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A Bend in the Road
Miles Ryan's life seemed to end the day his wife was killed in a hit-and-run accident two years ago. Missy had been his first love, and Miles fervently believes she will be his last. As a deputy in the North Carolina town of New Bern, Miles Ryan not only grieves for Missy, but also longs to bring the unknown driver to justice. Then Miles meets Sarah Andrews. The second grade teacher of his son, Jonah, Sarah had left Baltimore after a difficult divorce to start over in the gentler surroundings of New Bern. Perhaps it's her own emotional wounds that make her sensitive to the hurt she first sees in Jonah's eyes, and then his father's. Tentatively, Sarah and Miles reach out to each other. Soon they are both laughing for the first time in years . . . and falling in love. Neither will be able to guess how closely linked they are to a shocking secret -- one that will force them to question everything they ever believed in . . . and make a heartbreaking choice that will change their lives forever.
341 pages, Paperback
First published September 18, 2001
3,422 people are currently reading
69.9k people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Sparks
348books235kfollowersNicholas Sparks is one of the world’s most beloved storytellers. All of his books have been New York Times bestsellers, with over 130 million copies sold worldwide, in more than 50 languages, including over 92 million copies in the United States alone.
Sparks wrote one of his best-known stories, The Notebook, over a period of six months at age 28. It was published in 1996 and he followed with the novels Message in a Bottle (1998), A Walk to Remember (1999), The Rescue (2000), A Bend in the Road (2001), Nights in Rodanthe (2002), The Guardian (2003), The Wedding (2003), True Believer (2005) and its sequel, At First Sight (2005), Dear John (2006), The Choice (2007), The Lucky One (2008), The Last Song (2009), Safe Haven (2010), The Best of Me (2011), The Longest Ride (2013), See Me (2015), Two by Two (2016), Every Breath (2018), The Return (2020), The Wish (2021), and Dreamland (2022), as well as the 2004 non-fiction memoir Three Weeks With My Brother, co-written with his brother Micah. His twenty-fourth novel, Counting Miracles, will be published on September 24, 2024.
Film adaptations of Nicholas Sparks novels, including The Choice, The Longest Ride, The Best of Me, Safe Haven (on all of which he served as a producer), The Lucky One, Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John and The Last Song, have had a cumulative worldwide gross of over three-quarters of a billion dollars. The Notebook has also been adapted into a Broadway musical, featuring music and lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson.
Sparks lives in North Carolina. He contributes to a variety of local and national charities, and is a major contributor to the Creative Writing Program (MFA) at the University of Notre Dame, where he provides scholarships, internships, and a fellowship annually. He co-founded The Epiphany School in New Bern, North Carolina in 2006. As a former full scholarship athlete (he still holds a track and field record at the University of Notre Dame) he also spent four years coaching track and field athletes at the local public high school. In 2009, the team he coached at New Bern High School set a World Junior Indoor Record in the 4×400 meters, as well as US High School National Records in the 800 Medley and 1600 Medley. .
The Nicholas Sparks Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was founded in 2011, to provide scholarships and fund educational programs for underprivileged and disadvantaged youth. Between the foundation, and the personal gifts of the Sparks family, more than $15 million dollars have been distributed to deserving charities, scholarship programs, and projects. Because the Sparks family covers all operational expenses of the foundation, 100% of donations are devoted to programs.
Sparks wrote one of his best-known stories, The Notebook, over a period of six months at age 28. It was published in 1996 and he followed with the novels Message in a Bottle (1998), A Walk to Remember (1999), The Rescue (2000), A Bend in the Road (2001), Nights in Rodanthe (2002), The Guardian (2003), The Wedding (2003), True Believer (2005) and its sequel, At First Sight (2005), Dear John (2006), The Choice (2007), The Lucky One (2008), The Last Song (2009), Safe Haven (2010), The Best of Me (2011), The Longest Ride (2013), See Me (2015), Two by Two (2016), Every Breath (2018), The Return (2020), The Wish (2021), and Dreamland (2022), as well as the 2004 non-fiction memoir Three Weeks With My Brother, co-written with his brother Micah. His twenty-fourth novel, Counting Miracles, will be published on September 24, 2024.
Film adaptations of Nicholas Sparks novels, including The Choice, The Longest Ride, The Best of Me, Safe Haven (on all of which he served as a producer), The Lucky One, Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John and The Last Song, have had a cumulative worldwide gross of over three-quarters of a billion dollars. The Notebook has also been adapted into a Broadway musical, featuring music and lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson.
Sparks lives in North Carolina. He contributes to a variety of local and national charities, and is a major contributor to the Creative Writing Program (MFA) at the University of Notre Dame, where he provides scholarships, internships, and a fellowship annually. He co-founded The Epiphany School in New Bern, North Carolina in 2006. As a former full scholarship athlete (he still holds a track and field record at the University of Notre Dame) he also spent four years coaching track and field athletes at the local public high school. In 2009, the team he coached at New Bern High School set a World Junior Indoor Record in the 4×400 meters, as well as US High School National Records in the 800 Medley and 1600 Medley. .
The Nicholas Sparks Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was founded in 2011, to provide scholarships and fund educational programs for underprivileged and disadvantaged youth. Between the foundation, and the personal gifts of the Sparks family, more than $15 million dollars have been distributed to deserving charities, scholarship programs, and projects. Because the Sparks family covers all operational expenses of the foundation, 100% of donations are devoted to programs.
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January 14, 2022
A Bend in the Road, Nicholas Sparks
A Bend in the Road is the fifth novel by the American author Nicholas Sparks, who also wrote the romance love novels A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, and The Rescue. It was published in 2001.
The story was inspired by Sparks's brother-in-law, Bob. Miles Ryan's life seemed to end the day his wife Missy was killed in a hit-and-run accident two years ago. As deputy sheriff of New Bern, North Carolina, he not only grieves for her and worries about their young son Jonah but longs to bring the unknown driver to justice.
Then Miles meets Sarah Andrews, Jonah's second grade teacher. A young woman recovering from a difficult divorce, Sarah moved to New Bern hoping to start over. Tentatively, Miles and Sarah reach out to each other... soon they are falling in love. But what neither realizes is that they are also bound together by a shocking secret, one that will force them to reexamine everything they believe in- including their love.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز دوم ماه ژانویه سال2003میلادی
عنوان: در پیچ و خم جاده؛ نویسنده: نیکولاس (نیکلاس) اسپارکس؛ مترجم: نفیسه معتکف؛ تهران، لیوسا، سال1381، در460ص، شابک9645634237؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان ایالات متحده امریکا - سده21م
این رمان، داستانی پر التهاب از زندگی زن و مردی است، که رازی خانمان برانداز، زندگی و عشقشان را در سراشیب فروپاشی قرار میدهد؛ از روزی که همسر «مایلز ریان» در سانحه، جان خود را از دست داد، به ظاهر زندگی «مایلز» نیز پایان یافت؛ او در مقام مامور قانون، نه تنها عزادار مرگ همسرش بود، آرزوی دستگیری راننده ناشناسی را نیز، در سر میپروراند؛ سرانجام، «مایلز» با آموزگار پسر خود برخورد میکند، و آنچنان عشقی پرشور میان آن دو شکل میگیرد، که نویسنده در رویدادهای آینده به شور و شوق میپردازد
آغاز متن از کتاب: (صبح روز بیست و نهم از ماه آگوست سال1988میلادی، «مایلز ریان»، که کمی بیش از دو سال، از مرگ همسرش، میگذشت، در ایوان پشتی خانه اش ایستاده بود، و در حالیکه سیگار میکشید، طلوع آهسته ی خورشید را، که آسمان صبحگاه را، از خاکستری دلگیر، به نارنجی تبدیل میکرد، تماشا میکرد؛ دود سیگار «مایلز»، حلقه وار رو به بالا میرفت؛ او احساس کرد، رطوبت هوا بالا رفته، و هوا سنگین شده است؛ پرندگان زودتر از موعد مقرر، آواز صبحگاهی خود را، سر داده بودند، و چهچه ی آنها، همه جا طنین افکنده بود؛ قایق ماهیگیری کوچکی، از مقابل او رد شد؛ مرد ماهیگیر، برایش دستی تکان داد، و «مایلز» نیز، با تکان دادن سر، جوابش را داد؛ این کل نیرویی بود، که میتوانست در خود جمع کند؛ او به یک فنجان قهوه احتیاج داشت، و آماده بود، که روز خود را با نوشیدن قهوه ی «جاوه»، شروع کند، سپس «جانا» را، به مدرسه برساند، بومیانی را، که قانون را زیر پا میگذاشتند، مهار کند، اخطاریه های دادگاه ناحیه را، به دیوار بچسباند، و به مسائل اجتناب ناپذیر پیش بینی نشده، بپردازد، مانند «ملاقات با آموزگار جانا» در بعد از ظهر همان روز؛ و این تازه اول کار بود؛ شب، تازه برنامه اش سنگینتر میشد؛ همیشه کلی کار بود، که میبایست انجام میگرفت؛ از کارهای خانه گرفته، تا رسیدگی به قبوض، و صورتحسابها، خرید، نظافت، تعمیر وسایل خانه؛ و حتی در لحظاتی نادر که «مایلز» متوجه میشد، کمی وقت آزاد دارد، سعی میکرد، به نحو احسن از آن استفاده کند، وگرنه آن فرصت را هم از دست میداد؛ سر ضرب -به سرعت- مطلبی را برای خواندن پیدا میکرد؛)؛ پایان نقل
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 26/01/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ 23/10/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
A Bend in the Road is the fifth novel by the American author Nicholas Sparks, who also wrote the romance love novels A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, and The Rescue. It was published in 2001.
