The Exit Plan: (2 Living Heavy Traveling Light)

The Exit Plan

Book 2 in the Living Heavy, Traveling Light series.

Lewis faces the challenge of rethinking long held beliefs. Burdened by an ugly backstory, global responsibilities, and thorny business ventures, he's dedicated to the departure point where he can force the past to give way to the future. He's planned an independent second half with no entanglements but the plan no longer satisfies. The realization wasn't a slow dawning; it came with the force of a bullet. He healed; he's still the smartest guy in the room, but things have changed. Meanwhile, in Middle Eastern Imira, bridges and pipelines are being planned and engineered. While he oversees projects like Imira, Lewis maintains his position of authority within his organization and weaves his long distance love affair into his vision of the future.

Suzanna is future focused too, embracing independence after a stifling marriage and resolved to escape the trap of expectation and disappointment. This is not that. Elusive and passionate by turns, demonstrated in bursts, sharp edged and definite - this is all or nothing.

World computing capacity doubles every two years, well ahead of human facility to make good use of it. Human capacity is static. Once we labeled early adopters cutting edge, applauding their bold appetites. Now early adopters are early resistors, using their expertise to sever digital baggage and forego convenience for human contact and tactile experiences.

The elusive goal is getting out clean, leaving no trace, and taking only what you care about with you.

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Living Heavy Traveling Light series: The Oxenburg Woman. The Exit Plan. Cantik Ni.

Socrates believed that "an unexamined life is not worth living." His words inspire us to look inward, forgive ourselves, and strive to improve, all while maintaining a sense of wonder about how we might live. In the twenty-first century, from birth to death, every photograph and word, spoken or written, every action, discussed or undertaken, leaves a record to be uncovered and examined. Socrates would be unbothered. He was talking about self-examination and living with intention.

To be human is to yearn for a clean slate, a new start. Even the blameless sometimes feel thwarted, but in songs and stories, the concept of running from the past - to the Mosquito Coast, to vineyards in Provence - is debunked. The future, at every turn being flung into life from the heels of the past, is but barely glimpsed in the lift of light. Growth is not sparked by escape but by pursuit, not of the new but of the next. Until our last breath, tomorrow is open and forgiving. No need to run; better to proceed thoughtfully. Maturity, appreciation, and peace come from treading heavy ground with a light step, focused on today, mastering self and accepting the scars.

The series follows a man bent on a life of isolation and a woman of curiosity, vision, and agency who join forces, first by necessity, then by passion, and finally by desire for a connection underlaid by character, and sustained by courage, trust, and partnership.

"The second installment of Mann's espionage trilogy pulls readers back into the high-stakes world of Lewis and Suzanna, exploring their evolving relationship amid a tangled web of international conspiracy."

• Takeaway: "Thoughtful espionage story of romantic commitment and trying to exit the life."
• Comparable Titles: Tess Gerritsen's The Spy Coast; Rosalie Knecht