Huh, look at that. A Nicholas Sparks book where . . . Oops. Guess that's a spoiler. 
 Not that I've read them all, but I wasn't in the mood for bitter sweet, so I was satisfied with the ending. I was wondering how Sparks was going to get this to work out. Reminded me of one of Margaret Maron's books (can't remember which one[ah ha, probably this one: [book:Storm Track|552338]], but the bad guy gets away with it and mother nature takes care of him in a sort of gruesome manner). 
 Man finds a picture of a woman at a county fair while he's in Kuwait. It's his lucky charm, keeping him safe through three tours in Iraq. When he gets home, he heads out to find the woman in the picture. He finds a place in her life, her family and her heart. She's got a little boy, a kooky grandmother, and a crazy ex-husband who happens to be a policeman. 
 I liked how Sparks takes turns looking from each main character's perspective. He's pretty true to each's take on the world. Though, I wonder a bit about Beth's trust in Clayton at the end. Wouldn't you be the least bit suspicious? I think she ought to have given Thibault the benefit of the doubt. But, eh, then it wouldn't be so exciting, right?