The story was inspired by Sparks's brother-in-law, Bob. Miles Ryan's life seemed to end the day his wife Missy was killed in a hit-and-run accident two years ago. As deputy sheriff of New Bern, North Carolina, he not only grieves for her and worries about their young son Jonah but longs to bring the unknown driver to justice.
Then Miles meets Sarah Andrews, Jonah's second grade teacher. A young woman recovering from a difficult divorce, Sarah moved to New Bern hoping to start over. Tentatively, Miles and Sarah reach out to each other... soon they are falling in love. But what neither realizes is that they are also bound together by a shocking secret, one that will force them to reexamine everything they believe in- including their love.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز دوم ماه ژانویه سال2003میلادی
عنوان: در پیچ و خم جاده؛ نویسنده: نیکولاس (نیکلاس) اسپارکس؛ مترجم: نفیسه معتکف؛ تهران، لیوسا، سال1381، در460ص، شابک9645634237؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان ایالات متحده امریکا - سده21م
این رمان، داستانی پر التهاب از زندگی زن و مردی است، که رازی خانمان برانداز، زندگی و عشقشان را در سراشیب فروپاشی قرار میدهد؛ از روزی که همسر «مایلز ریان» در سانحه، جان خود را از دست داد، به ظاهر زندگی «مایلز» نیز پایان یافت؛ او در مقام مامور قانون، نه تنها عزادار مرگ همسرش بود، آرزوی دستگیری راننده ناشناسی را نیز، در سر میپروراند؛ سرانجام، «مایلز» با آموزگار پسر خود برخورد میکند، و آنچنان عشقی پرشور میان آن دو شکل میگیرد، که نویسنده در رویدادهای آینده به شور و شوق میپردازد
آغاز متن از کتاب: (صبح روز بیست و نهم از ماه آگوست سال1988میلادی، «مایلز ریان»، که کمی بیش از دو سال، از مرگ همسرش، میگذشت، در ایوان پشتی خانه اش ایستاده بود، و در حالیکه سیگار میکشید، طلوع آهسته ی خورشید را، که آسمان صبحگاه را، از خاکستری دلگیر، به نارنجی تبدیل میکرد، تماشا میکرد؛ دود سیگار «مایلز»، حلقه وار رو به بالا میرفت؛ او احساس کرد، رطوبت هوا بالا رفته، و هوا سنگین شده است؛ پرندگان زودتر از موعد مقرر، آواز صبحگاهی خود را، سر داده بودند، و چهچه ی آنها، همه جا طنین افکنده بود؛ قایق ماهیگیری کوچکی، از مقابل او رد شد؛ مرد ماهیگیر، برایش دستی تکان داد، و «مایلز» نیز، با تکان دادن سر، جوابش را داد؛ این کل نیرویی بود، که میتوانست در خود جمع کند؛ او به یک فنجان قهوه احتیاج داشت، و آماده بود، که روز خود را با نوشیدن قهوه ی «جاوه»، شروع کند، سپس «جانا» را، به مدرسه برساند، بومیانی را، که قانون را زیر پا میگذاشتند، مهار کند، اخطاریه های دادگاه ناحیه را، به دیوار بچسباند، و به مسائل اجتناب ناپذیر پیش بینی نشده، بپردازد، مانند «ملاقات با آموزگار جانا» در بعد از ظهر همان روز؛ و این تازه اول کار بود؛ شب، تازه برنامه اش سنگینتر میشد؛ همیشه کلی کار بود، که میبایست انجام میگرفت؛ از کارهای خانه گرفته، تا رسیدگی به قبوض، و صورتحسابها، خرید، نظافت، تعمیر وسایل خانه؛ و حتی در لحظاتی نادر که «مایلز» متوجه میشد، کمی وقت آزاد دارد، سعی میکرد، به نحو احسن از آن استفاده کند، وگرنه آن فرصت را هم از دست میداد؛ سر ضرب -به سرعت- مطلبی را برای خواندن پیدا میکرد؛)؛ پایان نقل
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 26/01/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ 23/10/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
January 24, 2018
Great read! a romantic storyline with a twist also heartwarming and endearing (paperback!)
March 30, 2020
Sheriff Miles Ryan is a single father to nine year old Jonah. Two years ago Miles’s wife was killed and ever since he has been obsessed with finding out who was responsible for the hit and run which ended his wife’s life and his son without a mother.
When Miles learns Jonah is having difficulty at school, he meets with his teacher Sarah Andrews. Together they discuss the best way to help Jonah through the struggles he is experiencing whilst at school. Whilst helping Jonah Miles and Sarah begin to have feelings for each other and in time their laughter turns to love, but when a secret is uncovered could their feelings for one another change?
Nicholas Sparks is a well known author and his books are enjoyed by many including me. He has a way with words that when you’re reading his books you get a total understanding of the story and you become emotionally invested. What more could a reader need or want in a book? I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone who loves reading.
When Miles learns Jonah is having difficulty at school, he meets with his teacher Sarah Andrews. Together they discuss the best way to help Jonah through the struggles he is experiencing whilst at school. Whilst helping Jonah Miles and Sarah begin to have feelings for each other and in time their laughter turns to love, but when a secret is uncovered could their feelings for one another change?
Nicholas Sparks is a well known author and his books are enjoyed by many including me. He has a way with words that when you’re reading his books you get a total understanding of the story and you become emotionally invested. What more could a reader need or want in a book? I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have no hesitation in recommending this book to anyone who loves reading.
April 27, 2007
This is an awesome book. It has a little bit of romance and a little mystery. It will embed images in your mind that will be hard to escape. Love and forgiveness will have a new meaning in your life. Yes, it does have a little bit of everything. A husband's love, a father's love, a cop in action, romance, mystery... FORGIVENESS! I won't tell you what it is about, because I think you should read it. REALLY!!! Go get it and read it. I never thought a man could write LOVE so well. Love in its purest form.
May 8, 2022
Miles Ryan lives with his son Jonah in a small town in North Carolina. For two years Miles has been suffering from the sudden death of his wife Missy. Jonah's teacher, Sarah, seems to wake Miles up. But Sarah brings the past under a very different light and maybe Miles can put his past behind him after all.
