I received this book for free from in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Journey: A Novel by Andrew Zimmerman 
on March 3, 2020
Pages: 312
Paul is a top business executive, neglecting everything in his race to the top. His life is interrupted when he travels to Glastonbury, England, and meets a beautiful soul reader, Christine, who reads his soul and plants the seeds that turn his life upside down. When he returns to his wife, Mary, she is skeptical. His journey both scares and intrigues her as she watches him struggle to navigate between his business and spiritual worlds. A series of synchronistic events draws Paul closer to Glastonbury and Christine, compelling him and a reluctant Mary to return, unaware that their lives will never be the same.
Paul is a top business executive hoping to be the next CEO of Ascendant—a New York-based tech giant. He neglects everything—his family and himself—in the race to the top. His fast-paced life is interrupted when he travels to Glastonbury, England, to visit friends in a village rich in history and mysticism. Glastonbury represents a complete counterpoint to Paul’s elite corporate day job. It compares to an amusement park, with shops and venues catering to spiritual seekers ranging from would-be witches, goddesses and druids, and burned-out hippies. Like many seekers before him, he is attracted to the energy of a nearby hill—Tor—said to be the mythical Isle of Avalon. Paul meets a beautiful soul reader, Christine, who reads his soul and plants the seeds that turn his life upside down. When he returns to New York, his wife, Mary, is skeptical. Is Paul having a spiritual awakening or is he falling in love with an attractive charlatan? His journey both scares and intrigues her as she watches him struggle to navigate between the business and spiritual worlds. A series of synchronistic events draws Paul closer to Glastonbury and Christine, compelling him and a reluctant Mary to return, unaware that their lives will never be the same.
What an interesting and thoughtful book this was. Mr. Zimmerman wrote this book in a way that had me feeling like I was sitting in a chair and watching the interaction of the characters, and I was all in!
Paul may be having a mid-life crisis, but was it? It was more of him seeking to figure out what in the heck was he doing with his life and the impact it had on others around him.
After he returns from a soul reading, I particularly liked the exchange when he calls an ex to explain some things, and she acted just like someone who had been wounded and let him have it. The emotions felt very real to me.
I loved Mary, his wife, and how she expressed her feelings about Paul and some things he was dealing with. I would LOVE to have a discussion with a book club about this book as it covers so many themes, job dynamics, son/father relationships, husband/ wife issues, spirituality, curiosity about feelings, and much more.
Mr. Zimmerman is a great storyteller, and he talks about how he wrote this during a writing class under Charles Salzburg, so for that, I would thank Mr. Salzburg for helping him get this book out into the world.
I highly recommend this book, and I look forward to reading other work by Mr. Zimmerman.
Reviewed by: Linda C.
