🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♂️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♂️🏕️🗺️ Where The Road Bends (2020) 🗺️🏕️🚶🏻♂️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♂️🚶🏻♀️ - Book Review #WRBPrism
On Tour with Prism Book Tours
Where the Road BendsBy David Rawlings
Christian Fiction
Hardcover, Audiobook & ebook, 304 Pages
June 2, 2020 by Thomas Nelson
Fifteen years after college graduation, four friends reconnect to keep a long-ago promise and go on a trip of a lifetime in the Australian Outback.
Eliza needs to disconnect from her high-powered fashion job to consider the CEO position she’s just been offered. Lincoln hopes to rekindle a past relationship and escape from another one. Bree looks forward to a fun getaway from home and her deeply buried disappointments. Andy wants to disappear from the mess he’s made of his life—possibly forever.
Dropped at a campsite in the middle of nowhere, the friends quickly discover they aren’t the same people they once were, and they begin to confront hard truths about one another—and themselves. Then a bizarre storm sweeps across their camp, scattering them across the desert. Wondering if they are part of some strange escape game, each of the friends meets a guide to help them find exactly what they need: purpose, healing, courage, and redemption.
But they’ve already traveled far down the road of life and course-correcting to become the people they were meant to be won’t be easy.
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About the Author
David Rawlings is an Australian author, and a sports-mad father of three who loves humor and a clever turn of phrase. Over a 25-year career he has put words on the page to put food on the table, developing from sports journalism and copywriting to corporate communication. Now in fiction, he entices readers to look deeper into life with stories that combine the everyday with a sense of the speculative, addressing the fundamental questions we all face.
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My Review
Thank you in advance to the publisher, Thomas Nelson/TNZ Fiction, as well as Prism Book Tours for providing an advanced review copy. A positive review was not required and all words are my own.
Thank you in advance to the publisher, Thomas Nelson/TNZ Fiction, as well as Prism Book Tours for providing an advanced review copy. A positive review was not required and all words are my own.
The cover is one of the striking things about
this novel, other than the blurb. The stars above and the red dirt road of the
Australian outback feature four people on a journey. Immediately questions come
to mind – what are they looking for, what will they find, will they like what
they find?
This is one of those “spiritual journey” novels
that begins with graduation from college, culminating in a “15 years later trip”
to Australia for four friends – Lincoln, Andy, Eliza, and Bree. Due to life
experiences they are obviously not the same people they were when they arrive.
Are they even who they want to be, or are meant to be?
But “how” did they arrive there – that is the
key question in this novel and the entire premise. In addition – where are they
going? What do they want next?
To be honest, this was a brilliant idea. I
truly loved where the author went with this story. Yet, the execution has
several weaknesses – some that truly affect how well the novel works, or could
work. The stunning and brilliant writing saves this novel. The amount of
imagination and passion the writer has are indeed strengths and you can read it
in every page.
For the reunion, Lincoln has planned a camping
trip to the Australian Outback. Basically being dropped in the middle of
nowhere – or so it seems right then.
For Eliza, the trip is “significant”. Bree is
hiding a secret, and Andy is just trying to hide.
The characters were indeed flawed, unique, and
realistic. I couldn’t relate to the characters but I honestly understood some
of them. I was drawn to the story to see how it was all going to play out. As
someone who skipped her 10 year high school reunion (for more than one reason),
it was an interesting plot to see how these people would have fared 15+ years
down the road of life’s experiences. How close would they be considering how
they were in the beginning.
That is quickly established.
Eliza mentions a term – “walkabout” – which is
a journey of self-discovery. From the way the characters are at the beginning
of this reunion, they could definitely benefit from it. However, their “tour”
guides, particularly Eddie, mention they don’t exploit culture and don’t use
the term anymore because it has been misunderstood and used to explain
something that it wasn’t and painted to describe a picture of people who weren’t
like that. He refers to the trek as a “journey with a purpose”.
According to one finding, ‘go walkabout – (of
an Australian Aboriginal) wander into the bush away from white society in order
to live in the traditional manner”. Which is why the two men, Eddie and
Sloaney, say “it’s not appropriate to exploit cultural heritage for tourists”
almost at the end.
In a later campfire session, Eddie is playing a
yidaki which Eliza thinks calls a didgeridoo. Again, Eddie is quick to point
out the original name. This was definitely an interesting look into an unknown
part of the Australian culture. It was definitely fascinating to read and learn
about.
Of course what happens at that campsite changes
the four friends and causes them to reevaluate the current course they’re on. That
doesn’t happen until about halfway through the novel though.
They start off camping and learning about the
area – everything seems to be going great, but each one with their own baggage
they don’t want to unpack. But, the longer they are together, there is
something that threatens them – mainly their own issues in their lives and how
they feel about each other.