This book was a bit of a hurdle for me. I didn't read it in one sitting, but took a little break because it didn't pull me in. It is a good book by Sparks, but I have read better ones by him. At the beginning it still excited me, but it always goes the same way, the same quarrels and the end, I knew before it even came to the topic......
This book was a bit of a hurdle for me. I didn't read it in one sitting, but took a little break because it didn't pull me in. It is a good book by Sparks, but I have read better ones by him. At the beginning it still excited me, but it always goes the same way, the same quarrels and the end, I knew before it even came to the topic......
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July 31, 2024
RATING 4.5 STARS
A Bend in the Road is a stand alone romantic mystery by Nicholas Sparks. I won this paperback years ago in a giveaway. It kind of got forgotten in the piles of books I have. As part of my personal challenge to read one paperback a month, I finally picked it up and what a wonderful journey it was!
This book is a romance complete with a mystery that will take you on quite a wild ride full of twists and turns.
Miles Ryan is thirty two years old and is the single father to his adorable seven year old son, Jonah. Miles lives in New Bern, North Carolina and is a deputy sheriff. Miles Ryan is a widow. He lost his wife two years ago and the case has never been resolved. Miles has spent two years searching for the answers he needs to move on.
Sarah Andrews is new to New Bern. She moved from a big city after a bad divorce. She is the new second grade teacher for the town’s elementary school. One of her students is having some difficulty so a parent/teacher conference is scheduled. Little did she know that meeting her student’s father was going to change her life.
Miles has not felt anything towards another woman since he lost his wife. But, if he’s honest, lately, he has been lonely and wondered if it was time to try dating again. As soon as he walked into that classroom, he felt it. That chemistry. Sarah felt it too. Watching these two was so adorable. Miles had no idea how to date. But Sarah was patient and was enjoying watching the big bad sheriff flounder a little bit.
But just as these two are finding their footing, things change. Some new information arises on the case and throws Miles into a tailspin. And I was not prepared for those twists and turns. This was such a good book. Sweet and silly at times and serious and heartbreaking at others. Through it all, I grew to love Miles, Sarah and little Jonah. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough at the end to see what was going to happen. I’m so glad I finally read this!
For more about this book and so many others, come and visit me at Carol's Crazy Bookish World.
A Bend in the Road is a stand alone romantic mystery by Nicholas Sparks. I won this paperback years ago in a giveaway. It kind of got forgotten in the piles of books I have. As part of my personal challenge to read one paperback a month, I finally picked it up and what a wonderful journey it was!
This book is a romance complete with a mystery that will take you on quite a wild ride full of twists and turns.
Miles Ryan is thirty two years old and is the single father to his adorable seven year old son, Jonah. Miles lives in New Bern, North Carolina and is a deputy sheriff. Miles Ryan is a widow. He lost his wife two years ago and the case has never been resolved. Miles has spent two years searching for the answers he needs to move on.
Sarah Andrews is new to New Bern. She moved from a big city after a bad divorce. She is the new second grade teacher for the town’s elementary school. One of her students is having some difficulty so a parent/teacher conference is scheduled. Little did she know that meeting her student’s father was going to change her life.
Miles has not felt anything towards another woman since he lost his wife. But, if he’s honest, lately, he has been lonely and wondered if it was time to try dating again. As soon as he walked into that classroom, he felt it. That chemistry. Sarah felt it too. Watching these two was so adorable. Miles had no idea how to date. But Sarah was patient and was enjoying watching the big bad sheriff flounder a little bit.
But just as these two are finding their footing, things change. Some new information arises on the case and throws Miles into a tailspin. And I was not prepared for those twists and turns. This was such a good book. Sweet and silly at times and serious and heartbreaking at others. Through it all, I grew to love Miles, Sarah and little Jonah. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough at the end to see what was going to happen. I’m so glad I finally read this!
For more about this book and so many others, come and visit me at Carol's Crazy Bookish World.
October 8, 2015
Wish I had a dollar for each time a character ran their hands through their hair.
February 3, 2008
Surely the Danielle Steele set must rejoice whenever Sparks churns out a new book. While this was not the worst Sparks book I've ever read (there, I've admitted it - I've read more than one), that is a pretty low bar. I cannot even believe I read this. Not only do I not remember why I picked this book up, I cannot remember the ending. Suggestion: skip this book and save a few hours of your life; put it to good use gardening, playing with your children, or better yet, choosing a good author who doesn't insult your sensibilities with his writing.
February 26, 2017
Más bien un tres y medio tirando a cuatro :)
A veces, sencillamente, lees lo que tu alma necesita en ese momento. Es una comunión única, una lazo invisible que anhela como un suave bálsamo esas palabras escritas, que tus ojos recorren. No voy a decir que esta sea una gran novela, ni que se me ha encogido el corazón, no, pero, como he dicho al principio, una a veces solo necesita una suave ola de calor.
A veces, sencillamente, lees lo que tu alma necesita en ese momento. Es una comunión única, una lazo invisible que anhela como un suave bálsamo esas palabras escritas, que tus ojos recorren. No voy a decir que esta sea una gran novela, ni que se me ha encogido el corazón, no, pero, como he dicho al principio, una a veces solo necesita una suave ola de calor.
July 19, 2011
Opening Line: “On the morning of August 29, 1988, a little more than two years after his wife had passed away, Miles Ryan stood on the back porch of his house, smoking a cigarette, watching as the rising sun slowly changed the morning sky from dusky grey to orange.”
Nicholas Sparks is like comfort food, I always know going in the kind of emotional love story I’m going to get and I can count on being sucked into the lives, loves and heartache of his small town characters. They’re written realistically, I mean I feel like I know them, flaws and all and I usually want to move to whatever town it is he’s describing. Sure sometimes the stories are predictable and I find that the couple de jour spouts the “I love you’s” too soon for my liking or realism’s sake but still his stories are always a pleasure to read, which is what keeps me coming back for more.
A BEND IN THE ROAD was a surprise in that it keeps a sense of mystery going throughout, often leaving the main couples love story and allowing us into the mind of the anonymous “bad guy”. Slowly unravelling their story until the shocking big reveal at the end. I honestly didn’t know how Sparks was going to wrap things up here, his couples doesn’t always end up together and that too added to the mystery.
Sheriff’s deputy Miles Ryan is still struggling to come to terms with the death of his beloved wife in a hit-and-run accident nearly two years ago. High school sweethearts, theirs was a love destined to last and Miles can’t seem to let go of the grief or the fact that as an officer of the law he’s been unable to find the person responsible. If it weren’t for their young son Jonah it’s unlikely that Miles would find the strength to get through the day.
Which brings into play Jonah’s second grade teacher Sarah Andrews. When Jonah begins having trouble keeping up in school Sarah offers to tutor him and a tentative relationship begins to form. Sarah is running away from a bad divorce (is there a good one?) and has a few skeletons in her closet as well. Our couple fall in love pretty fast (from one page to the next) and are just beginning to see a real future together when Miles’ past comes back, tearing everything apart. Unwilling to let go of his dead wife and obsessed with finding her killer and ultimately closure I can honestly say that I was surprised by events I didn’t see coming.
As I hinted at earlier I really enjoyed getting inside the head of the hit-and-run driver and slowly discovering who it was, becoming very sympathetic towards their situation. However I could have done without spending so much time running around with county sheriff Charlie and subsequently the middle parts of this story lagged. Still a recommended read. Cheers!
Nicholas Sparks is like comfort food, I always know going in the kind of emotional love story I’m going to get and I can count on being sucked into the lives, loves and heartache of his small town characters. They’re written realistically, I mean I feel like I know them, flaws and all and I usually want to move to whatever town it is he’s describing. Sure sometimes the stories are predictable and I find that the couple de jour spouts the “I love you’s” too soon for my liking or realism’s sake but still his stories are always a pleasure to read, which is what keeps me coming back for more.
