Joannie is a divorced single mother to Lucy. She's on a post-lockdown first date with Johnny when a hot air balloon crashes into Johnny's pool, immediately derailing their date in unexpected ways. The balloon is coincidentally (and inexplicably) carrying a childhood acquaintance from Joannie's past (John the philandering billionaire) and his wife Julia. But after that unusual inciting incident the story seemed to turn into a series of justifications for bad behavior and poor choices. This was a story about a group of unhappy people who didn't quite know what would make them happy, all of them seemed simultaneously stuck but also in flux. There was tension surrounding everyone's behavior, which helped a bit to keep the reader's attention.

That said, ultimately I wasn't the right audience for this book. I had to DNF at 30% because everyone was increasingly unlikable (minus the children) and I couldn't fully engage with the story. The book was described as satire and "blisteringly funny" but I think I missed a lot of the nuances that made it funny. The satire I could see, though, and there was a clear class divide between Joannie and the others. The writing was simplistic and straightforward, and clearly expressed each character's thoughts and motives. The story was pretty easy to follow even with multiple POVs. If you enjoy reading books in which unhappy people try to ease their ennui by making impulsive and self-serving decisions then this is the book for you. It's possible that the book improved further in, and because it's an ARC it also may be different from the published book. But based on what read I gave it 2.5 stars rounded up to a generous 3 stars. Publishes March 18, 2025. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary ARC of this book, this was my honest and objective opinion.

This was my first time reading Marcy Dermansky, and Hot Air definitely makes an impression. The premise alone—a billionaire crash-landing his hot air balloon in the middle of a post-pandemic first date—is enough to grab your attention, and the story just gets wilder from there.

Joannie’s dating misadventures spiral into a chaotic weekend involving her childhood crush-turned-billionaire, his gorgeous wife, and a tangled web of desires, jealousy, and hilariously awkward moments. It’s sharp, satirical, and unapologetically messy.

While I enjoyed the absurd humor and biting commentary on wealth and relationships, I didn’t feel particularly connected to the characters. They seemed more like players in a farce than fully developed people, which made it harder to care about their outcomes. That said, the chaotic energy kept me turning the pages.

If you’re in the mood for something irreverent and over-the-top, Hot Air is worth checking out. I’m curious to see how Dermansky’s other books compare.

Just finished Hot Air by Marcy Dermansky, who has been one of my favorite authors since I read her book “Twins” a teenager. I was able to get an advance proof from NetGalley but I plan to buy a copy as well.

This book is a wild ride, full of chaos, comedy, and the painfully honest inner thoughts of a group of very different people. And also an undercurrent of disdain for the rich? Maybe I just projected my own feelings there 😅 but definitely some tasty commentary on racism/sexism/classism as well as relationships and parenthood. Marcy Dermansky writes flawed human hilarity in the most matter-of-fact unflinching way and I think that’s what makes this story…float. 🎈

⭐️⭐️⭐️My review: This book is about several unhappy people all in different lanes in life. I laughed a few times, especially at Julia's ridiculousness and Johnny's inability to read a situation. Joannie was mostly pathetic but strangely, I wanted her to prevail and maybe learn some life lessons. But overall, everyone in the book is fairly unlikeable. Even Joannie's 8 year old daughter.
The book is set near the end of the pandemic and some of the language and issues brought me right back (masks, school online!) While that was realistic, the rest seemed not so much from the very beginning--like what neighborhood doesn't notice a hot air balloon crash landing in suburbia? And Joannie's constant need for something (anything) seemed off to me.
My interest held and when they got to Disneyland for a bit but I was waiting for more with Julia and Joannie. Finished the book quickly but it was somewhat like a Seinfeld episode: some laughs, definite annoying people, bad choices, and not much focus.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf Publishing for an advance digital copy in exchange for my review.

4.5 stars

Here's a book with a wild premise but sets up the story perfectly! A woman, who is a single mom, and a man, newly divorced, meet up at his house for a first date post-pandemic with their kids playing inside. During a clumsy first kiss, a billionaire literally crashes his hot air balloon in the pool.

What follows is a character-driven novel that explores self-worth and happiness. Is it status, money, control, role as a parent/spouse? These characters think they know but couldn't be more wrong! Each seems to want what they others have, even when the others are all so clearly miserable.

I found this to be a quick read (finished in one day!) and I loved the messiness of it all. Steer clear if you need likable characters!

I think knocked it down a half star because the character names were ridiculous… Joannie, Johnny, Jonathan, and Julia. It had to have been intentional but IMO not necessary!!

