REVIEW: SAFE HAVEN ~ NICHOLAS SPARKS

Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks is the story of Katie, an abused wife who changes her identity and flees her husband from Boston to the small town of Southport.  Katie makes a low-key living as a waitress, but despite her efforts to remain aloof from the townsfolk, her petite beauty, shy manner and mysterious background soon has all of Southport interested.  A series of events also soon has Katie involved in two reluctant relationships; one with her mysterious neighbour Jo, and one with kind, single father Alex.  Despite her reservations, Katie finds herself settling in and calling Southport home.

Josh Duhamel (Alex) and Julianne Hough (Katie) on the movie set of Safe Haven

Alex knows that Katie wants to be left to her own devices, but something about the wounded look that sometimes comes into her eyes makes it impossible for him to keep his distance.  When his kids become fond of Katie they start spending more time together, and slowly but surely the real Katie emerges; a kind, fun-loving, sweet woman who wants nothing more than to love and be loved.  A happy future might be in the cards for them after all.

Kristen, Alex and Katie

But Katie left behind a vengeful alcoholic husband who will do anything to bring her back to the prison she left behind.  With a secret stash of money steadily growing, ready to disappear to the next town at the drop of a hat should Kevin track her down, can Katie truly give her heart to Alex knowing she can never marry him, and that she can definitely not promise forever?  Can she build a life with him and his kids, knowing that she would have to look over her shoulder for the rest of her life?

David Lyons as Kevin

At first I found it a tad unrealistic that Katie would fall for another man so hard only about four months after leaving an abusive bully of a husband who knocked her around for four years.  Realistically I just thought that it would take a lot longer for an abused woman to open her heart up to another man after years of abuse from a man she initially trusted; but the more I read and the more I thought about it, I believe this part of the story is a testament to Katie’s character.  It goes to show just how sweet and trusting she is, and how desperate she is for love and affection.  I think it also says a lot about Alex that Katie immediately realises he’s a good, solid man she can trust and depend on.    

Alex and Katie

I found both Katie and Alex to be charming characters, and I enjoyed sharing this journey with them.  Nicholas Sparks did an amazing job of describing the life of an abused wife – it always amazes me how good he is at writing female characters.  Usually I can’t relate to female characters created by male authors, because there is just so much about being a woman that they miss.  Sparks goes through a lot of trouble to ensure his female characters are realistic and relatable; and as for the male characters, he never fails to give us the perfect hero to save the day. 

Safe Haven is a sweet book about new beginnings, and I look forward to seeing the film version starring Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough to be released February 2013.  I can perfectly picture the two of them in these roles – great casting!  

All photos in this post were taken during filming and are available on the Safe Haven Movie page on Facebook.

Product information:
Title: Safe Haven

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Number of pages: 368

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Year: 2010

ISBN: 9780751542998

ISBN-13: 9780751542998

NOW READING: SAFE HAVEN ~ NICHOLAS SPARKS

I've been wanting to read Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks for a while now, and as filming of the film version took place over the last few months, fun set photos like this one only made the story seem that much more interesting.

Julianne Hough (Katie) and Josh Duhamel (Alex) goofing around on set 

When a mysterious young woman named Katie appears in the small North Carolina town of Southport, her sudden arrival raises questions about her past. Beautiful yet self-effacing, Katie seems determined to avoid forming personal ties until a series of events draws her into two reluctant relationships: one with Alex, a widowed store owner with a kind heart and two young children; and another with her plainspoken single neighbor, Jo. Despite her reservations, Katie slowly begins to let down her guard, putting down roots in the close-knit community and becoming increasingly attached to Alex and his family.

Kristen, Alex & Katie

But even as Katie begins to fall in love, she struggles with the dark secret that still haunts and terrifies her . . . a past that set her on a fearful, shattering journey across the country, to the sheltered oasis of Southport. With Jo’s empathic and stubborn support, Katie eventually realizes that she must choose between a life of transient safety and one of riskier rewards . . . and that in the darkest hour, love is the only true safe haven.

THE LUCKY ONE

This weekend I finally got around to watching the film version of The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks.

The Lucky One is the story of Marine, Logan Thibault, who finds a picture of woman, with the words “Keep Safe” written on the back, in Iraq.  Not only does the act of walking towards the picture save his life, but from the moment Logan finds this picture his luck changes and she soon becomes his lucky charm and guardian angel.  When Logan then survives several situations which should have left him dead, he decides to somehow find this woman and thank her for saving his life.  Logan locates Beth, a single mom still very much under the thumb of her ex-husband, Keith.  Logan repeatedly tries to explain to Beth why he has come to find her, but something always gets in the way, and before he can tell her the truth, Logan and Beth fall in love.  Logan also befriends Beth’s son, Ben.  Beth soon realises that Logan understands Ben much better than his own father does, and also treats him better.  A happy life beckons Logan, Beth and Ben; and the only person not happy with this situation is Keith - he is a Sheriff Deputy in town and his father is a powerful Judge running for Mayor.  Beth lives her life knowing that any misstep she makes could cause her to lose her son to the powerful Clayton family, so she numbly allows Keith to exert control over her life.  The question is, now that she has found Logan, will she allow Keith to destroy this precious chance of happiness?  And what has the greater chance of destroying their new-found happiness; Keith’s threats, or the true nature of Logan’s move to Hamden?

