BookBrowse Reviews Hot Air by Marcy Dermansky

BookBrowse:

An unlikely friendship forms after a hot air balloon plummets into a backyard pool.

This review is available to non-members for a limited time. For access to our digital magazine, free books,and other benefits, become a member today.

Single mother Joannie is finally putting herself out there. She's on her first date since her divorce several years earlier, eating dinner with fellow single parent Johnny in his backyard, when a hot air balloon with a man and woman aboard crash lands into his pool. Joannie jumps into action, diving into the water to rescue the man, only to discover that he's a famous tech tycoon—who also happens to be the first boy she ever kissed. The two couples start talking, and what started as a chance encounter turns into a gathering that stretches on for days. Chapters rotate among different characters' points of view, so we get to see each of them through the others' eyes.

Class differences are a big theme in Marcy Dermansky's book. As the author of a celebrated novel, now making ends meet with freelance gigs and adjunct teaching roles, Joannie has intellectual stature but is by far the poorest of the group. Though she and her eight-year-old daughter, Lucy, live in a wealthy area, their home is a small apartment above a business. Lucy is surrounded by kids who have opportunities and possessions her family just can't afford. So Joannie is delighted when, later in the novel, she and Lucy are invited by the billionaire couple, Jonathan and Julia, to come to their sprawling mansion and swim in their pool. When the couple's assistant—apparently a fan of her work—recognizes her, Joannie feels ashamed, realizing she must look like a charity case or someone taking advantage of their largesse.

The assistant, Vivian, is also stuck between social spheres but in a different way. She's handsomely paid and indispensable to her employers, but she must be available to take on tasks around the clock. She dreams about going to graduate school for creative writing and is saving up to fully fund her degree, yet she knows her employers will be devastated when she quits. She's watching friends chart career paths that pay far less than hers but seem more fulfilling and impressive.

As much as both these women have friendly relationships with Jonathan and Julia, they never lose sight of the fact that the couple are their benefactors. Even though Joannie isn't their employee, they pamper her and her daughter with gifts and experiences, and she's keenly aware that their generosity could stop if she displeases them. Although she wants to believe that this is a normal friendship, it's not one between equals, and rifts begin to form.

Julia is one of the richest people in the world and yet she feels like something is missing. Although she longs for a child, we get the sense early on that she has a romanticized, unrealistic view of parenthood. She dotes on Lucy from the second she meets her but is unimpressed by Johnny's young son, whom she finds loud and unpleasant. The reader begins to wonder if this is actually a core desire for her or just the latest fixation of a bored rich woman looking for fulfilment. Meanwhile, her equally bored husband loves her but embarks on affairs with Hollywood actresses in order to feel alive. Though they lack for nothing, she seeks meaning and he craves adventure.

It's so fun to watch these characters interact. Though the book's plot, especially its wacky beginning, makes it feel like a romp, it also has deep emotional resonance. Readers may find themselves relating to Joannie and Vivian, who feel stuck in their current lives, or to Jonathan and Julia, who have achieved success and yet still aren't satisfied. While the book takes place over just a few days, we see the characters are profoundly changed by their unlikely friendship.

Hot Air will appeal to anyone who loves quirky, character-driven fiction. At just over 200 pages, it's a quick read, yet it packs a powerful punch.

This review first ran in the April 23, 2025 issue of BookBrowse Recommends.