the universe, and plenty of sexy romance. Fun read.
Profile Image for Carolyn F..
3,491 reviews51 followers
October 20, 2010
I'm going to give this book 3.5 stars. Slow beginning (1/3 of book) and then it finally started getting better and the ending was very romantic. Jordan's a pilot on her way to a stop in Hawaii when her plane is abducted by aliens. The captain dies of a heart attack and now she's in charge in a plane full of people. At first they think terroists have the plane and then learn what they were really abducted for. Kao is the adopted son of the spaceship's captain who is put in charge of calming and answering questions. I thought the book ended up being very sweet, romantic with some tension thrown in. Good sci-fi romance.
Profile Image for Szinna.
412 reviews12 followers
May 19, 2014
A történet jól indult, kezdetben izgalmas is volt, csak valahogy nem sikerült sem a történésekben, sem érzelmekben elérni egy csúcsot, inkább egyre laposabb lett. Nagyon kár, mert egészen egyedi volt a történet, iszonyat jó mellékszereplők lettek volna (ha ki vannak dolgozva), és a főszereplőkben is volt potenciál. Minden alkotóelem megvolt, csak sajnos nem sikerült belőle igazán finomat kifőzni.
Profile Image for Kathrynn.
1,184 reviews
December 2, 2008
I'd forgotten all about this author's books and while working on them for GRs, I remember reading these a few years ago. They were neat. This one was one of my favorites...and Once A Pirate. Wonderful, action packed, romantic, feel-good romance books. PG13
286 reviews3 followers
August 7, 2011
Another really good story that mixes science fiction and romance. Wish more authors wrote this type of story as well as this one was crafted.
29 reviews
October 9, 2023
The story isn't bad. It has a slow build up unlike most romances that fill up with smut.

However the author seems to have some grammar issues in some areas. For example:

"Jordan made a face."
"Kao made a disgusted noise."

If you cannot see what is wrong with these two sentences (in a published book by an AUTHOR) then I will explain why.
It shows that the author cannot describe these things in a better way. The way she worded it like above sounds very childish, or like slang that you would use in everyday life. It seems very unprofessional for a published book.
Even changing "Kao made a disgusted noise" to "A sound of disgust was heard from Kao" would have improved it.
And "Jordan made a face". Really? We know what this means but it shows the author could not describe it very well.

Lastly, I hate how the kids in the book seem to have magic powers.
Roberta (Boo), Jordan's daughter. She has dreams of her mum being in the sky, in space. It's a bloody dream and this dream is somehow showing Jordan and Kao in space. Whatever.
And the kid Chris on the ship who calls Kao "Darth Vader" because he's from space. Like this kid just knew Kao was a space man before it was revealed in the story. Like the kid can read the future. Stupid stupid.
659 reviews5 followers
June 13, 2021
2 stars

A plane is hijacked by aliens

What promises a more action packed book than that?

Well I’m disappointed to say this book was not action packed. In fact it wasn’t anything packed. Nothing happened apart from the hijacking really. The entire book consisted in the humans waiting around and whining.

Even the galactic war happening remained a fringe issue, never present enough to actually cause suspense or *gasp* action.

So I was a bit bored reading this. Even the romance didn’t save it. Kao - the cool, scary alien was… dull. He had no personality. Just his scar. And I didn’t understand why they fell “in love with each other”. Even the wedding epilogue felt out of the blue. There was no emotion. Or any angst. Or any… feelings at all?

Ps: also what was it with the psychic daughter who somehow knew everything that was going on?? That was never explained and just weird…
Profile Image for Merry One Maria.
2,284 reviews10 followers
July 26, 2025
A win for Jordan and Kào

This is my first time reading this author and let me say that Susan Grant is good at world building, detailed descriptions, and weaving politics into her storytelling in this sci-fi romance. The book starts with a pilot Captain Jordan , our lead female character, getting ready for a flight to Hawaii with over two hundred passengers. Her crew mates are funny, especially Natalie, as well as an intelligent hacker. Problems start after the plane starts flying. Next thing we know is that the plane is hijacked by aliens, who look like humans, out of the sky. Our lead male is Kao and he is a good guy who has been wronged his entire life. Kao’s father is trying to help his son achieve hero status like he had with the Alliance. However, the trouble that the father is causing is too much, yet the commander is blind to it. The story unfolds from there. There is a happy ending for the couple in the epilogue. Read On!
Profile Image for Alyssa Mayley.
Author 2 books14 followers
December 1, 2017
All in all, I liked this book. Not your traditional sci-fi love story. I loved how self-sufficient the heroine was. The author did a great job building the character naturally to fill the leadership role in desperate circumstances. I also really enjoyed that the hero (for the most part) kept out of her way and let her take the lead more often than not. Also, I loved the interesting & unexpected character-twist toward the end.

