Sideways: New Zealand: The Road Back

The Sideways Series #4

by Rex Pickett

From bestselling author Rex Pickett comes New Zealand, the next delightfully dark and funny novel in the Sideways series.

Miles Raymond thought things were going relatively well.

Miles, the now iconic alter ego of author Rex Pickett—who was first introduced in the critically acclaimed book Sideways and its award-winning movie adaptation—resurfaces on the South Island of New Zealand. All he has in life is a half hectare of Pinot Noir, a guest cottage where his days are numbered, a special needs cat named Max, and a winemaker partner pressing him for a more committed relationship.

These modest assets are balanced by the impending publication of Miles’s new novel, A Year of Pure Feeling. His fledgling publicist has arranged for a book tour that will take Miles along the east coast of New Zealand, from Oamaru to Auckland, to a series of increasingly interesting Kiwi book clubs. In a six-ton camper van! In the winter!

Jack Manse, after a divorce and a financial disaster, has reinvented himself and gleefully volunteers to copilot, too delighted at the prospect of a road trip and a reunion with Miles to heed his friend’s objections.

Alternately blackly comical and poignantly heartbreaking, what started as a book tour through New Zealand becomes a journey through Miles’s soul.

381 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 30, 2024

Reviews

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sideways books are always going to be some of my favorites. The raw emotions that are put into the characters, especially Miles, are so relatable. His anxieties, dreams, hopes, failures have always struck a chord with me. It makes me feel less alone at times to know that others feel the same as I do. That is one of the magic things about books, feeling less alone and a bit validated in your own thoughts.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first book in this series (as well as the movie which was hilarious) but didn't love this one as much as it was just a little too silly for me. Miles and Jack meet up again and this time are traveling in a camper van promoting Miles's new book. But the encounters they have with the "book clubs," while funny enough, sink into way too many unbelievable escapades that just had me rolling my eyes. So after the first few I felt like I could predict the catastrophe that would be the next! The end leaves us with a sequel so I won't give up on the series as Miles and Jack are funny by themselves, but this just wasn't favorite.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

[Miranda Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the Sideways series, always have and always will. Rex Pickett has a beautiful way with words and he keeps you wanting more. The only thing I struggle with is the inconsistencies from one book to the next. From the name of Jack’s son to whether Miles has a sister to what happened between him and Maya after Sideways: Chile.. it would be more enjoyable if he could keep his story straight.

[PJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t finish it

I wasted my money with this book. Between the $100 words and the fantasy sex life, this author showed himself to be a true pig.

[Laura Hart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read all four of the Sideways books and loved the movie. This genre of book is refreshing, even for those not into wine. I listened to the audiobook on Hoopla. The narrator did a good job with both American and Kiwi accents. I loved the descriptions of New Zealand, where I've never been, and found myself going to Google Maps to follow along on their trek and looking up certain New Zealand traditions, landmarks and words on Wikipedia. It had its usual comical moments, especially from the ever dim-witted and clumsy Jack, along with some fun new characters like Hannah, Max the Cat and all the zany book club participants. It prompts the reader to do a mental backtrack of Miles' past, even before the first book. The downside of this book was the sudden interjection and/or quick exit of some characters, which happened frequently in Sideways Chile, the lack of development/closure of some of the storylines and feeling like I was being ear-f**ked by a dictionary. I'm not sure if the author was using words most English-speaking Americans have never heard of and can only guess what they meant out of context because he was trying to show off Jack's vocab intellect... or his own.

[Jonathan Palo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy the characters and will always be willing to read more entries in the series, but I didn’t enjoy this as much as the rest.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rex Pickett's latest in the Sideways series is a fitting spiritual successor to the previous volume, which was somewhat of a departure from the first two books. As with book three, The Road Back takes the reader along as a passenger on a road trip with a cynical, vulnerable author in scenic wine country--this time in New Zealand.

The author's choice of setting is flawless, once again treating the reader to lush descriptions of the countryside and its viniculture. Pickett's signature sense of humor is intact in describing the characters’ drunken antics, as is his sense of artistic perspective, frequently balancing outrageous scenes with Miles’ genuinely profound observations. Unfortunately, he’s not the same character and this is not the same kind of the story that we read in the first two books.

