A Long-Awaited Journey
595620
4.5 stars

Ive been waiting eagerly for this book since I fell in love with Conrad in Falling. I was curious to see how it would be possible for him to fall in love with someone and forget about Malachi  and when it finally happened, I believed every word, even though Conrads chosen one surprised me.

Archer has nothing in common with timid, caring Malachi. He is an alpha male all right  strong, stubborn, dangerous. He doesnt back off and he can actually make Conrad do what he says  at least sometimes.

Conrad is controlling and very easily irritated. In the beginning of the book he finds himself in the hospital, trying to get better after being hit by a car. Hes miserable and bitter, still suffering from the loss of his lover, and his physical trauma certainly doesnt improve his mood.

When Conrad and Archer meet, sparks fly. I got a distinct feeling that these two were destined to be together  Im still amazed Conrad managed to save Archer, that he chose to do it knowing well they both could die. Their attraction was immediate, but their romance was developing rather slowly, probably because they both understood there wouldnt be a submissive in their relationship. They fought for control, they teased each other, while sexual tension between them was growing, getting more and more palpable.

I liked backgrounds of the characters  Conrad and Archer are well thought out, they felt completely real to me. Their lives were not easy, but I think maybe it was worth it because in the end they found each other. They bring each other peace, they challenge each other  Im sure there won't be a boring minute in their relationship in future.

The criminal part of the story kept me anxious. Therere many obstacles on Archer and Conrads path  traitors, lies, constant danger, but together they form an unstoppable force. I liked that the trust between them was very fragile  it didn't come easily, both men were extremely closed off and private, it took a long time for them to finally open up.

Secondary characters are also well-developed. I liked Conrads father  even if I didn't always understand him or agreed with his decisions, I think hes a real man  and he does love his son. Conrad is like him in many ways. Conrads mother was incredibly vain, but she felt real as well. I can see now why Conrad is the way he is  it must have been very difficult to grow up in this kind of family.

Drama, humor, tension, love  this story has it all. I only wish we got to see Malachis reaction to Archer  and I missed Harper. Id also like to see Conrad and Archer in a more relaxed world  practically the entire book they were running and fighting, so they didn't get to experience normal dating. It doesnt make their love for each other any less beautiful, though.

It was an intense and captivating journey, I really enjoyed it. And I loved Archers amazing dog to bits :) I hope well see the boys later, if Barbara decides to write the third book. I already miss them.
2819379
I have always been fascinated with the Silk Road. In fact, it's part of my bucket list. I dream to one day walk, maybe just a part of the long stretch of the Silk Road and feel how it was like in its glorious days. Caravans and a mix of various cultures utilizing the Silk Road as a way to journey into other parts of Asia, the Middle East and parts of Europe. It's the traveler in me that is so drawn to this famous and fabled highway.

This book is about a caravan on the Silk Road. Yes, that magic word--Silk Road got me to sign up for this book. And I am glad I did because this was a very good story. This was an adventure I would not want to miss. This was as close as I can get to be on the Silk Road.

As obvious as in the title, the main character is named Chengli. A young Chinese boy of thirteen. A son of an Imperial Inspector whom he never got to know. Chengli, just like I am, was so drawn to the desert where his father traveled and did his work. The wind is like calling him and asking him to go and find his father. The vast desert is waiting for him. The call was so persistent that he can no longer ignore it and he finally summoned its call. Hence, the adventures of Chengli with the caravan across the great Gobi Desert and along the Silk Road started.

This story was a good and easy fix to my long dream of exploring the famous Silk Road. Yet, the effects are lasting. A very well-written adventure with all the sights, sounds and colors of a large caravan traversing the fabled stretch of this desert route. I was treated to an amazing scene. A satisfying journey and a very touching story of a young boy hoping to find a piece of himself that he lost in the hot and cruel sands of the desert. This is like a coming-of-age story of Chengli. Finding his heritage and knowing the father he never get to meet. A story of a boy, almost but not yet quite a man, heading the call of the desert wind to come and find the answers to his questions about his family. And he did get his answers.

I give this story 5/5 Bactrian camels in the Gobi Desert. Chengli's grand adventure of a lifetime was also a great Silk Road experience for me. I was transported to the picturesque villages dotting the Silk Road. Everything was described in detail that I was able to picture myself right there with Chengli keeping the donkeys and camels in line. It was like I was there in the market too, looking for wares that hit my fancy. This was a very entertaining and touching story for all ages. A fantastic read.