 

Zac Effron is the perfect Logan!  He did the character perfect justice and even added some depth to Logan.  As for Taylor Schilling, she did a good job with Beth, but as for the way the character was adapted for the film, I found Beth to be much more likable in the book.  Little Riley Thomas Stewart was also a perfect Ben, and I love Blythe Danner as Ellie - I just wish the character was as eccentric in the movie as she is in the book.  As for Keith, the movie omitted so much of just what a jerk he is!  The movie didn’t even mention the fact that he had spiked Beth’s drinks while they were together, leading to Beth sleeping with him and falling pregnant, and ultimately marrying him.  Keith is a jerk beyond compare, but for some reason the movie softened him up a little.  And then, my major complaint: Zeus.  I am so disappointed that he plays such a small role in the film.  In the book Zeus is a much more prominent character, and he hardly ever leaves Logan’s side – in the movie he’s hardly ever with Logan.  I understand it is difficult to work with animals, but he deserved a bigger role.  In the book he is, after all, the one who saves Ben from drowning – also omitted from the film.

As is always the case with an adaptation, the book obviously had more depth; but as far as adaptations go, The Lucky One was beautifully done.  Overall, the film version does the book justice.  

REVIEW: THE LUCKY ONE ~ NICHOLAS SPARKS

It was with skepticism that I decided to give Nicholas Sparks another try. The guy usually makes me cry and leaves me angry with him for quite a while, which is why I’ve been successfully avoiding his books for a few years now.

A few weeks ago the television channels started airing the trailer for The Lucky One, the movie adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ novel. The storyline immediately grabbed my attention, and after seeing the trailer about three times I decided to read the book.

Logan Tibault is a US Marine serving in Iraq when he picks up a picture of a beautiful blonde woman, with the words “Keep safe” written on the back. At first he pins the photo to the notice board where the Marine who it belongs to can reclaim it. However, nobody claims it, and driven by a compulsion he can’t explain, Logan takes the picture back. That night, with the picture in his pocket, his luck turns. At first Logan simply wins a lot of money from other Marines at poker, but soon it appears the picture is a lucky charm in every sense of the word when Logan inexplicably survives attack, after attack, after attack. After his third tour of duty, Logan is driven to find the woman in the picture. She saved his life. He owed her…

Elizabeth Green is a lonely young divorcee, living in a small town with her Grandmother and her son, Ben. Elizabeth’s dating life is non-existent, leaving her vulnerable as she ponders why the men she dates all eventually simply stop contacting her without any explanation. To complicate her life even further, Elizabeth shares custody of Ben with his father, Sheriff Keith Clayton – an immature, womanizing bully who abuses his power.  Keith’s family is the most prominent family in Hampton, which also includes a Judge of the Court, and Beth knows that rattling the cage in any way could cause her to lose Ben to the Claytons for good. For this reason Elizabeth is forced to toe the line in all respects for fear Keith might sue for full custody of Ben.

Elizabeth helps Nana run a dog kennel and training centre, and when Logan finally finds Elizabeth at the kennel with a “Help Wanted” sign in the window, Logan has the opportunity to become a part of Elizabeth’s life. He knows it’s his destiny to find her, though he doesn’t know why yet. He takes the job at the kennel, getting to know Elizabeth, Nana and Ben, with the ever present picture of Elizabeth in his back pocket.

When Elizabeth and Logan fall in love, Keith couldn’t be more unhappy with the situation. Apart from the fact that Logan might posses evidence that could cause Keith’s Grandfather to disown him, Keith always saw Elizabeth as his toy, and even though he’s found other toys to play with, it doesn’t mean he wants anybody else to play with his old toys. This was a creepy analogy used in the book, and it effectively captures how perverted Keith Clayton is. Can Logan and Elizabeth’s fragile new relationship survive the wrath of Keith Clayton, and the massive secret that Logan is keeping from her?

The Lucky One is a beautiful love story! Logan and Elizabeth’s romance is very realistically portrayed from Logan’s fascination with Elizabeth, Elizabeth’s initial distrust of Logan, gradually getting to know each other, Logan’s budding relationship with Ben and ultimately discovering that they’ve come to love each other. The humour in the novel is also quite witty. I found myself laughing out loud several times, first with some of Nana’s sayings (which never make any sense), and especially with Logan and Elizabeth’s first date at “Shagging for Crabs”. It sounds dirty, but it’s really not! The whole experience is based on double entendres, which gets to be very funny. This is one of my favourite scenes in the book and I sincerely hope it’s made its way into the movie version.