By the time readers reunite with him in New Zealand, Miles Raymond's transformation between books two and three (from protagonist to fictional character written by the author-protagonist) is complete. No longer truly a romantic, The Road Back sees Raymond compromising every reliable part of his life for a chance at the fame and fortune he's apparently been seeking all along: his (recently restored) love life, his lifelong friendship with Jack, and even his artistic ambition.

In the obsessive quest for monetary compensation, the reader is presented with a protagonist who wanders blindly into obvious pitfalls, making him (in a clear change from the first two books) exactly the frustrating and pathetic figure he’s accused of being.
Miles alienates his love interest after getting shocking news about his past which he refuses to tell her. The news is so predictable that drawing out the secrecy until the end is pointless at best (and she probably would have figured it out), but the fact that Miles chooses to divulge the information almost immediately to Jack makes the relationship feel even more contrived. Pickett develops one new character to the point that you'll read more just to see the resolution, but in the end, he does her a disservice, as well, relegating her to an afterthought by the conclusion. As a result, none of the characters grows or changes very much except to disappoint the reader.

While The Road Back features brief glimmers of past glory, Miles Raymond is no longer the character we fell in love with back in California. Pour yourself a glass of merlot and set your expectations to [Reality TV] for this detour through a barren vineyard of ideas.

Thank you to Edelweiss and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC.

[Dubi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone loved Sideways, certainly anyone who like me has now gotten four volumes deep into Rex Pickett's Sideways series. Having gotten the rights to Sideways before the actual publication of the novel, Alexander Payne's masterful film adaptation would have already been seen by eventual readers of the print edition. Like me, readers would have first fallen in love with the movie, one of the great movies of all time, so great it elevated pinot noir to unforeseen heights and tanked the merlot market with a single punchline ("If anyone orders merlot, I'm leaving, I am not drinking any f-ing merlot").

I've read all four entries in the series. The original bachelor party road trip through California wine country was followed by Vertical, a road trip to Oregon's pinot noir region, Sideways Chile, a road trip to South America that didn't do for the big wine producing country's sauvignon blanc what Sideways did for pinot, and now a road trip through New Zealand in which Miles is once again joined by his Sideways sidekick Jack, reviving his TV career with a reality show in nearby Australia.

Although New Zealand is renowned for its wine and this story finds Miles at the start living on his own little patch of pinot noir on the South Island, it is more about writing and reading and books than wine. Miles has just published his latest book and is sent on a book tour through Kiwi country, harboring a secret that will probably force him back to California. In the meantime, having left his pinot patch and his latest love interest behind, Miles traverses NZ with Jack in a camper van visiting a series of book clubs, each one more bizarre than the previous one.

The results are, in a word, hilarious. The overall arc of the story may be somewhat rudderless, but the vignettes are a lot of fun to read. Pickett's chances of achieving success on the order of the original Sideways are probably hurt by these book clubs being Kiwi rather than American, but this reader appreciated them nevertheless. Clearly there will be more Sideways when Miles returns to his home state, and I for one will be looking forward to it.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for this honest review.

[Eric Montoya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been a fan of this series ever since I decided to see how different the source material was from one of my favorite movies of all time. Each of the four books in the series have been great reads, from first page to last page. Every story has added another layer to the character of Miles Raymond, and in the process has taken me on an emotional journey with my favorite wine snob, oscillating between jealousy that I'm not him, and gratefulness that I'm NOT him.

To be honest, I was hoping for a continuation (or conclusion) to the plot thread that ended the last book, "Sideways: Chile." It was a nice cliffhanger that brought the series full circle to the events which initially unfolded in Book One; but, alas, that sort of happiness was fated to elude our poor protagonist. I think my only criticism of this story is that the ending of the last book wasn't really touched upon, aside from a few ambiguous hints as to what happened between Chile and New Zealand. However, this is just me being a whiny fanboy, and complaining that things didn't pan out the way I wanted, or hoped they would.