If you take from someone a thing they took from someone else...are you stealing...or rescuing it to give it back?
- Hildi Kang, Chengli and the Silk Road Caravan -

Thank you again, Netgalley for the copy.
This is a voluntary review. I was gifted a copy.
1176558
If I've learned one thing from my ongoing and mostly disappointing quest for good adventure documentaries and literature, it's that maps and distances and images usually tell stories better than we do.  In the face of incredible beauty and incredible hardship, our words fall flat and collapse into painful habits.  But Jill's don't.  They bring to life what alone stands as a fantastic journey.  It's hard to imagine pushing oneself to one's mental and physical limit every day for three or maybe even four weeks.  It's hard to imagine being able to do this if one were in a perfect state of mental and physical readiness leading up to the race.  But I can't imagine what it takes to pull this kind of effort out of shambles and devastation.  I loved this story for the exhausted, snowy night-time slogs, for the quiet moments of mountain exaltation, for the confusing relationships, and even more for the revelation that comes from it all: that this race was not something to finish before starting anew, but rather that the race itself was a new beginning - of something brave and strong.  So here's to hoping that a third one's on its way!
4666262
Nearing has taken us on a journey that some may not be able to appreciate.  Open your mind and let it all sink in. Richard has some crazy adventures in what can only be described as the true America. On On
734062
Ann Armbrecht shares with us the rarest kind of journey: her account as an anthropologist of years spent living in a small community in one of the wildest parts of Nepal, and at the very same time, and even more importantly, a journey deep into herself. She walks a challenging and at times tortuous road, but her grit and heart carry her home to her deepest self. This is no ordinary anthropologist's tale -- but rather a true tale of a gradual and gentle awakening, an unmasking of all that we deem so important, a journey to the core of who she is, and who we all are. HIghly recommended!  A word of advice: the book starts off slowly, be patient, because after the first 50 pages or so it takes off like a rocket, arcing higher and higher, deeper and deeper... and oh yes, the *chapter* Thin Places is worth the price of admission alone...
3327072
It has been said that the greatest journeys are those of the heart.  Carina Burns has written of such a journey, a very personal but in many ways universal search for identity and meaning.  With an eye for detail, she describes aspects of the many places she has visited or called home.  She has candidly described both the joys and challenges of life as a Third Culture Kid.

Thank you, Carina, for sharing your journey with us and by so doing enriching our own.
32578
The roads across the plains in Kansas may be straight yet the long vistas may be lacking when the corn grows tall but, even then the tornado came to sweep Dorothy into the strange land of Oz and her well known travels along the yellow brick road.  This is where she was to meet such a variety of people and experiences with whom to journey as her own mystery of life unfolded.
So has it been for author Bert who, in this autobiography, writes so well of his own travels along life's not so straight path.  At each bend and twist of the road, he must stay the course with a stick-to-itiveness that comes from a deep faith that life will not abandon but, indeed, fill him with gratitude and beauty.
It is said that when the student, or traveler in this case, is ready, the teacher or experiences will come.  So it has been for this author whether it be with a wise outdoor couple or creative therapist, an unexpected church fire, the heat of the desert, or the warmth of a campfire in the mountains.  There is much in this book to touch one's heart and to give notice that the journey through life for each of us is a true gift to be savored whether easy or difficult.  May we all receive these gifts with joy and gratitude in our own lives.
2813647
An amazing journey that takes me to many different places. Each listen seems new. A wonderful achievement.
2375257
All i can say is have patience with this one. There is no instant gratification here.

However, once you finally "get it" (it took me several months)...there is no better album out there.

OK Computer paints a beautifully bleak picture that, for the lack of another way of putting it, blows your mind. Seriously.

