There is no Map for This

Even before a shocking plot twist takes place just pages into this novel, the reader is firmly hooked on the action, plot premise, and snappy writing (sarcasm- and humour-laced, 100% teen-authentic). And, long before the just-as-unexpected plot twist that wraps up this smoking-hot page-turner, the reader cares, deeply, about the flawed, stressed-out, soul-searching characters in this story.

The title is okay, but the associated descriptor is even better: “A high-adrenaline story of what it really means to man up.”

Ren is 17 and feels lucky to have escaped his over-intense mother and new fundamentalist stepfather by moving in with his older brother Levi and Levi’s wild girlfriend, Ellie. He’s wary but “in” when they decide to “REN-o-vate” him by pushing him into situations that will make him “man up.”

But when Levi is killed on one of their dubious excursions and both Ren and Ellie are unmoored by grief, things spiral out of control. Unable to resist Ellie’s charismatic, if manically unpredictable personality, Ren submits to more “pushing his limits” schemes -- even allowing himself to be seduced by Ellie one night. (Note: This novel for mature teens only, given the graphic sex.) It’s at this point she disappears, leaving him to pick up the shattered pieces of his life and take responsibility for redefining his limits and potential.

All these moving parts are bordered by frightening outdoor survival situations guaranteed to make you bite your fingernails ragged. And when there is time to breathe, you’re putting all your energy into rooting for these hurting characters and their spinning lives.

Ren and Ellie are so very real, so worth sticking with, you can’t put the book down till – you hope – they land in some kind of safe zone with streaks of hope. Which they do, sort of.

Despite Ren’s crazy life situation, he is clear that he was an excellent high school student with ambitions for college. His constant references to philosophical books littering his closet-sized room often ring pretentious as if the author is trying too hard to emphasize the story’s theme of Ren’s finding himself.

Meanwhile, chapter by chapter, Ellie’s issues become disturbingly more “out there” until, like Ren, you are torn between knowing he must rocket his way out of her orbit to survive, yet not wanting him to abandon someone who needs serious help.

There is No Map for This is a coming-of-age story undergirded by themes of grief, outdoor sports, and mental health issues. Entirely in Ren’s point of view, it’s contemporary and takes place in Oregon. The writing is teen-appropriate, refreshing, clever, fun.

Ren knocks a glob of slush off one foot with the other. Not that it helps. His toes are completely popsicled.

The writing is also admirably compact, meaning that it takes very few words to pack a major wallop and ensure that the reader is clear on what’s happening.
Joshua—age eleven, with ever-smudged glasses; and Ruth – nearly nine, going on twenty-nine.

The fact that the Alpine Café is a chipped coffee cup, not linen tablecloths and two forks, has nothing to do with [the manager’s] reality or the reality he inflicts on his employees. His personnel policy is straight out of the Pleistocene era.,/i>

As for emotion, few writers have the talent to convey it so beautifully, clearly, metaphorically, even unexpectedly.

Ren tiptoes for the next several days. Maybe, he thinks, if he keeps his weight evenly distributed, avoids sudden outbursts, nothing else will disintegrate into jagged pieces. Maybe, if he breathes with a controlled pace, grief will take five.

Who the hell was I before? Sure, a kid brother, an unsure son, a pretty-damn-good student, a not-so-reliable employee, a completely clueless lover. But that was just him following the line of least resistance, like a drop of water headed downhill. Gravity was in charge, not him.

The plot is entirely believable and the pace so steady/frantic, you’ll need to prepare snacks before opening the cover – given you’re unlikely to move for the next few hours.

As for character arc, I especially like the fact that while both Ren and Ellie change by the end, it’s tentative enough that clearly, they’re still themselves, still have some things to sort out, still have personal struggles awaiting them after we sign off. In other words, they’re humans to whom we can relate. There’s an intense, satisfying, unexpected, even mischievous ending. But damn, it ends, and we have to find another book unlikely to live up to the quality of this one.