Book Review | Safe Haven

Honestly, I expected a lot from this even though the author pretty much follows the typical love story with an unusual twist and some sort of tragedy thrown in the mix. Being the hopeless romantic that I am, Nicholas Sparks' novels are a must-read. I found out about this from one of my favorite bloggers saying that it has a good story so I made a mental note to check it out and last week, I had a day off, so I thought why not give this book a try.

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.

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.

Its the kind of story that makes you excited and intrigued about what fate awaits each character therefore, you flip the pages through its completion even if the story is kind of predictable. It actually reminds me of the movie "Sleeping With The Enemy" starring Julia Roberts(which is one of best movies in my opinion). Don't get me wrong though, there are many unexpected surprises and twists in the story which makes it unique. Nicholas Sparks did a great work in injecting his signature suspenseful and appealing style, making it his own.
Although, it doesn't involve many romantic moments between Alex and Katie, it compensates on the equally intriguing story of the other characters wchich gives the story more depth.

A little side note: I especially like the part where Katie and Alex had their first date together. Katie prepared the dinner and she served bacon-wrapped brie with raspberry sauce as a starter and the inner foodie in me came alive. Just the thought of it sounds amazingly delicious so I looked up the recipe on the internet, and I found it here. I'm planning on making some of these on Christmas. :)

My rating: 3.5 stars