The change from being confused and disappointed to finally "getting it" is an incredible voyage. Definitely worth the trip.
1767214
This book describes an unusual outer journey to satisfy a yearning of the inner search. Very few modern travelers to China have sought the path less traveled, as so beautifully stated by Robert Frost.
Veena had an instinctive understanding that something of importance was waiting for her to be discovered at Song Mountain, and against all odds she managed to travel to the sacred mountain range in Henan Province several times in the last few years, made numerous friends who helped in her quest and ultimately discovered what her inner voice had been whispering all along.
Her description of life in rural China without understanding one word of the language to begin with, is colorful and very interesting. Above all the kindness and care many local people she met lavished on her  several became close friends  is touching; the monks and heads of monasteries who answered her many questions, passerbys and shop keepers and taxi drivers  each one of them were essential companions on her journey.
A bonus of course are the photos that can be seen on Veenas website, http://3books.co.uk/a-mountain-in-china/
A very remarkable travel book that is immensely inspiring in its many depths.
1968594
Allison sets out on a very long journey in pursuit of freeing herself from the nasty demons of her past.
3928706
This book takes one on a journey into the past and possibly into the future. How can that be you may well ask. It is a tapestry of lives, Besants, Krishnamurtis and Springs, and many others, but more than that it opens doors to ideas and mysteries that challenge our materialist world. Much has been written of Krishnamurti, but here we see the beginning and the question of whether he was, as Besant and others claimed, a 'chosen one. We hear his first word to her Amma. From hereon their lives would be inseparably linked.
But this is not a fanciful journey, a mythological fairy tale,  it is a complex biographical weave centered on Annie Besant and the recurrent synchronicities that leave us wondering is There more things in heaven and earth, (Horatio),than are dreamt of in (y)our philosophy.
2516032
This book was a long journey of a lifetime that really only became clear in the last couple of chapters, when the writing became eloquent and the meaning simply said but deep in meaning. I'm glad it came together as it did because although I enjoyed the colorful journey, the author had me stymied as to her purpose. I was glad to read how the appreciation of the art was used to see life's value. The book kept me interested and did not disappoint.
4335461
Real, imagined, or a bit of both...it is a journey worth taking with Paulo as he makes his way along the road to Santiago de Compostela.
Bon voyage.
2361502
Not your typical travel log.  Expecting to read a series of anecdotes on adventures in Asia, I was pleasantly surprised and instantly engrossed as the author takes us on a journey that is both invigorating and thought provoking.  The end result is similar to a good film.  Vivid cinematography comes to life as the author threads his own coming of age as the mysticism of the East meets the stoicism of the West.  The finished product  leaves you wanting to book your next flight.  A must read, particularly to those who enjoy the complexities of the human spirit.
1179763
This book is many things. It's an adventure story. It's a geography lesson. It's a study in anthropology. It's an exposition on the mindset of an explorer.

Mostly, it's a well-written tale of an American woman, Kira Salak, and her quest to continue living an extraordinary life. "If a journey doesn't have something to teach you about yourself, then what kind of journey is it?" she writes. This book takes us along for the ride. The tone is conversational, very readable, honest, and refreshing.

The Cruelest Journey is aptly named. Indeed, Salak recounts a grueling journey inside an inflatable red kyak, 600 miles along the Niger River in the West African country, Mali. She encounters both friendly and hostile villagers, calm and stormy weather, hunger, injury, sickness, potentially dangerous hippos, and incredible uncertainty. Using the Scottish explorer, Mungo Park, as a mentor of sorts, she attempts to reenact his adventure some 200 years earlier. She finds that not a lot has changed from what she read in his memoirs, which she holds close throughout the trip and quotes often.

Before I picked up this book, I didn't know where to point on a map to tell anyone the location of Timbuktu. It's a mysterious place, often used to describe the outskirts of the world. Salak's journey doesn't dispel this myth.

I found this story fascinating and highly recommend it.

Michele Cozzens, Author of A Line Between Friends and The Things I Wish I'd Said.
3065545
Hard Rivers chronicles the journey of a group of adults and high-school boys attempting to replicate the French explorer La Salles journey from the Lawrence River to the southern end of the Mississippi. Howards work is no idealized retelling; he delves deep into the participants interviews and journals to produce an honest expose of the harrowing trip. Accidents, freak weather, financial woes, and even near-death experiences threaten to derail the trip at all turns, but somehow the journey is completed. Whether or not the individual participants are heroes or madmen is for the reader to decide, but Howards admiration is clear.
In the face of climate change and energy crises, the true message of the Le Salle II expedition--respect for the earth and environmental preservation--is especially relevant. The fact that twenty-three men risked their lives not only for the sake of adventure, but also environmental awareness, truly resonated with me.
Howards passion as a Le Salle II historian is clear; the book contains a treasure trove of photos, interviews, and journal entries that put in the reader into the shoes of the explorers. While Howard gives Reid Lewis and other adults on the trip their due, the clear heroes of the expedition are the young men who chose to put their lives on hold for three years to achieve what many feel might be impossible.
Howard excels at building tension and suspense at the right moments; there were times when I was afraid to keep reading, certain that the latest disaster would be fatal for some of the men. However, in his zeal to share as much of the expedition crews story as possible--both the explorers and their support team--Howard tends to meander into side plots and anecdotes that, while sometimes entertainingly, make the book just a little too long. The drama and excitement are almost always present, however.