web analytics

Roads

by Sheryl and Laurie (link)

Genre drama, angst
Pairings Taylor/OFC
Length 43 chapters and epilogue
Status Completed (sequel to Walls)

I was very curious to see where this story could possibly go, especially considering that it was so much longer than Walls. That story had, in a few short, carefully crafted chapters, told a complete and heartbreaking story. The titles of the two stories are quite evocative, though. Walls is the story of all the walls Taylor built around himself crashing down. Roads, then, is the story of the paths presented to the family after their crisis and which they choose. And, as it turns out, Taylor has a few walls left.

Walls ends on a melancholy note — a flashback to the beginning of their fame. Although that journey is ending, the boys are only just leaving the hospital and embarking on a totally different journey. The point of view changes here aren’t quite as breakneck as in Walls, and that’s fine. Each narrator has their own distinct voice and feeling, and it’s easy to see how each of them feels about the situation they’ve found themselves in. Taylor might be at the center of it all, but everyone in the family is effected.

Unlike the first story, the foreshadowing here is much more subtle but every bit as effective. There are small scenes and clues planted throughout that register, even if they don’t totally make sense at the time. At around the halfway point, it all starts to come together and the story goes down a brand new and unexpected path. Still, the biggest secret isn’t revealed until the end.

I’m always particularly impressed by stories where the characters are often wrong and sometimes completely unlikable, but still relatable. That’s an amazing thing to read — to see everything going wrong and falling apart, and feeling your heart ache because you want to fix it for them. From the very first chapter, this is how I felt about Roads, and as it went on, my love and sympathy for the characters only grew.

Review by Bethany (website)