I would like to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC. I requested this title, because of a blurb on another site. It spoke of being excited for another title by this author. The synopsis sounded fun and interesting. I have never read any of this authors works, and if I only have this to base it on, I probably will not read any of her books. I would like to summarize this book, but it is difficult. The story line jumps around, there are numerous POV shifts and all 4 lead characters have names that begin with J- Johnnie, Julia, Joannie and Jonathon.( there are 3 other characters- Vivian, Tyson and Lucy, but 2 are children ). The book is very short, usually I complain that books are long, but this one seems unfinished somehow. However, Joannie is a divorced mother ( of Lucy) and she meets Johnnie, a divorced father ( of Tyson). They decide to have a date, at Johnnie's house, because Joannie doesn't have a sitter. During their date, a Hot Air Balloon crashes and land in Johnnie's swimming pool. There is a married couple in the balloon, Jonathon and Julia. They are very rich. Jonathon recognizes Joannie from summer camp when they were teenagers. The story takes several strange turns and twists, and quite frankly, the whole thing was weird. There is some swapping, some lying, and a trip to Universal Studios to see Harry Potter world.It was not a book for me.

Thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for early access to Hot Air in exchange for my honest opinion.
Jonathan rents a hot air balloon, after taking lessons to steer one, in order to take his wife, Julia, out for their anniversary, making a big romantic gesture. However, he doesn’t quite know enough to handle the wind and they end up landing and falling into the inground pool belonging to Johnny. In an epic coincidence, Johnny has a date, Joannie, over, and she had her first kiss with Jonathan at summer camp when they were fourteen. The story centers around these four adults, along with Joannie’s daughter Lucy, Johnny’s son Tyson, and Jonathan’s personal assistant, Vivian.
This is a short, quirky novel, similar to Dermansky’s other work, which switches between many points of view. The writing seems to tell the inner monologue of each character. The well-developed characters have interesting motivations (and secrets), even though they are all flawed. I read through this rather quickly, but I have kept thinking about it since finishing. Parts of the plot and themes reminded me of The Most by Jessica Anthony.

Julia and Joanie and Johnny and Jonathan. A cynical story that starts with a chance encounter that slowly becomes more uncomfortable and vaguely sinister. A little too sad and aimless for my tastes, but great character development.

This was a solid read!

I liked this one the best of Dermansky’s novels, not really connecting with Hurricane Girl when I first discovered her work.

Hot Air is multi-POV, which I ultimately appreciated in conjunction with Dermansky’s voice. She tends to write with simpler sentence structure, so it feels a bit choppy at times. Yet, I think it’s meant to represent sporadic, unfiltered internal dialogue. This type of voice translates better in this multi-POV style, I think!

AND while I was much more engaged in this story as a whole, the purpose/message/big idea didn’t quite land for me. It felt like one adventurous plot but without much reflection in the resolution. Alas, maybe I am not Dermansky’s target audience or I just don’t pick up on the deeper meanings of her work. I found this to be true with both Hurricane Girl and Hot Air.

AND AND this book is still entertaining and unique! It’s quick, fun, and feverish.

Thanks to @aaknopf and @netgalley for the digital review copy!

A quirky mostly nonsensical story (think “Where’d You Go Bernadette) that’s kind of charming if you’re into that kind of thing.

2 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @knopf for the ARC of Hot Air by Marcy Dermansky. I had requested this book because I recalled enjoying the book Bad Marie which I read many years ago. Sadly, while I actually did manage to read this entire book, I really did not enjoy the writing style. The premise was interesting but the characters were kind of annoying. However the part I really disliked was the narration. All of the sentences are constructed similar to the thoughts that go through ones head. It's as though you've been fed the characters inner monologue as they're thinking it. Additionally the repetition of certain words inside of 3 sentences is maddening and makes me feel like it's simply filler in order to have more pages.

The concept of this book was so intriguing to me so I’m glad that the reading experience lived up to the premise. We had a great time and loved the way that everything played out.

What a quirky and fun book. Loved every second of it.

I read the whole thing in one day. Which I don’t do often. I will definitely be looking for more of this authors books.