A BEND IN THE ROAD was a surprise in that it keeps a sense of mystery going throughout, often leaving the main couples love story and allowing us into the mind of the anonymous “bad guy”. Slowly unravelling their story until the shocking big reveal at the end. I honestly didn’t know how Sparks was going to wrap things up here, his couples doesn’t always end up together and that too added to the mystery.
Sheriff’s deputy Miles Ryan is still struggling to come to terms with the death of his beloved wife in a hit-and-run accident nearly two years ago. High school sweethearts, theirs was a love destined to last and Miles can’t seem to let go of the grief or the fact that as an officer of the law he’s been unable to find the person responsible. If it weren’t for their young son Jonah it’s unlikely that Miles would find the strength to get through the day.
Which brings into play Jonah’s second grade teacher Sarah Andrews. When Jonah begins having trouble keeping up in school Sarah offers to tutor him and a tentative relationship begins to form. Sarah is running away from a bad divorce (is there a good one?) and has a few skeletons in her closet as well. Our couple fall in love pretty fast (from one page to the next) and are just beginning to see a real future together when Miles’ past comes back, tearing everything apart. Unwilling to let go of his dead wife and obsessed with finding her killer and ultimately closure I can honestly say that I was surprised by events I didn’t see coming.
As I hinted at earlier I really enjoyed getting inside the head of the hit-and-run driver and slowly discovering who it was, becoming very sympathetic towards their situation. However I could have done without spending so much time running around with county sheriff Charlie and subsequently the middle parts of this story lagged. Still a recommended read. Cheers!
January 5, 2009
Some stories don't have happy endings and some do. This one of course can't really have a happy ending because a wife and mother have died. But, this book tells the story of a man's journey through grief, and anyone who has been through the loss of a loved one knows that the pain never ends. Nicholas Sparks did a wonderful job of reminding us of that, it was not a week love story, someone dies, someone else comes along and they live happily ever after. Instead it spoke clearly of the struggle and inner turmoil of a man wanting to get on with his life but never really being able to let go. He had the flashbacks and constant memories that we all have when going through grief. This aspect of the book was excellent and could not be faulted.
Whilst I loved the character of Sarah I struggled to make that emotional connection to Miles. For me I found him to be a little bit of a typical macho kind of guy and that at times annoyed me. I will say however that it is possible that I had this issue because I listened to this book on audio and sometimes the droning of characters can get on your nerves. This is however the reason I gave the book a rating of 3 (although, it would be 3 1/2 if it where possible) and not higher, I just didn't fall in love with the main character the way that I wanted to.
Whilst I loved the character of Sarah I struggled to make that emotional connection to Miles. For me I found him to be a little bit of a typical macho kind of guy and that at times annoyed me. I will say however that it is possible that I had this issue because I listened to this book on audio and sometimes the droning of characters can get on your nerves. This is however the reason I gave the book a rating of 3 (although, it would be 3 1/2 if it where possible) and not higher, I just didn't fall in love with the main character the way that I wanted to.
October 27, 2024
No, nope, just no, this one was not for me. I don't want to give any spoilers but the main character Miles Ryan is just not my cup of tea. There were so many things that were wrong with him and what happened. I would not classify this as a romance but more of a what not to do in so many different ways. I know this book is older and maybe that explains some of the events but it does not justify the type of character that Miles was and how he treated others. It is just not ok. The ending in my opinion did not make up for any of it. Miles has anger issues, is not a good parent, and overall, not a good person. Sarah deserves so much more especially with what she went through with her first husband. I will also say from the get go that having Sarah tutor Miles son for free because she is "such a dedicated teacher," set me on edge from the start. You can be a dedicated teacher and should still be paid for doing extra work. Teachers do not have to work for free to be considered good or dedicated. Getting a fan does not count as compensation. I do like Nicholas Sparks books and I will read more in the future but this book set me on edge and really turned me off. I also have to say that I figured out the twist very early on as well.
February 26, 2023
This is the first book by Nicholas Sparks I have read that wasn’t a 4 or 5 ⭐️.
April 22, 2019
Reviewed on:
My friend, Megan and I decided to do a Nicholas Sparks reading marathon this month and as I was checking my ϻӮ to see which of his books I’d yet to read, A Bend in the Road showed up. I decided to start there only to quickly discover I had read the book before, long before I started tracking my reading with ϻӮ.
Nicholas Sparks was the author to introduce me to the romance genre. I used to read his new books religiously when they came out because he was the only one I knew who could create love stories to give me all the mushy-gushy feels I had grown to love. The North Carolina settings always seemed cozy and welcoming, the characters were loveable, and there was just enough drama to keep it interesting.
Rereading this book made me realize how much I’ve grown as a reader since my Nicholas Sparks superfan days. While his books feature all of the things I mentioned above, all things I still love, many of his books also feature lengthy descriptions of absolutely mundane daily details I don’t have the patience to read about anymore. As a younger reader, these details didn’t bother me, likely due to the fact that I wasn’t living a mundane adult life myself yet. These things were new and novel and added to the romanticism. Unfortunately, A Bend in the Road featured an abundance of mundane and I found myself skimming until I’d find a bit of action taking place again.
Nonetheless, I’m glad I decided to start with A Bend in the Road, if only for the sake of nostalgia. In some ways, it was sad to see how much my reading tastes have changed but in other ways, I’m glad to see the growth I’ve experienced in life. I’m not stagnant and that’s a good thing.
My friend, Megan and I decided to do a Nicholas Sparks reading marathon this month and as I was checking my ϻӮ to see which of his books I’d yet to read, A Bend in the Road showed up. I decided to start there only to quickly discover I had read the book before, long before I started tracking my reading with ϻӮ.
Nicholas Sparks was the author to introduce me to the romance genre. I used to read his new books religiously when they came out because he was the only one I knew who could create love stories to give me all the mushy-gushy feels I had grown to love. The North Carolina settings always seemed cozy and welcoming, the characters were loveable, and there was just enough drama to keep it interesting.
Rereading this book made me realize how much I’ve grown as a reader since my Nicholas Sparks superfan days. While his books feature all of the things I mentioned above, all things I still love, many of his books also feature lengthy descriptions of absolutely mundane daily details I don’t have the patience to read about anymore. As a younger reader, these details didn’t bother me, likely due to the fact that I wasn’t living a mundane adult life myself yet. These things were new and novel and added to the romanticism. Unfortunately, A Bend in the Road featured an abundance of mundane and I found myself skimming until I’d find a bit of action taking place again.
Nonetheless, I’m glad I decided to start with A Bend in the Road, if only for the sake of nostalgia. In some ways, it was sad to see how much my reading tastes have changed but in other ways, I’m glad to see the growth I’ve experienced in life. I’m not stagnant and that’s a good thing.
May 25, 2020
This is the first Nicholas Sparks book I have ever read and honestly it was just Okay!!!!
I expected more from this novel by viewing its rating on goodreads but unfortunately, it wasn’t worth the hype.
This novel revolves around the main character named Miles Ryan who lost his wife to a hit-and-run driver. It takes quite a while for Miles to bring himself out from its grief and gradually begins to think about starting a new life. That’s when he happens to meet Sarah Andrews, who is Miles’s son Jonah’s school teacher. Eventually they begin to develop feelings for one another and soon it blooms into a romantic relationship. However, things get complicated when Miles tries to find out the man behind the wheels who had run over his wife and killed her. He assumes it to be his antagonist Otis Timson. But, subsequently he learns the shocking truth that the driver was none other than Sarah’s brother Brian. These events messes up their relation and the story continues to be serious and kinda depressing.
Well!! The first half of the novel was quite interesting but the second half just deprived to an average level. This is mainly because the character Miles has been portrayed as a sheriff and there are many turn of events where they talk about investigation regarding Miles’s wife Missy accident and criminal charges. Moreover, these scenarios got me wondering whether am I really reading a romance novel. Because this book was giving less of romance and more of a thriller vibe.
