Promise of Departure (edit title/settings)

"Montgomery's debut recalls aspects of Laurence Sterne, with an introspective protagonist both pursued and pursuing some great intangible, the destination secondary to the many digressions along the way ... The colloquial manner that Greg engages with his own challenges, from dropped bikes to sleepless nights, steers the book clear of heavy-handedness. Engrossing prose..." -Kirkus

"It is, at times, humorous and comforting, beguilingly so, stripping bare the darker elements of our nature in such stark, raw detail as to force self-examination of one's belief systems, a forceful fact-check of our own personal and most trusted ideologies. A paper-thin fairy tale it is not. What it is, rather, is a dark and wholly honest observation of the oft-unforeseen pitfalls of the American Dream not many discuss openly. Throughout the novel, Greg deals with themes not uncommon to many 'Gen-Xers' today: finding success at an early age only to ask themselves 'What now?' as they wrestle with the knotty untangling of self-imposed guilt, uncertain if the efforts, the very work itself, ever truly warranted the rewards ... It will not leave you warm and cozy at points, though for those readers so troubled as Greg finds himself, it may often do precisely that ... Ultimately, this is one of the braver debuts I've seen in quite some time. Greg would likely call it 'calculated stupidity'. I call it a calculated success." -OED & R

"A story of true guilt and regret in such a powerful, dramatic setting ... sometimes difficult and depressing to read. But then, life itself is not always a bed of roses...it does tell it like it is." -Reader Views