DNF at 68%. I really loved the premise of this book, but I found myself getting distracted by every other book that came in. There wasn't enough compelling plot here.

Rating 4.66

Having written reviews in the past, the nature of plot, characters and story make this one particularly challenging. The author's background in screen and TV writing becomes obvious due to a visual approach and use of a title which sums up the story.

First we meet Mark Antonelli, a struggling author on the verge of ending his life. He comes up with unusual idea of posting a national ad offering a cross country bus ride for those who have lost hope and qualify. In order to be approved, riders must sign a release and commit to posting in a daily online log book as they make their way west to San Francisco.

Using a variety of narrative tools that include text, email, voice recordings and log entries, we learn of the broad range of characters and their battle with life's hurdles. Somewhat depressing in the beginning, as the bus makes its way to pick up riders, an unexpected bond forms between the group. But its the passenger stories of disease, relationship, career and family that form a deep connection not only with the reader, but with those taking the trip.

Of the various passengers, Tyler, a computer wiz suffers from a rare disease as does his cat. As they hit the midwest, the cat suddenly dies causing Tyler to seek his own demise. Saddened by his loss, the group becomes aware of its legal impact having helped him to achieve his 'goal'. What plays out has a tinge of "Thelma and Louise' which is expected given the author's background.

To say this is an unusual story is a vast understatement. You'll struggle with the tone at the beginning but as the plot shifts from dark to light, tears of joy surface. Put simply, this defies genre and stands alone much like Fight Club did when released. ( )

Congratulations! You're one of the few to decipher the invitation hidden in the Personals section of HomepageAds.com and show up on time. You have officially joined the weirdest cross-country party ever. Our destination is San Francisco. Upon arrival, we will ditch the driver, find an appropriate seaside cliff with an amazing view of the ocean, then just as the sun kisses the horizon, we hit the gas and drive out of this world.
As the price of admission, you will write your story, upload it to the Wi-Fi hotspot on the bus, and periodically update it. Once you log in and create a username, you will have the option of linking the system to your email and text accounts to provide a real-time record of your thoughts and messages leading up to the Big Day..

"At 10:23 pm on 14 April 2019, a text file was uploaded to several commercial websites located within the United States. Because of its length and lack of publicity or provenance, the file went virtually unnoticed for several days, lost in the flood tide that is the internet, before being abruptly removed when the websites received court- ordered takedown notices at the prompting of the Utah State Attorney General.
The AG's office justified their actions by claiming that the document necessary for an inquest for an inquest into several deaths, and as evidence in any criminal proceedings that might come out the other side of that investigation. The filing also suggested that the document contained "dangerous ideas" that were a threat to the public well-being.

Both claims were met with skepticism by the online community, especially since the Utah AGs office figures prominently in the document, leading some to speculate that the takedown order was motivated by a desire to conceal their actions from public scrutiny. "

This book is perfect in so many ways. ( )

An old tour bus that has seen far better days is purchased for one final job. Its mission? To carry a group of initial strangers' cross country for one vitally important destination. A farewell tour of sorts; The likes of which have yet to be accomplished by anyone and pulling it off ensures headlines on every news avenue around the country. There's a lot of pressure on this bus and its driver to see this journey through to the end.

It all starts when Mark, an aspiring writer who has seen nothing but rejection letters for the past ten years chooses to throw in the towel after one final rejection slip leading him to weigh the options for what move to make next in life. His decision leads him to place a personal ad online, posted for merely a few days, calling for anyone out there who "gets it" to join him on a cross country trip. The ad promises not only to bring its responders to a shared destination, but also a great time along the way because if you're answering this ad what could be more appropriate than one final blow out?

You may or may not be surprised at how many people not only saw the ad, but responded, agreed to the conditions of stepping foot on the bus and make arrangements to be picked up and join the party. The passengers are from various states with different lifestyles representing a wide spectrum of demographics and ages ranging from early twenties to mid-sixties it doesn't seem like they have much in common at first but a beautiful, close, and truthfully a bit odd, family of sorts develops quickly and like it or not they find themselves protecting each other in unexpected ways.

The wonderful thing about Together We Will Go is the narrative shifts fluidly between passengers each sharing personal "diary like" entries as well as outward interactions with each other providing the reader the opportunity to truly understand and bond with each and every character to the point of sharing the pain, the tears, and the laughter of every single one.

Together We Will Go is dark, daring, quirky, one of a kind and absolutely BRILLIANT. At times the story can be hard to read because of the experiences and thoughts described but what makes it worth it is the lessons learned by the reader, such as why would anyone choose to do this? What were they thinking? Feeling? What were they hiding? And perhaps most importantly what suicide is truly about and what it isn't.

J. Michael Straczynski has given us a very unexpected novel that is a delight to read in spite of the subject matter. Together We Will go is strikingly relevant and I cannot imagine a scenario any different from this being a near instant best seller.

Thank you to Netgalley, J. Michael Stracznski, and publishers for gifting me with an advanced copy to read and share my honest opinion. All thoughts and opinions in this review are mine completely unprompted by anything other than the book itself. ( )