It starts with a campfire argument and the four
people yelling at each other. One interesting note is that Andy blames Lincoln
for how his life turns out. This is a result of a “gambling” tip in college
that then sets about Andy’s downward path in life, as well as where he his at
this point in life. The tip was actually successful, however as most gamblers
know – even one small success can be dangerous and lead to a darker path.
The argument culminates with a rare storm that
forces them into taking cover which scatters them in different directions. They
each wake up in a different area and try to find their way back to the
campsite, or civilization – only after they’ve completed their “journey”.
The lessons/guides are simple:
1st – Lincoln. He is LOCKED in a
train station with no train that comes by. He can’t find his way out until a
woman asks to be let in.
2nd – Andy. It is his problem that
is the most bizarre and readers at the end will be left wondering “what happened”,
perhaps even in a scary way. This was perhaps the most disturbing part of the
novel itself.
3rd – Eliza. She meets a guide,
Grace, who quickly surmises what Eliza knew – she is missing something in her
life; but what exactly? Was it a failed chance with Lincoln?
4th – Bree. Her biggest “demon” is
self-doubt due to a failed attempt at a major event just after college, while
happy, she still wrestles with the “am I good enough?” question.
This is a great story that really takes the
reader on more than a journey in self-discovery. Told in third (3rd)
person; the POV switches from Lincoln, Eliza, Bree, to Andy.
I honestly couldn’t put it down; I thoroughly enjoyed
reading this and couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen to them.
Through their individual “guide” journeys; most
of the group learn purpose, healing, redemption, and what is wrong in their
lives. They also learn that their story isn’t what they do, so much as how they
got where they are. Something we all need to take in and reflect on. What was
interesting is how they had to “go away” to find themselves. They had to be
lost in order to be found.
They learn to re-think their story or their
path on life. The journey acts as a course-correction to direct them into being
who they are supposed to be, not who they ended up being.
For example, despite her success, Eliza was
definitely unhappy. While she did seemingly “have everything”, it was really nothing
to her. Same as her ex-finance from college, Lincoln. This mesmerizing tale
gives one a harsh lesson in the value of success. This is one of those novels
that gets the reader to thinking – actually reflecting on their lives.
Other issues, particularly surrounding Andy,
were the questions of personal accountability, responsibility, and owning up to
one’s mistakes.
It also begs the question of second chances –
if given one, would we take them? What would be the consequences? How far do we
fall before we don’t even deserve one?
Each journey was a variation of the same story.
While I am not sure I would call them plot
holes, the ending left me wanting SO much more. I wanted to know what happened
to these characters. Chapter one does start with the police involvement or
rather investigation as one of the characters never seemingly “resurfaces”.
Where did the fourth (4th) person
end up?
Were the remaining three going to be charged in
the disappearance?
How where they going to change their lives
going forward?
What was going to happen?
Was this how it was going to end for them?
There were a LOT of questions in that area –
those are some of the major ones. And, that was the big let-down in this
otherwise superb book. I’m hoping that because I read an ARC, there was more at
the end that didn’t make it in. If not, it is a disappointment as this story deserves
a more satisfying ending or rather an end with decent closure. I did re-read
the ending to check to see if I missed anything.
As this is “magical realism”, there is no “realistic”
basis for what happens in this novel. So, the reader needs to keep that in mind.
This is a “hard to describe” kind of read; and best to “give it a try” one.
While I was left disappointed, confused, and
even perplexed by the ending, I was also left with reflecting on the questions
being asked of the characters.
I think this is geared more for fans of the
author, and those of the genre; maybe even those who are “searching” for something
in their lives. The discussion questions are great, and a theme for this book –
how did you get to the point you are in your life; what shaped your journey;
what events shaped it. Does clinging to the past really hold us back?
What about exploring a road not taken?
That was an interesting one as it was the topic
of a J*A*G episode (“What If”) when the characters were
pondering that same thing over fortune cookies – explore the road not taken,
take it. Harm, Mac, Harriet, Bud, and Sturgis each had a view of the road not
taken – each time it led them, in a way, towards where they were supposed to
be, only by a different road. That was another thing that also stood out for
me.
But, the reader also learns through this book
that leaving old habits and thoughts behind is sometimes best so we can move
forward.
This is definitely a LOWER 4 star read – more like
a 3.8/3.9. As some websites don’t do partial stars, I did round it up.
Christy Award winning Australian author, David
Rawlings, is a new-to-me author despite hearing about some of his releases last
year – “The Baggage Handler” and “The Camera Never Lies”. While
disappointed about the ending, the author does accomplish the main goal set out
in the story.
While distributed through TNZ Fiction/Thomas
Nelson, which is a Christian and faith themed publisher, I found no real
Christian references at all. However, it was a clean read with no sex scenes or
foul language.
RATING:
4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Goodreads
4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Bookbub
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