Miles to Go is the second novel in the Miles Series by Richard Paul Evans. After the death of his wife and losing his house and business, Alan Christoffersen makes the choice to walk from his home in Seattle, Washington to Key West, Florida. It is this choice that saves him from committing suicide. However after only sixteen days on the road, Alan is attacked by three young men. Alan wakes with no home and no place to go. Thanks to a real life angel, ironically named Angel, Alan finds not only a place to stay, but someone besides himself to save. Miles to Go is a novel of hope.

Alan Christoffersen wakes in the hospital days after he was brutally attacked outside of Spokane, Washington. Frustrated that he never even left his home state and the fact that he cannot walk, Alan lashes out at the gentle woman who has come to his rescue. Alan stopped once to help a woman with a flat tire and it is that woman who has become his caretaker, even offering him a place to stay until he can get back the strength to continue his walk.

Alan is surprised by Angel’s kindness, but he knows better than to turn it down. The first few days in Angel’s home are quiet and uneventful. However, when a strange woman comes to the door looking for someone named Nicole, Alan finds himself on the edge of a mystery that will take him down a familiar road. Alan asks the neighbors if they have heard of this Nicole, but no one seems to have heard of her. Alan then speaks to the landlord. The man clearly seems to know what is going on, but Alan misses the hints.

Angel gets mad at Alan for speaking to the landlord and lashes out at him. When things do not get better in a few days, Alan decides to leave. When Alan tells Angel his plans, she tells him the truth. She is Nicole. Nicole came from a broken home and entered into an even more broken marriage in an attempt to find love. As this marriage slowly dissolved, Nicole gave birth to a son. One day, after having a fight with her husband, Nicole was in a car accident that killed her child and left her recovering alone. After the accident, Nicole came back to Spokane, her childhood home, so that she could commit suicide.

Alan convinces Nicole that suicide is not an option. Alan then talks Nicole into reaching out to people by encouraging her to invite a neighbor and the landlord to Thanksgiving dinner. That night, after a successful meal, Alan is surprised when his father unexpectedly shows up on the doorstep. Alan learns that both his father has been deeply concerned about him. Alan assures his father he is fine and they talk, learning things about one another they have never really known.

Alan stays with Nicole until spring. When the roads into Yellowstone National Park open, Alan begins his walk. One night, shortly after beginning his walk again, Alan finds himself as a witness to an attempted rape. Alan uses the gun his father gave him to scare the would-be rapists away. Alan then feeds the young victim, a seventeen year old girl named Kailamai, and offers her a clean place to sleep. The next day Kailamai asks to walk with Alan. She ends up becoming his companion for several weeks.

After Alan hears Kailamai’s sad story of abuse and neglect, he realizes that Nicole and Kailamai could help each other. Alan calls Nicole, who comes to meet Kailamai. Kailamai is thrilled with the idea and quickly goes home with Nicole. Alan is left on his own again. Alan makes his way through Yellowstone and into Wyoming. Alan falls into a depression that is suddenly lifted when he sees the incomplete Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota. It inspires Alan, reminding him that not every journey has to have a clear and defined conclusion.