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The Fall Line
Jack Farrell has stumbled into a deal too good to be true. Rising swiftly from a low-level loan officer in Chicago to a successful investment banker in California representing the interests of a Central American entrepreneur, Farrell blinds himself to what he is really doing — laundering money for a drug cartel — until it is too late.
On the run from both Federal agents and the drug lords, Jack flees to the Utah mountains where he once skied as a student. With a new name and a face altered by plastic surgery, Farrell struggles to lose himself in the steep chutes and couloirs.
But his solitude is short-lived. Farrell is drawn to Inez Didier, the enigmatic French director who recruits him and a handful of fellow skiers for a documentary film that forces them to take mind-numbing risks.
On the run from both Federal agents and the drug lords, Jack flees to the Utah mountains where he once skied as a student. With a new name and a face altered by plastic surgery, Farrell struggles to lose himself in the steep chutes and couloirs.
But his solitude is short-lived. Farrell is drawn to Inez Didier, the enigmatic French director who recruits him and a handful of fellow skiers for a documentary film that forces them to take mind-numbing risks.
480 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 1994
292 people are currently reading
216 people want to read
About the author
Mark T. Sullivan
38 books4,347 followersMark T. Sullivan (b. 1958) is an author of thrillers. Born in a Boston suburb, he joined the Peace Corp after college, traveling to West Africa to live with a tribe of Saharan nomads. Upon returning to the United States, he took a job at Reuters, beginning a decade-long career in journalism that would eventually lead to a job as an investigative reporter for the San Diego Tribune.
Sullivan spent the winter of 1990 living with a group of skiers in Utah and Wyoming, and used the experience as the foundation for his first novel, The Fall Line (1994). In 1995 he published Hard News, a thriller based on his work as a reporter, and a year later he released The Purification Ceremony, which won the WH Smith Award for Best New Talent. His most recent work is Private Games (2012), which he co-authored with James Patterson. Sullivan lives with his family in Montana, where he skis, hunts, and practices martial arts.
Sullivan spent the winter of 1990 living with a group of skiers in Utah and Wyoming, and used the experience as the foundation for his first novel, The Fall Line (1994). In 1995 he published Hard News, a thriller based on his work as a reporter, and a year later he released The Purification Ceremony, which won the WH Smith Award for Best New Talent. His most recent work is Private Games (2012), which he co-authored with James Patterson. Sullivan lives with his family in Montana, where he skis, hunts, and practices martial arts.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 23, 2014
I don't seem to have a lucky hand with books this year.
While I typically enjoy Mark Sullivan's writing Fall line was a completely convoluted and almost unreadable plot. I considered every day to stop reading the whole thing, but I'm to stubborn for that.
While I typically enjoy Mark Sullivan's writing Fall line was a completely convoluted and almost unreadable plot. I considered every day to stop reading the whole thing, but I'm to stubborn for that.
January 8, 2019
Once you understand just what is going on in The Fall Line, it becomes an intriguing psychological study of a troubled man (Jack Farrell) along with a small group of equally troubled associates and a mysterious, devious woman who seems able to make each of these characters do whatever she wants.
Like a puzzle, the pieces of this story come together, one at a time....but only after pages and pages of description of "extreme skiing" to the point that I came close to putting the book down for good. More than I ever wanted to know about extreme skiing!!! At one point Jack asks his wife, "Have you ever walked along the edge of a cliff just to know what it feels like?" She replies, "I've never had the urge." He replied, "I've never not had the urge." The latter is the philosophy of most of the characters in the novel.
Jack Farrell is "an addict of adrenaline". All his life he has sought adventure and excitement. At one point his wife tries to settle him down. Moving to California, he is hired to manage a small town bank, and ends up getting involved with a central American drug cartel.
Virtually everything that happens to and with Jack is told through flashbacks, his wife's diary, and his own thoughts.....all while participating in extreme skiing events that are organized by a mysterious French woman movie producer who gets her kicks out of filming danger.
The Fall Line is the story of a group of people facing their demons and how they cope. The final 1/3 of the book makes it a worthwhile read.
I read Mark Sullivan's newest (2017) book Beneath A Scarlet Sky first. The Fall Line is his 1st novel (1994). In those 23 years he has developed into a fine story teller. There are hints of that in The Fall Line. It is obvious in Beneath a Scarlet Sky.
Like a puzzle, the pieces of this story come together, one at a time....but only after pages and pages of description of "extreme skiing" to the point that I came close to putting the book down for good. More than I ever wanted to know about extreme skiing!!! At one point Jack asks his wife, "Have you ever walked along the edge of a cliff just to know what it feels like?" She replies, "I've never had the urge." He replied, "I've never not had the urge." The latter is the philosophy of most of the characters in the novel.
Jack Farrell is "an addict of adrenaline". All his life he has sought adventure and excitement. At one point his wife tries to settle him down. Moving to California, he is hired to manage a small town bank, and ends up getting involved with a central American drug cartel.
Virtually everything that happens to and with Jack is told through flashbacks, his wife's diary, and his own thoughts.....all while participating in extreme skiing events that are organized by a mysterious French woman movie producer who gets her kicks out of filming danger.
The Fall Line is the story of a group of people facing their demons and how they cope. The final 1/3 of the book makes it a worthwhile read.
I read Mark Sullivan's newest (2017) book Beneath A Scarlet Sky first. The Fall Line is his 1st novel (1994). In those 23 years he has developed into a fine story teller. There are hints of that in The Fall Line. It is obvious in Beneath a Scarlet Sky.