However, the epilogue was kinda good because I believe it gave a satisfying ending to the story. Altogether, I liked the book but did not love it.
I expected more from this novel by viewing its rating on goodreads but unfortunately, it wasn’t worth the hype.
This novel revolves around the main character named Miles Ryan who lost his wife to a hit-and-run driver. It takes quite a while for Miles to bring himself out from its grief and gradually begins to think about starting a new life. That’s when he happens to meet Sarah Andrews, who is Miles’s son Jonah’s school teacher. Eventually they begin to develop feelings for one another and soon it blooms into a romantic relationship. However, things get complicated when Miles tries to find out the man behind the wheels who had run over his wife and killed her. He assumes it to be his antagonist Otis Timson. But, subsequently he learns the shocking truth that the driver was none other than Sarah’s brother Brian. These events messes up their relation and the story continues to be serious and kinda depressing.
Well!! The first half of the novel was quite interesting but the second half just deprived to an average level. This is mainly because the character Miles has been portrayed as a sheriff and there are many turn of events where they talk about investigation regarding Miles’s wife Missy accident and criminal charges. Moreover, these scenarios got me wondering whether am I really reading a romance novel. Because this book was giving less of romance and more of a thriller vibe.
However, the epilogue was kinda good because I believe it gave a satisfying ending to the story. Altogether, I liked the book but did not love it.
February 1, 2019
De todas las novelas de Sparks, sin duda, este es el que menos me ha gustado. ¿En los últimos capítulos aparece un tercero en discordia y el epílogo se basa en él? Como poco, sorprendente. Sin duda, Sparks sabe escribir y desenredar lo que enreda con maestría, pero eso no quita que final sorprenda. En fin, deseando leer la próxima.
March 14, 2018
A Bend in the Road is a tragedy and a love story. Miles is the police sheriff who also happens to be a young widower. His wife died in a Hit and Run, which he and Jonah (his kid) are still trying to recover from and deal with. When Miles meets Sarah, Jonah's teacher, he starts to think he could find love again. However, not everything is easy for Miles because he's so obsessed with trying to find his wife's killer.. which could somehow put strain on his new and developing relationship with Sarah.
This book was okay. I mean, I did get completely hooked by it because it is a Nicholas Sparks book.. and somehow this guy writes complete gold every now and then. It was pretty interesting until Miles go crazy.. and then it got weird (to me at least). Plus, every now and then you got a section or a chapter form the killer.. and the entire time I just wanted to know their name!
The relationship between Sarah and Miles was okay. It didn't really blow me away or make me smile like a creepy person. The ending kind of felt rushed to me.. or it just seemed like Miles chose Sarah to make Jonah happier in the end? OR SOMETHING? I don't know.. I'm tired and I need coffee!!
Overall, I liked the book. I guess I had higher expectations or just wanted more than what I got from this book. I'm glad that I read it. I wonder if I can read all of his books this year?? On to the next one!
This book was okay. I mean, I did get completely hooked by it because it is a Nicholas Sparks book.. and somehow this guy writes complete gold every now and then. It was pretty interesting until Miles go crazy.. and then it got weird (to me at least). Plus, every now and then you got a section or a chapter form the killer.. and the entire time I just wanted to know their name!
The relationship between Sarah and Miles was okay. It didn't really blow me away or make me smile like a creepy person. The ending kind of felt rushed to me.. or it just seemed like Miles chose Sarah to make Jonah happier in the end? OR SOMETHING? I don't know.. I'm tired and I need coffee!!
Overall, I liked the book. I guess I had higher expectations or just wanted more than what I got from this book. I'm glad that I read it. I wonder if I can read all of his books this year?? On to the next one!
January 28, 2010
This novel was like reading the Cliff Notes of a epic love story, MINUS the analysis and depth you might find in Cliff Notes and MINUS the well-developed and fascinating characters, settings and dialogue you might find in an epic love story. Based upon my reading of this book, nobody will be reading Nicolas Sparks 100 years from now and I refuse to waste any more of my limited time on Earth reading words slapped together by him and bound under the pretense of actually being a novel.
The SECOND BEST thing about A Bend in the Road is that it was only 368 pages (with medium-large type) and it was over quickly. In spite of this, I'm still surprised I finished it. The few times I did put it down, I threw it down disgusted by his formulaic writing style, predictable plot lines and pathetic dialogue.
The BEST thing about A Bend in the Road is that one month - maybe even one week - from now, I won't be able to remember a damn thing about it. No aspect of this book is memorable and essentially every aspect of it is utterly forgettable.
The SECOND BEST thing about A Bend in the Road is that it was only 368 pages (with medium-large type) and it was over quickly. In spite of this, I'm still surprised I finished it. The few times I did put it down, I threw it down disgusted by his formulaic writing style, predictable plot lines and pathetic dialogue.
The BEST thing about A Bend in the Road is that one month - maybe even one week - from now, I won't be able to remember a damn thing about it. No aspect of this book is memorable and essentially every aspect of it is utterly forgettable.
October 21, 2017
I've never read a Nick Sparks book, but I know people just adore them and I wanted an escapist romance so I picked this one up from the library based on the fact that it was available. I don't know when it was written, but it feels like it was set in the 90s. It's not just the VCR tapes and the fact that no one has a cell phone, it's also the social/cultural feel. For example, Sarah (the love interest) has a mother who seems deeply committed to convincing Sarah to undergo whatever inconvenience she needs in order to snag a man. Or maybe that's timeless? It grated. My main complaint with this story is how heavily it leaned on heteronormative stereotypes. Sarah and Miles do not deter one whit from them, which made them feel shallow and made the novel feel like a morality play for restrictive gender roles rather than a real story.
Miles Ryan is the protagonist, the male love interest, the lead. I hate to call him a hero. He's a tortured soul because he's a single dad whose wife was killed in a hit-and-run accident two years' earlier. He works long hours as a deputy for the sheriff's department. I imagine that we're supposed to admire him because he's a man's man, a silent protector type, given a soft edge by his love for his athletic young son. We know that his son is a properly masculine because he's doing poorly in school, as his father did before him. Miles carries a gun everywhere, likes dive bars, and thinks that shooting birds for amusement is a perfectly reasonable thing for "country" boys to do, as long as they're sparrows rather than owls. He drinks and smokes, but denies the latter and excuses the former because he was so broken up over his wife's death.
His wife, Missy, was beautiful, but of course you knew that, because how would we admire a male love interest who ever lowered himself to marry someone merely pretty. She was also flawlessly feminine. She liked flowers and felt "completely fulfilled" as a stay-at-home mother. This bugged the shit out of me. Even women who really take to that life don't feel "completely fulfilled" at it. That's like wishful thinking on the man's part, and this kind of guilt-trip garbage people foist on women. Like, if you were a proper woman, you'd be fulfilled wiping jam off the duvet cover and cleaning puke out of the carpet and answering "why" for the 19th time in 20 minutes. That's the line of a man who refuses to allow his wife to feel any negative emotions whatsoever. But he's a good dad, so there's that. Probably a crappy husband though. Their last fight was when she asked him to mow the lawn before company came over, and he went fishing instead. Wife-as-manager. And then he felt guilty because she did it instead, and then got defensive. I guess the reader is supposed to feel like "oh, yeah, that's the fight me and my spouse have a lot" but I just thought "what a selfish tool."
So Miles and Sarah meet because Sarah is the teacher for Miles' son, Jonah. And Jonah is a couple of years' behind in school so Sarah is going to tutor him to catch up. Jonah is "smart" so they think he can catch up with just a few months' of tutoring, which makes me think the school district standards must be pretty lax, but whatever. Meet cute. It works. So they alternate tutoring and spend time with each other doing such stupendously fun things as "watching small boys play soccer" and engaging in bland and floundering attempts to flirt. I thought "God, these people are boring."
