“Deputy Keith Clayton hadn’t heard them approach, and up close, he didn’t like the looks of them anymore than he had the first time he’d seen them.”

From Nicholas Sparks’ The Lucky One.

Logan Thibault has finally returned home to America after facing the many dangers of war as a Marine in Iraq.  However, when he makes it home to Colorado, he heads off in search of his lucky charm, an unknown woman in a picture that he found; for reasons that he can’t quite explain, Logan wants to find her and thank her for keeping him alive.  Traveling across the country to North Carolina, Logan and his dog (Zeus) find the woman, Elizabeth, and he is swept up by an instant attraction to the young divorced mother.  While Logan had initially planned to explain himself as soon as he met her, but once the two meet, he can’t bring himself to tell his secret.  Instead, Logan finds himself working for Elizabeth and her grandmother, Nana, at a kennel, despite the great disapproval of Elizabeth’s old money ex-husband, Keith.  As Logan grows closer to Elizabeth and her son, Ben, it only enrages the entitled and manipulative Keith, who moves from just watching Logan to trying to run him out of his ex-wife’s life by any means necessary.  Unable to find the right time to tell Elizabeth about the picture and his real reason for showing up, Logan finds himself struggling between confessing and letting their love develop unhindered.

Sparks has built a career by combining southern life with romance, and this book is no exception, but it is well-written love drama that will appeal to fans of the genre.  While the original story differs slightly from the 2012 movie adaptation, both blend the mystery of the unknown with the power of love to create an intriguing story.  As the story bounces around between characters, the story is able to develop at a steady, but a captivatingly enjoyable pace.  The Lucky One is a quick, easy read that will keep readers engaged until the very end.