Thank you

Hot Air by Marcy Dermansky is everything I didn’t know I needed. It’s witty, raw, and so brilliantly written that I couldn’t put it down. Dermansky has this incredible way of making you feel like you’re inside the heads of Johnny, Joannie, Julia, and Jonathan, living their messy, chaotic, beautiful lives right along with them. She even puts you inside the heads of Vivian and Lucy, two of the minor characters.
The humor and emotions? On point. It’s one of those books that makes you laugh out loud one second and then realize how terrible the characters the next. The writing style feels effortless, yet it’s packed with depth. Dermansky cleverly captures the complexities of life, relationships, and the weird world we live in.
If you’re into stories with flawed, weird, unlikable characters and razor-sharp storytelling, Hot Air is a must-read. Five glowing stars! 🌟
Thank you to Knopf and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I’m sorry, what did I just read? The cover and the synopsis made me request this from NetGalley, and the short length was a plus, but unfortunately this was not for me.

First off, the characters all having J names was super confusing - both the males were Jonathan and Johnny. None of them were likable, and honestly they were annoying. The decisions made were…a bit much for me.

This one is certainly quirky, and I’m sure some people will love all the eccentricities, but I wouldn’t personally recommend this.

Thank you nonetheless to NetGalley and Knopf for the eARC!

I really enjoyed this novel. Moved fast. Characters behaving badly. It’s a fun ride and these people are a mess.

I absolutely love Marcy Dermansky’s work, but this didn’t hit quite like some of her others did for me (Hurricane Girl, Very Nice, Bad Marie. Huh, she really likes 2 word titles, doesn’t she?).

The wild premise hooked me, and it wasn’t as hard as I expected to distinguish between our 4 J-named characters. Dermansky is talented at unhinged novels where you never know what’s going to happen next. She constantly raises the stakes. I don’t think she did that as much in this novel. It’s fast paced and a quick read, but nothing was THAT shocking, the stakes never felt that high for these horrible rich people. And then it just…ended. I felt like there was so much more that could have been explored! Particularly with Vivian, Joannie’s writing career, and more. Weird. I think I was still rooting for Joannie despite her self-pitying vibes and obsession with the rich and status. I was glad when she seemed to be ready to try to turn things around at the end.

Overall, an enjoyable read! I was entertained throughout.

Nobody I can think of can write such absolutely despicable characters and make me want to spend hours in their heads like Marcy Dermansky. And her hour may yet be approaching.


I have to confess, though, that she's kind of a low-dose author for me. I enjoyed the hell out of her debut novel, Bad Marie, many years ago, but it left me feeling just icky enough not to want especially to indulge in that very specific kind of pleasure again for a long time. Which is to say that I haven't read any of Dermansky's work since Bad Marie. And her newest, Hot Air, hasn't changed my view of her work one bit -- even though I really liked it.

Dermansky's subject is, at bottom, class envy, and it's a subject about which she is wickedly funny. The titular character of her first novel is a delightfully trashy person with whom to spend a few hours, watching her unhinged schemes go awry as she goes on a one-woman/one-child crime spree. Well, more of a misdeeds spree, although she happens to commit a few petty and one decidedly un-petty in the process. She has been badly used by her upscale friend who made the mistake of hiring her as a nanny, and feels perfectly justified, she tells us over hundreds of pages, in committing whatever malefaction she likes against that friend. We are happy to be persuaded, over and over again, even if she never really convinces us.

For Hot Air Dermansky has expanded the perspective she gives us to that of several characters, though pretty tightly focused on her signature distressed bourgeois heroine, Joannie. Joannie is somewhat recently divorced and rents an unsatisfactory-to-her apartment* in a neighborhood dominated by what sounds like a lot of McMansions. She has a daughter, Lucie, a tween who is well on her way toward becoming even less tolerable than her mommy is and for whom Joannie is about to set a whole lot of bad examples in one disastrous weekend-and-change.

Joannie lives next door to Johnny, a decent looking divorced guy with a son, Tyson, who is Lucie's approximate age. Johnny owns a very nice house with a very nice swimming pool, more or less next door to Joannie's apartment complex. Johnny is so nicely set up that he even gets along well enough with his ex-wife to have her living in the very nice house across the street from him, so he even has an easy time sharing custody of Tyson. Are you humming the Brady Bunch theme right now? I was. And so are Joannie and Johnny, as we quickly learn when the novel opens with Joannie on a pseudo-date with Johnny. To save on childcare expenses, Joannie has manipulated Johnny into having the date over at his house, with Tyson and Lucie banished to the basement with their various screen-equipped devices. So far, so good.

Except, as Joannie informs us pretty much right away, she is not feeling like their boy-girl Lego is ever going to click (I love that phrase, which I stole from William Gibson, because of course I did), and while it's mostly because their names will sound dumb together, Joannie and Johnny, it's also because she's just not feeling it with him, especially after he rather inexpertly kisses her. And kisses her. Oh noes! She forgot to make arrangements with someone to send a fake emergency text to get her out of this!

