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Critic's Corner
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A
BEND in the ROAD Reviewed by: Patricia Ann Jones "Where does a story truly begin? In life, there are seldom clear-cut beginnings, those moments when we can, in looking back, say that everything started. Yet there are moments when fate intersects with our daily lives, setting in motion a sequence of events whose outcome we could never have foreseen." The unknown speaker in the Prologue goes on to say, "This is, above all, a love story, and like so many love stories, the love story of Miles Ryan and Sarah Andrews is rooted in tragedy." From this strange beginning, you know at once you have in your hands another Nicholas Sparks original, a story that could happen in reality as well as in fiction. Love and death are constant companions in Sparks' books, but "A Bend in the Road," is a cut different from Sparks' "The Notebook," "Message in a Bottle," "A Walk to Remember," and "The Rescue." Different in that it gives a story that includes not only love and tragedy, but one filled with guilt and a longing for justice. Another intriguing element is the Prologue speaker who appears off and on throughout the book to enlighten you and lead you deeper into the tale, until-suddenly, it dawns on you the identity of this writer. At that moment, you think you know the rest of the story. You don't! Sheriff Miles Ryan's life shipwrecked on the day his young wife Missy died. Now, at 32- years old with a young son to raise, he feels anger for the hit-and-run driver who left Missy crumpled beside the road. As an officer of the law, he longs for justice, but that probability seems unlikely after two years. Sarah Andrews, after a devastating divorce, leaves Baltimore to teach in New Bern, North Carolina. It is her hope to find peace in this historic town founded in 1710 and situated on the banks of the Neuse and Trent Rivers. Her emotional pain is partially eased by the proximity of her parents, and by a young second-grade student, Jonah Ryan, who after the loss of his mother has faltered in his school work and needs help catching up to his classmates. Through Jonah, Sarah and Miles meet. Both are damaged by the events of their recent pasts, both are in need of someone to love, and both feel the possibility of their ever again finding emotional happiness is about as likely as being struck by lightning. Yet, they meet, and a glimmer of hope turns into something neither of them expected. Other characters in the story are nicely portrayed. Sarah's mother is loving but smothering. Brian, Sarah's younger brother is a nice young man, but shy and not good at meeting people. He is a freshman at UNC. Otis Timson and his scruffy family add an ominous air to the story. These bad boys mean business and their talent is trouble with a Capital "T." The one minor character that caught my fancy was the fragile Miss Harkins who every Halloween relates the tale of two young lovers gone wrong. This story is a haunting foreshadow for what follows. An omen I neither imagined nor thought possible. Sparks includes mystery into his mix of emotions that causes you to ask, does one plus one really equal two? Is it possible mitigating circumstances could make it zero? I wonder. You will, too, once you've read, "A Bend in the Road." "A Bend in the Road" is like a safe harbor compared to the roiling seas that threaten to swamp our own daily lives. This doesn't mean the characters within do not face perils of their own, only that they offer us an opportunity to know the sun will shine again, and the past, no matter how painful, may be overcome. (Jones is a published writer & literary critic) To order this book from Amazon.com, click here: A Bend in the Road |
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Disclaimer
The information compiled on this site is Copyright 1999-2012 by Attard Communications, Inc. and by the individual authors. |
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