The Rescue

The Rescue
Nicholas Sparks

Good book but not close to one of my favorites. This one took me a month to read. Didn't really captivate me until about chapter 20.

Favorite Part:
"People come, people go, they'll drift in and out of your life almost like characters in a favorite book. When you finally close the cover the characters have told their story and you start up again with another book commplete with new ones, not the ones from the past."

Melissa talking about raising 4 boys - "Sure you could say its easy. All you have to do is wake up early get the paper and read it, leisurely, while drinking tequila shooters"

Message In A Bottle (Spoilers)

Message In A Bottle
Nicholas Sparks

My heart hurts after reading this tragic love story. Despite the tragedy it makes you believe in something greater than you can see or imagine. During the last chapter I literally threw the book across the coffee table vowing to never read another Sparks novel. All of  my vowing and complaining and tears won't matter though, I picked up the book and finished it, even though my heart broke for Theresa every second. I am dreading reading anymore of his novels even though I know I will b/c he has so much power in his writing. He doesn't just finish with a typical everyone gets a happy ending is why I love his books even when I hate what happens. This book and movie are more tragic than Romeo & Juliet ever were. I think Nicholas Sparks enjoys breaking the hearts of his readers.

I also rented the movie via Netflix but there are differences..
Who is Helen there is no Helen in the book?
The letters are different in the book.
there is no one named Charlie in the book? Deanna is a way better character....
Deanna was way better than all the people that make her up in the movie.
There's no Happenstance
NOTE TO SELF: Dont read a book then watch the movie immediately following that it ruins the movie for me.

The Lucky One (SPOILER)

The Lucky One

Nicholas Sparks

I didn't think I would like this one all that much. The first two chapters were slow reading for me then it picked up right away. I love books that have military people in it. Thibault is amazing of course. I love how he's there to protect Beth, Ben & Nana and it's almost like Beth's brother came from the grave and led Thibault to them. He's a true hero and every woman's dream guy.

Favorite Quotes

Nana had the best lines: "Two cannibals were eating a commedian one of them turns to the other and says does this taste funny to you?"

"she stopped using smoke signals last year"

"hope springs eternal"

They should make this into a movie!

True Believer

True Believer
Nicholas Sparks

This book was a little over the top for me. It didn't keep me guessing or turning the pases. The ending felt rushed to me. I would've like more character surprise at the end. I basically saw the ending coming.

Favorite Quotes:
"Information passed through small towns like prune juice through infants."

One day you're going to learn something that can't be explained with science. And when that happens your life's going to change in ways you can't imagine."

You find out who you are and what you want and then you realize that the people you've known forever don't see things the way you do. And so you keep the wonderful memories but find yourself moving on. It's perfectly normal."

The Last Song (SPOILERS)

The Last Song
Nicholas Sparks

I loved this book. The last three chapters had me in tears. Nicholas Sparks does an amazing job of getting you to empathize with all the characters.
Favorite Quotes:
"They promised me patience when it was easy to be impatient, candor when it was easier to lie and in their own ways, each recognized the fact that real committment could be proven only through the passage of time." pg 270

"Everytime light shines through the window we built or any window at all you'll know i'm right there with you okay? That's going to be me. I'll be the light in the window." pg359

"Life he realized, was much like a song. In the beginning there is mystery, in the end there is confirmation, but it's in the middle where all the emotion resides to make the whole thing worthwhile." pg 391

This movie was good. However, I had a hard time believing Miley Cyrus in this role. Because I read the book first I had a different picture in my head of how she should look and carry herself.

Dear John

Dear John
Nicholas Sparks

This review will be crazy because I read the book and then I saw the movie...

This was a beautiful love story with tragic ends. Loved it and hated it. John is an amazing hero, struggling with a decision between his love for Sahvanna and his love for his country especially in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. Will their love survive the trials and tribulations of seperation war brings in young love? Read it to find out......

