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bloomingbookworm's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Terminal illness, Medical content, and Pregnancy
zoe_333's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I loved the book, the story was great and well written. You could really feel yourself there with Maggie. I took away half a star because it was really sad, and a little bit predictable. But I highly recommend it, especially at Christmas time
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Terminal illness, Grief, and Pregnancy
princessblueyes's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I haven’t read a Nicolas Sparks book for a long time, despite him being my of my favorite authors when I was younger. I have heard good things about this one and finally decided to try it. I’m so glad I did. I knew this book would be emotional, but I don’t think I was prepared for the amount of crying I did at the end. Slow start, but I quickly became enthralled with Maggie and Bryce’s story and Maggie and Mark’s relationship. I knew where we were headed for one of the relationships but it still hit me hard. Beautiful story about love.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Toxic relationship
zealandrc's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
It felt like watching a heartfelt movie. So good
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Terminal illness
Minor: War
nickykris's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
This book was SO sad. Almost too sad. Usually even when there’s tragedy in a book, especially with a couple, you can take comfort in knowing that the characters got to experience each others’ love, but I don’t feel like Bryce and Maggie ever got to experience that, at least as adults. There was no redemption in their love story, just both of their lives tragically cut short. Like we couldn’t have given them a little bit of time together before Bryce died? He never even got to see her again after she rejected his proposal 😭 I do appreciate the redemption through her son but for an entire book basically based on Bryce and Maggie I felt very unfulfilled. Still sobbed uncontrollably though.
Also the pacing was soooo slow and it was actually just….very very overly and unnecessarily detailed.
Also the pacing was soooo slow and it was actually just….very very overly and unnecessarily detailed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
siobhanward's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Somehow I made it through the early 2000s without ever having consumed a piece of Nicholas Sparks' media. No movies or books up until now, though I definitely know of a lot of them. And for my first foray into his work, this wasn't bad at all. It was a cute read, definitely predictable and really slow at times, but that didn't diminish my enjoyment. It was definitely cliche, and honestly reminded me a lot of Sarah Dessen's work - and since I love her, that wasn't a bad thing.
I liked Maggie's aunt a lot and I'm glad we got to learn more about her through the book. Her parents were ROUGH to read and I just felt awful for Maggie whenever they were mentioned. Definitely a cute read, not super Christmas-y, but still a fun read for the holidays.
I liked Maggie's aunt a lot and I'm glad we got to learn more about her through the book. Her parents were ROUGH to read and I just felt awful for Maggie whenever they were mentioned. Definitely a cute read, not super Christmas-y, but still a fun read for the holidays.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness and Pregnancy
Moderate: Medical content
Minor: Death and War
ariep's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Really liked it! Not much to say, fun holiday read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, and Dysphoria
Minor: Sexual content, Xenophobia, and War
strawberrymivvy's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I never seek out Nicholas Sparks' books but I always enjoy them, as they can be quite thought-provoking at times, and whilst they are often emotional they don't descend into being mawkish.
A 16 year old Catholic Seattle girl, Maggie, finds herself pregnant and is shipped off to an older aunt, an ex-nun, on a remote island in North Carolina to see out her pregnancy. She meets Bryce, slightly older, and has her first experience of love.
Years later she is terminally ill and tells her story to Mark, a young assistant she's had to take on to help her run her gallery.
I'd be lying if I said there were any surprises in this story, but it unfolded nicely and was an enjoyable Sunday read.
A 16 year old Catholic Seattle girl, Maggie, finds herself pregnant and is shipped off to an older aunt, an ex-nun, on a remote island in North Carolina to see out her pregnancy. She meets Bryce, slightly older, and has her first experience of love.
Years later she is terminally ill and tells her story to Mark, a young assistant she's had to take on to help her run her gallery.
I'd be lying if I said there were any surprises in this story, but it unfolded nicely and was an enjoyable Sunday read.
Content Warnings
Minor: Terminal illness
mariamj's review against another edition
After experiencing a death in the family, this book was too triggering for me. I may try again in the future but for now I'm going to let it be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness
gemin1reader's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
4.0
Typing this while still crying at the ending of this book. A real tear jerker, but a beautiful love story.
The first half of this was a slow read, and sometimes the dialogue felt a bit stilted, but the ending and emotions made up for it.
The first half of this was a slow read, and sometimes the dialogue felt a bit stilted, but the ending and emotions made up for it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Terminal illness, Medical content, Grief, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Fatphobia, Sexual content, Abortion, and War