"A strong relationship drama"

With her daughter unable to move on from the sudden death of her husband, sixty-year-old Adrienne Willis decides to tell her a true story about how she rebounded from losing her spouse. Fifteen years ago, Adrienne felt her world ended when her husband and father of their three children deserted her for a younger woman. Adrienne knew life was over for a washed up old maid with nothing to offer like she was and wondered what she would do with no one to care for as she always had too much responsibility for nurturing others at the cost of herself.

Adrienne explains that in Rodanthe, North Carolina she met Dr. Paul Flanner, a surgeon with no time for his wife and son as work was everything to him. His world collapsed when a patient died. Paul and Adrienne found solace with one another. Though their love affair healed both of them, they realized that it must be a beautiful memory once they leave this coastal North Carolina town and go back to join the living.

NIGHTS IN RODANTHE is a strong relationship drama starring two likable protagonists who could have been cast as the lead characters in several other Nicholas Sparks' novels. The story line is fun for new fans, but will lose some spark for long time readers, as everything seems inevitable. Why Mr. Sparks used the "flashback" technique to tell his story is never explained, but he still provides a warm tale that readers will appreciate.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted October 9, 2002