Of course, no "Sideways" book is complete without the cluster**** that ensues whenever you put both Miles and Jack together, and "Sideways: New Zealand" has plenty of madness to offer its literary copilots while we follow these gents on a book tour through the New Zealand countryside for Miles' newly-published novel, "A Year of Pure Feeling."

All I'm going to say about said madness is "Cougars of Christchurch Book Club" - one of those oscillating moments I mentioned.

If we're lucky enough to get a fifth novel in the series, I hope we get more of Miles's young, New Zealand publicist, Hana. I really liked her, and she was a nice counter to all of the asshats our two boys come across when they decide to embark on ANY adventure together.

I really do hope we get more books. I mean, I'll read anything Mister Pickett writes, but if Miles and Jack are included, well, that there is the gift that keeps on giving for a fan of the movie like myself. As a matter of fact, I just might watch it again tonight....with some vino, of course.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Boy did I have mixed feelings about this book.

I SHOULD love it. The movie Sideways was like seeing my life on the screen. I've been both a Jack and a Miles at various times in my life.

PLUS, I moved to New Zealand after some minor brushes with fame. Wrote books that didn't sell particularly well. Drink too much wine sometimes. Have struggled with aging, the death of literature, and hanging on to some amazing women. I knew every location in this book and have been to a lot of these places.

So what's the problem? Why only three stars?

The problem is really simple. Rex Pickett's writing is maddening. He quite literally shoehorns an unnecessarily large word into every other sentence. I don't mind a writer with a good vocabulary, but this is really next-level. I get it. Write what you know. Paul Giamatti was certainly like this in the movie, but he somehow made it kind of vulnerable. Like, perhaps it's Miles' insecurity that makes him do this. Maybe that's why the movie was so popular and Rex Pickett the writer is really not?

I suppose I've done some thinking about if it was the movie I liked or the writer. The fact is, I actually like Pickett's storytelling and description of his adventures.

But good lord the unnecessary words. It constantly takes you out of the story.

[Denis S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rex Pickett pulled it off. In Sideways New Zealand, he has written a novel as wonderful as his initial "Sideways". I absolutely loved this book.

Unlike the third installment (Sideways Chile) that, for me, fell short, Pickett brings back Jack, adds a special needs cat, a wonderful Māori New Zealander and a life-altering situation for Miles. The humor is back -- rich and even slapstick at times. And, in this installment, there is a sentimentality on several levels that is heart-touching.

This, in great part, is another road trip. A wild, strange, eventful journey with Miles and Jack and a few other memorable characters that interweaves humor and deep felt emotion. I laughed at parts and, admittedly, was teary at others.

The book concludes as a perfect ending to this incredible series. Or, if Pickett so chooses, leaves the possibility of another installment. I always feel a bit melancholy when finishing a great book and that is what I felt closing the cover on this novel. Well done to Rex Pickett!

[Ásta Ólafs · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, I love this series. I love Pickett's personal writing style so much that I don't even mind the constant assault of sesquipedalian words.
I think Pickett really managed to capture lightning in a bottle with his first Sideways novel, and that's hard to replicate. So with that in mind, and going into it with the mindset of "I'm just happy to get more of Miles and Jack," I had a fantastic time.
It is starting to feel a bit stale though. I wish these characters could grow a bit more and we could see them experience new adventures that don't feel so forced.
We do get a glimmer of the interesting character growth possibilities I'm looking for in the very end of this book, so I am hopeful for the next chapter in Miles' life.

[Thomas St. John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rex Pickett redeemed himself for the farfetched and chaotic "Sideways 3 Chile." This effort is a solid sequel but does recall the first book of the series too often. A tad sentimental and ends abruptly opening the door for yet another in the series. I will probably read the book if it does come to life. I can only hope that it isn't another "Chile."

[Davec · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've enjoyed all of the Sideways series and this book is no exception - alternatively affecting and humorous with the 2 main characters and the ridiculous situations they find themselves in. It's not Shakespeare, but like the other books it made me smile.

[Joy Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic and the best SIDEWAYS yet!

[Bob Barker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never get tired of Mies Raymond.
Although Jack was very unlikeable on this go around.

[Michele Webb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just fantastic

A great continuation of a great story. Love it along with Jack and
Miles. Truly great storytelling that is meaningful