review - true believer
“True Believer”
By Nicholas Sparks
(Warner Books)
Nicholas Sparks’ allure is simple. He, like fellow bestseller Mitch Albom, is a part of the growing cadre of writers whose clean style, feel-good message and mildly religious undertones seem catered to America’s Red-State population. His newest book, “True Believer,” doesn’t break that mold.
Investigative journalist and dyed the wool New Yorker Jeremy Marsh is riding a high that culminated in his appearance on Primetime Live when a letter lures him to a small town in North Carolina, asking him to do a piece on their cemetery ghosts. When he arrives, he meets a slew of requisite quirky townspeople, including Doris, the letter writer who has ‘psychic powers’, and Lexie, the violet-eyed librarian with a host of outsider issues. Jeremy’s innate skepticism fills him with doubt, both about Doris and the ghostly lights in the town cemetery, but he can’t help but be drawn to Lexie as she assists him in researching the mystery. It’s no surprise that the two are eventually paired off, and with the help of Doris (who also happens to be Lexie’s grandmother) they both find their happy ending.
There’s nothing groundbreaking about any of Sparks books, and “True Believer” is no different. Most of his characters are one-dimensional representations of small townspeople (the flirtatious waitress, the jealous sheriff who jails outsiders, the over-welcoming and possibly duplicitous mayor, the silent, creepy, innkeeper with a massive taxidermy collection); only Doris manages to escape that distinction. Even Lexie and Jeremy, who are clearly set up as “meant to be” from the outset, don’t seem to have any extra fire – maybe that’s what makes their sole love scene (a pivotal point to set up the saccharine and predictable ending) so painful to read.
The whirlwind romance not only lacks fire, it doesn’t even follow a logical progression. Sure, it has the requisite declarations of love, blowout fight/misunderstanding and joyful reunion necessary in any romance novel, but the character’s motivations, other than their newfound belief in the power of True Love, are almost non-existent. I almost didn't let it bother me, until I realized I had to write a review - and that means most people who read it won't even dwell on the gaping holes at all. Even worse, first half of the book, when the cemetery mystery overpowered the romance factor, actually makes for interesting and compelling reading – making the drawn out revelation even more anti-climactic.
But uninspired writing and a groan inducing ending aren’t going to stop people from flocking to this book. It didn’t even stop me from devouring it in one day, and kind of enjoying it in the process. Sparks' novels are the comfort food of literature. It's kind of like when you REALLY REALLY crave Kraft Mac and Cheese - you wolf it down, knowing full well that you are just eating orange and noodles, but BY GOD, for just a second, it tastes pretty good.
By Nicholas Sparks
(Warner Books)
Nicholas Sparks’ allure is simple. He, like fellow bestseller Mitch Albom, is a part of the growing cadre of writers whose clean style, feel-good message and mildly religious undertones seem catered to America’s Red-State population. His newest book, “True Believer,” doesn’t break that mold.
Investigative journalist and dyed the wool New Yorker Jeremy Marsh is riding a high that culminated in his appearance on Primetime Live when a letter lures him to a small town in North Carolina, asking him to do a piece on their cemetery ghosts. When he arrives, he meets a slew of requisite quirky townspeople, including Doris, the letter writer who has ‘psychic powers’, and Lexie, the violet-eyed librarian with a host of outsider issues. Jeremy’s innate skepticism fills him with doubt, both about Doris and the ghostly lights in the town cemetery, but he can’t help but be drawn to Lexie as she assists him in researching the mystery. It’s no surprise that the two are eventually paired off, and with the help of Doris (who also happens to be Lexie’s grandmother) they both find their happy ending.
There’s nothing groundbreaking about any of Sparks books, and “True Believer” is no different. Most of his characters are one-dimensional representations of small townspeople (the flirtatious waitress, the jealous sheriff who jails outsiders, the over-welcoming and possibly duplicitous mayor, the silent, creepy, innkeeper with a massive taxidermy collection); only Doris manages to escape that distinction. Even Lexie and Jeremy, who are clearly set up as “meant to be” from the outset, don’t seem to have any extra fire – maybe that’s what makes their sole love scene (a pivotal point to set up the saccharine and predictable ending) so painful to read.
The whirlwind romance not only lacks fire, it doesn’t even follow a logical progression. Sure, it has the requisite declarations of love, blowout fight/misunderstanding and joyful reunion necessary in any romance novel, but the character’s motivations, other than their newfound belief in the power of True Love, are almost non-existent. I almost didn't let it bother me, until I realized I had to write a review - and that means most people who read it won't even dwell on the gaping holes at all. Even worse, first half of the book, when the cemetery mystery overpowered the romance factor, actually makes for interesting and compelling reading – making the drawn out revelation even more anti-climactic.
But uninspired writing and a groan inducing ending aren’t going to stop people from flocking to this book. It didn’t even stop me from devouring it in one day, and kind of enjoying it in the process. Sparks' novels are the comfort food of literature. It's kind of like when you REALLY REALLY crave Kraft Mac and Cheese - you wolf it down, knowing full well that you are just eating orange and noodles, but BY GOD, for just a second, it tastes pretty good.
posted by Ann at 12:35 PM
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