I recently finished reading Safe Haven by the wonderful Nicholas Sparks, and let me just say that it surprised me.
First of all, it had so many different elements to it. It had some mystery, some suspense, a little thrill, and most importantly, a type of romance that everyone wants.
Katie, the main character, moves from her hometown to a small town in North Crolina called Southport. Her mysterious and spontaneous arrival begins to lift questions about her past and about how she suddenly ended up there.
Katie is pretty determined to avoid any kind of interaction and refrain from forming any personal bonds with people until some events lead her to two special individuals. The first is her neighbour Jo. Jo is easy going, enthusiastic, and a wonderful support system for Katie once she finally decides to open up. Jo, ultimately, helps Katie break out of her a shell a little bit. She becomes a really important person in Katie's life and helps her see that past experiences don't define who she is. The next person we meet is Alex, and let me say, especially to the ladies, that he is the image of the perfect man. Not only is he good looking, but he also compasionate and hard-working. Alex is a widowed store-owner, who is trying to raise two young children, Kristen and Josh, on his own.
Of course, as Katie spends more time in Southport, she lets her guard down and starts putting down roots in the community. She lands herself a job, and gets to know a lot of people. She even starts getting closer to Alex and his children, even though she promised herself that she wouldn't.
Katie has darkness in her past, and it's for this reason that she was reluctant to form relationships with anybody, but with the help of Jo, she realizes that in times of darkness and sorrow, love can be the only true safe haven.
After reading this, my heart literally exploded. This is the kind of relationship that everyone dreams about. Reading this has, of course, caused me to set expectations way too high seeing as people like this only exist in books but I mean, maybe one day I will be as lucky as Katie was.
For anyone who likes those elaborate movie/fairytale relationships, I would HIGHLY recommend this to you. I'll be honest, it was a huge change going from a psychological thriller to a romance, but it was worth it.
From reading this, I learned that love really does conquer all and that everyone should follow their heart. After all, Nicholas Sparks, himself, says "Always follow your heart, because even though it's on your left side, it's always right."
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