Without good music, a road trip is simply a means to a spot on a map. With good music, however, a road trip becomes a complete experience. Even literary road trips.
So what songs should be included on the soundtrack for a multigenerational novel set along the iconic Route 66? Countless songs make us long for the open road. “Life is a Highway.” “Holiday Road.” “Born to Run.” A few are even specific to the Mother Road: “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” and “This Land is Your Land.” However, there are six songs that best comprise the melody readers will find within the pages of THE ROAD BEFORE US.
“Only You (and You Alone)” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAUJSc6unAg) by The Platters: Back in 1956, when young Berenice (aka Benny) dreams of Hollywood stardom, her brother’s best friend, Paul, offers to drive her from Chicago to Los Angeles. Having survived time as a prisoner of war in Korea, Paul has lost faith in humanity except for Benny. Only Benny can bring light into his darkness, just like the song says. While they face obstacles in the story, it’s clear from the start that Benny is, indeed, Paul’s destiny.
“I Get to Love You” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1mkYWkoXyo) by Ruelle: Many decades later, Benny and Paul have become Hollywood’s most beloved couple. They take a troubled teenager into their home. Because of his traumatic childhood, Bridger Rosenblum is angry, bitter, and determined to prove that no one has the love he needs. Yet, through trials that include addiction, criminal antics, and public humiliation, Benny and Paul don’t give up on him. They give him the family he’s been searching for. And although they have won untold awards through the years, loving Bridger is, like the song says, the best thing they’ll ever do.
“I’ll Be Seeing You” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C5zYKIuoxg) by Billie Holiday: For more than sixty years, Benny and Paul enjoy a loving marriage. Before Paul takes his last breath on earth, Benny promises that she’ll stay until two things happen: she can distribute their wealth to good causes, and she knows Bridger, now an adult, will be okay without them. Until that day comes, she remembers Paul in everything she does and everywhere she goes.
“Take It Easy” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32Oc2d_3yEk) by the Eagles: I’d be remiss not to include this Route 66 anthem on our soundtrack. It’s the only song that has its own intersection along the famous highway—check out Standin’ on the Corner out in Winslow, Arizona. It conveys the carefree spirit one feels when cruising The Mother Road as well as Bridger’s whole persona. After surviving his difficult past, Bridger has gotten sober and found his way. Now he takes life day by day, caring for his aged foster mom, Benny, and wanting to make her proud. His happy-go-lucky nature is tested, however, when Benny falls victim to a Ponzi scheme.
“Running on Empty” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFQKvtbD6Kw) by Jackson Browne: Enter Jade Jessup—the story’s modern-day heroine. Once a financial prodigy, she’s now penniless, unemployed, and awaiting eviction. She has no idea what lies ahead for her or who she is anymore. She also blames herself after her fiancé stole Benny and Paul Aldridge’s fortune—especially since they always treated her like family. And family is one more thing she lacks. That’s why she agrees to help Bridger make a documentary about the couple’s 1956 Route 66 trip. Although she is literally and figuratively running on empty, she hopes to recoup some of Benny’s lost money.
“Wild Horses” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQTHB4jM-KQ) by The Rolling Stones: After driving across the country in a 1955 Chevy convertible, Jade, and Bridger bond over their willingness to help eighty-nine-year-old Benny no matter the cost. In each other, they find someone on whom they can rely. Mile by mile, town by town, kitschy landmark by kitschy landmark, their friendship accelerates into a love story of their own. And no force on earth can break a bond built on loyalty and trust…or can it?
As they near the California coast and the road before them disappears in the glare of the setting sun, will the music end or continue into a happily ever after? Grab your copy of The Road before Us to find out!
Route 66 Novel of Reconciliation and Romance
How far would you go to fix the mistakes you've made and regain the trust you lost? For Jade Jessup, the answer is 2,448 miles. Once one of Chicago's significant financial advisors, Jade lost her credibility when her fiancé (and coworker) stole millions of dollars from their clients in a Ponzi scheme. Now she's agreed to help one of them--an aging 1960s Hollywood starlet named Berenice "Benny" Alderidge--seek financial restoration.
Jade sets off along Route 66 with Benny and her handsome adult foster son, Bridger, who is filming a documentary retracing the 1956 trip that started the love story between Benny and her recently deceased husband, Paul. Listening to Benny recount her story draws Jade into memories of her own darker association with Route 66, when she was kidnapped as a child by a man the media labeled a monster--but she remembers only as daddy.
Together, all three of these pilgrims will learn about family, forgiveness, and what it means to live free of the past. But not before Jade faces a second staggering betrayal that changes everything.
Romance Contemporary [Revell, On Sale: May 21, 2024, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780800742966 / eISBN: 9781493445622]
Prone to wander, Janine Rosche finds as much comfort on the open road as she does at home. This longing to chase adventure, behold splendor, and experience redemption is woven into her Madison River Romance series. When she isn’t writing or traveling, she teaches family life education courses to college students, takes too many pictures of her sleeping dogs, and embarrasses her four children and husband with boy band serenades.
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