The movie was good but disappointing. While I know that screen writters can't always stay exactly to the novel, this one was changed a bit. The beginning was different.  Channing Tatum did an awesome job capturing John's character.

NOTE* Must have tissues ready and be prepared to be angry at the end..

A Bend In The Road ****

A Bend In The Road
Nicholas Sparks

Excellent read, keeps you turning page after page for what is next.
Miles is amazing, you want him to have a happy ending.
There is just enough of the killer in the story to have you guessing who he is until 1/2 way through - but you do feel sorry for him.
Glad for the happy ending but wonder how they've managed that when the killer is who it is...

http://www.nicholassparks.com/

My Great Escape

When I was younger I was never really passionate about reading? I just never really cared about reading books. In high school I tried to get away with doing the cliff notes thing for just about every novel I was forced to read seeing how I had better things to worry about. No books ever really held my attention for me to want to actually keep reading. I found myself not having time to read in college or while in the Army. Once in awhile I would find a book I would end up reading even though it would take me a few weeks to get it read. I started reading a lot in 2006, mostly those reality books, like Chicken Soup For The Soul, which was awesome when I came across this posting that I loved and it just so happened it is authored by one of my best friends from college who I had lost touch with. Talk about a sign. I read some Dr. Phil stuff, some how to get your children under control stuff and a fiction novel here or there. Usually a murder mystery. I found myself liking Cathrine Coulture, she writes FBI Fiction. I love her novels Double Jeapordy and Point Blank.
At the beginning of 2009 with Andy deployed and me hanging out with spouses from his unit, I got caught up in the Twilight madness. My friends were all excited to see the movie and they had started reading the books. One of my neighbors even told me she was reading the first book and was having trouble putting it down. I thought I'm not going to read these because they're so hyped up I'll be disappointed. Not to mention they're geared toward young readers like teenagers. But the more they all talked about how amazing the books were I thought I'll try them out and see. So I borrowed the first book "Twilight" from Meghin, I read it in less than 48 hours.. yeah once I got into the story I couldn't put it down. I finished the book at about 3am and was up at 8am on my way to Borders to buy the rest of the books.. I purchased "New Moon" in large paperback, but I had to purchase "Eclipse" and "Breaking Dawn" in hardcover because they weren't released in paperback yet. Looking back I wish now I would've gotten the whole set in hardcover. I read "New Moon" and I loved it! Most Twi-hard Edward fans hate New Moon but I loved every second of it.. I'm a Jacob fan if you couldn't tell. Anyway, I read all three books in less than 3 days. I would read while I was making dinner, I would read while I was bottle feeding Grace, I would read in the tub, I would read when the kids went to bed... I am definately unconditionally and irrevocably in love with the Twilight Series of books. But I think, "Breaking Dawn" is probably my favorite. So I found myself in love with the genius that is Stephenie Meyers and decided to see what else she had written. Much to my suprise she had another book called "The Host" which is geared more toward adult readers. Of course not yet in paperback, I bought it anyway and true to form she captured my attention with this story. I couldn't put it down either and also read it in less than 48 hours. I read things on and off after that but nothing serious until Andy returned home from deployment in September of 2009.
At the beginning of this year I decided to start writting down my thoughts on books that I had read in a little journal. Just my favorite quotes, notes about the authors I liked and what I didn't like about books I have read. Now I've decided to link this blog to my main blog and share with you all my thoughts on books. Some of my reviews will have spoilers and I will try to write spoiler in the blog title before I post it, so maybe you will skip over it if its something you intend to read. My love for reading has evolved greatly throughout this year.
I guess it will give people more insite to the crazy chic that blogs rantings and madness most of the time.... this is  my serene, wonderful, beautiful world of books, my easy escape from reality, if only just for a moment....


Favorite Authors
Nicholas Sparks
Jodi Picoult
Stephenie Meyer
Catherine Coulture
Sarah Dessen
Stephen King