Wings : A Novel

Overview: Since 1981, Ms. Steel has been a permanent fixture on the New York Times hardcover and paperback bestseller lists. In 1989, she was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for having at least one of her books on the Times bestseller list for 381 consecutive weeks. But Guinness was premature. The fact is that one or more of Ms. Steel's novels have been on the New York Times bestseller list for over 390 consecutive weeks. From a house on the edge of her family's dusty farmland airstrip near Chicago, the child Cassie O'Malley would sneak into the night to look at the planes sitting shimmering in the moonlight. Her World War I veteran father, Pat, wanted his son to be a pilot, not his reckless, red-haired daughter. But it was Cassie who had the gift. Ever since she could remember, Cassie felt the pull of getting in a cockpit and taking to the skies. Observing all the while was her father's junior partner, Nick "Stick " Galvin, a fellow war ace and airborne daredevil. Nick would become her confidant and best friend, willing to break all the rules to teach her to fly, knowing that the greatest gift he could give her was the freedom of flying. When California entrepreneur Desmon Williams sees Cassie in a local airshow, he invites her to California where she breaks new ground as a test pilot. Soon Cassie's record-breaking flights make her a media darling. Drawn by Desmond's plans for her to break Amelia Earhardt's records, but determined to avoid her mistakes, Cassie trains for the remarkable journey around the world. From public appearances to press conferences, easily used by both her husband and the press, Cassie realizes that there is more to life than making headlines. Risking her life, pushing herself to her limits, she decides to chart her own course and pursue her own destiny, whatever it costs her. Wings is set in a time of constant change, when the world was on the brink of war and the skies were filled with adventurers, a time when courage and daring forever changed modern-day aviation.From the Paperback edition. From a house on the edge of her family's dusty farmland airstrip near Chicago, the child Cassie O'Malley would sneak into the night to look at the planes sitting shimmering in the moonlight. Her World War I veteran father, Pat, wanted his son to be a pilot, not his reckless, red-haired daughter. But it was Cassie who had the gift. Ever since she could remember, Cassie felt the pull of getting in a cockpit and taking to the skies. Observing all the while was her father's junior partner, Nick "Stick " Galvin, a fellow war ace and airborne daredevil. Nick would become her confidant and best friend, willing to break all the rules to teach her to fly, knowing that the greatest gift he could give her was the freedom of flying. When California entrepreneur Desmon Williams sees Cassie in a local airshow, he invites her to California where she breaks new ground as a test pilot. Soon Cassie's record-breaking flights make her a media darling. Drawn by Desmond's plans for her to break Amelia Earhardt's records, but determined to avoid her mistakes, Cassie trains for the remarkable journey around the world. From public appearances to press conferences, easily used by both her husband and the press, Cassie realizes that there is more to life than making headlines. Risking her life, pushing herself to her limits, she decides to chart her own course and pursue her own destiny, whatever it costs her. Wings is set in a time of constant change, when the world was on the brink of war and the skies were filled with adventurers, a time when courage and daring forever changed modern-day aviation. From the Paperback edition Wings is the story of a young woman who fights all the odds to fulfil her dreams. From her family's dusty farmland airstrip near Chicago, Cassie O'Malley would look at the planes shimmering in the moonlight and feel the pull of taking to the skies. Her First World War veteran father Pat wanted his son to be a pilot, not his reckless red-haired daughter. But her father's partner Nick, fellow air ace and airborne daredevil, was willing to break all the rules and teach her to fly.When Cassie is invited to California to become a test pilot, her record-breaking flights soon make her a media darling. Risking her life, pushing herself to her limits, in a world preparing for the Second World War, she decides to chart her own course and pursue her own destiny, whatever it might cost her. A love triangle featuring Cassie O'Malley, 17, the adventurous daughter of the owner of an airfield. Despite her father's objections, Cassie becomes a famous test pilot, marries a millionaire who backs her career, but her real love is Nick, one of her father's employees who taught her flying in the first place The road to O'Malley's Airport was a long, dusty thin trail that seemed to drift first left, then right, and loop lazily around the cornfields.