Sarah, of course, is also flawlessly feminine. Oh, she has one small flaw--she can't get pregnant. She was divorced by her former husband for that fact, and she engages in a lot of hand-wringing about it. Oh, oh, oh, poor her, poor lass, who will ever love a 27-year-old skinny, childless, pretty blonde (of course she's blonde, did you even have to ask?) woman who is so very happy caring for children, so very fulfilled and never frustrated with the stereotypically feminine/care giving profession of schoolteacher? She's like a walking catfish. If she can't get a date, she ain't trying. The only flaw she has is that she's dreadfully dull, which makes her a perfect match for Miles, the equally dull. Missy's hobby was jogging. Sarah's is walking. Guess Miles wanted a woman who was just like his wife, but wasn't as "fast" ha ha. But seriously, she's as deep as a blow-up doll.
Miles and Sarah's courtship rolls along at a respectable speed until we get to the point where Miles realizes he's in love with Sarah and wants to ask her to marry him. But all along the way, Miles is still tortured by his endless quest to find who really killed his wife. He has a folder of two years' of research, which he broods over on occasion. He also harbors a deep enmity with a couple of ne'er do wells in town. The one he hates more is "Otis." When Miles and Otis see each other, they growl and paw the ground and Otis twirls his mustache. Not really, but pretty much.
Then Miles gets some information from an entirely unreliable source (a drunk guy out on probation who desperately wants to stay out of jail) that Otis was the one who killed Missy. Miles, being both violent and stupid, responds to it the way any emotionally stunted, over-privileged man convinced of his moral superiority might--he drives out to Otis' family compound, points a gun at Otis' head and basically treats him like he's LAPD and the guy is Rodney King.
This is the point at which we learn the real identity of the "killer," which is to say, the one driving the car when Missy was hit. Everyone in this novel only gets one (or fewer) traits, and the driver's trait is "guilty and ashamed." This accident is the turning point of the driver's life, and he didn't turn himself in and now it's been two years and he's consumed with remorse. By now, Miles has gone rogue and is utterly convinced that his life-long enemy is also conveniently the one who killed his wife, and he gets himself suspended. But they're looking into Otis again, so the driver of the car decides it's important to turn himself in. He tells Sarah, and they, unwisely, tell Miles.
I say "unwisely" because it's clear to everyone that Miles is a barely-civilized violent asshole. I had heard a rumor that Nicholas Sparks books often end tragically, and I got my hopes up that Miles would snap and start killing people, maybe ending with himself. Because then at least he would suffer a little more, which would make me feel better not the least of which it would give him a little more depth. Miles is furious, accuses Sarah of all kinds of ridiculous things. Basically, Miles feels as though Missy's death was a personal attack against him. Seen from an anthropological perspective, it makes sense. Missy was his property, his property was taken, for the sake of his honor he has to enact violent retribution against the one who did it. His ending speech is all about himself. "She was MY wife. MY wife was taken from ME. You hurt ME and MY child." He cannot accept it is an accident. That doesn't fit into his dickswagger/testosterone poisoning/antler-dance/male posturing worldview. If the driver had been an old lady, the story would have fallen apart.
He confronts the one who did it with a gun and there's universal expectation all around that the expectation is that he'll murder the driver. Because hey, that's what you do, right? If YOUR wife dies in a car accident, you clearly have to murder the driver, because otherwise the other apes will think you're weak. When he finds out a dog was partially responsible, he hunts down and considers killing the dog, except that in that particular culture, dogs rank just under white men and slightly above male children in status. It's not that his behavior was unexpected, it's that it's so typical of the kind of backwards barbaric culture I despise that I kept rooting for Miles to die horribly by his own hand after his family was murdered in front of him. I wanted to chortle wickedly when his world collapsed because of his own foolish pride + inability to maturely handle negative emotions. Hey, a girl can dream, right?
And then later on Sarah and Miles get together after all, which made me slap my face against my palm. But, it was easy to remember she wasn't a real person, because she had no personality. But if she'd had enough depth to make me believe she was a real person, I'd be furious. He violently abuses suspects with no evidence and breaks the law, yet never once questions that he's in the right, even when his best friend throws it in his face. These are the kind of people who commit genocide. The kind of guy who goes on a killing vendetta based on the flimsiest of evidence, the kind of guy who has a gun hidden in case the cops take his others, the kind of guy who demands blood justice for a fucking car accident is not the kind of guy you want to be alone with, even if he does look good with his shirt off. Marry him? Might as well tattoo the number for the domestic violence hotline on your arm, sister. You're gonna need it. And of course Miles never ever forgives the driver, because that would take emotional maturity, which apparently real men don't have. He and Sarah get married and it's twue wuve happy ever after.
I started out giving this two stars, but it's really one and a half. I did want to find out what happened, so the plot was fun, but the characters were cardboard and the only one who had a personality had a despicable one. The writing is kind of simplistic. Sparks repeats anything you may not have picked up on the first time, so it's good for people who want something very easy to read. Hey, sometimes you want that. I think a lot of people like that, otherwise why would Sparks be so popular? There isn't a lot of smut either, though I think the romance was kind of bland. It just plodded along. Even the meet cute was a bit meh. I can't say I recommend it. I kept waiting for it to redeem itself, but it never got really good. It was more like a train wreck where we were expected to root for the bad guy. He's not even a fun psychopath, like Hannibal Lecter, he's just a garden variety, boring as dirt, dumbfuck, redneck, wife-beating, get-my-buddy-the-cop-to-cover-it-up psychopath. I bet the sequel to this is when Miles hunts Sarah down and kills her because Iago told him Sarah was cheating on Miles. You already know Miles doesn't need evidence. It's hard to get less romantic than that.
Miles Ryan is the protagonist, the male love interest, the lead. I hate to call him a hero. He's a tortured soul because he's a single dad whose wife was killed in a hit-and-run accident two years' earlier. He works long hours as a deputy for the sheriff's department. I imagine that we're supposed to admire him because he's a man's man, a silent protector type, given a soft edge by his love for his athletic young son. We know that his son is a properly masculine because he's doing poorly in school, as his father did before him. Miles carries a gun everywhere, likes dive bars, and thinks that shooting birds for amusement is a perfectly reasonable thing for "country" boys to do, as long as they're sparrows rather than owls. He drinks and smokes, but denies the latter and excuses the former because he was so broken up over his wife's death.
His wife, Missy, was beautiful, but of course you knew that, because how would we admire a male love interest who ever lowered himself to marry someone merely pretty. She was also flawlessly feminine. She liked flowers and felt "completely fulfilled" as a stay-at-home mother. This bugged the shit out of me. Even women who really take to that life don't feel "completely fulfilled" at it. That's like wishful thinking on the man's part, and this kind of guilt-trip garbage people foist on women. Like, if you were a proper woman, you'd be fulfilled wiping jam off the duvet cover and cleaning puke out of the carpet and answering "why" for the 19th time in 20 minutes. That's the line of a man who refuses to allow his wife to feel any negative emotions whatsoever. But he's a good dad, so there's that. Probably a crappy husband though. Their last fight was when she asked him to mow the lawn before company came over, and he went fishing instead. Wife-as-manager. And then he felt guilty because she did it instead, and then got defensive. I guess the reader is supposed to feel like "oh, yeah, that's the fight me and my spouse have a lot" but I just thought "what a selfish tool."
So Miles and Sarah meet because Sarah is the teacher for Miles' son, Jonah. And Jonah is a couple of years' behind in school so Sarah is going to tutor him to catch up. Jonah is "smart" so they think he can catch up with just a few months' of tutoring, which makes me think the school district standards must be pretty lax, but whatever. Meet cute. It works. So they alternate tutoring and spend time with each other doing such stupendously fun things as "watching small boys play soccer" and engaging in bland and floundering attempts to flirt. I thought "God, these people are boring."
