I am fan of Amor Towles so I wanted to be first in line to read his latest novel. I absolutely loved A Gentleman in Moscow and read Rules of Civility twice I liked it so much. So I was anxious to dig into The Lincoln Highway.

When Emmett returns home from juvenile detention after the death of his father, the only thing left is his little brother, Billy. His father’s farm has been foreclosed. He and Billy decide to go in search of their long ago disappeared and absent mother. But two of his friends, Wooly and Duchess who hitched a ride in the trunk of the warden’s car, throw a wrench in those plans.

The story is set in the nineteen fifties and is centered around taking a trip on the Lincoln Highway that stretched from Times Square in New York City to San Francisco. I was ready for a nostalgic road trip. That was far from what I got. This book is full of uninteresting characters who decide to search for a different life. And very little time is spent driving on the Lincoln Highway.

I wanted to love this book so much. Some parts were cleverly written and others dragged on until I felt a little nauseous. When I start to skim, the story is in trouble. I’ve found this time and time again. Authors who have great success are pressured by their publishing houses to churn out new best sellers as quickly as they can. Usually by the third or fourth book, they have lost their way with the written word and their magical ability to tell a good story. They sell books to unsuspecting readers like me based solely on their good name.

I’m still searching for that book that will steal my heart. I had hoped it would be The Lincoln Highway but sadly it was not.