April 6, 2015
PROTAGONIST: Jack Farrell
SETTING: US ski areas
RATING: 3.5
WHY: Jack Farrell was an investment banker whose life went on the skids after his young daughter died and he worked to move money for a powerful man in Mexico. All of this causes an estrangement with his wife. Ultimately, he has to flee and start a new life. At the moment, he is involved in extreme skiing and has, along with 2 others, committed to filming a documentary directed by a strange French woman, Inez Didier. The writing is at times beautiful, and the setting vividly described. However, there were too many perilous ski scenes for this reader. It was hard to understand the various characters' motivations for endangering themselves, and Didier remained an enigma to me.
SETTING: US ski areas
RATING: 3.5
WHY: Jack Farrell was an investment banker whose life went on the skids after his young daughter died and he worked to move money for a powerful man in Mexico. All of this causes an estrangement with his wife. Ultimately, he has to flee and start a new life. At the moment, he is involved in extreme skiing and has, along with 2 others, committed to filming a documentary directed by a strange French woman, Inez Didier. The writing is at times beautiful, and the setting vividly described. However, there were too many perilous ski scenes for this reader. It was hard to understand the various characters' motivations for endangering themselves, and Didier remained an enigma to me.
January 11, 2021
Adrenaline Junkie
There were things about this book that were amazing- the beautiful descriptions, the ski sequences, the danger, and if you ski or snowboard, you will love it. I skied in the past, broke my leg twice, so I know a bit about it, but not the extreme sport depicted in this book. Too much technical descriptions of ski conditions and much too much introspection of feelings that slowed it down. During those parts I felt like I was in a snow drift.
The premise was good and how the story was let out bit by bit until you know the whole story was great. However, the back and forth in time was not always clear. I got lost as to what space it was in several times and had to go back.
All that being said, if you like extreme sports combined with intrigue, you will love this book.
I also read Beneath a Scarlet Sky and it was amazing!
There were things about this book that were amazing- the beautiful descriptions, the ski sequences, the danger, and if you ski or snowboard, you will love it. I skied in the past, broke my leg twice, so I know a bit about it, but not the extreme sport depicted in this book. Too much technical descriptions of ski conditions and much too much introspection of feelings that slowed it down. During those parts I felt like I was in a snow drift.
The premise was good and how the story was let out bit by bit until you know the whole story was great. However, the back and forth in time was not always clear. I got lost as to what space it was in several times and had to go back.
All that being said, if you like extreme sports combined with intrigue, you will love this book.
I also read Beneath a Scarlet Sky and it was amazing!
August 15, 2022
Ugh! Long! I felt like this one took me forever! I'm probably rating this lower than it truly deserves, but I'm just so relieved to be done. I am such a huge fan of Mark Sullivan, and this was not his finest.
I actually really enjoyed the setting(s) - it felt chilly just reading it. And the mystery/thriller was an interesting one. It did get a little predictable in the end, but I suspect that is mostly because it just dragged on forever... I will definitely read more Mark Sullivan - I feel like his writing has gotten better and tighter over the years, and I think I will recommend this to a select few who like extreme skiing and adrenaline rushes. But, it wasn't my favorite. And, I'm amazed that I still wasn't able to figure out exactly what happened to his wife, even with all my flipping forward and cheating :-)
I actually really enjoyed the setting(s) - it felt chilly just reading it. And the mystery/thriller was an interesting one. It did get a little predictable in the end, but I suspect that is mostly because it just dragged on forever... I will definitely read more Mark Sullivan - I feel like his writing has gotten better and tighter over the years, and I think I will recommend this to a select few who like extreme skiing and adrenaline rushes. But, it wasn't my favorite. And, I'm amazed that I still wasn't able to figure out exactly what happened to his wife, even with all my flipping forward and cheating :-)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 28, 2017
After reading 'Beneath a Scarlet Sky' by Mr. Sullivan, which was phenomenal, I was looking forward to another exciting read. Not so much with this book. It was difficult to get into, and difficult to read all along the way. I kept reading as I am stubborn, and wanted to see where things were going. I was disappointed. At least I finished the book.
February 18, 2018
Enjoyed the story
Well-researched but needed another pass-through by an editor. For example, "then" was used at times when "than" should have been, and "peak" when "peek" was the word. But the story with all its complicated underlying subplots is a very intriguing one.
Well-researched but needed another pass-through by an editor. For example, "then" was used at times when "than" should have been, and "peak" when "peek" was the word. But the story with all its complicated underlying subplots is a very intriguing one.
July 1, 2017
OK
Finished it because I started it. The book was bizarre and just too much. Good story but who reads their wife's posthumous diary one section at a time?
Finished it because I started it. The book was bizarre and just too much. Good story but who reads their wife's posthumous diary one section at a time?
July 2, 2017
Smart suspenseful nod to extreme athletes.
This is a great action story with alot of twists and turns. Also a great depiction of the challenges of skiing at one's outer limits.
This is a great action story with alot of twists and turns. Also a great depiction of the challenges of skiing at one's outer limits.
December 28, 2017
Couldn’t resist a book about a money launderer who skis at Alta.
October 30, 2017
This is a an excellent novel with a surprising plot - no death to The World As We Know It! No assassins wandering the landscape. For all that it is a page turner.
One word of warning. Not many characters in this novel are admirable or loveable. If you like slightly darker plots and characters this one is likely for you.
One word of warning. Not many characters in this novel are admirable or loveable. If you like slightly darker plots and characters this one is likely for you.
August 31, 2022
didn't like the story or the Inez chick
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews