Title: True Believer

Author: Nicholas Sparks

Published: 2005

I know what I said after I read At First Sight. I said I was done with Nicholas Sparks. I said that I hated the man and that I was stupid for continually picking up his novels and subjecting myself to the torture of reading them.

But let’s call this a loophole. I didn’t read this novel. I listened to it.

See, during these long commutes between Blacksburg and Floyd, I find that listening to audio books is a good way to help pass the time. Granted, I still feel death’s icy grip as I nearly fall asleep at the wheel early in the morning, but at least I’m getting a taste of fiction while I make that dangerous drive.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a great lover of the music. But all the time I spend driving each week, coupled with the fact that I’m generally dog tired by the end of the school day, takes away the free time I normally would spend reading a good book.

When I found my way to True Believer, I remembered this was the story that took place before At First Sight. So, I figured, why not? After all, I already knew the heart wrenching ending of the second part. The first part must have a pretty happy ending, right?

And, you know, it wasn’t bad. Like with the book I already read, this one was about Jeremy and Lexie. Only this time, it’s about how they met and fell in love. And it kind of explained some of the trust issues that Jeremy has in the second book.

Jeremy is a divorced journalist who has made a career out of debunking myths and legends, especially those pertaining to the paranormal. He gets a letter from a lady in a small North Carolina town about these lights that keep showing up in a local cemetery. Jeremy decides to take the time to check the story out for himself.

Upon arriving in Boone Creek, he’s introduced to Lexi, the librarian and granddaughter of the woman who sent the letter that piqued his initial interest. Jeremy’s smitten from the start, but Lexie doesn’t want anything to do with the guy from New York. She’s not interested in becoming the small town girl who is saved by the boy from the big city.

But, since you know there’s a sequel, you can probably assume they end up together. I hope that wasn’t much of a spoiler. I’m assuming you figured out that since they’re together in the second book, they’d wind up together by the end of the first. Come on, guys, use your brains.

So I’ve decided to give Sparks another shot. I didn’t cry this time. Probably helped that I was too busy focusing on the predawn drive to work to deal with the emotional scenes in the audio book.