Trailblazer

A mountain. A blizzard. A young man new to hiking and to love, making mistakes in both. First year of college. A great time to re-invent yourself. Nathan Bartlett takes the opportunity very seriously-maybe a little too seriously. And he makes mistakes. His mistakes? Falling for a straight guy who reminds him of his beloved older brother. Getting too invested in the substance abuse disorders of two other students. And climbing a mountain in a snowstorm for all the wrong reasons. But he also develops friendships that will be his for life. He faces his inner demons and comes up with a plan. And he realizes that answers to important questions are seldom waiting on the surface but must be worked for, or struggled for, or suffered for-and sometimes all three. Nathan is a trailblazer on his own journey. His success will be measured not by how well he follows someone else's path, but by whether he can forge his own. This first book in a series of three novels gets Nathan started on a journey that will teach him about himself, about life, and about love. Walk with him. Each book in the series stands alone, though Nathan's journey will be best appreciated by reading all three.

Self-discovery. Sounds simple, right? After all, you're already there. You're already you. So, it can surprise us that it takes so much time, and so much effort. It surprises Nathan Bartlett. Nathan has lost two family members in a few years. It surprises him to realize he hadn't known them nearly as well as he'd thought, and this makes him question his own worth. And it makes him feel like he belongs nowhere. So, he goes on a spiritual quest. Professional hike leader Conroy Finnegan-sexy, very masculine, and charismatic-leads Nathan to the Kalalau Trail on the island of Kaua'i, "... a place where magic happens, where the very names are magical: Na Pali. Ho'olulu. Waiahuakua. Hanakoa. Hanakapi'ai." Conroy seduces Nathan in more ways than one. He leads Nathan to paradise and lets him find his own way back. Nathan begins his journey as a searcher. On the way he becomes a seeker. These states of mind are different. And they lead Nathan on different journeys. Walk with him.

Trust. It's a precious commodity. Nathan Bartlett is looking for someone to trust-someone he can give his heart to, someone he can trust not to drop it. He's ready to love and be loved. He's lost so much love already. First his parents, then his adored older brother Neil, and finally the grandmother who'd raised him. All but his enigmatic sister Nina are gone. He's had his fill of relationships that go nowhere, men who've led him astray emotionally and on the mountains he climbs in memory of Neil. Nathan has followed enough trails, from Maine to Hawai'i. It's time to blaze his own. When he does, it leads him to a man who lives life using a wheelchair, a man whose fall from a mountain means he'll never hike again. Nathan finds himself on a precipice, and only trust will help him now.

Nathan Bartlett is a trailblazer-not because he follows established routes in the White Mountains, or on Kaua'i, or on Mt. Desert Island, but because he explores and then follows that inner path that tells him who he is and how, he relates to the world around him. Forging his path doesn't mean he finds all the answers. It means he identifies the questions that matter. In On Chocorua, Nathan begins his journey as a college freshman. He makes a life-long friend, feels the pain of losing a lover to addiction, and loses his adored older brother Neil in a tragic accident. Although Nathan steps figuratively into the hiking boots Neil can no longer wear, he can't leave behind him the guilt he feels that he didn't know Neil, or his other family members, as well as he'd thought. He also can't seem to find the sense of being loved, the sense of belonging that Neil had given him, no matter how many mountain peaks he claims, no matter how deep the existential forgiveness he feels hiking on the island of Kaua'i (On the Kalalau Trail). He's had his fill of relationships that go nowhere, of men who've led him astray emotionally and on the mountains he, climbs in memory of Neil Then, in On The Precipice, Nathan meets Drew Madden, a true mountain man, who fell from a cliff and now uses a wheelchair. Nathan's relationship with Drew helps him realize he's been looking for himself in all the wrong places and guides him toward his own personal trail, which includes a career in addiction recovery. Nathan is a trailblazer on his own journey. And, his success will be, measured not by how well he follows someone else's path, but by whether, he can forge his own. Walk with him.