The Lucky One, by Nicholas Sparks (Read by John Bedford Lloyd)
Logan Thibault arrived at the town of Hampton, North Carolina, after a long, unusual journey. Unusual in that he'd walked all the way from Colorado, long in that it had started in Iraq. Finding a photo of a hauntingly beautiful girl buried in the sand, and unable to find the soldier who'd dropped it, he carried the photo home to Colorado where he examined every aspect of the photo and finally determined that it must have been taken in one of several possible locations. He began a slow hike with his dog across the U.S., trying to find the girl in the photo. At first he can't believe that his buddies were right, that the photo holds magic powers, but one missed catastrophe after another convinces him that the girl is not only his soul mate, but his lucky charm.
Logan finds the mysterious girl, Elizabeth, and rather than tell her about his journey he keeps his reason for being in Hampton a secret. As he falls more deeply in love with the divorced mother and her son, he forgets about his original obsession with the picture and his reason for coming to Hampton. He is startled and alarmed when his secret is exposed, and he becomes the target of Elizabeth's jealous, vindictive ex-husband. Nicolas Sparks has crafted another romantic saga which appeals to men as well as to women. Logan is the proverbial man's man, and his nemesis, Elizabeth's ex-husband, is the kind of jerk men and women want to see get his come-uppance. Elizabeth and Logan become more likeable the better the listener gets to know them as they get to know each other. Each has been damaged by past experiences but each is learning to move forward to a happy future. Sparks manipulates the plot ingeniously to put not only that happiness, but several lives at risk in a harrowing and unpredictable event.
What starts as a mystery, evolves into
a romance and finally into a thrilling adventure. Animal
lovers will admire the bond between Logan and his dog
and they'll find the information about obedience training
that Elizabeth's mother provides fascinating. All in
all, this is a book that will appeal to a wide circle
of readers for a variety of reasons. It's rewarding
for individual listening and because of the diverse
appeal, it would be an appropriate choice for a car
full of commuters.
Ruth
Mormon
2/13/09
