Where the Road Leads Us

by Robin Reul

"A beautiful, tender and thoughtful meditation on finding your way."—Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Everything, Everything and The Sun Is Also a Star
A heartfelt and hilarious adventure about two teens trying to find their way, for fans of Jennifer Niven and Nicola Yoon.
Jack is on the verge of leaving for college, but before he does, he wants to track down his estranged brother, Alex and find some closure in the wake of their father's death. Meanwhile, Hallie has just found out some upsetting news about a friend in Oregon, and she has a small window to go see him before it's too late.
Jack and Hallie are practically strangers. They shared a class together years ago and haven't seen each other since, though they have more in common than they'd ever imagine. And when fate puts them into the same rideshare to the bus terminal, it kicks off an unconventional and hysterical adventure that may lead them to their own true selves…and maybe to each other.
Additional praise for Where the Road Leads Us:
"A lovely, compassionate, and compulsive read."—Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces and How to Make Friends with the Dark
"A soul-filling, raw, love song of a novel."—Jennifer Niven, #1 New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places
"Propels you through a heartfelt adventure. I couldn't put it down."—Jeff Garvin, author of Lambda Literary Award finalist Symptoms of Being Human
"Anyone who has faced loss and uncertainty in their life will relate to this emotionally honest, hopeful book."—Misa Sugiura, author of It's Not Like It's a Secret and This Time Will Be Different
"A tender and heartfelt read with an ending both hopeful and sincere, and readers will happily share the ride."—BCCB
"A feel-good story with depth."—Kirkus Reviews
Also by Robin Reul:
My Kind of Crazy

• ISBN10: 1492635251
• ISBN13: 9781492635253
• Publish Date: 6 May 2021
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Sourcebooks Fire
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 304
• Language: English

Reviews

[Inkslinger]

'Where the Road Leads Us' by Robin Reul is a dual narrative about a pair of teens who find themselves at a different, but equally life-altering crossroads.

 

Jack is pretty much the golden boy. He's such an over-achiever that he's stacking self-taught AP studies on top of those he's been scheduled for in school. Here, literally getting ready to pack up and leave for college, life throws him a curveball.  

 

Reeling from the unexpected, Jack finds himself rethinking everything. Before he follows that pre-designated path.. he wants to locate his estranged brother and set some things to rest.

 

Hallie seems more free-spirited. Life has been kicking her while she's down for awhile and it's forced her to adopt a sort of 'roll with the punches' approach. When she gets some upsetting news about a friend, she makes a spur of the moment decision to go see him while she can.

 

Generally speaking, this is a sweet, quirky novel. Though there are some heavy topics being dealt with, the story is never really sad. There's a concerted effort both between the characters and clearly by the author to sort of recalibrate the emotional perspective whenever something potentially negative occurs in the story.. which supports the whole 'bright side' theme.

 

Jack and Hallie have a really cute, warm dynamic and their rideshare driver turned newfound friend actually adds to that feeling within the story. Though some of the dynamics that pop-up between side characters throughout the book are a little clunky, 'the trifecta' as I like to call them, doesn't suffer from it at all.  

 

Their adventures as they travel together are a bit wild and some might even feel they're unrealistic, but as someone who's made road trips with similarly strange incidents littering the way, it just made me laugh and keep reading.  

 

I enjoyed the way Jack and Hallie tended to be each other's true North. Whenever one of them would get lost along the way, sort of faltering with their personal struggle.. the other would be there to right them and keep them going.  

 

This is a story full of hope.. and with the last year we've all had, I don't think we can have too much of that. If you're looking for a light read, that still has some emotional depth as the characters deal with their traumas, this might be the book for you.  

 

Mild caution for triggers regarding loss of loved ones and severe illnesses.

 

(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)