50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 11: Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks

Title: Nights in Rodanthe
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Story: At forty-five, Adrienne Willis must rethink her entire life when her husband abandons her for a younger woman. Reeling with heartache and in search of a respite, she flees to the small coastal town of Rodanthe, North Carolina to tend to a friend's inn for the weekend. But when a major storm starts moving in, it appears that Adrienne's perfect getaway will be ruined -- until a guest named Paul Flanner arrives. At fifty-four, Paul has just sold his medical practice and come to Rodanthe to escape his own shattered past. Now, with the storm closing in, two wounded people will turn to each other for comfort -- and in one weekend set in motion feelings that will resonate throughout the rest of their lives.
Start: march 6th 2012
End: march 11th 2012
Comment: When I started this theme, I just had to pick another Nicholas Sparks book. He is one of the best romantic novelists of this moment and I picked "Nights in Rodanthe". We follow 45-year old Adrienne who is trying to evaluate her life after her husband left her for a younger woman. Something we all hope will never happen to us. She meets a man, Paul, and falls in love with him. Something she tought would never happen to her again. I really liked to read about people in their fourties instead of the usual twenty or thirty something lovestories. I really liked Adrienne, how she struggled and tried to just live her life. That she met Paul was just perfect and I felt happy for her. But I did miss something in this book. It was predictable, lacked originality, I missed the 'sparks'. It's not that I was disappointed, because I still enjoyed reading this book like every other Sparks book. "Nights in Rodanthe" just didn't give me the same feeling, while reading and after I finished, that for instance "The Notebook" and "The Lucky One" gave me. I still consider Nicholas Sparks a great writer, this just wasn't his best.
Rating: 3,5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2012 - # 6: The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks

Title: The Lucky One
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Story: When U.S. Marine Logan Thibault finds a photograph of a smiling young woman half-buried in the dirt during his third tour of duty in Iraq, his first instinct is to toss it aside. Instead, he brings it back to the base for someone to claim, but when no one does, he finds himself always carrying the photo in his pocket. Soon Thibault experiences a sudden streak of luck—winning poker games and even surviving deadly combat that kills two of his closest buddies. Only his best friend, Victor, seems to have an explanation for his good fortune: the photograph—his lucky charm.
Back home in Colorado, Thibault can’t seem to get the photo—and the woman in it—out of his mind. Believing that she somehow holds the key to his destiny, he sets out on a journey across the country to find her, never expecting the strong but vulnerable woman he encounters in Hampton, North Carolina—Elizabeth, a divorced mother with a young son—to be the girl he’s been waiting his whole life to meet. Caught off guard by the attraction he feels, Thibault keeps the story of the photo, and his luck, a secret. As he and Elizabeth embark upon a passionate and all-consuming love affair, the secret he is keeping will soon threaten to tear them apart—destroying not only their love, but also their lives.
Start: february 1st 2012
End: february 4th 2012
Comment: Nicholas Sparks really touched my heart with "The Notebook" and untill now that was the only Sparks novel I read. "The Lucky One" is another lovestory from his hand and I was really loooking forward to reading this. The story focuses on Logan Thibault, a marine who finds a picture of a smiling woman and soon after finding it his luck begins to change. In moments where he should've died he lives, he starts winning poker games, things start turning in his favor. When his friend tells him the picture is his lucky charm, Logan decides to find the woman, not knowing he's going to fall in love with her. This is one of those stories you wished happened to you, at least the falling in love part. This book is different from "The Notebook" because it's written from the perspective of three different people: Logan, Beth and Keith. Because of this, you really get to know each character, understand them, feel them. Logan is a man I would definitely fall for, just like Noah from "The Notebook". I liked him from the start and understood why he wanted to find Beth. I liked Beth too. A loving mom who has been dissappointed by guys many times. In Logan she finds that man she's been looking for and they are perfect for each other. Keith was off course not very likeable. He wasn't a great father, although he wanted to be. And eventhough I didn't sympathize him, I did get him sometimes. Nicholas Sparks has outdone himself and I'm looking forward to reading more of his lovestories.
Rating: 5/ 5

50 Books Challenge 2011 - # 32: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

Title: The Notebook
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Story: At thirty-one, Noah Calhoun, back in coastal North Carolina after World War II, is haunted by images of the girl he lost more than a decade earlier. At twenty-nine, socialite Allie Nelson is about to marry a wealthy lawyer, but she cannot stop thinking about the boy who long ago stole her heart. Thus begins the story of a love so enduring and deep it can turn tragedy into triumph, and may even have the power to create a miracle...
Start: june 5th 2011
End: june 6th 2011
Comment: The most beautiful love-story of all time is definitely "Pride & Prejudice" but "The Notebook" is probably the second best. Or at least a favorite. Noah and Allie meet when they are young and they spend an unforgetable summer together. It's Allie's parents that don't approve of this relationship and they move away. But even though they spend so many years apart, their love doesn't die. And it even lasts forever. This is such a breath taking love-story, when they are young and elderly. As younger lovers they have to convince each other that they are meant to be. When they're older, Noah has to prove his love to Allie everyday and he will never leave her side, even though the circumstances aren't ideal. This is true love, in ever sense of the word. Beautifully written by Nicholas Sparks and without a doubt one of my favrite books of all time.
Rating: 5/ 5