Fortunately, the plot happens. In the form of a hot air balloon that a rich, brash techbro type rented to celebrate his wedding anniversary after only having had a few lessons. As in not enough lessons to responsibly be allowed to pilot a balloon unsupervised, but when has that ever stopped a rich and famous and handsome billionaire?

As you already would know from a glance at the jacket copy, the billionaire's balloon comes crashing into Johnny's swimming pool and hijinks and sexcapades and a whole bunch of other bad decisions ensue. We're barely acquainted well enough to dislike Joannie and Johnny and here's Marcy Dermansky, serving us up an even more annoyingly privileged couple to dislike even more. One can never accuse Dermansky of being stingy with us; Jonathan (yes, there is a Johnny and a Jonathan in this awkward little bottle-book) and Julia have fallen out of love with each other, believe the world has done them dirty despite being billionaires, feel entitled to absolutely everything including Jonathan's personal assistant, Vivian (whom Julia wants to adopt as their own Vietnamese orphan despite Vivian being an adult with perfectly good parents of her own, and Jonathan just wants to bone, basically) and, once they get a load of Joannie and Lucie, to Lucie. They stop short of offering to buy Lucie, but only just.

BUT, lest we start feeling much in the way of sympathy or empathy for Joannie, who has barely gotten over her sick envy of Johnny's swimming pool and ridiculously over-equipped kitchen before being given people to really envy (and it turns out Jonathan just happens to have been Joannie's first kiss, at a summer camp when they were kids, who then ghosted her the day after Joannie's first kiss), she kind of seems like she'd maybe be down for selling Lucie, or at least renting her out for a little while? In exchange for a chance to share, just a little bit, in Johnny and Julia's fabulous lifestyle? But no, that would probably be too icky.

We have only this slight and kind of token assurance that Joannie has a firm line on what is and is not too icky, by the way. Because there are so many other icky things that she doesn't really even need to be pushed into doing. So many. So icky. But at least she is somewhat redeemed, as Bad Marie was in her novel, by her deep and true love for her little girl. Even though the little girl is a whiny brat.**

And all we can do is point and laugh and wait for consequences. Which, since this is fiction and not the actual world, do happen somewhat, at some points. See why I'm saying Dermansky's big moment may only just now be arriving? Despite what looks like has been a pretty decent literary career?

Just, you know, life sure do like to imitate art, don't it?

Anyway, I'll read some more of her back catalog someday, probably. If nothing else, it might soon be my only safe outlet.

*That, I dunno, sounds pretty nice to me, but I guess I must grudgingly admit that after living a nice, somewhat prosperous married life in a nice house, it's the kind of come-down that would sting some. Still, if we want to talk about class envy, this woman is living in a nice and safe area with good access to schools and shopping and is able to support herself and her daughter in pretty decent style off a literary career. Um. Where's my micro-violin?

**Really, the only character with even a pretense of likeability is Johnny's son, Tyson, but he doesn't get a lot of ink and would probably show obnoxious true colors if he got much more. Dermansky isn't about winning you over with loveable characters, you guys.

This was the first book that I've ever read by Marcy Dermansky and I'm not sure that I'd pick up any others. This story was just plain weird. I think it was supposed to be a commentary about the wealthy and how they're so disconnected from reality, but it felt really weird and "off" to me. I did like the alternating points of view between the 4-5 main characters which kept the story progressing fast. But I thought that these people were all terrible - the little girl and her mom, her mom's date, and the rich couple who fell from their hot air balloon into the pool. All of them were just terrible humans. I couldn't root for any of them and that's probably why I didn't feel connected to this story at all.

Marcy Dermansky’s *Hot Air* is a sharp, captivating novel that effortlessly balances dark humor with emotional depth. Her prose is clean and concise, pulling you into the story with an almost hypnotic rhythm. The characters feel raw and authentic, flawed in ways that make them deeply human.

The novel shines in its exploration of relationships and the unspoken tensions that exist between people. Dermansky's talent for depicting inner turmoil is on full display here, and her observations about life, love, and the sometimes suffocating pressures of modern existence hit close to home.

However, at times, the plot felt slightly meandering, and a few narrative threads didn’t tie together as cohesively as I’d hoped. Still, the emotional resonance and compelling characters more than make up for these minor shortcomings.

*Hot Air* is an engaging read, perfect for fans of literary fiction who appreciate wit, vulnerability, and a touch of darkness. Dermansky has delivered another gem, proving once again why she’s a master of contemporary storytelling.