w York Times best-seller lists is no guarantee of quality. Nicholas Sparks’ “The Best of Me,” which came out Oct. 11, is No. 1 on both the hardcover fiction list and the combined print & e-book fiction list, but though beautifully written, the tragic romance has a thoroughly disappointing plot.
In “The Best of Me,” former high school sweethearts Dawson and Amanda return to their hometown of Oriental, N.C., for the funeral of their friend Tuck. The two have never lost their love for each other, and as they carry out Tuck’s last wishes together, they find themselves falling for each other all over again.
Sadly, their rekindled romance is complicated by the fact that Dawson is a Cole, a family known for its violence and ruthlessness. He has broken from the family tradition of aggression and law breaking, but his surname haunts him.
Amanda’s parents had resisted her relationship with Dawson because of his family ties, which is why he had ended his relationship with her in the first place. Dawson’s cousins also hunt him the entire time he is in town, putting the pair in danger.
Their romance is even further complicated by the fact that Amanda is married.
The mother of three, Amanda has never loved her husband, Frank, to the extent she loved Dawson, and since Frank has been an alcoholic for 10 years, it becomes that much easier for Amanda to stray from her marriage.
She eventually has an affair with Dawson and even contemplates leaving her husband so that she can be with her true love.
Had Amanda not been married, I might have enjoyed “The Best of Me.” The summary on the inside panel of the book conveniently failed to mention anything about Amanda’s husband, so I thought the novel would be a sweet story of two singles who find their way back to each other years after breaking up.
When I selected “The Best of Me” at the bookstore, I pictured curling up on a couch and sipping a mocha while settling in for a nice break from the dense prose and poetry I have been studying all semester.
However, I was in for a rude awakening.
From the second chapter of the book, I suspected that the protagonists were heading toward adultery, and my suspicions proved correct. Couple marital unfaithfulness with repeated references to drinking and vulgar language, and I found myself slogging through what I had thought would be an easy and pleasant read.
Even if Amanda were not married, the novel would be forgettable.
Sparks’ language and unfolding of the plot are just as masterful, but the story of two old flames who reignite their passion and try to figure out whether they can have a future together seems trite and uncompelling.
In my estimation, “The Best of Me” is not the best of Sparks. To those who enjoy Nicholas Sparks’ writing and were thinking of buying this new release, I would instead suggest revisiting “A Walk to Remember” instead.
