BOOZE PRESS BOOKSHELF – SIDEWAYS 3 CHILE

So, here we are at the 3rd and final (ohh, wait a second there bucko, there’s a 4th adventure on the way, but more on that later) saga of the neurotic anti-hero Miles Raymond. I’m sure it comes as no surprise, that with the title Sideway 3 Chile, this story takes place in Chile. However, unlike the first 2 tales, Jack plays a very small part in this one. Personally I think this allows not only new characters to be introduced (an in some cases re-introduced) but opens the story to explore what makes Miles tick a little more deeply. This sets up a scenarios for him to deal with, that have been controlling him in the previous novels. In other words, this is a far more introspective story, which may surprise some readers.

The book begins with Miles grappling with the success of Shameless, the book (and movie) penned by Miles following the train-wreck enlightenment discovered during the Santa Barbara trip in the original Sideways. Being that this story occurs a number of years later, Miles had has ups and downs with fame and is looking for meaning in his life. An opportunity to travel through Chile is made available to him and Miles sees this as an opportunity to discover himself. Though still neurotic and dealing with a multitude of issues, he can’t bring himself to travel alone. It’s at this point a character is re-introduced (a couple of them actually) to serve as Miles’s companion for the months long trip. Hint: It’s not Jack Cole. Following a fairly rocky start, Miles begins to settle in to the idea, that though he still has a lot of issues, this trip is his mid-life wake up call. Through this trip he can discover what he wants from the rest of his life. As the adventure moves on, we see him come to some fairly solid realizations, that he feels will guide him through the next chapter(s) of his life. As these revelations become more clear, another more well known character re-emerges in the final pages to bring a hopeful close to the trilogy

I’ve truly enjoyed these 3 stories and was actually a little melancholy when I closed the book on them. However, as I mentioned in the beginning, this appears to not be the end of Miles Raymond and his intrepid journeys. Rex Pickett is currently in New Zealand, researching what is said to be Sideways 4. With Miles having finally (somewhat) gotten his shit together, it will be interesting to see what direction he takes the character. Looking forward to it

This book receives 4 out of 5 glass.

Order here: SIDEWAYS 3 CHILE