One of my favourite character’s is Logan’s dog, Zeus! Not many authors can subtly yet effectively make an animal a very real presence and a primary character in a story. Zeus is awesome. Nicholas Sparks has a lovely way of writing romance. Honest, simple and realistic. I had high expectations for The Lucky One, and it didn’t let me down.

The Lucky One releases in American theatres today. My fellow South Africans, it hits our screens on 25 May 2012.

Nicholas, you and I are on speaking terms again, my friend…

Product information:
Title: The Lucky One

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Number of pages: 352

Publisher: Penguin SA

Year: 2009

ISBN: 9780751539240

NOW READING: THE LUCKY ONE ~ NICHOLAS SPARKS

When Nicholas Sparks releases a new book two things are certain: 1) You are going to cry when you read it, and 2) it will, at some point, be turned into a feature film.

Nicholas Sparks writes beautiful, believable love stories. The thing is, though, where I love traditional, happily-ever-after endings, Nicholas seems to be a fan of bitter-sweet endings. For this reason I have avoided Nicholas Sparks novels for a while now; The guy, while brilliant, never quite gives me the ending I had hoped for.

I am now reading The Lucky One, my first Nicholas Sparks novel in a few years, and I have to admit it was the movie trailer which convinced me.  You might recall this was one of the 20 books to read before they're adapted into 2012 movies. 

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.

Filled with tender romance and terrific suspense, The Lucky One is Nicholas Sparks at his best—an unforgettable story about the surprising paths our lives often take and the power of fate to guide us to true and everlasting love ~ Nicholas Sparks' website.

RECOMMENDATION OF THE MONTH: A WALK TO REMEMBER ~ NICHOLAS SPARKS

This time around my recommendation of the month is a relatively old book. By that I just mean that it's not as current as my previous recommendations. The reason I am making it my recommendation of the month is because it is one of my all time favourite books, and probably the book I've read the most. If you've never read this masterpiece, it really is a book you need to add to your must-read-list!


This book was published in 1999, and given to me that same year as a birthday gift from my big brother. (How amazing to have brothers who buy you books?!) During my High School years, this was the book I turned to for comfort. Whenever I was feeling down, or lonely or bored, this book would keep me company, help me while away the time and cheer me up all at the same time. I have come to love these characters, and this timeless story about first love and faith will always be in my top 5 books of all time. My recommendation of the month is A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks.


Every April, when the wind blows from the sea and mingles with the scent of lilacs, Landon Carter remembers his last year at Beaufort High. It was 1958, and Landon had already dated a girl or two. He even swore that he had once been in love. Certainly the last person in town he thought he’d fall for was Jamie Sullivan, the daughter of the town’s Baptist minister. A quiet girl who always carried a Bible with her schoolbooks, Jamie seemed content living in a world apart from the other teens. She took care of her widowed father, rescued hurt animals, and helped out at the local orphanage. No boy had ever asked her out. Landon would never have dreamed of it. Then a twist of fate made Jamie his partner for the homecoming dance, and Landon Carter’s life would never be the same. Being with Jamie would show him the depths of the human heart and lead him to a decision so stunning it would send him irrevocably on the road to manhood… - as per Nicholas Sparks' website.

Like most novels there are several different covers, this is what mine looks like.

Jamie and Landon have "known" each other all of their lives. They live in the same small town, go to the same school, attend the same church, but they've never been friends. Landon is popular, Jamie is not. Jamie doesn't wear fashionable clothes, she carries her Bible around with her, she does charity work. Jamie is pretty much the most boring girl in Beaufort; or so Landon thinks. As newly appointed Student Body President, Landon must attend the school dance, with a date. Having previously dismissed the idea of going, Landon is dateless at the last minute, and reluctantly asks out the only girl who hasn't been asked; Jamie. Once in her company Landon begins to realise that Jamie is a lovely girl, misunderstood by her peers. As they start to spend more time in each other's company, Landon has to deal with redicule from the popular kids, Jamie's disapproving father, and most importantly the mystery of Jamie's misunderstood life and unshakeable faith in a God she can't see.

There is also a film version of the book wherein Shane West and Mandy Moore bring Landon and Jamie to life; Mandy Moore won several awards for her beautiful portrayal of Jamie.

I love the film version too, but many changes were made in order to modernise the story set in 1958 to a more contemporary account. The movie version was released in 2002, and was directed by Adam Shankman. If you've seen the movie it doesn't mean you know the book. At all! My favourite scene in the book, the title scene, is not even in the movie! But still, they made it work. The movie is a great addition to the story, but I strongly recommend that you read the book first.

The description from Nicholas' website pretty much sums up the outline of the story, but the core is so dazzling and heartbreakingly real that I can't share that here without giving the story away. It's quite simply one of those books you have to read for yourself. I sincerely hope that you do.