Sarah, of course, is also flawlessly feminine. Oh, she has one small flaw--she can't get pregnant. She was divorced by her former husband for that fact, and she engages in a lot of hand-wringing about it. Oh, oh, oh, poor her, poor lass, who will ever love a 27-year-old skinny, childless, pretty blonde (of course she's blonde, did you even have to ask?) woman who is so very happy caring for children, so very fulfilled and never frustrated with the stereotypically feminine/care giving profession of schoolteacher? She's like a walking catfish. If she can't get a date, she ain't trying. The only flaw she has is that she's dreadfully dull, which makes her a perfect match for Miles, the equally dull. Missy's hobby was jogging. Sarah's is walking. Guess Miles wanted a woman who was just like his wife, but wasn't as "fast" ha ha. But seriously, she's as deep as a blow-up doll.
Miles and Sarah's courtship rolls along at a respectable speed until we get to the point where Miles realizes he's in love with Sarah and wants to ask her to marry him. But all along the way, Miles is still tortured by his endless quest to find who really killed his wife. He has a folder of two years' of research, which he broods over on occasion. He also harbors a deep enmity with a couple of ne'er do wells in town. The one he hates more is "Otis." When Miles and Otis see each other, they growl and paw the ground and Otis twirls his mustache. Not really, but pretty much.
Then Miles gets some information from an entirely unreliable source (a drunk guy out on probation who desperately wants to stay out of jail) that Otis was the one who killed Missy. Miles, being both violent and stupid, responds to it the way any emotionally stunted, over-privileged man convinced of his moral superiority might--he drives out to Otis' family compound, points a gun at Otis' head and basically treats him like he's LAPD and the guy is Rodney King.
This is the point at which we learn the real identity of the "killer," which is to say, the one driving the car when Missy was hit. Everyone in this novel only gets one (or fewer) traits, and the driver's trait is "guilty and ashamed." This accident is the turning point of the driver's life, and he didn't turn himself in and now it's been two years and he's consumed with remorse. By now, Miles has gone rogue and is utterly convinced that his life-long enemy is also conveniently the one who killed his wife, and he gets himself suspended. But they're looking into Otis again, so the driver of the car decides it's important to turn himself in. He tells Sarah, and they, unwisely, tell Miles.
I say "unwisely" because it's clear to everyone that Miles is a barely-civilized violent asshole. I had heard a rumor that Nicholas Sparks books often end tragically, and I got my hopes up that Miles would snap and start killing people, maybe ending with himself. Because then at least he would suffer a little more, which would make me feel better not the least of which it would give him a little more depth. Miles is furious, accuses Sarah of all kinds of ridiculous things. Basically, Miles feels as though Missy's death was a personal attack against him. Seen from an anthropological perspective, it makes sense. Missy was his property, his property was taken, for the sake of his honor he has to enact violent retribution against the one who did it. His ending speech is all about himself. "She was MY wife. MY wife was taken from ME. You hurt ME and MY child." He cannot accept it is an accident. That doesn't fit into his dickswagger/testosterone poisoning/antler-dance/male posturing worldview. If the driver had been an old lady, the story would have fallen apart.
He confronts the one who did it with a gun and there's universal expectation all around that the expectation is that he'll murder the driver. Because hey, that's what you do, right? If YOUR wife dies in a car accident, you clearly have to murder the driver, because otherwise the other apes will think you're weak. When he finds out a dog was partially responsible, he hunts down and considers killing the dog, except that in that particular culture, dogs rank just under white men and slightly above male children in status. It's not that his behavior was unexpected, it's that it's so typical of the kind of backwards barbaric culture I despise that I kept rooting for Miles to die horribly by his own hand after his family was murdered in front of him. I wanted to chortle wickedly when his world collapsed because of his own foolish pride + inability to maturely handle negative emotions. Hey, a girl can dream, right?
And then later on Sarah and Miles get together after all, which made me slap my face against my palm. But, it was easy to remember she wasn't a real person, because she had no personality. But if she'd had enough depth to make me believe she was a real person, I'd be furious. He violently abuses suspects with no evidence and breaks the law, yet never once questions that he's in the right, even when his best friend throws it in his face. These are the kind of people who commit genocide. The kind of guy who goes on a killing vendetta based on the flimsiest of evidence, the kind of guy who has a gun hidden in case the cops take his others, the kind of guy who demands blood justice for a fucking car accident is not the kind of guy you want to be alone with, even if he does look good with his shirt off. Marry him? Might as well tattoo the number for the domestic violence hotline on your arm, sister. You're gonna need it. And of course Miles never ever forgives the driver, because that would take emotional maturity, which apparently real men don't have. He and Sarah get married and it's twue wuve happy ever after.
I started out giving this two stars, but it's really one and a half. I did want to find out what happened, so the plot was fun, but the characters were cardboard and the only one who had a personality had a despicable one. The writing is kind of simplistic. Sparks repeats anything you may not have picked up on the first time, so it's good for people who want something very easy to read. Hey, sometimes you want that. I think a lot of people like that, otherwise why would Sparks be so popular? There isn't a lot of smut either, though I think the romance was kind of bland. It just plodded along. Even the meet cute was a bit meh. I can't say I recommend it. I kept waiting for it to redeem itself, but it never got really good. It was more like a train wreck where we were expected to root for the bad guy. He's not even a fun psychopath, like Hannibal Lecter, he's just a garden variety, boring as dirt, dumbfuck, redneck, wife-beating, get-my-buddy-the-cop-to-cover-it-up psychopath. I bet the sequel to this is when Miles hunts Sarah down and kills her because Iago told him Sarah was cheating on Miles. You already know Miles doesn't need evidence. It's hard to get less romantic than that.
February 15, 2024
O poveste de dragoste împletită cu o crimă al cărui făptaș a fugit de la locul accidentului.
Pe lângă faptul că este previzibil cine a fost criminalul, "Accidentul" este genul de carte pentru mine care are un personaj principal antipatic. Nu am putut rezona cu Miles care ba o iubește pe Sarah, ba vrea să-și răzbune soția ucisă într-un accident.
Pe lângă faptul că este previzibil cine a fost criminalul, "Accidentul" este genul de carte pentru mine care are un personaj principal antipatic. Nu am putut rezona cu Miles care ba o iubește pe Sarah, ba vrea să-și răzbune soția ucisă într-un accident.
September 17, 2016
3+
Svi znaju za Milesa i Missy. Srednjoškolska ljubav, divan brak i jedan sin, Jonah. No, jednog dana se sve mijenja. Miles ostaje udovac nakon što Missy pronalaze mrtvu pored obližnje ceste. Ne zna se ko je kriv za njenu smrt, a dvije godine nakon toga Miles još uvijek traga za krivcem. Jednog dana se u njegovom životu pojavljuje Sarah, Jonahom učiteljica i on polako kreće dalje... sve dok se ne pojave novi dokazi o počiniocu.
Roman je vrlo jednostavno pisan, ima svega nekoliko likova i radnju koja teče bez nekih pretjeranih obrata. U pojedinim dijelovima romana ubačena su pisma počinioca u kojima on priča svoju stranu priče. Moram reći da sam oko polovine romana znala o kome je riječ, a kada je Sparks napokon otkrio ko je to, nisam se nešto posebno iznenadila :) likovi su prilično mlaki, katakterizacija je mogla biti bolja, pa se zbog toga nisam nešto posebno zbližila sa likovima i njihovim životima. Pozitivna strana ovog romana je pitanje koje otvara: Šta uraditi kada već kao mlad ostaneš bez voljene osobe? Kako preživjeti i krenuti dalje?
Mislim da bi ovaj roman, kao i svi Sparksovi, bio odličan predložak za film. Moram priznati da se on do sada pokazao kao odličan pisac scenarija za filmove, a romana već manje-više. Lijepe su to ljubavne priče, ali u isto vrijeme veoma jednostavne koje u meni ne bude velike emocije.