The only reason I didn't give this book a five-star is because it didn't hold my attention for long periods of time. I stuck with it to completion but ended up reading it over the period of a few weeks instead of a few days.
Profile Image for M Robinson .
2,418 reviews
November 12, 2021
2 stars

I love Susan grant books but this one is my least favourite.

It was just too slow and ploddy. The once was way off and tbh I ended up skimming to the end.

I think partbif it was she was so intent in world building she forgot the cardinal rule of writing and thats that your readers have to feel something for your mcs. I was fairly ambivalent. We didn't know that much about them. Just never felt a connection with either.

...and the sex scenes were so meh I just skimmed right over.

It just didn't have the energy of her star series which was captivating and 5 stars every book.

Very disappointing.
Profile Image for Jamoz23.
5,333 reviews46 followers
September 30, 2021
Wow, just wow.
The emotional pull was extremely gripping, especially Jordan’s heartache over Boo.
Such an engaging read and I loved the technical explanations of flying the Queen of the Skies, the 747.
I just feel ambivalent about Moray not getting his just deserts.
Loved how the passengers all pulled together, even through the fear they were feeling.
You can imagine the furore when Flight 58 came back on the screens.
Would love to read more about what happened, both with the battle and with the fantastic people we met in this story.
Read in the box set SKYFALL.
Profile Image for Julie Sherman.
1,464 reviews23 followers
June 14, 2017
Great read

This is a great afternoon read with the right amount of aviation dialog without getting bogged down, romance without to much detail(older teens book), intrigue that keeps you guessing but not way out in cyborg space, wonderful word ans situation building. Finally just a book that takes you away from you own troubles without giving any in return. I hope you find this book as enjoyable as I did. J
83 reviews1 follower
January 3, 2022
Second Time Reading

This was a pretty good story. I forgot how much until I decided to read it again. I’m currently going back through the last 7 years worth of bought and borrowed books reading some again. I currently have “foggy brain” somewhat, getting older, and my concentration sucks, lol. Older previously read books are my thing right now (along with more re-run TV shows). This book made the cut and who knows, may read again.
202 reviews2 followers
February 17, 2020
Excellent storyline

Lots of suspense, intrigue, surprises, and yes, romance.
The heroine is caught between keeping over a hundred passengers from her captured 747 safe and dealing with lies and subterfuge.
Are the alien rescuers heroes or slave traders in disguise.
Riveting plot, and well fleshed out characters. You won't be disappointed.
Profile Image for Kathleen Reed.
921 reviews2 followers
October 8, 2020
Wow. What an adventure in the stars

Maybe are missing jets or being stolen by aliens? One would never know. This was a book I couldn't put down. Being a sucker for wonderful romances and sweet endings This book did not disappoint! The added Intrigue Of betrayal added an extra layer of mystery.
Profile Image for Dena.
4,451 reviews12 followers
April 5, 2022
connected

This was like 3.5 for me. I thought some parts were drawn out. I figured out what was going on in the middle. I am a little floored with the ending and how it worked out that is why I went to a 4. The storyline was incredible overall. The characters were emotional and I felt invested in their well being.

Overall it was a good romance.
29 reviews
January 27, 2019
Interesting read

I liked the characters especially the strong female lead. I felt like parts of the story were over embellished while others left me wanting a little bit more description but overall I enjoyed it and would recommend it.
Profile Image for Joy Conger.
86 reviews1 follower
June 22, 2019
Infinitely awesome

I have read and enjoyed all books written by Susan Grant. I think this is my favorite but then I think that if each one I read. Loved every one of the characters and the way they interacted.
Profile Image for Carolyn Pasqualino.
5 reviews
December 12, 2021
Good storyline

I don’t normally read romance books, but I did enjoy this one. The author knows how to weave a great tale & kept the steamy romance scenes minimal. Will read more by this author!
97 reviews
May 6, 2025
Excellent Read

If Irwin Allen (dating myself here but if you’re unfamiliar look him up) produced a film or episode for Star Trek The Original Series you’d have the basic feel of this book. Great character renderings along with lots of action are what this book is about.
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