Svi znaju za Milesa i Missy. Srednjoškolska ljubav, divan brak i jedan sin, Jonah. No, jednog dana se sve mijenja. Miles ostaje udovac nakon što Missy pronalaze mrtvu pored obližnje ceste. Ne zna se ko je kriv za njenu smrt, a dvije godine nakon toga Miles još uvijek traga za krivcem. Jednog dana se u njegovom životu pojavljuje Sarah, Jonahom učiteljica i on polako kreće dalje... sve dok se ne pojave novi dokazi o počiniocu.
Roman je vrlo jednostavno pisan, ima svega nekoliko likova i radnju koja teče bez nekih pretjeranih obrata. U pojedinim dijelovima romana ubačena su pisma počinioca u kojima on priča svoju stranu priče. Moram reći da sam oko polovine romana znala o kome je riječ, a kada je Sparks napokon otkrio ko je to, nisam se nešto posebno iznenadila :) likovi su prilično mlaki, katakterizacija je mogla biti bolja, pa se zbog toga nisam nešto posebno zbližila sa likovima i njihovim životima. Pozitivna strana ovog romana je pitanje koje otvara: Šta uraditi kada već kao mlad ostaneš bez voljene osobe? Kako preživjeti i krenuti dalje?
Mislim da bi ovaj roman, kao i svi Sparksovi, bio odličan predložak za film. Moram priznati da se on do sada pokazao kao odličan pisac scenarija za filmove, a romana već manje-više. Lijepe su to ljubavne priče, ali u isto vrijeme veoma jednostavne koje u meni ne bude velike emocije.
July 25, 2023
For sure, an ease book mostly for romantic ladies: some drama, innocent love, some tears, a bit of action and a happy end. But there are more facts I do not like than positive points:
- the book is at least one hundred pages longer than it should decently be
- the writing is ok, but there is nothing memorable in it, so average is the name of the game
- Otis Timson is an unfinished chapter
- there are not too many main characters more unlikable than Miles: arrogant, selfish, stubborn, dazed, not too smart, no manners to ladies...
- the book is at least one hundred pages longer than it should decently be
- the writing is ok, but there is nothing memorable in it, so average is the name of the game
- Otis Timson is an unfinished chapter
- there are not too many main characters more unlikable than Miles: arrogant, selfish, stubborn, dazed, not too smart, no manners to ladies...
October 6, 2018
This book was a very good book and it was sad because of what happened in the beginning.
July 5, 2019
Meh, nu a fost genul meu de carte, dar a fost genul pe care l-am căutat zilele astea, anume unul care să aibă milă de neuronii mei prăjiți la soare! Miles este un bărbat foarte admirat și respectat în societate, dar, dincolo de asta, este un bărbat îndurerat care și-a pierdut soția în urmă cu doi și de-atunci este bântuit de asta. Nu doar că îi este foarte dor de ea, dar nu își poate găsi liniștea pentru că nu a aflat cine a lovit-o cu mașina. Apoi o cunoaște pe Sarah și după câteva săptămâni simte deja că o iubește. După alte săptămâni se gândește să o ceară de soție. Asta după ce vreme de doi ani nici măcar nu a vrut să meargă la întâlniri. Fix când le mergea mai bine, are loc o întorsătură de situație și ambii sunt nevoiți să facă o alegere care le va schimba viața. Nu scrie așa rău cum mă așteptam, dar nici atât de bine cum am auzit. Personajele sunt simple, dar plăcute, și chiar am râs de câteva ori la replicile lor spirituale, dar sentimentelor atât de intense și subite au scăzut mult din aprecierea mea. Nici nu mă așteptam la cine știe ce roman memorabil, așa că nu pot spune că sunt dezamăgită, deci cred că voi mai citi ceva scris de el când o să am chef de o lectură ușoară.
,,Dar ura adevărată, cea care-ți făcea stomacul să se răsucească, nu era posibilă fără o legătură emoțională.''
,,Dar ura adevărată, cea care-ți făcea stomacul să se răsucească, nu era posibilă fără o legătură emoțională.''
April 10, 2018
typical nicholas spark novel. it could be cut 100 pages shorter. i feel like the story line and the twist were build into nonsense with so many plot holes.
but again, it is nicholas spark. i enjoy it and it took me by surprise that i enjoy it. miles is a confusing character. sarah is facinating and jonah deserves a spin off.
but again, it is nicholas spark. i enjoy it and it took me by surprise that i enjoy it. miles is a confusing character. sarah is facinating and jonah deserves a spin off.
May 11, 2022
Liked everything except the much too convenient way it ended. Definitely felt cheated by the abruptness of the end.
August 29, 2022
it only took me like three months to read 👍
i’m reinvesting myself into the nicholas sparks binge. this one was just so police procedural-y 😭
i’m reinvesting myself into the nicholas sparks binge. this one was just so police procedural-y 😭
February 25, 2022
When you want a trope-driven love story, Nicolas Sparks always delivers. I needed a break and got what I needed. I enjoyed the story and liked having the writer of the story be a character in the story.
January 6, 2018
Mijn eerste kennismaking met Nicholas Sparks en al meteen een schot in de roos. Het boek werd me aangeraden door een vriendin, ook al ben ik meer gericht op thrillers.
Het boek biedt romantiek, maar niet zo zeemzoet, wel met diepe emoties die je echt kunnen raken. Maar toch kan je in het verhaal ook wel wat spanning terug vinden .. hoe dat juist in elkaar zit, ga ik hier niet vertellen ... dat zullen jullie dan maar zelf moeten ontdekken 😉.
Het boek is zeer toegankelijk met een vlotte schrijfstijl en korte hoofdstukken. Ik wou altijd nog net die paar extra pagina's verder lezen ...
Kortom: mijn eerste boek van 2018 is een voltreffer met 5 sterren! Aangenaam verrast!
Het boek biedt romantiek, maar niet zo zeemzoet, wel met diepe emoties die je echt kunnen raken. Maar toch kan je in het verhaal ook wel wat spanning terug vinden .. hoe dat juist in elkaar zit, ga ik hier niet vertellen ... dat zullen jullie dan maar zelf moeten ontdekken 😉.
Het boek is zeer toegankelijk met een vlotte schrijfstijl en korte hoofdstukken. Ik wou altijd nog net die paar extra pagina's verder lezen ...
Kortom: mijn eerste boek van 2018 is een voltreffer met 5 sterren! Aangenaam verrast!
July 12, 2018
“If it’s over, then don’t let the past screw up the rest of your life.”
I read last Sparks book in January, I have watched all the movies and now I am reading books, Yeah cycle is inverted here, There isn’t movie adaption of A bend in the road so I was clueless. It took me 80 pages to feel the Nicholas vibes, It was so different from the other books, MCs were widower and divorcee so this story mostly tackles adults problem which I wasn’t expecting 😐
“grown-ups always say that things are complicated.”
This story also had the fair amount of mystery which I kind of guessed after 80% but still, the mystery was well kept. I personally felt that the mystery eats that typical spark’s romance element, I expected a little bit more.
“Sometimes, things don’t work out the way we want them to.”
Characters were well-defined, I felt for both Miles and Sarah, anyone can get easily connect with Miles and Sarah’s past stories and their struggle, I never felt angry on Miles actions, his actions were justifiable, the writing was as usual beautiful.
I read last Sparks book in January, I have watched all the movies and now I am reading books, Yeah cycle is inverted here, There isn’t movie adaption of A bend in the road so I was clueless. It took me 80 pages to feel the Nicholas vibes, It was so different from the other books, MCs were widower and divorcee so this story mostly tackles adults problem which I wasn’t expecting 😐
“grown-ups always say that things are complicated.”
This story also had the fair amount of mystery which I kind of guessed after 80% but still, the mystery was well kept. I personally felt that the mystery eats that typical spark’s romance element, I expected a little bit more.
“Sometimes, things don’t work out the way we want them to.”
Characters were well-defined, I felt for both Miles and Sarah, anyone can get easily connect with Miles and Sarah’s past stories and their struggle, I never felt angry on Miles actions, his actions were justifiable, the writing was as usual beautiful.
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